2015
Fifteen years have passed since the rise of a new era.
Monsters appeared, and the ones who could catch them were called the hunters.
'I should retire.'
Was the first thing Patrick thought of when waking up.
He was now 36.
'Go find myself a wife, marry, have children, wouldn't that be nice?'
At the age of 21, he dropped out of college to pursue being a hunter, many of his friends thought he was nonsensical, until the monsters started knocking on their doors and came back begging him for help.
On his bed, Patrick reminisced as he looked over to a shelf on his side, on the shelf was a glass container, and in it was a medal.
'World's Strongest Man'
Granted by the President of the United States himself, it was the recognition of all his accomplishments at the time. The amount of human lives he saved was said to be in the hundreds of millions.
"But it's not my era anymore." He shook his head as he scoffed out a laugh.
Back then, the world's powers were in turmoil, anyone that was not a great power was struggling to cope with monsters that could only be killed by a missile warhead. Hunters like him were running around trying to control the damages like headless flies.
Sea travel was hit especially hard. It was still fine on land, but the ocean was basically infested and controlled by monsters. Any ship that isn't made out of military-grade steel couldn't travel beyond shallow waters; causing the global trade to disintegrate into fuck all, and leading the world's economy into a great depression.
It was only after the majority of the sea monsters starved from lack of existing food chains did the shipping industry recover.
Getting out of bed, the robust man stretched his back and switched on the news channel.
"...Yesterday…..a car accident happened at.....a hunter convention.....this puppy is playing piano….."
The world was entering a peaceful period once again, while the number of monsters was still rising, the number of awakened hunters was also growing at a rapid pace.
The reporter continued to read out news in the background as he stepped into the kitchen to prepare breakfast for the morning.
'Maybe I should try a dating app, timber, was it?' He pondered as he continued to make sunny side up eggs on a stove.
Sizzle.
'What should I put on my profile though-wait' BANG! He almost shattered the pan he was holding as he realized something important.
"I don't have any retirement money." Cold sweat started to run down his back.
Of course, he saved up, and being the strongest hunter didn't come without great rewards.
It was just that…
"I can't use mana." Just the word itself sent a sharp pain down his spine.
Mana is the universal powersource of hunters, whether for spells or special skills; it could be said that a hunter without mana isn't a hunter at all.
Being one of the first superhumans in recorded history, Patrick wasn't able to realize the importance of mana before it was too late. Back then, the study of superpowers just wasn't as advanced as today. And even if he knew, there still wasn't any method of artificial mana injection during his era.
The result is that, despite his perfect record of subjugation, less and less people came to hire him because of the collateral damages he causes. In fact, many times he had to pay for the damages out of his own pocket.
'Wait, I'm not the only one from the first era, I'm still fine, right?' He quickly consoled himself.
Patrick then started to count with his left hand.
'Let's see, that guy owns a guild...the other one has a successor and a dojo...one comes from a rich lineage....the old hag started a business…'
He was left with a fist.
"..."
It was at this moment, monsters all around the world suddenly turned their heads as they heard a transmission from a higher frequency.
"FUCK MY ASSHOLE"