"December, 1096? But isn't it still only August of 1094 right now...?"
"Or could it be!!" At that moment, Amiya seemed to realize something.
"The events happening here... are they from the future? From two years ahead?"
Amiya stared at the screen showing an image of a young girl—no, herself in the future—speaking anxiously, her voice clearly filled with worry due to the lack of any reaction from the Doctor after she had grasped his hand.
Then the scene shifted, cutting to footage of medical personnel Amiya had never seen before. They were telling her to calm down. It then cut back to her perspective, showing the Doctor unconscious on the floor, dressed in familiar black robes and wearing the signature hat that concealed his face.
"That is the Doctor!" Amiya covered her mouth in excitement.
She could barely hold back tears. At first, she thought this app was just playing tricks on her heart—perhaps even some kind of cruel prank—but now she was starting to truly believe that what was unfolding on the screen was a vision of the future, a future two years from now.
'But... why two years from now? Does that mean the Doctor will finally be revived then? Or did something happen to Chernobog?'
Amiya tried to think through all the possible reasons. After reading the content in the game, she saw her future self speaking to others about various problems.
And whether it was the way she spoke or acted, the version of herself on-screen felt like a completely different person. Her future self radiated the aura of a resolute and decisive leader. Although she seemed particularly distressed when it came to the Doctor, Amiya understood—she would likely be the same.
'What in the world happens in the next two years? Why would Rhodes Island go so far, even sacrificing so much, to save the Doctor? Didn't Doctor Kal'tsit say the Doctor's body was kept in the most secure location in all of Chernobog...?'
Before she could think further, the storyline revealed the answer to her question: a mysterious group had broken into the room and launched an attack.
They wore pure white uniforms and emotionless white masks. Their outfits were stained with dried blood, with smears of gore on their crude, brutal weapons.
They pointed their weapons at Amiya and the others, yelling:
[Reunion]: You damned Ursus scum... die, all of you!!
Suddenly, the screen changed to a combat interface, showing a camera view from behind the character she was controlling—herself.
"This is... the battle interface?"
Though Amiya had never played mobile games before, she quickly grasped the tutorial system's detailed instructions—how to use skills, deploy units to different locations, and more. She currently had six units available: Dobermann, a Feline medical officer, a heavy armor unit, an assault unit, a sniper, and herself—the team's caster. Everyone's HP was currently at 100%.
The roles of the units matched what she had learned with the Doctor during simulated combat exercises in the past. She didn't need to relearn anything—she knew exactly who could do what.
Even though the game seemed to involve direct combat control, it also had a strategic layer. Amiya could direct units in specific directions using a time-slowing mechanic, giving her time to plan ahead. The game's interface functioned much like Rhodes Island's command terminals, something she had trained on under Doctor Kal'tsit.
'If that's the case... then I should be able to do this.' Amiya nodded with determination. But before the first battle began, one last warning message popped up:
"All non-main characters who die in battle will be permanently deceased in the storyline and cannot be revived. Trust and morale with teammates will drop significantly. Some key characters' deaths will also affect future story development. Please consider your choices carefully."
'The stakes in this game are incredibly high...' Amiya's expression tensed. This wasn't just a game—it was a glimpse into the future. And that made every action all the more serious.
The first battle was relatively easy, just as she expected. Amiya used her unique skill to swiftly eliminate all the enemies.
She thought she'd done everything correctly... until she saw the aftermath:
[Amiya HP: 79%] Health only regenerates at rest points or after completing main chapters.
'Wait... my skills consume my HP?' Amiya was shocked.
But she remembered—she couldn't even fully control the Demon King's arts now. Even her future self hadn't mastered them yet and clearly suffered intense pain each time she used them. No wonder she would take damage for overusing them.
This forced Amiya to think even more carefully. After defeating the enemies, she finally learned who they were—Reunion. An organization fighting for the rights of the Infected, founded by a small group of people and led by someone named Talulah.
