The following morning, Arin arrived at school earlier than usual.
The school grounds were already beginning to fill with students, but he barely paid attention to them. His eyes moved across the entrance, the buildings, the surrounding streets, and even the rooftops.
Nothing looked unusual.
That was the problem.
In his previous life, the world had looked completely normal six days before the apocalypse.
Then everything changed.
Arin checked his phone.
April 7th.
Six days remained.
He slipped the phone into his pocket.
"Six days."
"You're counting again?"
Kael's voice came from behind him.
Arin turned.
Kael was carrying two bottles of water and a plastic bag filled with food.
Liora walked beside him.
"You've been counting every morning," Liora said.
"Because every day matters."
Kael handed Arin a bottle.
"Then count while eating. You haven't had breakfast."
Arin accepted it.
"Thanks."
Kael grinned.
"See? I'm useful."
Liora looked at the food in his hand.
"You bought eight meat pies."
"Preparation."
"We're three people."
"Preparation."
"You plan to eat all of them?"
Kael looked offended.
"I plan to protect them from starving."
Liora sighed.
"You're hopeless."
They entered the school together.
Neither noticed that two people were watching them from the second-floor corridor.
Ayla and Rhett had arrived early as well.
Ayla watched the trio disappear through the hallway.
"They're here."
Rhett folded his arms.
"Of course they are."
"You sound annoyed."
"I'm annoyed because we've been following them for two days and we still don't know what they're hiding."
Ayla smiled faintly.
"Then today we find out."
Rhett glanced toward her.
"How?"
"Follow them."
"Again?"
"Again."
Rhett sighed.
"At this point, we're basically stalking them."
Ayla looked at him.
"Would you prefer to call it an investigation?"
"That sounds much more respectable."
"Then it's an investigation."
"Excellent."
The two followed.
Neither realized that Arin had already noticed them.
He didn't turn around.
"They're following us again," he said quietly.
Kael glanced at the reflection of a classroom window.
"I see them."
Liora nodded.
"Should we confront them?"
"Not yet."
Kael smiled.
"You're getting paranoid."
Arin looked at him.
"Last time we ignored suspicious people, we ended up surrounded by thousands of zombies."
Kael's smile disappeared.
"Fair point."
The first bell rang.
Everyone returned to their classrooms.
For the next several hours, everything proceeded normally.
Mathematics.
Physics.
English.
A teacher explaining an assignment.
Students complaining about school.
Someone sleeping at the back of the classroom.
It was almost insulting how normal everything was.
At lunch, Elias dropped into the seat beside them.
He immediately looked at Kael.
"So."
Kael continued eating.
"So?"
"Did you figure out how to make me awaken early?"
"No."
Elias frowned.
"Seriously?"
"You asked yesterday."
"And?"
"And the answer hasn't changed."
Elias sighed.
"I don't want to wait six days."
Liora looked at him.
"Why?"
Elias hesitated.
"Because you three already have powers."
He lowered his voice.
"And something is clearly coming."
The three became quiet.
Elias looked around before continuing.
"I don't know what you guys know, but I'm not stupid. You've been acting differently since Monday. You're training constantly. You're gathering supplies. You're investigating strange places."
Arin studied him carefully.
Elias continued.
"You know something."
Kael stopped eating.
For a moment, the atmosphere became tense.
Then Elias sighed.
"I'm not asking you to tell me everything."
He looked directly at them.
"I just don't want to be useless when something happens."
The words struck differently than Arin expected.
In the previous life, Elias had eventually become obsessed with power.
But perhaps that obsession had begun much earlier.
Maybe the apocalypse didn't create the worst parts of him.
Maybe it merely gave them room to grow.
Arin leaned back.
"Then train."
Elias blinked.
"Train?"
"Physical conditioning. Running. Strength. Reflexes. Endurance. Learn how to fight."
"Without powers?"
"Yes."
Elias nodded slowly.
"I can do that."
Kael smiled.
"Finally. Something sensible."
Elias looked at him.
"Can you train me?"
Kael pointed at himself.
"Me?"
"Yes."
Kael looked at Arin.
Arin shrugged.
"Go ahead."
Kael grinned.
"Alright. First lesson."
He stood up.
"Rule number one: if something ugly runs at you, hit it."
Liora stared at him.
"That's your training program?"
"I'm starting with fundamentals."
Elias laughed.
"You're terrible."
"You'll remember it."
Arin shook his head.
"After school."
Elias nodded.
"Deal."
The bell rang.
Students returned to their classes.
But Arin's attention shifted toward the window.
Something was wrong.
The birds outside had suddenly disappeared.
The courtyard was strangely quiet.
Then his Trinity System appeared.
[Environmental Alert]
Abnormal energy fluctuation detected.
Location: School perimeter.
Distance: 380 meters.
Classification: Unknown.
Arin's eyes narrowed.
Liora noticed.
"What is it?"
"Another fluctuation."
Kael leaned closer.
"Another rift?"
"Not sure."
The system updated.
[Scanning…]
[Energy signature recognized.]
[Low-level dimensional residue.]
[Estimated threat: F Rank.]
Kael whispered.
"F Rank."
Liora's eyes sharpened.
"That means something weak."
"Or something pretending to be weak," Arin replied.
The three exchanged glances.
Their previous experience had taught them one important lesson.
Never trust a convenient threat assessment.
After school, they didn't leave immediately.
Instead, the three waited near the rear staircase.
