Noah felt cold—*bitterly* cold—as he began to stir awake. But the chill was the least of his worries. A crushing weight pressed down on him, suffocating him. He tried to thrash, to move, but the oppressive force was overwhelming. Panic surged through him as he realized he couldn't breathe.
He tried to scream, but his mouth filled with dirt. *Dirt?* His mind raced. *Why am I choking on dirt?* It took a horrifying moment for the truth to sink in—he was buried alive. Or at least, he thought he was. His struggles grew weaker as his lungs burned for air. Just as darkness began to claim him, a faint chime echoed in his mind.
*Ding!*
Noah jolted awake, coughing violently. He sat up, his hands clawing at the cold, hard earth beneath him. His eyes darted around, taking in the dense woods surrounding him. *How did I get here?* he wondered, his heart pounding. "I was buried alive?" he muttered, his voice trembling with disbelief.
*Ding!*
**WELCOME TO THE SUPERNATURAL SYSTEM, HOST NOAH. PLEASE CHECK YOUR INTERFACE.** A voice, calm and mechanical, echoed in his mind.
Noah's head snapped around, searching for the source. "What?! Who's there?!" he demanded, his voice a mix of fear and rage. The memory of being buried alive still burned in his mind.
Suddenly, a pitch-black panel materialized in front of him, its surface so dark it seemed to swallow the light around it. Noah scrambled backward in shock—*way* farther than he should have. He blinked, staring at the distance he'd covered. *Wait, 50 meters?! How did I do that?!*
**HOST NOAH, PLEASE REMAIN CALM. I AM COMMUNICATING WITH YOU MENTALLY. MY NAME IS FREYA, THE SYSTEM'S GUIDANCE SPIRIT.** The voice was firm but soothing, as if trying to ease his panic.
Noah gasped, his mind reeling. *A system? What the hell is going on?*
**YES, HOST NOAH.** The voice responded, startling him again.
"You can hear my thoughts?" Noah asked aloud, his voice shaky.
**YOU FORMULATED A QUESTION IN REFERENCE TO ME, SO OF COURSE I CAN HEAR YOUR THOUGHTS.** The system replied matter-of-factly.
Noah exhaled sharply, trying to steady his racing heart. "Alright, if you're really a system," he said, his voice gaining a hint of determination, "show me my interface."
**CERTAINLY, HOST NOAH.** The system complied.
A translucent screen flickered into view, displaying the following:
---
**THE SUPERNATURAL SYSTEM**
**HOST:** NOAH __________?
**AGE:** 18
**SP:** 0
**EXP:** 0
**LEVEL:** 0
**SEX:** MALE
**STRENGTH:** 110
**SPEED:** 110
**AGILITY:** 110
**ENDURANCE:** 110
**STAMINA:** ???
**SKILLS:**
**SHOP:**
---
Noah stared at the screen, his initial fear giving way to awe. "Wow… it's all real," he whispered, a spark of curiosity igniting within him. *What kind of world have I stumbled into?*