One day before the apocalypse.
It was afternoon.
The sunlight filtered from the outside, passing through the windows into their house, giving a warm, quiet glow.
The television was off—no music, just silence.
A peaceful silence.
Lucian, Lia, and Sera were sitting on the couch in the living room.
Seraphina was reading a book, something she had been doing a lot lately.
Lia was sprawled lazily on the couch, scrolling through reels on her phone, her chuckles filling the room every now and then, while Lucian surfed through the internet, trying to find any information to see if anything unusual was happening these days.
He read murder cases, missing reports, and anything else he could find.
Suddenly, he thought of something.
"Lia, Mom." He called out, turning towards them.
Both of them looked at him, questioning.
"I'll be going out after dinner today."
Their brows furrowed slightly, but they nodded.
It wasn't new; Lucian sometimes went out late at night, but he never gave them a proper reason.
So they knew that asking him about it was useless.
"When will you be back?" Seraphina asked gently.
Lucian contemplated telling them, but finally decided to be honest after thinking for a while.
They waited for his answer, not disturbing him.
Finally, he answered.
"Maybe tomorrow morning. I'm not sure."
Lia frowned.
"What?"
She instantly sat up, dropping her phone aside.
"What do you mean by tomorrow morning?" she demanded.
"Where are you even going to stay for that long?" she asked, frustration clear in her voice.
"Are you meeting someone? Is it work? Since when did you have work that keeps you out so late at night?"
It was fine if he went out for some time—but for that long?
When they asked him before, he just said that he had some work, but never explained anything properly.
Lucian sighed, seeing her reaction.
He should've expected this.
"Lucian," Seraphina called softly.
He turned towards her.
"Will you be alright?" she asked.
She didn't ask why or where he was going, since she could tell that he wasn't going to tell them.
"I will. I promise."
That was enough.
Seraphina nodded. That was all she needed.
She didn't know why, but she felt an urge to stop him from going out. Yet she knew she couldn't—not when she saw him so determined, as if it was something important.
Even though she was curious and worried about him, she decided to trust him.
"Then, be careful." She said quietly.
Lia clenched her jaw.
"But can't you at least tell us where you will be going?" she asked, her voice lowered in concern.
Before Lucian could respond, Seraphina spoke.
"It's no use, Lia," she sighed as she ran her fingers over the edge of her book.
"He won't tell us."
Lucian smiled faintly.
"You know me too well, Mom."
Seraphina shot him a sharp look.
"Don't sweet-talk me, son. I am not falling for your words."
"Don't worry," Lucian chuckled softly.
"I'll tell you everything someday."
Seraphina nodded, relieved.
Her tensed shoulders eased a little.
Lia clicked her tongue and looked away.
She didn't like him being so secretive. It felt as if he was doing something dangerous.
***
At night, 10:00 PM.
"I'm heading out," Lucian said as he stood near the door, dressed in dark coloured clothes, with a bag slung over his shoulder.
Seraphina approached him immediately.
"Call us by morning if you're going to be late," She said, worry etched across her face as she gently held his cheeks.
Lucian leaned into her touch and smiled.
"Don't worry, Mom. I'll be back soon."
Then, as if remembering something important, he added,
"Close the doors. And don't open them if it is not me,"
Both Seraphina and Lia frowned—but nodded anyway.
Lucian turned, opened the door, and stepped out.
The night air was cool.
He checked the trunk of his car, making sure everything was in place, then got in and drove away.
Tomorrow, the apocalypse would begin.
As the city lights passed by, a familiar voice echoed in his mind.
[Couldn't you have stayed home? You would've been safe there.]
"I could, but I want to get stronger as fast as possible. And I know a place where the apocalypse started first."
The only problem was that the place was far away from here.
[What about your mother and sister?]
Lucian fell silent for a moment.
"They will be fine. I bought a house in an area where monsters won't appear for at least a few days."
He knew he couldn't rely on just that. There was no guarantee that things would go the same as they did in the past.
He knew that.
But that was all he could do for now.
Even though he said they would be fine, he was still worried.
He had told them to call if anything felt wrong—but that alone might make them even more anxious.
To them, his behavior was suspicious.
It felt like Lucian might be involved in some illegal work, but he had already told them that wasn't the case.
By the time he reached his location, it was 11:30 PM.
He parked his car and sat there for a while, trying to calm his nerves.
"Akasha, show me my status."
A familiar blue screen flickered before his eyes.