Elias joined them.
Ayla and Rhett were also nearby.
The moment Arin noticed them, he almost sighed.
They were becoming increasingly difficult to ignore.
Ayla approached first.
"Arin."
He looked at her.
"President."
Ayla smiled.
"You know who I am."
"Everyone does."
"Not everyone remembers my name."
Kael whispered, "She has a point."
Liora elbowed him.
Ayla glanced at him.
"And you must be Kael."
Kael blinked.
"You know us?"
"We're in the same school."
Rhett walked up beside her.
"She's been paying attention."
Ayla gave him a sideways look.
"Don't make it sound creepy."
"I'm just stating facts."
Arin looked between them.
"Why are you following us?"
Ayla didn't answer immediately.
Instead, she looked at the three of them.
"I could ask you the same question."
Kael raised an eyebrow.
"We go to school here."
"You know what I mean."
The atmosphere became tense.
Elias looked between everyone.
"Wait."
He pointed at Ayla and Rhett.
"You've been following us too?"
Rhett looked at him.
"You're observant."
"Thank you."
"That wasn't a compliment."
"Oh."
Kael laughed.
Ayla's expression became serious.
"I've noticed strange incidents around the city."
Arin's eyes narrowed.
"Such as?"
"Unexplained animal attacks. Power fluctuations. People becoming sick without obvious causes. Electrical disturbances."
Rhett continued.
"And several security cameras have recorded things that shouldn't exist."
Arin remained silent.
Ayla studied his reaction.
"You know something."
It wasn't a question.
Before Arin could respond, the Trinity System suddenly flashed.
[Linked Hosts: Attention.]
[Potential Allies Detected.]
[Ayla Frost — High Compatibility.]
[Rhett Blaze — High Compatibility.]
[Future Combat Potential: Extremely High.]
Arin's eyes widened slightly.
Future combat potential.
He remembered.
The Ice Queen.
The Fire Lord.
Two of the strongest survivors from the early apocalypse.
But they were supposed to awaken after the World System activated.
Why were they already showing signs?
Another notification appeared.
[Trinity System Note: Interesting.]
[These two appear considerably less clueless than your other classmates.]
Kael glanced at Arin.
"You saw that too?"
Arin nodded.
Ayla noticed their reaction.
"What did you see?"
"Nothing."
Rhett narrowed his eyes.
"That's the third time you've said that."
Kael smiled.
"We're very consistent."
Ayla didn't believe him.
Before she could continue, a strange sound echoed from outside.
A metallic screech.
Everyone turned toward the windows.
A group of students in the courtyard suddenly began shouting.
"What's happening?"
"Move!"
"Get away from it!"
Something had entered the school grounds.
Arin's expression changed immediately.
The Trinity System appeared.
[Target Detected.]
[Scanning…]
[Target Identified.]
Name: Mutated Stray Hound
Rank: F
Level: 5
Strength: 12
Agility: 18
Endurance: 10
Vitality: 14
Mana: 4
Special Ability: [Blood Scent]
Detects wounded targets within a moderate range.
Skill: [Savage Leap Lv.1]
Launches itself toward a target with increased momentum.
Weakness: Vulnerable to concentrated attacks around the eyes and joints.
Note: Early mutation detected. Timeline deviation confirmed.
The creature stood in the middle of the courtyard.
It had once been a dog.
Now it was almost twice the size.
Its fur was patchy, dark veins crawled across its body, and its jaw had elongated into something closer to a predator's than a domestic animal's.
Students were running in every direction.
Ayla stared.
Rhett's expression became serious.
Elias took a step backward.
"What the hell is that?"
Kael cracked his knuckles.
"Your early awakening lesson."
Elias stared at him.
"You cannot be serious."
Arin stepped forward.
"Everyone stay back."
Ayla looked at him.
"You've fought these things before."
Arin didn't answer.
The hound suddenly lunged toward a group of students.
A purple shadow flashed.
Arin appeared directly in its path.
His hand transformed into a dark blade.
The creature's claws struck.
Arin blocked.
The impact pushed him backward.
Kael's green aura exploded.
Bone spikes erupted from the floor beneath the hound.
Liora's crimson threads immediately wrapped around its hind legs.
The creature was immobilized.
Kael grinned.
"Teamwork."
Arin stepped forward.
"Now."
All three attacked simultaneously.
Purple.
Green.
Red.
Their powers collided with the mutated creature in a single coordinated assault.
The hound was thrown across the courtyard.
It crashed into a wall.
Silence followed.
The students stared.
Ayla and Rhett stared.
Elias stared hardest.
Arin looked at the three of them.
"Damn it, I really forgot about them "
The Trinity System appeared.
[Mutated Stray Hound defeated.]
[Experience reward calculated.]
[Combat data recorded.]
[Tutorial Battle detected.]
Arin's expression changed.
"Tutorial?"
Kael looked at him.
"What?"
The system continued.
[Hidden Tutorial Condition Met.]
[Five combat-capable individuals detected.]
[Tutorial Battle will begin at sunset.]
[Recommended Preparation: Rest, recover, and prepare combat equipment.]
[Trinity System Note: Congratulations. Your peaceful school day has officially been cancelled.]
Kael stared.
Then slowly smiled.
"Sunset? Now that's a notification I can respect."
Ayla looked at him.
"What exactly is going to happen at sunset?"
Arin looked toward the darkening sky.
He already knew.
Something much bigger was coming.