Though their profile resembled that of Rhodes Island, Amiya turned pale upon realizing that Reunion's way of fighting for rights was nothing like theirs. Reunion had declared war, mobilized the Infected, and attacked mobile cities to show the world that oppression would be repaid in blood.
Amiya was terrified by this ideology. She had heard of it from the Doctor before—how if the Infected continued to be oppressed, someone would eventually rise up. And if that rebellion grew beyond control to a national level, it would bring catastrophe upon the land.
And what the Doctor had predicted... was happening.
Chernobog was the first mobile city to be attacked. The Infected, mindless yet heavily armed, were rampaging everywhere. They killed anyone who wasn't Infected without mercy—not even children or women were spared.
"This is... too cruel." Amiya trembled in fear. The devastation unfolding before her eyes—the burning mobile city, Reunion agents murdering citizens in the streets, dragging people out of their homes... even children...
Amiya didn't want to believe that this was what the future held, just two years from now.
And at that moment, the Doctor began to regain consciousness. Future Amiya, relieved, greeted him joyfully—only for both her and the current Amiya to be stunned by what he said:
[Doctor]: Who... are you?
[Doctor]: Why am I here?
[Doctor]: Where... is this place?
[Amiya]: It's me, Doctor. Amiya.
[Doctor]: Amiya...? Who's that?
[Amiya]: Wha... Doctor...
Future Amiya was clearly in shock, but she was quickly grounded again by a medical officer, who explained that the Doctor's body hadn't fully recovered yet. His brain might have suffered some damage, resulting in partial memory loss.
While he still retained basic life knowledge and remembered his own name, everything else—including their shared past—was gone.
That helped Amiya pull herself together again.
[Amiya]: It doesn't matter... Even if you've lost your memories, Doctor, you're still the most important person to me. That will never change.
[Amiya]: So please, Doctor... trust me. I'll bring you back home. Back to Rhodes Island!
Choice:
[Home?]
[Rhodes Island...]
[...Can I really trust you?]
"This... the game wants me to choose the Doctor's response?" Amiya admitted she was in shock.
The Doctor had amnesia. He couldn't remember anything—not Babel, not Theresa, not even her.
She admired her future self for accepting that so quickly, without letting sadness show. She wasn't sure if she could be that strong.
Amiya wiped her tears, face turning serious. She focused on her future self's words.
'It doesn't matter if the Doctor forgets us. He's still the most important person to me.'
She chose option 1: [Home].
The Doctor responded:
[Doctor]: Home?
[Doctor]: ...
[Doctor]: Amiya... can I really trust you?
Choice:
[You can always trust me, Doctor.]
[You're the most important person to me, Doctor.]
[I want you to find the answer yourself.]
Seeing these options, Amiya didn't know which to pick. Why didn't the game just decide for her? Did her choice affect how the Doctor saw her?
After a long hesitation, her trembling finger hovered over and selected option 3. The other two felt too forceful, and she didn't want to pressure the Doctor—or anyone—into trusting her. She had always been taught: actions speak louder than words.
[Doctor's Trust increased]
"The answer did matter!" Amiya felt relieved she chose the right response.
But what she didn't expect was that she handed the command tablet over to the Doctor, asking him to help her with the battlefield decisions.
Then the game unlocked a new combat ability: the Doctor's Tactical Precision. With it, she could now see HP values, resistance levels, enemy weaknesses, plan retreats, and detect likely trap zones.
'That's the Doctor for you! Even without memories, his command skills are still top-tier!'
Amiya deeply admired him. Though she was the one controlling the game, the Doctor's abilities let her safely lead the team to regroup with others waiting ahead.
It was there that she gained new team members — including the highly capable Operator Nearl, a 5-star with extremely high stats and healing abilities for the team. And also ACE, the elite operator she knew from Babel Tower, who was a 6-star heavy armor operator — the strongest member of the team!
