A pure white background.
Where was the floor, and where was the ceiling?
Just staying in a place like this for a single day would be enough to drive anyone mad. And there I stood, right in the middle of it.
Then, amid that vast whiteness, a single discordant figure caught my eye.
A person entirely cloaked in black—the polar opposite of white.
Who was he?
There he stood, perfectly still, staring straight ahead.
Was it a martial robe? Traditional training garb?
A man in unfamiliar black attire, facing forward.
"...His feet."
Barefoot, no shoes—covered in scars and crusted blood.
Feet I'd seen somewhere before.
Where was it?
That, too, escaped my memory.
Everything felt hazy.
Why was I here?
Why was I seeing this?
I had no idea.
I found myself just staring at the man, unable to look away.
Then I noticed: from the spot where he stood, a red trail stretched backward like a path.
"That's... blood?"
Anyone could see it was bloodstains, marking his trail without a single gap.
The scene looked brutally cruel for some reason—distant, yet terrifying.
"...Hah...!"
I let out a gasp without realizing it.
And then.
"...!"
His head turned slowly, revealing his face.
He was clearly looking right at me, but I couldn't make out his features.
Like it was shrouded in fog—blurry and indistinct.
Still, I could feel his gaze fixed on me.
I wanted to run.
My instincts screamed it.
Run away now.
Get out of here.
But my body was rigid, frozen in place.
That's when it came.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Not yet. Do not reveal your identity.]
* * *
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
"Hah...!"
I jolted awake, gasping for air.
Even though I'd just woken up, my back was soaked with cold sweat.
Feeling my pounding heart, I muttered,
"A dream...?"
Realizing it had been a dream finally calmed my racing pulse.
Whoa.
What a ridiculous dream.
'In the world... what a nightmare... Huh?'
Huh?
What was the dream about?
The details I'd just been dreaming slipped from my mind.
'Forgot it already?'
It felt like I'd dreamed it moments ago, so why couldn't I remember?
But I didn't dwell on it.
Dreams were like that, after all.
All I could vaguely recall was that last line.
'Hide my identity?'
What did that even mean?
'Eh, it's just a dream. No point overthinking.'
That's all it was.
At least, that's what I thought then.
'What time is it...?'
I checked the clock and bolted upright.
Startled fully awake, memories from yesterday flooded back.
"Awakening...!"
I'd awakened. My heart raced again.
What if even that wasn't a dream? Clutching my chest, I quickly examined my left palm.
There it was.
"...It's there..."
A star shape, vividly etched.
They said it was proof of awakening—a tattoo only the bearer could see.
"...It worked... It really worked!"
It had appeared on me. I couldn't contain my excitement. This was the awakening I'd longed for.
It was insane. I tried to suppress it, but my trembling fingertips betrayed me.
I gingerly pressed the star with my shaking thumb.
In that instant.
⚔ STATUS ⚔ ⚡ Past Life Info: Martial God (EX) 💨 Assimilation Rate: 0% ✨ Note: Assimilation too low. Abilities restricted.
"...Whoa."
I let out an awed breath the moment I saw it. This was the system window everyone talked about—the one you get upon awakening. And now, finally, I could see it too.
But.
"...What the hell is this?"
The rank was off.
"EX?"
A rank I'd never heard of.
"Does this even exist?"
From F-grade to SS-grade.
Your past life's rank determined your abilities, shaping your entire future.
F-grades were mostly past lives as boring farmers or commoners.
No real difference from a regular person—basically unawakened.
Higher ranks meant exponentially greater power.
'Only three SS-grades right now.'
The pinnacle. One American, one Chinese.
And the last...
'Korean.'
Right here in Korea.
'Even SS can threaten nations...'
So what was this rank? I'd never seen anything higher.
"Seriously, what is it?"
I glanced at my palm. The star's color was weird too.
'...Black.'
Jet black, now that I looked closer.
Colors corresponded to ranks, but black wasn't one of them.
"Is something wrong...?"
Anxiety bubbled up.
"Back then... there was an S-grade."
The Reincarnation Roulette spat out an S-rank.
But something forced this on me instead.
'Status says it's real, not a dream.'
If not a dream, then what now?
'What's this assimilation rate?'
I frowned at it. Assimilation wasn't unusual.
They said past life memories flood in gradually via assimilation, not all at once.
"...0%?"
Zero percent? What the hell?
I couldn't help but panic.
"What if it's broken?"
Finally awakened, only for something to be wrong? That terrified me.
'Maybe...'
Was I so desperate I hallucinated? The thought crossed my mind.
What then?
"...No way."
If I'd lost my mind, that'd be the end.
"Not yet. Can't lose it now."
My gaze drifted to the desk—to my parents' photo.
"..."
I stared at it, then stood up.
"What time is it...?"
A little past 8 a.m.
I grabbed clothes and dressed hurriedly.
"If I don't know, I just check."
Whether my awakening was real? Time to find out.
I rushed out. Destination set.
* * *
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
-The next stop is Incheon Superhuman Association. Incheon Superhuman Association Station.
The announcement came as I boarded the bus in a hurry.
I hit the stop button immediately.
Screech.
Doors opened. Stepping out, a massive building loomed ahead. Didn't expect to be here first thing in the morning.
The Superhuman Association. I came once a year.
