“A man dies the day he loses hope.”

  — Sophocles

  Aram was horrified by the effort the system had gone through just to deceive them. The apocalypse that had begun only hours ago, the system, and the monsters were connected. The system had helped them all this time. It had given them quests and made them stronger. Her class, Interpreter, allowed her to interpret their situation and the events they encountered in the best possible way. She was a guide.

  The System had told her to find Dirhan. Aram had never understood why her life was so bound to a man she had never met—until she finally found him. When she learned that Dirhan’s class was Warlord, she understood why the system wanted him found. From that point on, Aram began learning who should be in her group through the system. It was not Dirhan who chose who joined—it was her. When there was a problem, Dirhan asked her first.

  Aram was the group’s hidden leader. Dirhan was the star of the show.

  [Guide triggered]

  [High-potential character detected]

  [Calculating character competence…]

  This was the window that appeared before Aram when she first saw Sloane. The calculation was taking longer than usual, but high competence meant usefulness—and Aram was determined to recruit anyone useful. To buy time, she asked the woman about her class and was surprised when she said Author. How could an Author be strong? She didn’t even have a weapon to defend herself, she thought.

  When the calculation dragged on longer than it should have, she continued making small talk. Then she heard the word anomaly and grew genuinely curious. Whenever there was something she didn’t know, her Guide skill immediately activated. That way, she was aware of everything.

  [Guide triggered]

  [Searching for a term called ‘Anomaly’…]

  [Error!] [Unregistered term detected]

  [Try again later]

  What the fuck? How? The existence of something the system didn’t know shocked her, but she didn’t show it. At that moment, the system finished its calculation.

  [Calculation complete]

  [Character competence level: Extreme]

  Extreme? Like Dirhan? She got excited. Everyone else she had met so far had high level competence at best. This was the first time she had encountered someone else on Dirhan’s level. She couldn’t let her slip away.

  I have to get her into the group.

  An unbearable sense of pleasure filled Aram. She had no intention of dying in this ruined world. She would survive by using strong people. That was her life philosophy now.

  Everything collapsed the moment Sloane walked toward them.

  In Aram’s eyes, she suddenly transformed into a gigantic monster they had never faced before. She felt her legs trembling, her heart screaming run. She wasn’t the only one. A plague of fear spread through the entire group, including Dirhan.

  I trusted you blindly, System! You stabbed me in the back.

  It was Dirhan’s harsh voice that snapped the group out of it. With the highest Constituon stat, he was the first to shake off the wave of fear. He called everyone into position.

  Aram told them this was just a trick of the System, forcing them to steady themselves. They prepared to attack the enormous creature before them. Its sheer size and terrifying presence made those in close range hesitate. A few weapons fired, and the creature retreated.

  Sloane cursed her ability and darted into a side street.

  She thought she was safe, but her power had ruined everything. Torn between rage and fear of death, she kept running, breathless.

  Sloane turned into a random street and burst into a small café whose windows were already shattered. The bell above the door still worked; it rang with a sharp chime. The moment she entered, her breath caught. She covered her mouth to stifle the sound.

  She crouched under a table. Chairs were overturned, the coffee machine behind the counter was rusted, and faded menu boards hung on the walls: Latte – Cappuccino – Filter Coffee. Words that once gave meaning to people’s mornings were now ghostly remnants. A notification flashed by, showing her ability had entered cooldown.

  Her heart pounded in her ears.

  Fuck… she muttered.

  Footsteps filled the street.

  “Where did it go?”

  “Something that big can’t just disappear!”

  “Keep your weapon ready. It might be hiding somewhere.”

  The voices drew closer. Boots struck concrete, metal scraped against metal. Someone was breathing very near. Sloane pulled her knees to her chest. Dried coffee stains marked the floor. The smell of sour milk lingered in the air. Strangely… it felt familiar.

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  Cafés she had gone to with friends came to mind.

  Warm cups.

  Laughter.

  Rain beyond the glass.

  Now, beyond the shattered glass, were people ready to kill her.

  “The trail ends here,” said a man.

  “Let’s rest a bit, then go back,” said a woman.

  The door creaked.

  Sloane held her breath. A thought echoed from a misplaced consciousness.

  A world without coffee is impossible.

