Kai Everett pushed open the door to his apartment, tossing his keys onto the counter. Another long, exhausting day at the office. He worked as a tech support rep, spending his days tethered to a desk, solving other people's problems while his own life seemed to inch forward without change.

But tonight, something felt different.

The city streets outside were quiet, almost unsettlingly so. As Kai shrugged off his jacket, a glint on the floor by his door caught his eye—a phone, sleek and unmarked, just sitting there as if waiting for him. Curious, he bent down and picked it up, turning it over in his hand. There was no logo, no branding, just a smooth, matte black surface.

"Who leaves a phone lying around like this?" he murmured, inspecting it closely.

He pressed the power button, half-expecting it to be dead, but the screen lit up, displaying a single app icon—a gold, stylized "G" that pulsed faintly, drawing him in. Against his better judgment, Kai tapped the icon.

The screen flashed, and suddenly a new screen appeared with the words:

[Welcome, Admin.]

Kai blinked, glancing around as if someone else could see what was happening. Admin? He hadn't set this up; he'd never even seen this phone before. As he continued staring, the screen displayed more text.

[Your role as Admin begins now. Confirm to initiate the binding process.]

"Binding process?" Kai muttered, feeling a slight shiver of unease.

But something held his gaze on the screen. His thumb hovered over the confirmation button. He told himself it was ridiculous—it was just a phone, probably some kind of elaborate prank or demo app. But what if it wasn't? In the back of his mind, he felt a pull, an unexplainable urge to go along with it.

With a deep breath, Kai pressed confirm.

The phone pulsed in his hand, sending a tingling sensation up his arm. The screen turned to a bright white, blinding him. Kai's vision swam, his heart pounding as an almost electric energy coursed through him. And then he heard it again, that strange voice, gentle but powerful, filling the room as if it had a presence of its own.

[Binding complete.]

The light faded, and Kai found himself clutching the phone, now displaying a new screen with five usernames and strange symbols beside each one. At the top was his name: Admin - Kai Everett. Somehow, it had known who he was. His hand tightened around the device as he tried to steady himself.

"What is this thing?" he whispered, but deep down, he knew. This wasn't just a phone.

[As the Admin of the God-Tier Group Chat, you hold the responsibility of managing connections across realms.]

"Connections across realms?" The words sounded surreal, and yet he couldn't shake the feeling that it was true.

[Do not worry, Admin. Your role will become clear with time. Your journey begins now.]

Kai took a deep breath, staring down at the screen. He wanted to believe this was just some elaborate trick, yet he couldn't deny the strange energy, the feeling that his life had shifted in that moment.

The screen flickered again, showing him a list of five names, each with a symbol that glowed faintly. The names were unfamiliar, but the symbols radiated power, as though each represented a being from another world. His mind raced, and his heart pounded, equal parts fear and exhilaration.

The first name on the list lit up, and a new message appeared.

[Welcome, Admin Kai. Your first connection awaits.]