23/10/2030
The weekend is quiet. Han Juho was sitting on the sofa in his apartment, phone in hand, his eyes fixed to the small screen. He was rereading his favorite novel called Villain Overkill, which he discovered ten years ago, or precisely a decade ago, when he was still a high school student.
Back then, it was one of the most exciting and promising fantasy stories that he had always been waiting for every week. But the updates stopped suddenly, making him and countless other fans hang on the cliffhanger.
"Ten years..." He muttered, scrolling past 360+ chapters, stopping at the last update. "If only the author is still active, maybe the novel already has an ending or at least an explanation."
His gaze fell on the final line of the last chapter... the same sentence that he had read over and over since 2020, back when he was stuck at home during the pandemic. Each time he revisited it, an ache always appeared in his heart. No matter how much time had passed.
For years, Juho hold onto that hope, like a fool who refuses to let go, scrolling through the forums for news, checking the site regularly, rereading each chapter to reignite the excitement.
Each visit deepened his ache of disappointment. The author had vanished, and their last update on Outstagram had been a handwritten note explaining their hospitalization. They had promised to return once they recovered, but to this day, there were no updates. Leaving behind questions and speculation among the readers.
It wasn't the first time this had happened. The same author had written a virtual-reality-themed novel, how had that one ended again? Oh right, it didn't. He'd been waiting for that one too, though not as much as his all-time favorite. Writers really know how to ghost their audience, didn't they? If only there were a special group for abandoned readers.
Despite that, he couldn't bring himself to let go. Villain Overkill was different. The world-building was rich, the characters flawed, but that only made them feel more human, and the protagonist's struggles made one feel as if they were part of the story. How could he let go of a story that left such a big impression on him?
Yet, every time he reread the betrayal scene. Where the protagonist's closest friends, the people he trusted the most, abandoned him at a time of need. Juho's chest always tightened as he read it for the umpteenth time. It felt too raw, too cruel. How could anyone betray a friend so easily, especially in such a devastating world?
Juho sighed deeply and put his phone on the coffee table. His mind drifted to his own dreams, buried beneath the harsh truth.
"Writing a novel..." Juho whispered bitterly to himself. He had dreamed of it once, a long time ago. But life always had a way of crushing dreams. Especially after watching his family struggle financially in his youth, that once hopeful dream felt more distant than ever.
He closed his eyes for a moment and shook his head, pushing the thought aside and reminding himself that it was all in the past now. Just as he was about to reach for his phone, a sharp sting shot through his hand. He hissed and reflexively threw it hard to the ground, instantly regretting it as it hit the ground with a thud.
"Great," he muttered, slapping his forehead as he imagined the damage on his phone right now. "Just what I needed."
Just as he was about to pick up the phone again, he felt a weird vibration coming from outside. He hesitated, glancing toward the disturbance, but before he could investigate. A sudden noise came from his television. He froze, his heart skipping a beat as the screen suddenly came to life, even though he hadn't turned it on.
It wasn't a show or a commercial. It was an emergency government broadcast. The emblem of the Republic of South Korea appeared on the screen, followed by a serious-looking man sitting on a podium.
"Attention, citizens of the Republic of South Korea." The man began, his expression firm. "This is a national emergency broadcast. A global cyberattack has caused massive data corruption, resulting in extensive data loss. Online systems, including critical infrastructure, have been severely compromised. The event appears to have been caused by an unknown force."
The camera cut to another location, high above, a zoomed-in footage of a large monster rampaging through an urban area. Juho recognized it immediately, is that Seoul?! Was that the reason why he seemed to hear many strange noises in the distance?
Screams filled the background of the television. Then the camera flickered again, showing a figure in a black hood moving like a shadow through the city. Holding a bloody crowbar, its face was hidden, and its presence was unusually calm amid the chaos.
"Reports indicate that many areas have been invaded by unidentified creatures." The officer continued, his knuckles turning white as he gripped the edge of the podium. "Additionally, there are reports of a mysterious individual in a black hood, confirmed at multiple locations and believed to be moving quickly between areas. This person, often seen carrying a crowbar, has been observed attacking innocent lives. Citizens are strongly advised to remain cautious when leaving their homes and to avoid any suspicious individuals."
Loud sirens begin to wail in the distance, Juho grips his knuckles tightly. He tried to control his fear, he had never heard a siren in person in his 25 years of life, and he admits that it sounds very frightening, something that causes a growing anxiety as the broadcast continues.
"We urge you to stay tuned and wait for further instructions. Please prioritize your safety and cooperate with local authorities. The Republic of South Korea is currently in contact with international allies to address this crisis. Until further notice, keep on the alert, and most importantly, stay safe."
The broadcast cuts to a motionless screen, showing an emergency number and an instruction for citizens to follow.
Data corruption? Monsters? Someone in a black hood? This sounds like something out of novel. No, this has to be some kind of prank, right? But there it was, right in front of him.
The loud sirens blaring outside made it impossible to ignore. Juho narrowed his eyes as something suddenly crossed his mind, 'Wait, what about the novel? The stories... Did they've been affected too?'
