"Oppa, is something the matter? You seem anxious."
Samantha Morgath asked; the two of them were now walking up to the second floor of the apartment complex where they lived after Lucian Morgath, her sole and precious brother, was discharged from the hospital.
However, for some reason, Samantha sensed the uneasiness from her brother's breathing; it's similar to a scenario where a person felt like they were being chased by someone in the dark and they could not pinpoint exactly the one doing the chase.
Only that there's an ominous presence.
"Hah. Of course, I'm anxious. I'm breaking a new shell and entering the life of an awakener, you see. Anyway, why didn't we take the elevator?"
Lucian tried to divert the conversation, but his mind was in utter turmoil, unable to comprehend his current predicament.
Damn... Is being an awakener more like a curse rather than a blessing? Or was it simply because of my class?
He didn't know if he was hallucinating at the hospital when the supposed nurse told him exactly about the matters regarding his sister; from having a duty, and that she would arrive.
Come to think of it. I was groggy and didn't take a look at her as my thoughts were filled with how this turned out to be another inconvenience.
If not for the nurse, the real one came in late because of some lazy doctor, at least based on her very lips, Lucian wouldn't have come up with the idea that he had just unintentionally conversed with the ghost of a girl in white clothes.
Added to that, what made him certain was due to one of the traits he had acquired upon awakening as the Eternal-Class Necromancer.
Trait: [ Sense Death ]
Description: [You are closer to shadows of death than ever. You will smell the foul stench of blood and death from afar, and you will see what others simply cannot despite having eyes to do so. What you can recognize, you can communicate with.]
"Tsk. Just like how you take your time, I'd like to take mine too; so stairs it is. That being said, from now on, move that body of yours instead of being holed up in your room gaming all day long."
Samantha's words snapped him out of his little reverie; they arrived at the apartment she bought for them that barely scratched her current entire net worth as an S-rank Awakener of the Phantasm Clan.
Finding themselves seated side by side in a lotus position at a small table filled with evening hot delicacies such as ramen, with their gazes on the television delivering the news about the current lingering trend regarding the 13th Eternal-Class Awakener, Lucian couldn't help but speak.
"Samantha, can you tell me about your favorite manhwa? You know, that guy who was blessed by the so-called system that attempted to control him but failed miserably."
If Lucian was a hardcore gamer, then his sister, Samantha, was an avid reader. In fact, it was officially recorded in the continuing history of the Era of Heaven that webnovels and manhwas, along with other pieces of related literature regarding status windows and systems, had helped some of the first-generation awakeners to adapt to the sudden change of the world.
It was ridiculous, at least from Lucian's perspective, because he was merely an eleven-year-old boy at that time; he couldn't grasp how the product of human imagination seemed to have come to life or merged with reality.
"Ah, you mean the weakest hunter of all mankind? The one who became the lone Necromancer?"
That certain story was Samantha's favorite; she had already nagged her brother before on certain occasions. According to her, this particular story heralded the way for countless readers to read manhwas related to the system.
"Yes, that's the one."
Lucian answered. But then, Samantha glanced at him for a moment with questioning eyes.
"Why did you suddenly become interested in this famous story, Oppa?"
"Ah—?"
Lucian swallowed his saliva; it was indeed suspicious. After ignoring her all this time when she told or asked him about certain stories, asking her suddenly about this matter was unusual.
Of course, he at least prepared a reasonable excuse.
"Well, I just awakened, you know? You told me before that some of the first-generation awakeners quickly adapted when the [ Heaven System ] integrated into our world, right? But I am not like them, I don't know how to navigate this system."
"..."
"So maybe, I can get some insight based on your favorite manhwa."
Listening to her brother, even if he had any underlying reason, Samantha couldn't help but put on a smile. For once, at least their mundane interest aligned.
"All right!"
As Samantha gulped a glass of water, she continued.
"Listen to me, brother."
Lucian attentively listened as the manhwa story about a certain Necromancer came out of his sister's lips; she sounded enthusiastic throughout this time.
According to the story, the main character was the weakest awakener of all mankind even among F-rank; also, those who raided dungeons were called Hunters.
But everything changed when suddenly, the main character, along with his party, discovered a so-called double dungeon.
"A double dungeon?"
"Yes, Oppa. It's like a dungeon within the dungeon itself."
