The sky looked grayer than usual, though there was no forecast for rain. Kael walked slowly, hands stuffed in his coat pockets, his face slightly tilted downward. He couldn't quite remember how he had ended up there, on the bustling avenue filled with honking cars and hurried pedestrians.
His mind was elsewhere, lost in the fresh memory of his last conversation with Helena.
"This isn't working anymore, Kael. We lost each other a long time ago. Can't you see that?"
Her words kept echoing in his mind, even amidst the frantic noise around him. Kael let out a long sigh, feeling a knot in his stomach that refused to loosen. When had they started losing each other? He searched for answers but found only a silent void.
He passed by a brightly lit shop window, where a couple laughed carefree as they picked out winter clothes. A bitter taste rose in his mouth, and he averted his eyes. The movement of the street felt distant, as though he were watching it all through thick glass.
"I should've just stayed home today."
Suddenly, a sound broke through the chaos. A sharp, desperate scream cut through the air. He stopped for a moment, trying to locate its source, but he didn't have time. A figure darted toward him—too fast.
Kael barely had time to react.
"Get out of the way!" barked an unfamiliar voice, harsh and urgent, but it was already too late.
Something cold and sharp pierced his abdomen.
For a moment, the world froze.
Kael's eyes widened, his body frozen in place. The thief—a man with wild, sweaty eyes—kept running, not even glancing back at what he'd just done. Behind him, an elderly woman on the ground struggled to get up, shouting something Kael couldn't make out.
His breathing grew shallow. Slowly, he looked down and saw the blade of a knife pull away. A red stain began to spread across his pale shirt.
"What...?" he murmured, feeling his legs weaken.
People around him finally noticed what was happening. Some screamed. Others ran. A woman pulled out her phone, trembling as she tried to call for help.
Kael fell to his knees. The once-distant avenue now felt too close. The noise, the lights, the faces—everything was blurry, as if life itself was dissolving before his eyes.
"It can't end like this... Not now..."
He tried to stand but couldn't. Cold seeped into his body. His dazed gaze drifted upward to the gray sky, where the first raindrops began to fall.
For some reason, he thought of Helena. He remembered the day they met, the first time they laughed together. He wished he had said more during their last conversation, but now it was too late.
His body gave out, and the voices around him faded into a distant murmur.
Silence enveloped him.
Kael no longer felt the weight of his body. It was as if he were floating in a dark void—no pain, no sound, no time.
Until, suddenly, something shone in the darkness.
"Ding!"
A mechanical sound, like a notification tone, echoed through the void. Kael frowned—or at least, he thought he did.
A floating message box appeared before his eyes. A soft blue light illuminated the white text:
[You have died.]
"D-died?" He didn't quite understand. He tried to touch the message but realized he no longer had hands. Another box appeared immediately.
[Cause of death: Internal bleeding due to knife wound.]
[Total lifespan: 21 years, 7 months, 14 days, 5 hours, and 32 minutes.]
Kael felt something akin to indignation, even without a physical body. "Is this how it ends? Stabbed by some random thief? And what the hell? You're way too detailed! What are you, a stalker?"
More boxes popped up in rapid succession, as if responding to his outrage.
[End-of-life evaluation: Mediocre.]
[You failed to achieve any significant goals.]
[Most recent relationship: Failed.]
[Accumulated regrets: 37.]
"What?" Kael would have shouted if he could. "Mediocre? Is this how you're judging my life?! Hey, stalker! Say that to my face instead of sending messages!"
The boxes kept appearing, ignoring his protests:
[Do you wish for a second chance?]
[Warning: If accepted, your fate will change. You may rewrite your life or find purpose, but challenges will arise.]
[Accept the offer? Yes / No]
Kael's nonexistent heart seemed to race. "A second chance?" He didn't know what it meant or if it was real. Yet… this felt eerily familiar, like something out of the webtoons and webnovels he'd read countless times.
Another message appeared, its letters pulsing urgently.
[Time to decide: 10 seconds.]
10... 9... 8...
"Wait!" Kael shouted into the void as the numbers ticked down. He didn't want to stay trapped there. He didn't want that to be the last page of his story.
7... 6... 5...
"I accept! I accept!"
The boxes vanished instantly, and the void filled with a blinding light. Kael felt something powerful pulling him, his "body" vibrating with unbearable intensity.
Before he could understand, one last message appeared, solitary and radiant.
[Second chance granted.]
[Prepare to be reborn.]
And then, everything went dark again. The void swallowing him began to shift. Kael felt something different this time: a gentle pressure, like invisible hands pulling him in another direction.
His nonexistent heart seemed to beat once more.
Thump-thump... thump-thump...
Before he could react, a vivid pink light shattered the darkness, painting everything around him.
"Ding!" But this sound was different, more melodic, almost mocking.
