She continued to prepare for the long night ahead. She pulled out a backpack and filled it with essentials—water, energy bars, a flashlight, a small first-aid kit, and one of the knives. She didn't know how long she would be able to stay in this apartment once the apocalypse began, but she wanted to be able to leave at a moment's notice. Anything that wasn't packed and ready could be a death sentence if things went south quickly.
As she zipped the backpack closed, she glanced at the window once more. The streetlights had come on, casting a warm glow across the road, and the sounds of the bustling city filtered through the thin walls. It seemed so normal, and that only made it more surreal. The calm before the storm.
Laura sat back down on the bed, staring at the ceiling as her mind whirred with plans and contingencies. She knew that in a matter of hours, this world would be unrecognizable. She could only hope that this time, she'd be strong enough to make a difference. She didn't know when, but she fell asleep.
•••••
Laura jolted awake at the sound of the alarm blaring from her phone. She blinked rapidly, her vision hazy from sleep. Panic surged through her veins as she realized that she had dozed off despite everything happening around her. She wasn't supposed to be asleep, not now. She was supposed to be preparing for the apocalypse, which was only a few hours away.
The clock on her phone read 07:30. She'd slept far longer than intended, and the realization left a bitter taste in her mouth. This wasn't like her—she was always alert, always ready. But now, with a younger, less-conditioned body, it seemed exhaustion had caught up with her more quickly than she expected. She wasn't the hardened warrior she had been just before her death; she was a nineteen-year-old student again, with all the physical limitations that entailed.
Swinging her legs over the side of the bed, she stood and stretched, feeling the stiffness in her limbs. Memories of countless battles flooded her mind, each one as vivid as if it had just happened. She still had all of her experiences from the previous life—the muscle memory, the strategies, the instincts—but her body didn't reflect that. Her muscles were softer, weaker. Her reflexes were slower than she remembered, and her endurance was nowhere near the level she needed. There was no time to train and condition her body properly; she'd have to adapt during the apocalypse itself.
Still, there was no reason not to sharpen her skills as much as she could in the time that remained. She wasn't planning to rely entirely on her summoning abilities. She needed to be able to defend herself with or without them. The last time she'd gone through this, she had learned the hard way that versatility was key.
Laura quickly dressed in comfortable workout clothes and grabbed her backpack, heading out of the apartment. Her destination: the nearby gym. It wasn't the most sophisticated place, but it had the equipment she needed to warm up and practice some basic combat moves. She ran there at a steady pace, pushing herself harder than she would have on a normal day, knowing every minute counted.
The gym was nearly empty when she arrived, just a few people scattered across various stations. The usual hum of treadmills and clank of weights created a familiar background noise. Without sparing any time, she moved to the center of the practice area, where mats covered the floor, providing a space for hand-to-hand combat training.
For the next few hours, she focused on drills she hadn't practiced in years—basic strikes, footwork, dodges. Her movements were awkward at first, her body out of sync with the speed and precision she expected. Frustration mounted as she stumbled through a familiar sequence, a reminder that this was not the same body that had faced down the Four Cardinal Monarchs.
"Come on," she muttered under her breath, gritting her teeth as she pushed herself to move faster. Sweat dripped down her forehead, and her muscles burned with the effort. But slowly, she began to feel some of her old instincts kick in. Her strikes became more fluid, her dodges quicker. The adrenaline rushing through her veins brought back a glimmer of the confidence she once had. She needed more than just her summoning skills if she was going to survive the early days of the apocalypse.
At around 09:30, Laura decided she had done all she could. She couldn't risk overexerting herself before the true chaos began. She hurried back home, her limbs heavy with fatigue but her mind sharper than ever. She quickly washed up in the small, cramped bathroom, the cold water jolting her awake again, washing away the layer of sweat and grime.
Just as she stepped out of the shower, her phone buzzed urgently on the counter. The first alarm had gone off, signaling that the class selection period was about to begin. Wrapping a towel around herself, Laura reached for the phone with anticipation and a small flicker of anxiety.
A new notification glowed on the screen:
[Dear Host! The Apocalypse begins in (02:59:56). Please select a class before the apocalypse begins, or you will be assigned a random class once it starts.]
The timer immediately caught her attention. Three hours. That was all the time left before the world would break apart, before rifts would open and monsters would pour through to devastate everything in sight. Laura didn't have time to waste. She tapped on the notification, and a new panel appeared, listing the available classes.
**[Available Classes: 14
1. Alchemist
2. Archer
...
10. Summoner...]**
Her gaze briefly flickered over the other options. It was a strange feeling to see them again. She had memorized the list in her past life, had gone over the pros and cons of each class countless times. But this time, there was no hesitation. Her finger hovered only for a second before pressing firmly on the tenth option.
**[Congratulations, you have selected the Summoner Class. To check all about you, your class, and abilities, use the phrase: Status.]**
As the message popped up, Laura's heart beat with anticipation. The Summoner class was known for its versatility, allowing the user to call forth creatures to fight alongside them, but it required careful management of mana. She had chosen it for one simple reason: she knew exactly how to make it overpowered.
With the right artifacts, the right training, and her future knowledge, she could break the limits of the class and achieve infinite summoning.
She took a deep breath, the words "Status" on the tip of her tongue, when an unexpected thought crossed her mind. In her previous life, the class she had chosen hadn't come with any special surprises or hidden abilities. It was a straightforward selection. But now... she had regressed. Had that changed something?
"Status!" she called out firmly, half-expecting to see the usual stat screen appear before her.
Instead, she was met with something entirely unexpected.
[Status: Laura Whitecroft
Class: Summoner (Dual-Class: Hoarder)
Level: 1
Exp: 2/50
Attributes:
- Strength: 4
- Agility: 5
- Vitality: 3
- Mana: 10
- Luck: 8
Unallocated points: 0
Class Abilities:
1. Summoner - Basic Summoning (Level 1): Summon creatures up to Rank E. Duration: 5 minutes. Mana cost: 20.
2. Hoarder - Passive Ability (Carry Forward): Increases item drop rates by 25%. Ability to perceive hidden items. Special storage space unlocked.]
Her eyes widened as she read the words. Dual-Class. It wasn't supposed to be possible to have two classes. And yet, there it was, staring back at her. The Hoarder class hadn't vanished after all—it had carried over into this life.