The sky was bleeding.
Not with rain or sunset, but with streaks of black and purple that pulsed like veins in the heavens. Sirens and screams blended into a single nightmare hum. Jack clutched the girl's hand tighter, his bat slick with monster ash. Every breath tasted like metal.
The countdown on his wrist glowed brighter.
> [00:46:59:59] — PHASE ONE INITIATING]
He blinked. The numbers blurred for a second, then shifted into words:
> [Welcome to Phase One. Adapt or perish.]
"What—" he muttered, but the voice cut him off.
> [Warning: Environmental Shift in Progress.]
The air thickened. A shiver ran down his spine. All at once, gravity felt heavier, like someone had draped lead blankets over the city. Cars groaned as suspensions sank. Glass windows cracked.
The little girl whimpered. "It's starting…"
Jack looked at her wrist. Same countdown. Same glow. Same nightmare.
"Stay behind me," he said, trying to sound braver than he felt.
> [System Sync: 15%... 30%...]
"Eve, what's happening?"
> [Dimensional Merge. Partial.]
He wanted to laugh, but it came out a croak. "Dimensional what?"
> [Two worlds overlapping. Phase One introduces Level 1 Zones.]
"Zones? Like—video game levels?"
> [Affirmative.]
"You're telling me Earth's turning into a dungeon?"
> [Analogy acceptable.]
The ground under his feet trembled. A crack split the street like a zipper. Steam hissed out, but the steam was silver. It curled upward and formed vague shapes — animals, faces, things with too many teeth — before dispersing.
Jack backed up. "Oh hell no…"
A horn blared. He turned to see a city bus skidding sideways toward them, driver slumped over the wheel. Jack shoved the girl out of the way and jumped back just as the bus smashed into a streetlight, sparks flying.
From the bus's shattered windows, shadows poured out — not smoke. Creatures. Small, quick, with claws like obsidian knives.
> [Enemies detected: Corruption Spawn Lv.1]
Jack gripped the bat. "Guess we're doing this again."
> [Skill Upgraded: Improvised Strike Lv.2]
Blue light flickered around his hands again. He felt it this time — like static crawling under his skin, warm and cold at once. He swung the bat at the first creature. It cracked like glass and disintegrated.
Two more leapt. He dodged one, slammed the other into the pavement. The girl screamed but stayed low behind a mailbox.
"Don't look!" he shouted.
Another spawn leapt at his back. Before he could turn, a glowing barrier flared for an instant around his body. The creature hit it and exploded into ash.
He blinked. "What the—Eve, did you do that?"
> [Passive Defense Skill Unlocked: Reactive Barrier Lv.1]
He stared at his glowing hands. "I'm getting skills just by… fighting?"
> [Affirmative.]
"Great. Awesome. Totally normal."
A much louder noise cut through the chaos — like metal scraping over concrete. Jack turned. The bus was tilting. No, something under the bus was lifting it. A massive hand, black as tar, with claws as long as his arm, curled around the chassis and flung it aside like a toy.
The thing that crawled out wasn't small. It was as tall as a two-story building, humanoid but twisted, with armor-like skin and a face like a shattered mask.
The girl gasped. "It's huge…"
Jack's legs felt like water. "Eve…?"
> [Designation: Unknown Entity (Mini-Boss). Power Level: B-Rank.]
"B-Rank?! And what am I, Level One?"
> [Affirmative.]
He cursed under his breath. "You've got to be kidding me…"
The creature roared. The sound shattered windows and made his ears ring. It turned its broken mask-face toward them and lunged.
Jack grabbed the girl and ran. His sneakers slipped on broken glass. The monster's claw slammed down where they'd been, leaving a crater.
"Any tips?!" he yelled.
> [Survive.]
"Thanks a lot!"
He dove behind an overturned car as the monster swung again. The car crumpled like a soda can. Shards of metal rained down. Jack pulled the girl close. His heart was a jackhammer.
"Why is this happening?" she whispered.