The legendary story then continued as the two of them seemed to have forgotten the fleeting seconds that turned to minutes, and minutes that turned into an hour or two.
"So, in the end, the once weakest hunter, who became the Shadow Monarch, killed the other Monarchs with his Shadow Army after an arduous and exhausting long war."
Lucian pondered, hearing the fantasy story that evoked a sense of struggle, which initially began as simply as following the guide from the system to destroying and making it his own.
"Unfortunately, unlike the system in the story, the [ Heaven System ] isn't all that generous, and shadows aren't exactly favorable in today's world."
Lucian understood what his sister meant.
Currently, around the third quarter of the whole world is inhabitable because of the looming mysterious veil of shadow that swallowed the world.
Geographically speaking, the entire West, more than half of China, and Russia, including the concurrent countries, had already fallen into total darkness and corruption due to the unexplained phenomenon known as the Shadow Wave.
It's a semi-annual event occurring once every six months, but with the sudden awakening of the 13th Eternal-Class Awakener, the days before the next one, which was a month or two away, were extended.
"The gains during the Shadow Wave are abundant, right?"
Lucian asked, prompting his sister to stroke her chin.
"Indeed. There's a high chance for monsters, especially the Bosses, to drop high-ranked equipment and materials. Also, it's when various quests about subjugation and securing are given to every awakener regardless of their Class Grade, which has corresponding rewards after the wave."
"..."
Samantha then glanced at her brother.
"I advised you, Oppa, to not join the 19th Shadow Wave. It's extremely dangerous. And because you won't tell me your Class and its grade, which is understandable since it's the most private information an awakener must keep—"
At that moment, Lucian casually blurted out.
"My class is actually a Necromancer, and I'm the 13th Eternal-Class Awakener."
Samantha glared at him, who reached for a drink before returning her gaze.
In the next second...
"Hahaha!"
"HAHAHA!"
The two of them laughed heartily.
"Oppa! That's a funny joke! You asked me to tell you a story about the Necromancer then you suddenly told me you've become one, and the 13th Eternal-Class at that?!"
I knew she wouldn't believe it.
Sometimes, being straightforward was the key to avoiding suspicions.
"Why? You don't like your brother feeling like a comedian?"
"Tsk! Also, it's impossible. Even if the whole world is currently and constantly leaning towards apocalypse, there are still a billion people on the planet."
"..."
If I were you, I wouldn't believe it either.
"Anyway, let's wrap this up! I'm beaten. Gotta sleep."
After cleaning everything, as both of them went to their respective luxurious rooms, Lucian sat on the bed and heaved a sigh of relief.
He then inspected the system that's somewhat different from the [ Heaven System ].
Specifically, he browsed the quests section; his previously dark, but now amethyst eyes, scanned the contents.
He was unable to believe it...
What exactly is the cause of all this?
[ Ultimate Quest ]
Quest Title: [ Shadow of Impending Apocalypse ]
Description: [ Under the watch eye of the Remnant of Damnation, the Cosmic Fall System will assist you in cleaning heaven's mess. ]
Objective: [ Become stronger and put the dead god's shadow into the Nether Realm. ]
Failure Penalty: [ If the dead god awakens, your world will be destroyed. ]
[ Time before the dead god's resurrection: 2 and a half years... ]
...
"Damn it... Is this real?"
Upon calculation, it's around the 25th Shadow Wave.
The 19th Shadow Wave, which was supposed to happen on June 30 this year and was delayed for 13 days because of him, was still considered to be around the corner since today's date was May 07 of the same year.
The burden of knowing when the world would end began eating away at his mind.
Even if he released this information, who would believe him anyway?
He would be perceived as a madman, and worst, his sister's image would be tarnished by having a delusional brother.
Lost in thought, unable to know where to begin, a familiar sound echoed as the clock struck midnight.
[ Ding! ]
[ Daily Quest has arrived. ]
[ Complete the daily quest and you will be rewarded accordingly. ]
[ If you fail to do so, you will be penalized. ]
It was the first step into the new world as the Eternal-Class Necromancer.
However, upon reading the content of the daily quest, hoping that it was similar to the main character based on the story that Samantha had told her, which was focused on physical training, Lucian's expression darkened.
How... How is this supposed to make me strong?
[ Daily Quest: Find a wandering soul and pray for them to find eternal rest. ]