The man looks down at his balled fists, his brows furrowed with an intense look of helplessness on his face. "What the hell is happening to our world? These monsters and other creatures popped up and all of a sudden the people in our Town were being slaughtered." In between gritted teeth as he clenches his fist more.
Leo, it isn't your fault," Clara said softly, her voice barely above a whisper. "You can't save everyone. But you did save this guy. You saw him from the window, and you acted. That matters."
Leo clenched his fists, his gaze locked onto the unconscious boy lying on the mattress. His jaw tightened, and for a moment, he didn't speak.
"I… I know," he finally muttered, but the words rang hollow even to himself. His mind was clouded with the images of those he hadn't saved—faces he would never see again. "There were just… so many people out there who died. If I had been faster… if I had tried earlier, maybe I could've saved more."
Clara looked at him with sympathy but didn't push further. She knew that nothing she said would erase the weight he carried.
Leo exhaled sharply and stood up. With a flick of his wrist, a dark purple window appeared in front of his face.
[Profile]
Class: Paladin Trainee / Veteran
Strength: E
SP: E+
Vitality: C
Agility: E-
Intelligence: E
Awareness: F+
"Damn it. These stats are pathetic. If I don't find a way to get stronger soon, we're all screwed."
With another motion, the window changed.
[Skills]
Shoulder Bash (Active) - Level 1Tanker (Passive) - Level 1
Leo sighed, dismissing the screen. "Let's give it a few hours. Maybe he'll wake up on his own. Come on, Clara, let's get some rest. We'll check on him in the morning."
Karma's eyes shot open.
A piercing shriek ripped through his skull, stabbing deep into his brain like a drill. He let out a sharp gasp, rolling off the bed with a thud. The world spun as he clutched his head, his fingers digging into his temples.
"What the hell—?!"
Before he could fully process what was happening, he heard hurried footsteps. Leo and Clara burst into the room, both of them wincing, hands pressed against their ears. The shriek was affecting them too.
Leo's eyes locked onto Karma. "You're awake! That's great, but we don't have time. We need to move, now!"
Without hesitation, the trio leaped out of the apartment window, landing on the cracked pavement below.
As Karma staggered to his feet, a window appeared before him.
[System]
Head to the event point immediately for 'Tutorial Trial.' Failure to arrive within the time limit will result in death.
"What the hell is happening now?!" His mind raced, his thoughts a chaotic mess. Then, like a tidal wave crashing against his skull, memories came flooding back.
The creature. The pain. Nearly dying.
Being saved by the black-haired man.
The healing hands of the girl.
Karma clenched his fists, his breath uneven. These two… they saved me.
Leo, already running ahead, shouted over his shoulder, "We don't have much time!"
Karma flipped open the system window again, switching to the map display. His eyes widened as he saw the countdown timer—2 minutes remaining.
"What the hell?! Why do we have so little time?!" he shouted, picking up his pace despite feeling sluggish. "Does this stupid system not care that some people start farther away?!"
Clara, keeping her breathing steady as she ran, glanced back at him. "It's likely that the timer started way earlier, maybe while we were asleep. The shriek was probably a warning alert."
Leo groaned. "Damn it, you guys are right. I should've been more careful. I should've realized something was coming."
As they sprinted through the empty streets, Clara turned to Karma. "Hey, what's your name? I'm Clara, and this is my childhood friend, Leo."
Karma kept his gaze forward, barely showing emotion. His tone was distant, indifferent. "Karma. I'm from Tokyo. Nice to meet you, I guess."
Before any more words could be exchanged, Leo suddenly jumped down into an underground train station. Clara followed immediately, and Karma had no choice but to leap in after them.
[Time Remaining: 30 seconds.]
Leo gritted his teeth. "Almost there! Keep pushing!"
The dimly lit tunnels stretched before them, the green glow of the event point visible in the distance—but still out of reach. The countdown continued.
[15 seconds.]
Leo turned his head to check on Clara and Karma. His heart sank.
He might be able to make it if he sprinted with everything he had… but there was no way they would.
His hands clenched into fists.
"Damn it… there's no choice."
He pivoted on his foot, whipping around in an instant. Without hesitation, he grabbed Clara with one arm and Karma with the other. Their eyes widened in shock.
"Leo, what the hell are you—?!"
"SHOULDER BASH!"
A surge of force propelled them forward, Leo launching himself with everything he had. The three of them soaredthrough the air, the green glow of the event point growing closer—
[5 seconds.]
They slammed into the ground, skidding across the cracked tiles, tumbling violently from the impact.
[3… 2…]
The green barrier loomed over them.
Leo gritted his teeth, wrapping his arms tighter around Clara and Karma. With one final push—
They tumbled into the event point just as the counter hit 1.
For a moment, everything was still.
As the barrier behind them sealed shut, the once-green glow turned a deep, ominous red. Leo, Clara, and Karma lay on the cold, dusty floor, gasping for breath. Their bodies ached from the rough landing, but they were alive.
