June 23rd, 1995.The day humanity learned that it was not alone in the universe—and wished it had been.
Without warning, the sky cracked open.A blinding violet light spread across the heavens, forming patterns that twisted and pulsed like veins of a dying world.And then, they came.
Entities from beyond understanding—beings of shifting form and chaotic essence.Not made of flesh, not of metal… but of pure distortion.They devoured, assimilated, and erased everything they touched.
They were called Invaders.
Cities burned.Nations fell.In mere hours, Tokyo, New York, and Seoul ceased to exist.Within weeks, more than sixty percent of humanity was gone.The age of civilization had ended.
Year 1996 – The Dawn of Ruin
The remnants of human governments united under a single banner—The World Association, humanity's last desperate attempt to survive.
But no weapon could pierce the skin of the Invaders.Every strategy failed. Every hope, shattered.
Then, something strange occurred.
Across the world, translucent windows appeared before every surviving human.They floated midair, humming with ethereal light, displaying words in a language everyone could somehow understand:
[System Activated][Welcome to the Dimensional Recovery Protocol][Initializing random ability assignment…]
And just like that—humans began to change.
Some gained powers beyond imagination: conjuring fire, bending metal, freezing time.But the System's gift was not a choice.The abilities were randomly bestowed, each one unique, never repeated.
Yet every gift came with a curse.Many could not withstand the power that now pulsed inside them.Their bodies collapsed… or mutated into horrors more dreadful than the Invaders themselves.
Year 2000 – Rise of the Hunters
To combat the Invaders and the abominations born from failed awakenings, the World Association formed the Hunter Guilds—organizations tasked with protecting humanity's remaining territories.
Those who could control their System-granted abilities were called Hunters.They were ranked from E to S, while dimensional portals were classified by color—Black, Red, Blue, Green, and White,from the most catastrophic to the weakest.
Hunters became the sword and shield of mankind.But with power came greed.People began killing not just for survival—but for dominance.Resources, land, prestige… and the System's mysterious blessings.
Humanity had survived extinction—only to wage war upon itself.
Year 2020 – The Era of Reconstruction
The first fifteen years after the Great Cataclysm were called The Era of Blood.
Eventually, humanity learned to coexist with the System.Cities were rebuilt with System-integrated technology—walls powered by mana cores, vehicles fueled by dimensional energy, and holographic skies painted above the ruins of the old world.
The System Window became a daily companion.People checked their status before breakfast, monitored quests on their commute, and traded skills as if they were digital commodities.
Yet peace was nothing but a fragile illusion.Portals continued to appear, each one more dangerous than the last.Every opening was a reminder—that the world was still dying.
Year 2045 – The Present Age
Fifty years have passed since the Day of Collapse.
The world is now divided.Within the high walls lie the fortified megacities—safe zones guarded by elite Hunters and Guilds.Beyond them stretch the Gray Zones, lands overrun by Invaders and failed human experiments.
Science and sorcery coexist.Technology bends to System logic.But not everyone receives the blessing of an ability.
Some people remain unchosen—empty, without powers, without titles.They are known as Voids.The forgotten ones of the System.
Among them, one young man lives his ordinary life.
In Neo-Seoul, under the flickering glow of holographic skies, a lone student walks down the crowded street toward his university:Daehan Metropolitan University.
He looks ordinary.Athletic build, not too bulky but clearly trained.His black hair falls in soft curtains, slightly messy, covering sharp eyes that reflect more exhaustion than fear.Beneath his gray jacket, faint scars run across his back—old wounds, carved deep enough to tell a story no one dares to ask about.
His name is Han Jae-Hwan, 22 years old.A fourth-semester mechanical engineering student.A Void—no ability, no title, no System advantage.
Just a man trying to live in a world built on strength.
But in his eyes… there's something different.A quiet defiance.A spark that refuses to die.
"Humanity may have lost fifty years ago," he murmured, staring up at the artificial sky."But I won't lose… not again."
To Be Continued