Arov sat on the edge of his bed, hands shaking as he tried to comprehend what he had just seen. The vision of a ruined world—skies veiled in toxic haze, crumbling buildings, and nightmarish creatures prowling about—haunted his mind, refusing to fade. The terror felt so real that he started to doubt what was real and what wasn't.
The screen reappeared, displaying the same message.
[Welcome to the Awakened system.]
He read each line with a growing sense of dread. The message declared him an "Awakened," chosen to prevent the Abyss from descending into this world. His mission? To stop an unimaginable cosmic disaster from destroying Earth.
Arov swallowed hard, hoping that ignoring the instructions on the screen would somehow make them vanish. "This isn't real… it must be some absurd nightmare." But the words meant nothing. The system continued displaying messages with an unyielding urgency.
[First Training: Use Sight Beyond Space-Time to see 5 minutes into the future.]
Arov stared at the instructions, feeling a strange compulsion. He slowly closed his eyes, letting the world around him shift.
He saw himself walking down the school hallway, his footsteps echoing past the rows of lockers. Ahead, someone dropped a book, though their face was blurred, unrecognizable. The vision was brief, but it was enough to shake Arov when he returned to his room.
"Is… is this real?" he whispered, rubbing his face.
[Training complete. Your next mission will appear soon. Be prepared.]
Arov tried to calm himself, but a persistent chill gripped his heart. How could he have seen the future? A vague image of an unknown person dropping a book… like a hidden memory of something yet to happen.
The next day, in the school hallway, the scene unfolded exactly as he had foreseen. The book fell, just as in his vision. Arov's world spun. This was no dream; it was reality.
---
Doubt began to grow within Arov. He couldn't believe that this world he stood upon now carried a horrific fate he couldn't escape. He wanted to run—deny everything, live as he did before. But the icy feeling in his heart refused to leave. Somehow, he knew this was not something he could simply ignore.
"The only way is to face whatever's coming," he whispered to himself.
Slowly, his fear transformed into resolve. This fate, however terrifying, awaited him. And if the world was indeed about to fall apart, he would not stand idly by. Deep within, Arov strengthened his will. He would not let the world drown in darkness without a fight.
"System," he called out, trying to sound firm, though his heart still pounded. "Where will the Abyss gate appear?"
[Analysis of your vision indicates that the Abyss will enter from the east.]
He remembered the toxic clouds and mist from his vision, drifting from the east. A theory formed in his mind—the Abyss would come from the east.
"Where exactly?" he asked.
A map appeared on the screen, a blinking marker set on the easternmost point of Japan.
"Five years, six months, two weeks, and five days from now, the Abyss gate will break, engulfing the world."
Arov looked at the screen, processing the words with a heavy heart. The system informed him that while time was running out, hope remained. The Abyss could be stopped if the ritual they were preparing was interrupted before the gate could open.
He took a deep breath, steeling himself for the long, dangerous road ahead. This was not just a battle—it was a fate he could not escape.
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