Max opened his eyes and found a transparent screen floating before him. He blinked several times, trying to make sure it wasn't an illusion.
Panic set in as he realized he was in an unfamiliar place. Empty seats stretched into the darkness, and the metal poles swayed slightly as if the train was moving.
He pressed his forehead against the cold glass of the window, hoping for answers, but outside there was only shadow.
He looked around again. The carriage was completely empty. Not a single person. The silence pressed against his ears, making his chest tighten.
Worry and fear gnawed at him as he tried to remember how he had gotten here. His mind was blank.
Max was an ordinary man with an enviable life. He had graduated from a good university, worked a stable job, and was engaged to the woman he had loved since college. His future was bright, simple, secure.
Max was dumbfounded. He could not remember anything after falling asleep, yet when he opened his eyes, a transparent screen floated silently before him.
The screen glowed faintly, and words slowly etched themselves across it:
The moment he read the words, a terrible pain erupted in his head. It felt as if countless nails were being hammered straight into his skull.
His body shook uncontrollably, his back drenched in cold sweat, while his breath came rough and uneven.
Horrifying fragments of memory forced themselves into his mind, dragging him into a reality he could barely comprehend.
This world, still called Earth, was drowned in chaos and infested with monsters. A supreme race ruled from above, treating humanity as nothing more than pieces on a board. Human children were not raised by their parents but by machines and alien caretakers inside massive shelters floating in space. At the age of sixteen, before they even reached adulthood,they were cast down to Earth.
It was never for mercy. It was never for training. It was a game!
The trial was a cruel game to break their boredom. Children were left in a world where monsters prowled every shadow, where death could strike at any step.
To prevent humanity from being wiped out in an instant, each child was forced through Mana Awakening.
From this awakening came a Status Panel, a glowing tab that revealed their skills, and potential. It gave them strength to resist, to survive, and to fight back.
Yet this gift was not out of kindness. It was only to make the struggle more entertaining for the rulers who watched.
Still, there was a path forward. Among the countless who perished, there were rare survivors—those who endured, adapted, and rose above the despair.
The stronger they became, the greater their chances of breaking free.
The strongest among them were given the chance to change their future, to leave this broken Earth behind, and to enter a higher world where true power meant freedom and the real game began.
The Max Eisenwald of this world had just turned sixteen and was about to begin his trial.
But instead, the Max of another Earth had been thrown into his body.
Max knew at once this was not reincarnation.
He had not simply inherited someone else's memories, he had transmigrated. He remembered his life from his old world clearly, but of this shattered Earth, he knew very little.
He stared at the floating screen, his expression heavy with despair.
As if to mark the beginning of his trial, the subway lights above flickered, then died with a sharp crack. Darkness swallowed the carriage, pressing down like a suffocating shroud.
Then came the sound.
SCREEECH—!
A long, piercing screech tore through the silence as metal was ripped apart. The echo of claws scraping against steel rang through the empty subway, growing closer with every second.
"Haah!"
Max was alarmed as he stared into the darkness where the sound had come from.
The next moment, the lights flickered weakly, allowing him to catch a glimpse of the carriage. The screeching of sharp claws dragging against the metal suddenly stopped.
His eyes shifted to the door that connected to the next carriage. Deep scars were carved into its surface, proof of something trying to force its way in.
Without realizing it, Max leaned closer and peered through the cracks of the door. The moment he looked, every hair on his body stood on end. A cold numbness spread through him as his eyes caught a glimpse of what was beyond.
A purple-skinned face stared back at him. Its eyes were pure white, empty of life, and below them stretched a massive mouth lined with rows of jagged, saw-like teeth.
It was standing right outside the door.
there.
Max was horrified and tried to run, but he tripped and slammed onto the floor. Gasping, he scrambled back to his feet and sprinted in the opposite direction. He reached the nearest door connecting to the next carriage, pushed it open, and slipped inside before slamming it shut behind him.
He didn't dare look back. Panic drove him forward as he ran toward the distant door at the far end of the carriage.
When he reached it, he pushed and pulled with all his strength, but the door didn't budge an inch.
Frustration surged. He slammed his fists against it, rammed it with his shoulder, and kicked it repeatedly, but no matter how hard he tried, the door refused to open.
The carriage lights flickered, casting fleeting shadows along the walls.
Then came the sound—SCREEECH—the shrill scrape of claws tearing against metal echoed through the subway. Max's heart raced so violently he thought it would explode out of his chest.
A moment later, an inhuman roar thundered through the carriage. It was no sound a human throat could ever produce. The roar shook his very bones, and Max's soul seemed to shiver in terror. His entire body broke out in goosebumps.
"Damn it! Why the hell won't it open?!" he shouted, his voice cracking with fear and anger.
The carriage was dim, but not without light. The outlines of the seats, the swaying poles, and the narrow aisle were all visible to him.
Then came another sound, the screech of metal being torn apart. The door behind him was being ripped open.
Moments later, the dreadful scrape of claws echoed across the floor, the sound of sharp talons dragging slowly against steel as the thing advanced into the carriage.
Max screamed inside his head. What the hell! I'm done! I'm gonna die! I'm gonna die… He didn't dare shout aloud, fearing that any sound would draw the monster's attention and hasten his death.
The creature was already moving toward him. Its sharp talons scraped against the floor, leaving faint, sinister marks.
Suddenly, the door slid open on its own, and Max's ears perked at the sound. The carriage lights flickered, and in that brief flash, the horrifying monster appeared in the doorway.
The monster stood five feet tall. Its purple skin stretched over a muscular frame, two stark white eyes staring without emotion, and a mouth filled with razor-sharp teeth. In place of ears, swollen, fleshy protrusions jutted from its head. Its long, curved claws gleamed in the dim light, and just by looking at them, anyone could imagine how easily they could tear a person to pieces.
Max felt his scalp go numb as fear rooted him to the spot. Despite its terrifying appearance, the creature didn't move. It stood like a statue in the carriage, silent and unmoving. For a moment, Max's mind went completely blank.
He was just a normal guy. In his life, he had worked hard for what he wanted. Nothing extraordinary, just a good education, a stable job, and a fiancée he was set to marry next year.
He had never imagined, not even in his wildest dreams, that he would be transmigrated into a chaotic world filled with monsters and unknown, powerful beings.
Max shook off the paralysis. He focused on the monster, noticing that it hadn't made any aggressive move. He didn't let his guard down, instead observing it carefully, trying to understand its behavior and anticipate its next action.