The world didn’t return to darkness.

  Quite the opposite—it drowned me in light. Bright. Warm. It seeped under my eyelids like summer sunlight you weren’t ready for yet, because the sleep was just too good.

  But this wasn’t a dream.

  My body hit something solid. It didn’t hurt—it felt more like nding in a VR simution, but with a strange undercurrent of... realness. The scent of grass. Moisture on my fingers. A rustle nearby. Birds?

  I slowly pushed myself up. The grass bent under the weight of my boots. Not far off, among cobbled paths and simple wooden houses, people clustered together. They all looked just as lost as I felt.

  [Location: Beginner’s Vilge – Zone 7]

  Beginner’s Vilge. It sounded... familiar. And so damn out of pce.

  I looked around. Some were shouting, pulling at their interfaces. Others stared at their hands like they couldn’t believe they had fingers. Someone was crying. Someone knelt on the ground whispering, “This has to be a joke. It has to be a dream.”

  But it wasn’t.

  It was something else. Too physical, too intense. I could feel every split second—like time had stretched just to force me to understand: there was no going back.

  This was real. Too real.

  The warmth of the grass. The chill in the air. The weight of my thoughts. And that creeping sense that something had ended.

  I raised my hand instinctively. The HUD responded immediately.

  [Name: Not Set] [Css: Endbringer’s Scribe (Special)] [Level: 1] [HP: 100/100 | MP: 50/50] [Inventory: Basic Cloak, Legacy Tome]

  My heart started racing again. "Special." Such a small word—and in that moment, it felt like both a curse and a blessing.

  [System Note: Special csses progress only through experience and observation.]

  I ignored it for now. Not because I wasn’t curious—but because I was overwhelmed. Every corner of this pce screamed with newness. I gnced at the tome on my belt—dark cover, no title.

  The Legacy Tome didn’t look like a regur game item. It had weight—not physical, but... presence. When I held it, I felt like it was holding me. The matte bck cover was cold as ice, yet it trembled—breathing in sync with my heartbeat.

  Symbols along the spine shifted subtly, like shadows moving across a wall. There was no title. And that made me want to know it even more.

  But not now. Too much. Too fast.

  Someone passed close by and stopped.

  “Hey,” a voice said—young, still boyish, with a slight tremor. “You too...?”

  I turned. A teenager, maybe sixteen, stood there with messy hair and a jacket far too thin for this pce. His eyes held the same thing I saw in everyone else—fear. But he wasn’t panicking. He was trying to hold it together.

  I stared at him silently.

  “Did you get a css too?” he asked. “I don’t get any of this. I just woke up here. I don’t know what’s going on.”

  My hand tightened on the tome’s strap. I didn’t have the energy—or desire—to expin anything. But he didn’t look like he needed answers.

  He just didn’t want to be alone.

  “Don’t talk to me,” I said ftly.

  It wasn’t anger. Everything inside me was just... quiet. Heavy. Like my mind hadn’t caught up with my body. Like it hadn’t caught up with the world.

  That kid looked like he was searching for something familiar. Something to tch onto before he drowned in panic. And me? I already knew one thing:

  This world wasn’t going to be kind.

  And he was better off not getting attached. Because everything you grow attached to here... can break. Or disappear.

  And that kind of pain—it can cut deeper than death.

  Losing someone you’ve bonded with... it leaves a crack that never fully heals.

  I thought it quietly, with a trace of mencholy in my eyes, before walking away.

  The boy froze. I think it hit him. But he said nothing more.

  Neither did I. I just walked on.

  The vilge wasn’t rge. The HUD map suggested it was circur in yout. At its center was a stone pza—and in the middle of it...

  NPCs.

  Or at least, that’s what I thought.

  An old man in a cloak. The moment his eyes met mine, I felt a flicker of unease. NPCs weren’t supposed to look at you like that. Not like that.

  "Welcome, pyer," he said. "Your first quest awaits. But before you leave, gather a party. The system does not permit solo expeditions."

  "And if I don’t want a party?"

  "Then you’ll die faster."

  No smile. No blink. He just turned and walked away.

  That was the moment I realized—this wasn’t a game.

