The sky froze at exactly 3:17 PM.
Adrian Vance noticed it because of the wind.
Or rather—
The lack of it.
One second, the city was alive—cars moving, people talking, heat rising from the pavement.
The next…
Everything stopped.
Mid-step.
Mid-breath.
Mid-life.
Adrian stood alone in a world that had suddenly gone silent.
"…What the hell?"
His voice echoed strangely, like it didn't belong in reality anymore.
Above him, the clouds glitched.
Not moved—glitched.
Like a corrupted video struggling to load.
His grip tightened around his phone.
"Okay… this isn't normal."
A high-pitched ringing pierced the air.
Sharp.
Violent.
Unavoidable.
Adrian dropped his phone, clutching his head.
"Ghh—!"
[SYSTEM INITIALIZING…]
A blue screen appeared in front of him.
Floating.
Unreal.
Yet undeniable.
Adrian stared at it, breath shaking.
"…No way."
[WORLD RESTRUCTURE IN PROGRESS]
[DUNGEONS HAVE BEEN DEPLOYED]
[ALL HUMANS WILL NOW BE EVALUATED]
His stomach dropped.
"Evaluated…?"
The word barely left his mouth when—
Reality shattered.
The sky fractured like glass.
Cracks spread across the air itself, splitting open into massive black voids.
Gates.
Dozens of them.
No—
Hundreds.
The moment time resumed—
Everything went to hell.
Screams.
Crashes.
Chaos.
"What is that?!"
"RUN!! RUN!!"
Adrian turned just in time to see something fall from one of the gates above.
A creature.
Tall.
Distorted.
Its body looked burned, its skin cracked with glowing red veins. Its mouth stretched too wide, filled with jagged teeth that didn't belong to anything human.
[MONSTER DETECTED: RAVAGER]
Adrian's breath hitched.
"…You've got to be kidding me."
The Ravager moved.
Inhuman speed.
A man nearby didn't even get the chance to react before—
CRUNCH.
Blood sprayed across the pavement.
Adrian froze.
His legs refused to move.
Move.
MOVE!
But fear chained him in place.
The Ravager turned.
Its glowing eyes locked onto him.
[HOSTILE TARGET ACQUIRED]
Adrian's chest tightened.
"…So this is how I die."
The creature crouched.
Then lunged.
And time slowed.
[ERROR DETECTED]
[UNREGISTERED VARIABLE FOUND]
[FORCING SYSTEM INSTALLATION…]
"What—?"
[CONGRATULATIONS]
[YOU HAVE BEEN SELECTED AS A "ZERO USER"]
Pain exploded in his skull.
Adrian collapsed to his knees, gasping.
"AAAAAGH—!!"
Information flooded his mind.
Numbers.
Stats.
Skills.
A system.
[WELCOME, USER ADRIAN VANCE]
[LEVEL: 0]
[CLASS: NONE]
[HP: 10/10]
[STATUS: CRITICALLY WEAK]
"…Seriously?"
Even now—he almost laughed.
But the Ravager was still coming.
Five meters.
Four.
Three—
[STARTER SKILL UNLOCKED]
[SKILL: "IMPROVISE" (LV.1)]
[DESCRIPTION: Turn anything into a weapon—barely.]
Adrian's eyes sharpened.
"Anything…?"
His hand moved on instinct.
He grabbed the nearest object—
A broken metal rod from a collapsed signpost.
The Ravager lunged.
Adrian stepped forward.
CLANG!
The rod slammed into the monster's head.
The impact sent a shock through his arms—
But it worked.
The Ravager staggered.
Adrian froze for a split second.
"…It worked?"
[CRITICAL HIT]
Something inside him shifted.
Fear didn't disappear—
It changed.
Focused.
Sharpened.
Turned into action.
He swung again.
Harder.
CRACK!
Again.
Faster.
SMASH!
Again.
Relentless.
Until—
[ENEMY DEFEATED]
The Ravager's body collapsed… then dissolved into black fragments.
Gone.
Just like that.
Adrian stood there, breathing heavily, staring at the empty space.
"I… killed it."
[LEVEL UP]
[LEVEL: 0 → 1]
Warmth spread through his body.
His fatigue vanished.
His senses sharpened.
He felt—
Stronger.
Adrian slowly looked up.
The sky was still filled with gates.
More monsters were falling.
More people were screaming.
This wasn't a one-time event.
This was the beginning.
[NEW OBJECTIVES]
→ SURVIVE
→ GROW STRONGER
→ UNCOVER THE TRUTH
Adrian clenched the metal rod in his hand.
His fear was still there.
But it no longer controlled him.
"…Fine."
His voice was steady now.
Cold.
Determined.
"If this world wants a game…"
He looked toward the next street—
Where more screams echoed.
"…then I'll play."
Far above—
Beyond the broken sky—
Something observed him.
[NOTICE]
[A "ZERO USER" HAS BEEN ACTIVATED]
[INTEREST LEVEL: RISING]
And just like that—
The system had found its player.