Headquarters in Seoul—this was the Incheon branch.
'The rank.'
Wonder if I can even explain it.
Six stories tall. I headed to the first-floor info desk.
"Hello. Here for awakening registration."
"Ah, an awakener?"
"...Yeah, I think so."
"Pardon?"
She tilted her head at my vague reply.
"Ah... okay. Can I see your ID?"
"Here."
"Got it... Hmm?"
She checked it, eyes widening. My age was the issue.
"Um... when did you awaken?"
Exactly twenty. She seemed puzzled.
"Yesterday."
"Oh my! Congratulations!"
"Thanks."
Everyone freaks out over last-day awakenings. I did too.
"ID confirmed. Testing's on this floor."
"...Got it."
"After confirmation, come down for registration."
"Understood."
She handed me a form. I headed upstairs.
No one waiting. New Year's Day—no one registers awakenings then.
"Just grab the box."
I eyed it after the instructions.
'This is it.'
The thing I'd dying to see.
For awakeners, it glows blue to confirm.
Newly developed, they said.
Before, measurements were crude. Now, systematic.
I'd kill to awaken and touch it.
Gulp.
'Please glow blue.'
It has to be real. Has to.
Swallowing dryly, I gripped it.
Vrrr—!!!
It shook violently.
Whoosh—!!! Then glowed slowly.
But.
'...Black?'
Even the light was black.
"Wha? What's going on?"
The examiner startled.
"What the...!"
She glanced at the monitor, trembling. Results appeared.
[Confirmed.] [Past life awakener verified.]
'So I did awaken.'
The machine confirmed it properly.
"...Huh. But why the color?"
She looked flustered. Awakeners should glow blue—black was unheard of.
But.
Whoosh—!!
Blue light soon poured from the black glow.
She sighed in relief.
"Ah, must be a machine glitch..."
"...Really?"
"Yeah. It's new tech—glitches happen sometimes."
She smiled sheepishly.
"Measurement's fine, so don't worry. Head down for registration."
"Got it."
She stamped the form.
"For official rank certification, go to Seoul HQ within ten days."
"Understood."
I took it downstairs, registered, and finished up.
"Good job...! Looking forward to working with you!"
"Thanks."
Registration done. Card comes after HQ certification in a few days. With that, I shuffled out.
'...What is it.'
The EX rank still felt off.
What the hell was it?
Should've asked her.
'Weird.'
Words wouldn't come—like my mouth was sealed.
"Oh, right."
Something I'd forgotten hit me. If I'm really awakened...
'I can use that now.'
A space only for awakeners.
I tapped the star tattoo three times.
Then.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Ding!] [Enter the Network?]
I grinned at the alert.
'...I can really enter now.'
A system-access space.
Exclusive to past life awakeners.
The Reincarnation Network.
A community for them—
'...And Gate access.'
Gates opened every few days. This granted entry.
Heart pounding, I hit enter.
The window expanded, filling my vision.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Entered Reincarnation Network.]
Really in. Like staring at a computer screen.
Posts everywhere. It hit me.
'Here it comes.'
Newbies trigger a notice.
Ding!!
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [■ A new past life awakener has entered the Reincarnation Network.]
Like this. Fascinating.
Crackle.
"Huh?"
Something was wrong. Very wrong.
* * *
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
The Reincarnation Network had proven invaluable since its discovery.
Gates tore through dimensions, threatening peace.
Entry required the Network.
Awakener info-sharing, chit-chat—only space for supers.
Newbies even triggered alerts.
This time was no different.
💬 Comments ⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [■ New past life awakener entering.] — Marcel's Farmer Whoa, an alert? What's this? — Samdong 1402 Bloody Wind Newbie? A newbie showed up? — Bundang Honey Fist Newbie on New Year's? Awakened but delayed opening the Network? — Paris Romance Who does that? Everyone rushes to the Network first. — Samdong 1402 Bloody Wind Nah, time zones differ. Maybe not Asia. — Marcel's Farmer LOL yeah right?
Posts flooded in. All eyes from epithet holders on one thing.
Not the usual time for new awakeners. Everyone tuned in.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [■ Past life presence too strong.] [Halting Network. Reconstructing.] — Anonymous What the fuck! — Anonymous Network's down. What bullshit is this? — Anonymous Network crashing out of nowhere? First time ever? — Anonymous No way it'd happened before without records!
Chaos erupted. First Network outage ever since launch. Back up in seconds, but reactions were nuclear.
Posts exploding faster than usual.
And amid the frenzy.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [■ Reconstruction successful.] [■ Martial God has entered the Network.] [■ Warm welcome to all.]
Something even bigger dropped.
— Anonymous ...Black name? What's black mean? — Anonymous Martial God? What? And that black tag? — Anonymous What rank? That presence warning—was it this guy? Crashed the Network just entering? — Anonymous Shut down the whole Network... with just entry? — Anonymous Color's off too. Black? Never seen it.
The outage sparked a chain reaction hotter than ever.
Unprecedented situation.
Unseen color.
Unexpected anomaly—reactions exploded.
Martial God announcement buried in comments.
— Anonymous What rank? — Anonymous Who are you? — Anonymous Which country?
Hundreds in seconds. Thousands soon.
One existence rippling across every super worldwide.
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