  Shut up! Sloane screamed inside her head. The table she hid beneath shook slightly.

  “What was that?” the man asked.

  “Rats,” the woman replied.

  They continued talking. They had no idea she was there. The situation was under control. She calmed down. She still had another skill she could use.

  [Skill activated: Fiction Draft]

  She needed something convincing. Something to drive them away. I’m terrible at imagining things! Every thought destroyed the previous one. The skill lasted only five seconds. She acted on the first idea that came to mind.

  A woman appeared in the café doorway.

  “Stop slacking off! We’re moving now!” she shouted—in Aram’s voice.

  The two sitting on chairs jumped up in panic.

  “Aram! We were just—”

  “We were looking for food,” the other added.

  Aram didn’t reply. She walked and disappeared from the doorway.

  They rushed outside after her, but there was no Aram.

  “She already left,” the woman said.

  “She’ll probably tear us apart in front of everyone when we get back,” the man said.

  Their voices faded as their argument continued down the street.

  Sloane finally released her breath. That was close.

  She stayed under the table for a while longer. Five seconds, ten seconds… Time stretched. The footsteps didn’t return. Only the rustle of papers blown by the wind could be heard outside.

  The system was silent.

  This silence wasn’t comforting—it was cautious.

  She peeked toward the door. No one was there. The café was still like a tomb: overturned chairs, rusted machine, coffee names on the walls that would never be erased. It was hard to believe people once sat here and made plans for their lives.

  She stood up slowly. Her legs were numb. She walked toward the door, measuring every step, holding it so the bell wouldn’t ring.

  Outside was quiet. She continued alone.

  She passed broken storefronts. Some still had mannequins inside, wearing seasonal clothes, bullet holes around them. For a moment, she saw her reflection in the glass. A stranger. But her goal was familiar.

  My family.

  That thought silenced the scattered minds in her head for a moment. She walked faster.

  The sky darkened. Gray gave way to dirty purple. Daylight seemed reluctant to stay tied to the world.

  She slowly ate the last food she had taken from the metro kiosk. She sat on the pavement, back against a cold wall, breaking the biscuit into small pieces.

  What is Mom doing now?

  Is Dad still alive?

  My siblings…

  She couldn’t finish the thought.

  The city accepted the night in silence. Streets full of corpses by day would soon be full of darkness. She didn’t know which was worse. She realized she wouldn’t reach them today. It hurt—but didn’t cause panic. She was exhausted, in body and mind.

  “Survive first,” she whispered. “Then go home.”

  She stood up. She needed a safe place for the night. She looked at an apartment entrance. The door was open. It was dark inside. She heard something dragging up the stairs. She backed away.

  She looked at a market. It had been looted. Blood splattered the wall. She closed the door. She stopped in front of a school. Its iron gate was chained. Something moved in the yard. She ran. Finally, she found a small office building. Its windows were cracked, but the door was intact.

  She went inside. There was a reception desk and two small rooms behind it. She locked the door. Pushed a chair against it like a barricade. Closed the curtains. Silence fell. Sloane sat on the floor, back against the wall, knees pulled to her chest.

  I lost my home. Everything, said one of the voices in her head.

  Me too…

  A howl echoed outside. Then another. Then silence. Sloane closed her eyes.

  Tomorrow…

  Tomorrow she will continue searching for her family.

  Tomorrow she would probably see more monsters.

  But she would survive. The world had ended. But her path had not. Not yet.

  As the first day of the apocalypse ended, Sloane fell into an ominous sleep. When she closed her eyes, the city was silent. She didn’t know when sleep came. She woke up with a vibration. In the dark room, a blue window appeared before her.

  [Daily Survival Reward Available]

  [Day 1 Completed]

  Sloane sat up. Her heart raced. The system… still works. And that proved everything she had lived through was real. Another window opened.

  [Reward: Random Trait Fragment]

  [Reward: Minor Stat Increase]

  [Reward: Unidentified Item]

  “You’re kidding…” she whispered.

  Her fingers trembled as she touched the screen. A third window appeared—but its contents were blurred. Sloane held her breath. The misplaced consciousness chuckled.

  Where’s my reward? The laughter faded.

  The window slowly disappeared. The room sank back into darkness.

  But Sloane could no longer sleep.