The thudding ache in his cheek was the first sensation Eun Sung felt when awareness returned to his body. The second was the dripping ceiling in his damaged apartment. Water dripped in a steady beat onto the creaky old wood floor, creating a small pool of water which reflected the dim light of the single bulb overhead.
"I'm. alive?" he breathed, his voice almost inaudible to himself.
He slowly sat up, his body light, yet somehow unreal. His hands—they were smoother, younger than his mind remembered. No scars of the wars with monstrous beings. No calluses gathered over the years.
His mind was reeling with gory images: the asteroid impacting Earth. The seven generals of Hell's God triumphant. the screams of the billions dying. the bodies of Yeong Suk and Joon Woo unmoving. and finally, his death.
Or it should have been his death.
"Impossible," he muttered, staggering towards the broken mirror propped up on the wall.
The face in the mirror was his, only his at a different age—18 or 19, maybe. The battle-worn face of an experienced awakener, having survived the apocalypse, gave way to the face of a boy, with wide, scared eyes, and a flushed cheek where the impact of Naksu struck.
Naksu. The restaurant. Jenna
Memories of the past few hours came rushing back, mingling with recollections of the future which was said to have never occurred.
But it was so real.
Eun Sung suddenly felt weak and fell to the ground. He was having a hard time catching his breath, and it sounded uneven and distressed. Was he losing his mind? Had the shock of Jeena's humiliation in public and the attack by Naksu precipitated some kind of breakdown?
"No," he said with a tight clasp of the edge of his frayed bed. "I remember it too well. The invasion, the generals, Mother Gaia."
As he completed his words, a comforting warmth swept through his chest, and a soft, gentle voice from a woman started to speak to him in his thoughts.
«Champion of Earth, you have returned.»
Eun Sung halted in his tracks, his eyes open in amazement. "Mother Gaia? Indeed, it is you?"
«Yes, my champion. Though my power is greatly diminished after sending your soul back.»
Eun Sung's hands trembled. "So it wasn't a dream. The invasion, the destruction of Earth—everything occurred. Or will occur."
«Time is but a river with many branches, champion. What you experienced was one such branch. We have now diverted to another, but the river still flows toward the same ocean unless we create a new path.»
He took a deep breath, trying to make sense of it. Having been given a second chance, a second shot at halting the apocalypse he experienced.
"How?" he asked matter-of-factly. "How did we survive? How did we get back?"
«Your sacrifice skill. In your final moments, when there was no one left to transfer your death to, I merged my essence with your soul and activated your hidden ability—reincarnation. It cost me greatly, and I must rest within you for some time to recover.»
"But what can I do now? I'm just an F-rank awakener with a non-functional shadow element. The last time, I couldn't save anyone. I was. weak."
The warmth in his chest grew briefly.
«You will no longer be weak, champion. I have gifted you with the systema, the core of my power. Through it, you will gain mastery over all elements and grow stronger than any awakener before you.»
As Mother Gaia spoke, a transparent blue screen came into view in front of Eun Sung.
Systema Activated
[Welcome, Champion of Earth]
[Status
Name: Eun Sung
Age: 18
Rank: F (Hidden)
True Rank: Unknown
HP: 120
MP: 150
Elements
Shadow: Locked at 5% - Natural Affinity
Water: 0% (locked)
Fire: 0% (locked)
Earth: 0% (Locked)
Wind: 0% (locked)
Lightning:0%(Locked)
Light: 0% (locked)
Skills
Sacrifice (Shadow - Passive): Transfer death to any other human in a 10-meter radius. Can't be used against creatures or non-Earth beings.
??? (Locked)
??? (Locked)
System Message
Mother Gaia power: 1%. System operations are in limited mode until power resumes. Defeat the monsters to gain elemental energy and unlock more features in the system.
He looked at the screen, his mind racing with the implications. The last time, he was powerless in the face of the planetary invasion. This time, however, he would be ready.
He reached his hand out towards the status window, his fingers stroking the otherworldly screen. It felt cool to his touch, as if his hand was sliding through fog.
Mother Gaia gave me a second chance," he panted, his face setting in a determined look. "This time, I will not fail."
The water dripping from his ceiling came to an abrupt halt, as if time itself had momentarily stopped to respect his vow.
And a fresh notification arrived.
[New Quest: First Step]
Mission: Defeat the 5 shadow element creatures to begin unlocking your true power.
Reward: Shadow element mastery boosted by +5%, New skill slot opened
Failure: None
Time Limit: None
There was a slight curve to the lips of Eun Sung. In his former life, he was Eun Sung the cursed child, the no-good F-rank awakener.
In this one, however, he was meant for something else.
The interface disappeared as he stood up, his mind decided. The next day, he was getting himself a dungeon and working on strengthening himself.
A decade wasn't long to prepare for the apocalypse. But this time, when the generals descended and the gods battled on earth, there would be Eun Sung.
And this time, he wouldn't be alone in surviving.