...
Twenty-four years ago. Six years after the appearance of the gate that destroyed the world.
That night, a commotion was heard in a simple house.
Amidst the commotion, a boy who appeared to be only eight years old was kicked out of his house by the adults.
Whether it was his parents or not, no one knows, because no one witnessed the incident.
The boy, who had fallen face down, struggled to get up. His body and face were injured.
The boy limped to a fairly dark corner.
He sat there, curled up, enduring the pain in his body and heart.
In the cold night wind. In that dark corner, no one approached him, no one asked how he was, no one cared about him.
As he remained huddled there alone, the sky began to thunder and rain began to fall.
He was at a loss for where to find shelter.
He didn't try to knock on the door, because he knew he wouldn't be allowed in.
The boy decided to find shelter from a shop or an empty house porch.
Unfortunately, the heavy rain caused water to pool and the road became slippery.
The boy slipped and fell. His already injured body, coupled with the impact of the fall, caused him pain, making it difficult for him to stand up.
The boy, still lying on the ground, looked up at the sky.
The sky was dark, with nothing to see. Only the rain continued to wet his face.
The wounds on his face ached, and his entire body ached. His dead-looking purple eyes began to radiate something.
Sadness.
Tears began to flow, accompanied by the rain that washed over him, making it impossible for anyone to see it.
Just as he was about to close his eyes and give up on life, a black umbrella sheltered him from the pouring rain.
His violet eyes reflected the shadow of a man.
"Why are you sleeping here?"
With a cold voice.
...
South of the city of Lumiville, in the Terania Sea. One of the largest oceans in the nation of Luminaria.
Above that vast blue sea, a mysterious gate has appeared.
A terrifying gate that releases monsters from another dimension when it opens.
It's still unclear what it is, where it came from, and how it appeared in this world.
Everyone calls it the 'Dimensional Gate.'
The gates are divided into two colors, red and black.
The red gate releases monsters such as goblins, orcs, lizards, and others. The monsters from the red gate can be defeated with weapons and physical strength.
Then there's the black gate. Unlike the red gate, the monsters released by the black gate are undead, skeletons, and zombies.
The monsters from the black gate can't always be defeated with physical strength.
They can be eliminated with holy power. Unfortunately, not everyone possesses holy power.
Fortunately, they have a weakness to fire.
To completely eliminate the monsters from the black gate, they must burn them to ashes.
For the past thirty years, every gate that has appeared has been strangely inaccessible to anyone.
The gates simply open and release the monsters within.
Just before opening, the gates will show signs of cracks.
These cracks allow soldiers to prepare to confront the monsters before they spread uncontrollably.
Once a certain number of monsters within the gate are defeated, the cracks in the gate will increase.
Once all the monsters emerging from the gate have been defeated, the gate will begin to collapse, crumbling into dust and vanishing into thin air.
Thirty years ago, the strange and terrifying monsters emerging from those gates nearly destroyed the world.
Where the gates will appear, and what color they will be, is still unpredictable.
However, with existing technology, at least when a gate appears somewhere and before it opens, residents can receive advance warning and evacuate.
The gates are always colored red and black.
["Report! There's a strange change occurring at the red gate over the Terania Sea!"]
As dawn broke, a violent tremor shook the area around the Terania Sea.
The soldiers on guard immediately monitored the situation.
In these thirty years, gates appearing in the sea are very rare and perhaps one could say almost never.
The last time the Gate appeared in the ocean was twelve years ago.
Although the monsters struggled, surrounded by seawater, monsters were still monsters. Somehow, they managed to survive and even reach land.
The soldiers' long-range shooting speed was still not too fast for the monsters to move.
The soldiers were forced to lure and fight the monsters on land. Although many lives were lost, victory still favored the humans.
The Gate, which had remained unchanged from its first appearance until now, was now undergoing a transformation.
Along with a violent tremor that shook the ground, a sudden downpour fell.
The torrential rain obscured the soldiers' vision, and the tremors made it difficult for them to stand upright.
But even so, they didn't take their eyes off the terrifying gate standing firmly above the ocean.
The gate began to emit a strange aura.
The barely visible light of dawn was obscured by black clouds.
Lightning began to flash. The wind picked up.
The blood-red color that had enveloped the gate began to change.
A new color began to cover it.
Blue.
One that resembled the ocean.
The soldiers who witnessed this phenomenon trembled with fear.
The unprecedented change in the gate's color, and the unknown of what kind of monster would emerge from it.
They were all terrified. They were all worried.
They began to wonder, would the destruction of the world begin anew?
But even so, they still tried to stand.
Even though their legs were shaking, they remained standing.
Even though their hands were losing strength, they still held on to their weapons.
Even though their eyes were shaking, they still tried to see.
They all steadfastly faced this terrible disaster.
"Everyone, stay where you are! Ready your weapons! Don't be afraid! Because we will all succeed!" Said Alpha Squad Captain, Anser Edward, to his crew on board.
The original plan was for them to monitor the sea gate using drones. Anser Edward volunteered to lead the reconnaissance.
However, reconnaissance from drones alone was ineffective.
They wouldn't know the true situation from the screen. The sense of danger, and other strange things, couldn't be revealed just from the monitor.
Anser Edward was awakened with a power that could strengthen his entire body.
Therefore, he became more skilled in close-quarters combat than with a rifle.
Although it looks dangerous, with Anser's skills, that's no problem.
Not only has his body become stronger, but his instincts have also become sharper than those of others.
Therefore, Anser volunteered to monitor the gate directly. He and several of his personnel set sail on a patrol boat and headed as close as possible to the gate's appearance.
Although not very close, the sight of the giant gate sent shivers down their spines.
Unlike the usual gates they encountered, there was something strange about this one. Anser knew it.
He ordered them to circle around approximately five kilometers from the gate.
From that distance, it was enough to see if there were any cracks in the gate. Although curious, Anser wasn't foolish enough to approach the unknown gate.
Although the darkness of the night made it a little difficult for them to see their surroundings, it didn't deter them.
After hours of wandering around until almost dawn and finding nothing else unusual, Anser decided to return to base.
However, just as they were about to return, the ocean waves suddenly began to rise and rock the patrol boat.
Anser spontaneously turned his gaze to the red gate.
The gate began to tremble, with a strange aura beginning to overflow.
Along with the change in weather, the red gate's color was slowly being eclipsed by another color.
This was something no one had ever expected.
The gate began to be covered in a blue hue like the ocean.
It stood firmly there, as if it were the gateway to an ocean kingdom.
But it wasn't a pretty sight.
"Quick! Maximize the ship's engine speed!" Anser shouted as he felt the ocean waves begin to churn.
He and his crew struggled to stay afloat on the ship, rocked by the violent waves. They had to reach land as quickly as possible.
Even with their strength, fighting on unstable waters would still be difficult. But before they encountered the monsters, they had to at least survive these waves.
Although there were no visible cracks in the blue gate, they couldn't let their guard down.
Even a color change could occur, it was possible the gate could open without any cracks.
"Hold on, everyone! We're almost there!"
Anser shouted to his crew, who were starting to panic.
Although the soldiers possessed power, they were still mere humans.
They would undoubtedly feel fear.
But even so, they had to hold on.
Because with their strength, the world might be saved.