He didn't know what to say. Because some system no one understands decided to turn Earth into a battlefield? Because gods are bored? Because the universe hates him?
He gritted his teeth. "I don't know. But I'm not letting it take you."
Blue light flared around his arms again. This time it didn't fade. It built, humming, vibrating the bat in his grip. A notification flickered.
> [Hidden Skill Triggered: Guardian's Resolve Lv.1]
He felt a surge of strength, like the air itself pushing him forward. The monster swung. Jack leapt sideways, rolled, came up running, and slammed the bat into its knee. Blue sparks erupted. The monster actually stumbled.
It roared, turning on him.
> [Damage: 50 HP. Enemy HP: 1850/1900]
Jack stared. "It has a health bar?!"
> [Affirmative.]
The monster lunged. Jack ran, ducking under its claw, bat glowing brighter. He swung again at its arm. More sparks. More ash.
It roared louder.
> [Damage: 60 HP. Enemy HP: 1790/1900]
He was panting, muscles burning, but a strange clarity cut through his panic. He could see its movements a split-second before they happened, like instincts sharpening.
"Is that another skill?!"
> [Battle Sense Lv.1 acquired.]
He almost laughed. "At this rate I'm gonna be Batman."
The girl peeked from behind the car. "Jack!"
"Stay down!" he shouted.
The monster raised both claws. Jack braced himself, but a blinding flash split the sky. Thunder boomed — except it wasn't thunder. A spear of light stabbed down from nowhere, hitting the monster square in the chest. It howled, smoke pouring from its wound.
Jack shielded his eyes. "What the—"
Something moved atop a nearby rooftop — a silhouette of a person with a glowing weapon, too far to see clearly. The figure raised a hand, and a second spear of light formed.
Jack blinked. "Who the hell…"
Before he could finish, the figure vanished, dissolving like mist.
The monster stumbled, injured but not dead. It roared and began retreating, dragging itself back toward a crack in the air. Then it was gone, melting into the fissure.
Silence crashed down, broken only by distant screams and sirens.
Jack's hands were shaking so badly he nearly dropped the bat. The girl crawled out and hugged him, trembling.
> [Quest Complete: Protect the Child.]
> [Reward: ??? Skill acquired.]
A new notification appeared:
> [Unlocked: Hidden Questline — "The Ascendant's Path."]
Jack stared. "Ascendant's Path…?"
The countdown ticked.
> [00:46:30:00]
Still hours to go.
He slumped against the car, exhausted. "Eve…"
> [Online.]
"That thing on the roof—who was it?"
> [Unknown.]
"Of course…"
He closed his eyes. "You're cold, you know that?"
> [Acknowledged.]
Something like static passed through the link between them, a tiny flicker — not warmth exactly, but less ice. It vanished before he could grasp it.
He exhaled. "We need to get somewhere safe. Somewhere out of sight."
> [Recommendation: Find System Shelter.]
"What's that?"
> [Phase One has opened safe zones for compatible users. Location: 1.2 km northeast.]
He picked up the girl. "Then let's go."
They started moving through the ruined street. Around them, people fought, screamed, or collapsed in despair. Some wrists glowed. Some didn't. The cracks in the sky stretched wider.
Jack glanced up. For a moment, he thought he saw an eye looking through the fissure again — golden, unblinking. Watching him.
His stomach churned. "Whatever's out there… it's not done yet."
> [Correct.]
They walked on, toward the unknown shelter. As they turned a corner, a massive shadow passed over them, blotting out the sun. Jack looked up.
A shape drifted across the sky — not a plane, not a bird. Something like a floating citadel, jagged and dark, engines humming. Smaller shapes flew around it like drones.
The girl gasped. "Is that a… castle?"
Jack's grip tightened. "It's a warship."
Eve's voice, still cool:
> [Designation: Mech-City "Elyndor." Origin: Unknown.]
He swallowed. "Elyndor…"
The countdown kept ticking.
> [00:46:28:17]