Year 2025, London, England.
The cathedral stood tall against the foggy night, its spires piercing the heavens. Deep underground, in a damp and frigid dungeon, a woman walked cautiously. Her name was Chloe, an undercover agent investigating the disappearance of a young girl.
The scent of wet stone and iron lingered in the air. Her heartbeat quickened when she heard the sound of chains dragging. Following the noise, her eyes adjusted to the darkness and found something unexpected:
A man.
He lay on the ground, dressed in filthy rags. His hair was long and unkempt, his overgrown beard concealing part of his face. But what caught Chloe's attention the most was his expression—calm, as if he were merely resting.
She broke the silence:
— "What are you doing down here? You must have committed something terrible to be the Church's only prisoner."
The man opened his golden eyes and looked at her lazily.
— "Honestly? Nothing. I just showed up here and got locked up."
Chloe raised an eyebrow.
— "And you didn't even try to explain yourself?"
— "Why would I?" He yawned. "I have food, a bed… What else do I need?"
His indifference was absurd. This was not the behavior of a typical prisoner.
— "Have you seen anyone else brought here?" she asked.
The man tilted his head, thinking.
— "I've been here for two days. They only come to bring me food. But…" He looked at the floor. "I sense a presence downstairs. There's mana down there."
— "And you weren't concerned about that?!"
— "I didn't sense any other presence besides hers. If she's alive, she's safe… for now."
Chloe took a deep breath. At least the girl still had a chance.
— "My name is Chloe."
— "Interesting," he replied, without giving his own name.
She realized pushing for answers was pointless and prepared to go downstairs. But before she could, he warned her:
— "Hurry. Company's coming."
The way he said it sent a chill down her spine.
She rushed down to the lower level and found the missing girl—Asuna, unconscious, her body marked with ritual symbols. Carrying her over her shoulders, Chloe hurried back.
When she reached the dungeon, the man was looking up, bored.
— "Soldiers are coming. A lot of them."
Chloe heard the footsteps echoing through the stone stairway. Her chest tightened.
— "We're surrounded!"
The man stretched his arms and stood up slowly.
— "Then let's make an exit."
He clenched his fist and struck the ceiling.
The impact was brutal. The ground trembled, cracks spread, and in an instant, the stone exploded upward, revealing the night sky.
As the dust settled, Chloe realized where they were—standing in the cathedral's inner courtyard.
And waiting for them were three imposing figures.
The Church's Bishop, clad in golden robes, with a cruel smile on his face. At his sides, two knights in towering armor.
Chloe's heart sank.
— "Damn it… Those are the two strongest knights in England."
The Bishop chuckled.
— "Well, well… If it isn't our special prisoner. What's your plan? Escape with an intruder and a heretic?"
The man smiled nonchalantly.
— "Thanks for the hospitality, but I think I'll take these ladies for a little walk outside."
The Bishop laughed.
— "You have no chance. The man beside me is the Lightning Knight. The fastest warrior in Europe. You'll be dead before you even notice."
The man smirked.
— "Interesting. Let's see about that."
The Bishop gave the order:
— "Kill them."
The Lightning Knight vanished. Chloe's eyes widened—he was too fast to track. A silver blur streaked around the man, growing faster and faster.
— "You're already dead. You just don't know it yet," the knight boasted.
A sharp impact echoed.
The blur stopped.
Chloe blinked. The Lightning Knight stood still—but something was wrong. His body was still running… but his head was in the prisoner's hands.
The knight's lifeless body staggered before crashing into a wall, leaving a bloody smear.
The man held the severed head and spoke calmly:
— "If that was the fastest, I suggest you start praying, Bishop."
The Bishop paled.
— "Attack!"
He and the second knight began casting spells. Lightning bolts and fireballs surged toward the man, exploding around him. But when the smoke cleared… he was still standing.
Untouched.
— "If you keep defending, this will go nowhere!" the Bishop shouted. "Besides, you have no mana. How do you plan to attack from a distance?"
The man sighed.
— "True… But that's only because you can't see my mana."
He raised his hand and removed a black ring from his finger.
In that instant, the world was bathed in golden light.
The ground shook, windows shattered, cathedral bells rang on their own. The sky turned gold for a moment.
Across the world, thousands of people collapsed unconscious.
The Bishop fell to his knees, vomiting blood. Chloe lost her strength and threw up. The second knight began convulsing.
And then… the light vanished.
The man had put the ring back on.
He walked over to the trembling Bishop and retrieved a small vial from another ring on his other hand.
Pouring a shimmering liquid over the Bishop, his condition stabilized.
The man crouched and smiled.
— "You only felt my mana… and you already collapsed?"
The Bishop was drenched in sweat.
Then he looked closer at the man's hands.
The rings.
And in that moment, he realized who stood before him.
Fear overtook his face.
— "N-no… It can't be… How did a monster like you end up in this era?!"
The man grinned.
— "It's not nice to spread people's secrets."
Before the Bishop could react, a chill ran through his throat.
And then… his head rolled across the ground.
With the threat neutralized, the man walked over to Chloe, who was still dazed. He placed a hand on Asuna's head, healing her wounds and removing the ritual markings. The young girl, frail and malnourished, was partially restored but remained weak, asleep.
Chloe struggled to stand and looked at the man.
— "Come with me. I don't live far."
He looked at her and nodded, maintaining the same impassive calm.
Post-Credits: Volume 1 – Chapter 1
The golden mana, now visible to all, spread across the world like an unstoppable tide, leaving its mark everywhere.
In the United States, deep in an underground lab, red alarms blared as data spiked erratically.
— "What the hell was that?!" A suited man, visibly tense, stared at the screens in shock.
— "An unprecedented magical energy surge!" a scientist shouted, typing frantically. "Source: London, England!"
The agency director, pale, whispered as he read the graphs:
— "This isn't just magic… This is a cataclysm."
A new monster had awakened.