  I started analyzing my css. "Endbringer’s Scribe." It sounded ominous. Final. And incredibly impractical. I didn’t know the rules. I didn’t understand the mechanics. The system said it grew through experience and observation. What the hell did that even mean?

  In a normal RPG, I’d already be distributing stat points, learning skills, theory-crafting builds. But this wasn’t a normal RPG. And if the world outside this vilge looked anything like I feared—crawling with beasts, chaos, and death—going solo might be the dumbest option possible.

  I didn’t want anyone with me. But maybe... just at the start... it wouldn’t hurt to see how things worked before deciding when to be truly alone.

  Off to the side of the pza, a group of pyers had already gathered. They were whispering, arguing, ughing nervously. And among them—was that boy. The same one who had spoken to me.

  He looked my way but said nothing. His gaze slipped aside instantly, like he'd been burned—like just meeting my eyes was too much.

  I must’ve scared him off.

  I smirked to myself, a touch of irony on my lips. Not the first time. Probably not the st.

  Before I could turn away, someone else approached—a young man, maybe twenty, clearly from the same group. He motioned toward the others and gnced at me, uncertain.

  "Hey, you already talked to the quest NPC?" he asked. "We need one more. It's a five-person minimum to start the quest. You in?"

  I hesitated. Looked once more at the group in the distance, their nervous ughter and half-whispers trying to push back the fear.

  I sighed internally.

  I didn’t like making choices out of practicality. But this one... might save me from a few miserable hours. Or days. Or worse.

  "Sure," I said.

  He offered a hand. The grip was firm, brief. Without another word, he led me to the others.

  "We got him," he said to his group.

  They turned. Two nodded. One girl smiled awkwardly. And him—the kid—he looked up. Didn’t say anything. Just gave me a small nod.

  "Welcome to the team," one of them said—clearly the leader.

  "Name’s Daren. I’m twenty-two. Css: Battle Inspirer, rare support type. I specialize in buffs and battlefield control." He nodded with confident calm.

  "Saya," said the girl with cropped hair. "Mage. Fire. Basic css." Her voice was neutral, but there was fire in her eyes.

  "Viko. Warrior. Also basic," said the blond guy. "But hey, who says basics can’t be badass, right?"

  Then the youngest spoke—the boy I’d brushed off earlier.

  "Leo. Sixteen..." He hesitated, almost choking on the words. "Epic css: Shadow Assassin."

  Everyone paused. Even Saya raised an eyebrow.

  "For real? Epic?" Viko asked. "Nice one, kid."

  Leo just nodded, eyes back to the ground.

  Then, all eyes turned to me.

  "And you?" Daren asked.

  I paused for a moment, then gave a light shrug.

  "Epic css," I said calmly. "Name’s Aiden. I’m twenty-eight. The css is called Spell Forger. I can copy monster spells I witness in battle."

  "Copy spells?" Saya repeated. "Sounds... powerful."

  "I can use them for a few hours after copying," I added—lying smoothly, without hesitation.

  They didn’t need to know the truth.

  "Honestly?" Saya said suddenly, arms crossed. "I’m sick of watching half the people here just whine and wander around like that’s going to change anything."

  "Exactly," Viko added. "It’s like they don’t get how obvious this is. You’re level one? Then grind. Level up. Get gear. Pretty straightforward, right?"

  "That’s how every game like this works," Saya nodded. "But some people clearly missed the memo."

  I listened to them, but didn’t say a word. Something sharp lit up in my mind.

  They... really thought this was still a game. Maybe not literally, but... they hadn’t understood yet. Or maybe they didn’t want to.

  And honestly? I couldn’t bme them.

  Daren scratched the back of his neck and took a deep breath.

  "Alright, now that we’ve got a full party, time to grab the quest. The NPC in the center gives us the first task. I spoke to him earlier—we need to kill twenty monsters in the forest outside the vilge. Simple and cssic."

  "Finally, some action," Saya muttered, stretching her arms. "Can’t wait to see what those monsters look like."

  "Maybe we’ll get some rare drops," Viko added. "Could be something more than sticks and rags."

  Without another word, Daren headed out, not looking back.

  The rest of us followed.