The bunker was a total mess after the Overlord attack, with drip! drip! echoing from leaking pipes and crackle! crackle! from sparking wires that lit up the dark like dying fireflies.
Dust floated thick, making it hard to breathe, and chunks of steel lay scattered like forgotten toys. Jae-sung trudged through the mess, his plasma rifle heavy in his tired hands.
His chest felt like a rock was sitting on it, and his mind kept replaying the horror. "Min-ah's gone... I couldn't save her.
Is this all that's left?" he thought, wiping sweat and dirt from his face. The red emergency lights flickered, casting long, scary shadows that danced on the walls.
"Boss, it's like a graveyard down here," a hunter grumbled, kicking a bent pipe with a clang!. His face was covered in grime, and his voice sounded exhausted, like he'd been fighting forever.
Jae-sung nodded, his eyes scanning the dark corners. "Keep looking—someone might still be out there." He tried to sound strong, but inside, he felt broken. "If I stop now, what was it all for?"
A survivor with a bloody leg whimpered from the shadows. "My arm's stuck—please, get me out!" she begged, her voice shaky and full of pain, tears cutting clean lines through the dust on her face. Jae-sung rushed over, yanking her free with a grunt.
"Gotta keep going," he told himself, his muscles burning from the effort. The woman clutched his arm. "Thank you... I thought I was done for," she whispered, her eyes wide with fear.
Then a tiny waa! waa! cut through the quiet like a knife. Jae-sung spun around, his heart jumping. He spotted a shimmer in the wall, whoosh!, like the air was folding on itself. A baby flopped out, landing with a thud! on the cold floor. The shimmer snapped shut, gone like it never happened.
The kid looked normal—small, pink, and crying his lungs out—but for a second, a faint glow flickered on his skin before fading.
Jae-sung's eyes went wide.
"A baby? How's he alive in this mess?" he whispered, dropping to his knees. The little guy wailed, kicking his tiny legs in the air. Jae-sung scooped him up carefully, feeling the warm, squirmy bundle against his chest.
"Not my kid... but he's all alone. Those monsters probably took his family. I can't just leave him to die," he thought, a lump forming in his throat. The baby's cries softened a bit in his arms, but Jae-sung's mind raced.
"He's so small... must be lonely without parents. I'll protect him—it's the least I can do after everything."
Inside the baby's head, Yoo Seung-yoon blinked, dazed. The cozy Extras World was gone, replaced by cold air and loud noise.
"Where am I? I need a safe spot... somewhere to hide and think," he thought, his adult mind trapped in this helpless body. He didn't know this man's face—his father from a life he barely remembered—but the hold felt firm, almost safe.
"Just stay alive for now... find a place to stay," he decided, his cries mixing with the bunker's echoes.
Boom! Rumble! The ground jolted hard, like a giant was stomping. Jae-sung staggered, hugging the baby close. "What's happening now?" he shouted, his voice cracking.
A scientist nearby, clutching a cracked tablet, yelled back, "The core's splitting open—energy's flooding everywhere!" Golden light shot up from the cracks in the floor, hum! pulse!, washing over everyone like a warm wave.
People gasped, their bodies glowing faintly.
A Silver-rank hunter nearby straightened up, his eyes wide with shock. "I feel... stronger. Is this Gold?" he muttered, a shimmering energy cloak flickering around him like a shield.
He flexed his hand, and a small spark of power jumped from his fingers. "This could change everything," he thought, a grin breaking through his fear.
A slum dweller nearby shook his head, feeling a tiny spark but not much. "I got a bit... maybe Iron," he groaned, his torn shirt hanging loose. "Still not enough to fight those things."
"Lucky for some—I'm stuck scraping by," he thought bitterly.
The trader from earlier stumbled closer, holding something shiny in his shaking hand. "Guys, look at this!" he called, raising a glowing red gem the size of a coin.
"I found it near a dead beast while digging out—looks like a dragon type beast, a wyvern or something!" His voice was full of hope, eyes darting around.
"This could be my ticket out of the slums," he thought. A Gold-rank hunter stepped forward. "Trade it? I want that boost!" The trader hesitated.
"What's it worth to you?"
Clang! Clang!
Survivors started dragging steel pieces toward the exit, their faces lit with new energy. "The monsters are backing off—let's go up!" a leader barked, waving at the group. Jae-sung followed, the baby in his arms, climbing the broken stairs.
The cries softened as the kid snuggled closer. "He's calming down... poor little guy," Jae-sung thought.
They broke to the surface, blinking at the ruined world. Broken towers loomed like skeletons, but people were already hammering new ones—shiny and sleek, rising fast with robot helpers buzzing around.
Muddy slums spread nearby, filled with sob! wail!. A slum mother clutched her child, whispering, "Lost my home... what's left for us?"
'They get the towers, we get the mud,' she thought, her eyes full of anger.
"Take back the land—build now!" the leader shouted, pointing at workers. Jae-sung rocked the baby, a sad smile on his lips. "He must've been so lonely after losing his parents. I'll keep him safe," he thought, unaware this was his son.
Suddenly, a hologram screen flickered on a nearby wall, a news reporter's face popping up. "Breaking news!" she said, her voice steady but her eyes wide.
"Reports from all over—hunters are getting stronger! It's like a surge!"
Beep! The screen switched to a researcher in a lab, glasses slipping. "We've studied it—the earth's core had a strange reaction," he explained, pointing at a glowing map.
"It's like a limiter was removed. Energy's flowing free now, boosting everyone's strength. Hunters are jumping ranks—Silver to Gold, Iron to Silver! But be careful—it's not even for everyone."
The crowd murmured. "I felt it!" a hunter yelled. "I'm Platinum now—watch this!" He flexed, and an energy shield hum! popped up. A slum dweller sighed. "I got a little... but still Bronze. Not fair."
Jae-sung stared, feeling a spark in his own body. "This changes things... maybe we can fight back." He looked down at the baby, who had stopped crying, eyes curious. Inside, Yoo felt a pulse! hum! in his chest.
"Something's waking up... is this power?" he thought, his tiny fingers twitching.
"This kid's different... who is he?" he wondered, his voice soft.
The world was shifting—ranks rising, cities rebuilding, slums growing. And in Jae-sung's arms, a new force stirred, blind to the bond they shared.