"Hehe, Mr. ACE still looks the same as ever..." Amiya giggled when she saw that ACE hadn't changed, even after two years had passed.
From the story, it seemed ACE had come on a mission here with Scout, who was surveying the area. But now their terminal signals were jammed, making it impossible to contact any agents more than half a kilometer away.
ACE asked Amiya what the next plan was — should they search for Scout, or retreat to Rhodes Island to get the Doctor treated first?
Naturally, Amiya was given two choices: rescue Scout or evacuate to Rhodes Island.
In the end, she chose the latter, because of the Doctor's poor physical condition — he looked like he could collapse at any moment. She also had full faith that Scout could survive on his own, even without contact, because he was as capable in combat as ACE.
ACE respected her decision and followed her plan — evacuating the Doctor to Rhodes Island.
What followed was a series of events — such as encountering Crownslayer, a hooded woman who could cloak herself in mist, injuring many of Amiya's operators. Then there was a creepy white-haired boy, roughly her age, whose twisted heart was full of rage and jealousy. His power was terrifying — he could turn dying infected into mindless zombies that fought relentlessly.
They had to flee from those enemies multiple times to avoid more casualties. But on the third retreat, while crossing a bridge, one of Amiya's team members was struck unconscious by a mysterious purple arrow that came from nowhere and hit them in the chest.
Amiya panicked, ordering the heavy-armored operator to carry the unconscious sniper and retreat while ACE and Nearl shielded them from further arrows. Dobermann carried the weary Doctor, while Amiya used a fraction of her Demon King power to destroy the bridge behind them and escape via an alternate route.
But it was a trap.
At the end of that alternate path, a tall figure radiating the aura of brimstone appeared before them — followed by a large force of Reunion troops.
Suddenly, an anime-style animation played before her.
[Talulah]: "Such futile resistance... But I must admit, for such a small group, you've done quite well."
[Talulah]: "It's a pleasure to meet you, Rhodes Island. And now... farewell."
Flames gathered in the white-haired woman's hand, raising the ambient temperature until everyone's skin began to burn.
[Nearl]: "Reunion's leader... someone like you doesn't deserve to live!"
[ACE]: "Don't rush in, Nearl!"
[Talulah]: "Fools..."
The fireball in her hand was pointed forward — then a massive blast surged toward them.
Boom!!!
[Nearl]: "Ugh!"
Nearl raised her shield, but the wave of fire sent her flying several meters, her shield incinerated in an instant. Though her arm survived, it was badly burned — unusable without treatment.
And that was just one attack.
[Doctor]: "What... what is that flame?"
[Medic Operator]: "H-How can we fight a monster like that?!"
Talulah lowered her hand, as if the attack was just her toying with them. She looked at the Doctor, then Amiya.
[Talulah]: "What a disappointment, Rhodes Island. You should be fighting for the Infected, just like us."
The heat intensified. Some operators began to collapse from lack of air.
[Assault Operator]: "C-Can't breathe..."
[Heavy Armor Operator]: "Even our shields and arrows are melting. That woman... she's not human anymore!"
Nearl, staggering back, clutched her injured arm and whispered to Amiya:
[Nearl]: "Amiya... take everyone and run."
[Nearl]: "We can't beat her. Someone has to stay and buy time."
[Amiya]: "Nearl..."
But the Reunion leader wouldn't give them time to decide.
[Talulah]: "How dull..."
She raised her hand again — summoning an even larger fireball aimed straight at them.
[Nearl]: "Amiya!"
[Amiya]: "..."
[Talulah]: "Atone for hurting our comrades."
[Talulah]: "I shall deliver your judgment myself."
[Dobermann]: "Damn it... we won't dodge in time!"
[Medic Operator]: "Ahhh!!!"
[ACE]: "Everyone, behind my shield!"
[Nearl]: "I'll block it!"
[ACE]: "No! Nearl, fall back!"
[Talulah]: "Burn to ash."