Karma sat up first, rubbing the side of his head as he scanned his surroundings. The train station, dimly illuminated by flickering emergency lights, wasn't empty.
"Let's see…" His eyes darted around the room, making quick assessments.
Four guys—three of them young, maybe late teens or early twenties. The fourth man? Late thirties, early forties.
Two younger women—mid-twenties, at best.
An elderly man, frail but standing firm.
Three men in suits—corporate types, nervous but composed.
And… one more person, standing in the corner, hood drawn low over their face.
Everyone in the station had their eyes locked on the trio. Suspicious. Curious. Cautious.
Before anyone could speak, a sharp, loud clap echoed through the underground space.
KLAK!
Every head in the room snapped toward the source of the noise.
Floating in midair was a small, dark creature—barely the size of a basketball. Its body was a shadowy sphere, covered in an eerie, shifting mist. In the center of its head sat a single, large, unblinking eye, blood-red in color. A row of jagged, razor-sharp teeth curled into a grin beneath it.
Clara instinctively placed a hand on Leo's arm. "What is that thing?" she whispered.
Leo narrowed his eyes. "Looks like something straight out of a cartoon. Like a chibi toy you'd win from a crane game."
The creature suddenly spoke, its voice deep and booming, filled with malice.
"Welcome, Avatars of the Tokyo area."
The words hung heavy in the air.
"I am what you will refer to as an Angel of Death, and I am the representative of your region—Japan, if I am not mistaken… which I am not."
Its toothy grin stretched unnaturally wide, making Clara shudder.
"Before we begin the trial, do we have any questions?"
Silence.
Then, one of the older men stepped forward, adjusting his glasses. "Excuse me, Angel of Death, you mentioned that you were our 'representative.' What exactly do you mean by that?"
The creature turned its massive eye toward him. "Ah, an astute listener." It chuckled, a dark, guttural sound. "To keep things simple—each Angel of Death is assigned to a designated country. We oversee the avatars of that country, ensuring they… participate in the system's events. And every so often, your countries will compete in global competitions, all in accordance with the system's orders."
A younger man hesitantly raised his hand. "D-Do you know who's behind the syst—"
KLAK!
The creature clapped its hands together.
A deafening shockwave blasted through the train station. Wind howled, dust and debris scattering through the air. Karma instinctively raised his arms, shielding his face as his ears rang from the impact.
When the chaos settled, the creature's eye narrowed in amusement.
"Okay, let's get started."
The air shifted, growing heavier.
"For your first trial, you will form teams of three. You will then be separated into different train stations and compete against one another. Your objective?
Explore the creature-infested tunnels and locate a Boss Room.
Each Boss Room will contain a different-ranked boss—Tier 1, Tier 2, or Tier 3. Defeating a boss will earn you points."**
Murmurs spread through the group.
"The teams in the top three placements will receive rewards from the system. The better you place, the greater the reward.
However—
Teams placing fourth and fifth will not receive good rewards… but they will keep their lives."
The room fell silent.
Karma's fingers curled into fists. And what about sixth place?
The Angel of Death grinned wider, as if reading his thoughts.
"The team in sixth place will be executed."
The words rang through the station like a death sentence.
Fear. Unease. Panic. Some people instinctively took a step back, as if trying to physically escape the situation.
"Oh, and one more thing," the creature added, almost gleefully.
"If your team loses a member during the trial, your final score will be reduced by 33%.
And if a team just so happens to die in battle… well, that would be unfortunate. But at least it means the remaining five teams will all progress, alive."
The creature floated higher, its blood-red eye gleaming with sadistic delight.
"So! With all of that in mind you will have 15 seconds to select your team.
Good luck, Avatars."
The trio—Karma, Leo, and Clara—exchanged silent glances. No words were needed. They already knew—they were going to stick together.
Around them, the train station erupted into frantic motion. The remaining survivors hurried to form their teams, their voices overlapping in a mix of desperation and strategy.
"Join us! We need a third!"
"No way, I'm not teaming up with you!"
"Damn it, we're running out of time!"
People scrambled, alliances formed in an instant—some out of trust, others out of sheer necessity.
Karma barely paid attention. He was too focused on the Angel of Death, its monstrous grin never fading.
"Sixth place means death…" The thought repeated in his mind, heavy like an iron weight in his chest. That means at least three people in this room aren't making it out of this alive.
Before the chaos could fully settle—
A blinding flash of light swallowed the entire station.
Karma's vision whited out, and for a brief moment, it felt like he was floating—weightless in an endless void.
Then, in the next instant—
THUD.
His body slammed onto solid ground.
He gasped, rolling onto his side as his vision adjusted. The suffocating stench of rust and mold filled his nose. The dim, flickering lights overhead barely illuminated the concrete walls around them. The air was damp, thick with the scent of stagnant water and something else—something rotting.
A train tunnel.
They had been transported somewhere deep underground.
Karma sat up quickly, eyes darting around. "Leo? Clara?"
"Here."
Leo's voice came from a few feet away. He pushed himself up, shaking his head to clear the dizziness. Clara groaned, rubbing her elbow as she stood.