He tried to calm himself down and went to pick up the phone on the floor. He brushed it lightly to make sure it was okay and unlocked his phone, expecting to find the novel where he left off. Instead, it's now back to the home screen. He frowned and reopened the light novel site, somehow, it loaded slower than usual.
After a few moments of waiting... It was empty, there were no recommendations for plenty of novels like he had always seen before, only a blank page, but there's still a search bar. Hesitant, he types in the title that has been on his mind: Villain Overkill
As he hit enter, the website loaded, and what appeared next made his heart race, his worst fear took place before his eyes:
"The novel you are looking for is unavailable."
"Huh?" Juho was shocked as his eyes darted back to every word on the screen, hitting the refresh button repeatedly. But no matter how many times he tried, the result remained the same.
His heart pounding as his mind tried to process that Villain Overkill is gone on the website. For a moment, he couldn't tell whether the frustration in his chest was real or if he was just imagining it.
His fingers trembled as he gripped the phone tighter, he's been so sure, so careful, so paranoid that he'd kept a backup. He had always expected something like this to happen many years ago. But never truly believed it would happen.
"Who would have thought?" He murmured with a hint of disbelief. His lips curved into a small smile as he continued to scroll through his files. There it was, his carefully preserved copy of Villain Overkill in FDP. A total of over 3,429 pages.
Juho's body shook slightly with joy, and he covered half of his face with one hand as he chuckled for a moment. "Thanks to my paranoid self," he murmured, relieved that his favorite novel hadn't disappeared in the pile of lost data. Although technically it is gone, if not because of the backup.
But despite these precautions, he does not solve the larger problem. The continuation of the story is something he can't control, and it depends entirely on the recovery of the broader data system.
So even if the author decides to come back one day and update the story, it won't be possible until the corrupted data is restored.
The government announced that a large amount of data had been compromised. Juho hoped that was all that happened, but the question is... Who in their right mind would dare to do something like this on a global scale?
---Boom
Juho was snapped out of his thoughts and cursed under his breath. What else is this? He first adjusted his glasses, then went to the window and peered through the glass.
It looks like chaos is formed outside. People were screaming, their desperate cries for help echoing in the air, but no one was coming to save them.
He swallowed hard and slowly backed away. His breath caught in his throat as he saw a body collapse in the distance, some of them struck down by a figure in a black hood. Wait, black hood?
A frown slowly formed on his forehead as his mind struggled to process the bloody scene before him. "What the...?" he muttered to himself, his heart quickening as he wondered if this was the person that appeared on television? Would they notice him next?
Suddenly, the figure turned their head abruptly, as if they felt someone's eyes staring at him.
The figure tilted its head slightly, its gaze cold and sharp, but a slight grin was visible on its face, though unclear. They walked slowly, their footsteps unhurried, as if threatening him.
Juho's breath hitched by the action, a shiver runs down his spine, and he immediately crouches down and looks at his hands, which are trembling at the mere sight.
His heart almost dropped. He shouldn't have jinxed it in the first place. Juho stiffly shifts his position to sit on the floor and stares at his room with a mixture of emotions, fear, disbelief and a touch of helplessness. This is more serious than he thought.
He gave his cheeks a few hard slaps to make sure that this was just a dream, but all that remained was the pain on his cheeks, which showed that all this was not a dream. It was a reality.
He stared at the phone in his hands, his mind racing as the realization hit him. The event, the chaos, the sirens, even the figure in the black hood were eerily familiar. They matched the opening chapter of Villain Overkill. This wasn't just a random attack, it was right out of story.
Juho closed his eyes and thought about the absurdity of the situation, wasn't the protagonist of Villain Overkill also reading a novel that came true, with exactly the same circumstances as what was happening now? In other words, was he reading a novel about someone else who read a novel that also became reality?
He was confused by the words that seemed to be spinning around in his head.The idea was so ridiculous that he didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
As the sirens outside grew louder, he took a deep breath and decided to step outside to see for himself. When he opened the door, he was greeted by the sight of people running in fear.
His eyebrows furrowed, he couldn't help but become anxious as well, although he didn't show it. Juho closed the door behind him, locked it first and took his time walking towards the stairs.
He only walked on the edge, a bit worried as people ran from the upper floors, pushing each other. Their footsteps filled his ears, deepening his unease.
He walked down from the seventh floor to the first floor, each step feeling heavy as the chaos unfolded before him. By the time he reached the bottom, almost fifteen minutes had passed. He didn't dare to rush, especially after he almost tripped down the stairs when someone bumped into his shoulder.
When he reached the bottom floor. What happened next hit him hard. A woman was crouched on the floor, her body shaking as she held someone who seemed to be her friend's lifeless body with bloodstained hands. Another was crying in terror, while a man desperately searched for a place to hide.
Juho's heart ached, but he forced himself to keep moving, trying not to let the panic cloud his mind.
'This chaos... how is this possible?' He thought, staring down at the blood on the ground. The story he knew so well now interfering with his reality, and he knew that it's just the beginning of all things that are going to happen next.
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To Be Continued...