[Amiya]: "I won't let you do that!!"
Amiya ran in front of everyone, raising her finger toward the incoming flame without fear.
Fwoosh!!!
Talulah's eyes widened — the black beam that clashed with her flame held firm. Eventually, it consumed her fire completely.
[Talulah]: "Oh?"
For a brief moment, curiosity and hunger gleamed in her eyes — before fading into neutrality, with only a widening smile remaining.
[Talulah]: "So Rhodes Island has some surprises, after all."
She unleashed another identical blast.
[Amiya]: "I... will protect everyone!"
She used her black energy again to block it — but this time, it wasn't enough. Her power couldn't fully absorb the flames.
[Nearl]: "Can Amiya really block that power?"
[Dobermann]: "No... this isn't good! Stop, Amiya! If you keep pushing, your ring will—"
[Amiya]: "I'm fine!"
Amiya, straining under the force, looked resolute. Her red eyes gleamed.
[Amiya]: "If it's for everyone... I can do this!"
[Amiya]: "Sorry, Doctor. Even if this brings disaster to this land..."
[Amiya]: "I don't want to lose anyone ever again!"
Tick... Tick...
Her trembling hand held her phone tightly, tears falling on the screen. Somehow, she understood Amiya's feelings perfectly...
She too... wanted to be strong.
Strong enough to protect everyone who mattered to her.
"Even my future self has never forgotten that day..."
[Amiya]: "I... will never... give up."
Amiya's strength waned from overusing her power. The black energy faltered, and the flames began to overwhelm her.
[ACE]: "That's enough, Amiya..."
ACE's voice rang out as he dashed past her, shield raised to block the flames in her place — despite the toll it would take on his own body.
[ACE]: "You did well. Now let me handle the rest..."
[Amiya]: "No... ACE... I still—!"
[ACE]: "Dobermann!"
ACE shouted. Dobermann, reluctantly, passed the Doctor to Nearl and ran to carry Amiya on her shoulder. She yelled:
[Dobermann]: "Everyone, retreat!!"
[Amiya]: "No... ACE... we promised... we'd go home together..."
As Amiya's consciousness faded, her hand reached out to the back of ACE, slowly being consumed by fire.
[ACE]: "I'm sorry, Amiya... but this is the best choice."
He glanced behind — at a man being carried by Nearl.
[ACE]: "Doctor Ren, even if you don't remember me now..."
[ACE]: "I remember you well. I know what kind of person you are."
[ACE]: "One day... you'll face this cruel world alongside Amiya."
[ACE]: "When that time comes... please take care of our little girl."
[Amiya]: "ACE!!!"
[Talulah]: "Are you done saying your goodbyes?"
[Talulah]: "Then die."
An overwhelming flame surged toward ACE, and he braced himself for the end.
But in that instant—
[???]: "Sorry... looks like I'm late."
Fwoosh!!! A brown stone pillar shot up, blocking the flames just in time. Everyone from Rhodes Island stared, eyes wide, as a white-haired man descended from the sky, landing atop the stone pillar.
"Th-That man!"
Off-screen Amiya, crying at ACE's sacrifice, shouted aloud when she saw the white-haired figure appear in the animation.
[???]: "Sorry for the delay. I'm Operator Zhongli from Penguin Logistics, here to assist Rhodes Island."
The tall, white-haired man smiled politely at everyone, then turned to face the Reunion leader behind him.
[Zhongli]: "As for you, Reunion..."
His eyes narrowed, and his golden irises began to glow strangely. He crossed his arms.
[Zhongli]: "Your punishment... is to be entombed in stone."
[Zhongli]: "I will have order."
As soon as the sound faded, the entire sky was shrouded in a mysterious shadow. When everyone looked up to find its source, they were stunned to see a massive boulder hurtling down toward where they stood.
Even the leader of Reunion showed a look of fear for the first time upon seeing it.
[Zhongli]: Be reduced to dust.