A new message appeared, its vibrant color a stark contrast to the previous blue boxes. Bright red letters glowed provocatively.
[Looks like I've found someone interesting.]
The message pulsed as if it were alive. Unlike the others, it wasn't just text. There was something more… something present.
"What… what is this?" Kael muttered, feeling a chill run down a spine he didn't even know he still had.
Then he heard it.
A soft, playful feminine voice echoed through the void, accompanying the words:
"Looks like I've found someone interesting, isn't that right, Darling?"
Kael froze. He knew that voice. He knew it all too well. It was impossible not to recognize it… after all…
The pink light grew brighter, condensing into a figure before him. First, the outline: tall, slender, with delicate horns curving from the top of her head. Then, the details: long pink hair, gleaming eyes sharp and wild, like those of a predator who had just found an amusing prey.
"No… No way…" Kael murmured in disbelief.
The woman smiled at him, revealing slightly pointed canines. The smile was unmistakable, as was her carefree posture, her charming yet dangerous aura.
"What's wrong, Darling? You look like you've seen a ghost," she teased, tilting her head as she gazed at him intensely.
Zero Two.
The Zero Two he knew so well from computer screens, anime sites, and sleepless nights spent reading manga. The character he admired, the one so many called the "perfect waifu," was standing there before him—not on a screen, but real, alive… or something close to it.
"This… this doesn't make sense!" Kael stammered, taking an unstable step back, even though there was no ground beneath him. "You're… You're impossible!"
She laughed, a light sound laced with something he couldn't quite place: curiosity, amusement… or maybe something darker.
"And since when do things need to make sense here, Darling?" She stepped closer slowly, as if he were a shiny new toy. "You accepted a second chance, didn't you? Well… you caught my attention. And I came running to meet you before those crazy bitches try to steal you from me."
"Your attention? Steal me?!" Kael repeated, still trying to process everything. "Wait, what the hell is going on?!"
Her eyes gleamed with intensity, and her smile widened.
"Hm… Maybe you have more potential than you think. Or maybe I'm just bored," she replied with a shrug. "Well… judging by your expression, you've probably read those trashy webnovels and system novels, so you should have an idea of what's happening."
"Honestly, it's a good thing I found you first. If it were Esdeath… you'd be screwed, Darling," Zero Two said, grinning mischievously—though it was equally terrifying.
"Well, let's start from the beginning," she said, and a chair materialized as she sat down.
"You've probably read it before, but I'll repeat it anyway," she continued, raising her index finger. "You can change your life or find a purpose, but there will be challenges," she said, echoing the system message.
"Now, let's get to the challenge," she added. "Congratulations, you're about to be reborn into the abandoned world of stories," she said with a smile, as if this were good news.
"That sounds terrifying," Kael muttered.
"Well, it's more like despair, really. In this place, all stories have become reality, and everything you know created by writers and artists over the decades… well, it's all here. Even though our powers have been sealed by the system…" Zero Two trailed off.
"Just get to the point already. I'm tired of hearing nonsense. Tell me my goal and get me out of here. I want to live again," Kael said, crossing arms he didn't even have.
"Oh, right, I'm [Strelizia Apus Navigation System]. It's my unique ability. Well, my only ability since there are no pilotable robots here, and Franxx have started going extinct," Zero Two replied, as if this were the most natural thing in the world. She mentioned "Franxx" like he was supposed to know exactly what she meant, but Kael had no idea.
He opened his mouth to ask, but all that came out was a frustrated sigh. He was trying, with all his might, to follow her train of thought, but her words made no sense. He didn't know what "World Floors" were, let alone what this "Strelizia Apus Navigation System" meant.
Still… he did know who Esdeath was, and that alone made his nonexistent body shudder. Don't run into her… not yet…
He looked at Zero Two, trying to focus on something concrete.
"So… what do I do now?" Kael finally asked, giving up on trying to understand all her references.
She just smiled mischievously, leaning forward, her eyes glinting with something Kael couldn't identify.
"Now? Now you start your journey, Darling. Let's see how far you can go in this world…" she said with a smile before handing him something. "Here, take this," she said, offering him a glowing blue sphere.
"What the hell is this?" he asked, holding it with a hand he couldn't even see.
"Oh, that's what the system told me to give you. I don't get it; I'm just the messenger," she said with a shrug. "Just consume it…"
Before Kael could protest further, the sphere in his hand shone brightly with a blue light. He felt an impulse, and without thinking, he swallowed it as if by reflex. The light enveloped him completely, and in the blink of an eye, a bubble of blue energy surrounded him.
Kael tried to scream, but his voice seemed to dissolve into the light. He felt a tingling sensation across his essence, something beginning to take form around him—like… a new body. The sensation was disconcerting, and his confusion only deepened when a massive holographic window suddenly appeared before him.
[Welcome to the Character Creation System.]