"Yeah, I'm good. That was… unpleasant."
The three took in their surroundings. The tunnel stretched into darkness ahead, the abandoned tracks rusted and broken. A few flickering bulbs lined the ceiling, casting eerie shadows against the graffiti-covered walls. The distant sound of dripping water echoed through the space.
Then there was a sound, a low growl from somewhere deeper in the tunnel.
The trio froze.
Karma slowly turned toward the noise. His hands clenched into fists.
(The trial has begun.)
The low growl reverberated through the tunnel, a guttural, inhuman sound that sent shivers down Karma's spine.
Clara instinctively moved closer to Leo. "Please tell me that was your stomach growling," she whispered.
Leo exhaled sharply, gripping the hilt of his dull iron sword that he pulled out of his inventory. "Not this time."
Karma stepped forward, his eyes narrowing into the abyss ahead. The flickering lights barely provided enough visibility, and the shadows danced along the walls like living things. His heart pounded in his chest, the phantom ache of his still-healing wound reminding him just how close he had come to death earlier.
I can't afford to be careless this time. I have to do this for mom and dad.
His gaze flicked to the glowing purple [System Window] hovering in his peripheral vision.
Objective:
Navigate the tunnels and locate the Boss Room.Survive.Earn as many points as possible.
That last part unsettled him. Points. Like they were in some sick, twisted game.
"And the losing team dies…"
He swallowed the thought.
A metallic clank echoed from up ahead. The growl grew louder.
Then—movement.
From the darkness, a figure emerged, hunched and shambling. The dim lighting cast long, jagged shadows across its grotesque frame.
The creature was twisted, humanoid in shape but wrong in every way. Its arms were unnaturally elongated, fingers ending in needle-like claws. Its body was gaunt, bones pressing against thin, gray flesh. And its face—
No, there was no face. Just a smooth, featureless void, except for a gaping vertical mouth that split its head in half. Jagged teeth lined the inside, twitching as it sniffed the air.
Leo tensed. "What the hell is that…?"
Clara took a shaky step back. "That thing was human once…"
The faceless creature twitched violently—then lunged.
"Move!" Leo shoved Clara aside and braced himself, raising his sword.
The creature screeched—a piercing, unnatural wail that rattled Karma's skull. It swiped with blinding speed, Leo barely managing to parry as sparks flew from his blade. The force sent him stumbling backward.
"Shit—it's fast!"
Karma reacted on instinct. His body moved before his mind could catch up, his fist swinging forward with all his strength.
His knuckles connected with the creature's ribcage.
CRACK.
The impact sent a jolt of pain up Karma's arm—but the creature barely flinched.
Its head snapped toward him.
A cold wave of dread washed over Karma as realization hit—his stats were too low.
The monster's mouth widened into a nightmarish grin.
Then it struck.
A clawed hand shot forward—aimed directly at Karma's throat.
There was no time to dodge.
Karma's pupils shrank. I'm dead—
A golden blur slammed into the creature's side.
Leo's shoulder crashed into it with a surge of force—"SHOULDER BASH!"
The monster was hurled backward, its body skidding across the concrete floor before it slammed into the tunnel wall with a sickening crunch.
Leo staggered back, gritting his teeth. "Damn thing's sturdy…"
Clara didn't hesitate. She extended both hands, glowing blue threads forming between her fingers.
"Water stitching:Bind!"
The glowing strands shot forward, wrapping around the monster's limbs like enchanted chains. The creature screeched, thrashing wildly as the restraints glowed brighter.
Karma finally caught his breath. His fingers curled into a fist.
"This is my chance."
He took a step forward—then sprinted.
Adrenaline surged through his veins as he closed the distance. The monster struggled, but Clara's magic held strong.
With everything he had—
Karma leaped.
His fist slammed into the creature's head.
The force of the blow sent cracks spider webbing across its smooth, faceless skull. The monster convulsed—then collapsed in a heap.
The tunnel fell silent.
Karma stood over the lifeless corpse, panting heavily. His hand was shaking.
The status window Appeared in front of Karma. [Notification] "soul points from low rank creature absorbed. 10 points will be allocated to your profile." "Three trial points have also been allocated to your group"
Leo whistled. "Not bad, kid."
Clara sighed in relief. "That was just one… and we don't even know how many are lurking in these tunnels."
Karma clenched his fists.
"This is just the beginning."
Ahead of them, the tunnel stretched into darkness.
And somewhere deep inside… the Boss Room awaited.
Clara walked over to Karma and gently grabbed his arm as she noticed his hands beginning to swell. "You've got to be more careful with how you use your body. That first punch really messed up your wrist."
Karma glanced down, watching as the red inflammation slowly faded, his body mending itself. "Yeah, you're right… Thanks. I appreciate it."
Leo crossed his arms, studying Karma. "Hey, kid, don't you have any skills or abilities that could help? Clara's got healing powers, and her class is Water Nymph Priestess. I can fight with my attack skills since I'm a Paladin. What about you?"