[STATUS]
Name – Lucian Foster
Race – Human
Rank – [LOCKED]
Titles – [LOCKED]
Bloodline – ??? (Dormant, Sealed)
Affinity – [LOCKED]
Talent – [LOCKED]
[Attributes]
Strength – 8➝9
Agility – 8➝9
Constitution – 9
Intelligence – 8
Will – 9➝10
Perception – 5➝6
Charm – 8
Stamina – 9
Mana – [LOCKED]
Attribute Points (AP) – 8
— — —
Looking at his status, Lucian sighed in relief.
His lips curled to a small, proud smile.
[Good job.] Akasha congratulated him, her voice carrying a hint of approval.
By now, all his physical stats were at 9, which was a great feat to accomplish in just two years—all by himself.
"Show me the quest you gave me back then," Lucian said.
[Oh, right. That quest.]
Two years ago, she had given him a quest. A quest he had requested because he wanted to do something by himself.
The screen shifted.
[Quest: No Pain No Gain]
Objective:
– Increase all your physical stats on your own.
– Minimum of 6 for all physical stats.
Reward: +10 AP
Bonus Objective(Optional):
– Reach all physical stats to a minimum of 9.
Bonus Reward: +10 AP, ??
Difficulty: D+
Time Limit: The start of the Apocalypse.
Failure: -2 to all stats.
[Time remaining: 23 minutes.]
His gaze lingered on the bonus reward.
On the question marks.
The unknown reward was far more interesting than the stats.
Akasha had added it a year ago, mentioning that it was a skill, though he still didn't fully understand what skills truly were.
His [Minor Pain Resistance] allowed him to ignore minor pain, and when he once asked Akasha about skills, she had explained—
[Skills are formed from your traits, bloodline, and sometimes are innate. You can learn them—like your Minor Pain Resistance. Unique skills exist as well, but they are extremely rare. You'll understand more as you grow stronger.]
Shaking off his thoughts, Lucian stepped out of his car.
Looking around, he could barely see many people.
The area was quiet.
A few dim streetlights flickered.
This place was secluded—not entirely, but not many people lived here.
And this was the place where monsters first started appearing.
He slung a bag over his shoulder and checked the items inside to see if he had everything necessary.
He wanted a gun too, but he didn't have a license, and it was too difficult to buy one.
And he wasn't interested in being arrested just when the apocalypse started.
Pulling on a black hoodie, he covered his face with a mask. He didn't want to be recognized—or draw attention.
(And no, it is not a full face mask. It's just like the masks we wore during the pandemic.)
He just stood outside, leaning on his car, waiting for something to happen.
11:40 PM
The weather started turning windy. The air felt heavier. Lucian could feel that something had changed, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.
11:59 PM
Still nothing.
Then—
A strange sensation crawled up his spine. Lucian slowly looked toward the sky.
RUMBLE!~ RUMBLE!~
Lightning cracked through the sky.
"It might start to rain."
Just as he said that—
[Ding!~]
A chime echoed in his mind.
[You have completed the Quest: No Pain No Gain]
[You have completed the main objective.]
[You have been rewarded 10 AP.]
[You have completed the bonus objective.]
[You have been rewarded 10 AP.]
[You have obtained the Skill: Basic Analysis.]
Lucian stared at the messages.
"Analysis?"
[Basic Analysis]
– Displays registered identity data (name, race, bloodline, rank).
– Shows only information officially recorded by the System.
– Cannot perceive skills, hidden traits, or concealed data.
[Note: May not function on beings significantly stronger than the user.]
"So… basically, it shows me their status window?"
[More or less.]
Lucian's eyes widened.
It was truly a good skill.
"Show me my skills."
[Skills]
Minor Pain Resistance, Basic Analysis
[Unique Skills]
???
[These are all the skills you have.]
Lucian froze.
His eyes widened as he saw the last part.
"Why are there question marks. And… didn't you say that Unique skills were very rare?"
[Yes.]
"Then—"
Before he could finish, Akasha interrupted.
[Because you, too, are unique.] she said softly.
Lucian took a moment to understand.
'Is it because of my bloodline?' he asked internally.
[Hm.] She just hummed, not denying or agreeing.
He frowned, thinking about something.
'Then are you…' He didn't finish his thought, but Akasha understood.
He had always wondered why he had the system, but—
[Lucian.] Akasha called him gently.
[Don't overthink. Focus on your task right now.]
Lucian blinked.
'Right.'
He didn't have time for that.
Suddenly, the ground trembled slightly.
It wasn't much, but he felt it.
"Finally."
A wide smile crept up his face.
The time had come.