Whoosh
A man in his mid-twenties strolled down the busy street, dressed in casual attire. The vibrant scene was alive with the sounds of bustling cars and the glow of streetlights illuminating his path.
The air buzzed with the energy of city life, as people hurried by and the evening ambiance wrapped around him.
The smoke from passing cars and the warm gusts of wind brushed against his skin.
"Another day wasted," he thought, glancing around. The man had fair skin, dark circles under his eyes, and stood tall, his figure slightly hunched as if the weight of the day pressed down on him.
"I often find myself daydreaming about going back in time to make different choices that could brighten my future," he sighed, a hint of regret in his voice. "Forgive me..."
He looked down at his shoes while walking, the sound of their soles tapping on the concrete filling the air.
Tap Tap Tap
He kept walking, but his dull expression suddenly shifted to one of surprise.
He was surprised to find he was walking on grass, and the sounds of cars and the smell of smoke had faded away.
He stopped and looked around, realizing he was suddenly in a forest, which was surprising since forests were rare in his time.
"What...? Is this some kind of new virtual reality prank?" he said, recalling a trending joke where drones create fake environments to confuse and scare people, only to reveal it was just an illusion.
He looked up and searched for drones, but there were none. The fresh smell of grass filled his nose, and he could hear the soft rustle of the grass in the wind. The sky was dark, with no light in sight.
He looked around with a calm expression, though his heart was beating a bit faster than before.
"Please stop the prank; this is getting on my nerves!" he said in a loud voice, but there was no response.
He thought it must still be a prank, reminding himself not to underestimate technology.
A few minutes later, the sky grew darker, heavy clouds rolling in as the first drops of rain began to fall. The sound of raindrops hitting the leaves filled the air.
He glanced up, feeling the rain drench him as it fell from the darkening sky. Quickly, he dashed toward the nearest tree, hoping to find some shelter.
"What's going on?" he exclaimed, frustration and confusion mingling in his voice as he tried to make sense of his strange surroundings.
Believing this was all a dream, he dashed forward without a clear direction, repeating to himself, "Wake up, wake up!" as panic began to rise within him.
As he ran, he suddenly slipped and fell, his head hitting the ground, though not too hard.
He fainted.
...
A rush of information flooded his mind, revealing snippets of the world's history and insights about his own identity. Confusion swirled as he struggled to piece it all together.
Shaa.. Shaaa
The rain continued to pour relentlessly, and the information Seo Ryun received seemed straight out of a fiction. He was in disbelief, no longer certain of what was real.
The rain kept pouring down, cold and unrelenting, soaking everything in its path. Seo Ryun stood frozen, staring at the information he'd just received, still processing it.
"Am I... A god? Or... A human?
It felt like something straight out of a novel—too unreal to believe. His mind couldn't wrap around it, and a deep sense of disbelief settled in. He wasn't sure what was real anymore, his thoughts tangled and confused.
The more he tried to make sense of it, the harder it became to tell what was true and what was just a fantasy.
The memories that flooded his mind were brief, yet undeniable. Seo Ryun knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that they were real.
He wasn't just any ordinary person anymore—he had become the reincarnation of the God of Humanity in this world. The weight of that truth hit him like a thunderclap. Humanity itself was teetering on the brink of extinction, and it was now his responsibility to save them.
Squelch
Soon, the sound of galloping hooves echoed through the rain, their rhythm heavy and urgent as they pounded against the wet, muddy ground.
Seo Ryun froze, his eyes scanning the rain-drenched landscape. The sound of galloping hooves grew louder, pounding against the wet ground with an urgency that sent chills down his spine.
Yet, no matter how hard he looked, he couldn't see where it was coming from, leaving him bewildered and uneasy.
An old man riding a horse suddenly appeared through the thick rain, his movements swift and deliberate. Before Seo Ryun could react, the man grabbed him firmly, hoisting him onto the horse's back.
Seo Ryun struggled to climb up, his hands instinctively clutching the old man's drenched cloak for support. After a few tense moments, he finally managed to settle into the seat behind the rider, his body shifting until he found a somewhat comfortable position on the swaying horse.
Seo Ryun had no idea what was happening, but he couldn't stop himself from awkwardly struggling to stay on the horse. This was his first time riding, and it showed.
The constant jolting and uneven rhythm left him out of sync with the horse's movements. His grip tightened on the old man's cloak as he tried to find his balance, but every misstep sent a jarring pain through his body.
His lower back and butt ached from the relentless bouncing, and he gritted his teeth, frustrated that he couldn't match the horse's rhythm.
After a few minutes of riding, the horse slowed to a stop, and Seo Ryun took a moment to catch his breath. The rain had eased into a light drizzle, its relentless rhythm now a faint whisper against the ground.
Soon, the sound of more hooves approached, and behind the old man, a group of horses emerged from the mist. There were at least thirteen of them, each carrying two riders, their silhouettes stark against the fading rain.