00:13:24 — The Second Wave, Seoul District 13
The rain started like shards of glass.
Each drop hissed when it hit the ground — acid rain mixed with ash from the burning skyline. The air smelled of metal, smoke, and blood.
Inside the faintly glowing dome of light, twenty people held their breath.Outside, Evelyn Park stood alone against the darkness.
Her boots sank into blackened puddles as she adjusted her grip on her vine-forged blade, Verdant Edge. Her barrier shimmered faintly behind her, a translucent film of green light that barely covered the children huddled inside the SunMart Gas Station.
[Safe Zone – Manual Mode: ON]
[Durability: 53% and falling steadily.]
[Detected Hostiles: 17 → 28 → 42]
She exhaled softly. Forty-two this time.
The first monster lunged from the shadows — a thing that once had the shape of a dog, now twisted and slick with black scales. Evelyn sidestepped and brought her blade down in a single arc. The creature's head rolled across the cracked road.
[+1 EXP]
[Skill: Precision Slash – Lv.6 → Lv.7]
Her strikes were clean, efficient, but her stamina bar was already dropping fast.
Another came, this one with insect wings that clattered like knives. She summoned vines from the concrete, wrapping its legs and dragging it down, stabbing through its thorax.
[Mana: 64% → 52%]
[Barrier Stability: -6%]
She grimaced, blood trickling from her temple. "Still manageable," she muttered, lying to herself.
Inside the Dome
Min Jae pressed his palms against the transparent wall, watching her.
He could see the way her movements were slowing. The way she occasionally stumbled, shaking her head as if dizzy. Every slash she made, every monster she killed — the toll grew heavier.
Behind him, children cried. One little boy tugged at his sleeve, eyes wide."Mister Min… is she gonna die?"
He forced a smile that didn't reach his eyes. "No, buddy. She's stronger than anyone I've ever seen."
But deep down, he didn't believe it.
He was just a teacher — no powers, no weapon, no skill. His system screen was empty, mocking him with blank panels.
He clenched his fists until his nails cut his palms. If only I could do something…
Outside — Evelyn's Struggle
The monsters came in waves now.
Some crawled along the walls, some dove from above. Her blade sang, cutting through air and bone alike, but she was being pushed back toward the gas station.
[HP: 64% → 43% → 27%]
[Bleeding Status: Active]
[Condition: Mana Burn Detected]
A claw grazed her shoulder, tearing through her jacket. Another slashed her thigh.She spun, panting, driving her sword into its chest — but this time, it didn't die.
Its eyes glowed red, and its mouth split into four jaws that screamed in unison.Evelyn flinched. Evolved type.
She thrust her hand out, summoning the last of her mana. Vines exploded from beneath the asphalt, wrapping around the creature — but instead of restraining it, it tore through them easily.
"Not enough," she whispered, backing away.
Her system chimed again.
[Warning: Barrier Integrity 15%]
[External Threat: Approaching Critical Proximity.]
She turned her head — the barrier was flickering. The children's silhouettes were trembling behind the dome. If the monsters reached them—
No. Not them.
Evelyn raised her left hand, ignoring the pain that lanced through her ribs.
[Skill Activated: Root Burst – Lv.10 (Overload)]
The ground cracked open like a wound.Thick, glowing roots burst upward, impaling every creature within twenty meters. The explosion of green light painted the night sky for an instant.
The monsters screamed — and then silence.
Evelyn's legs buckled. She fell to one knee, coughing blood.
Her system flashed violently.
[WARNING: Critical Overload. Internal Damage Severe.]
[HP: 12%. Mana: 0%. Barrier Stability: 8%.]
She looked back — the children were safe, for now. But her vision blurred.The rain tasted like rust on her tongue.
Inside the Dome
Min Jae could see her fall.
He slammed his fists against the barrier. "Stop! You'll kill yourself!"
The barrier pulsed with his panic — light rippling outward — and he realized it reacted to emotion. His fear made it weaker.
He forced himself to breathe, clutching his chest.Think. Stay calm. Don't make it worse for her.
But the moment of peace shattered when another roar echoed nearby — deeper, heavier.
Something enormous was crawling from the darkness beyond the ruined street — a creature twice the size of a truck, its skin armored in black scales, its eyes glowing like molten gold.
[Threat Detected: Class A — Abyssal Predator]
Evelyn turned, barely steady on her feet.
"Of course," she muttered, staggering upright, blood staining her sleeve."Why wouldn't it be an A-rank…"
She lifted her sword again — shaking, exhausted — but determination flared in her eyes.
Min Jae's heart broke watching her. She was bleeding, limping, and still she stood like a wall between the children and that nightmare.
"Why…" he whispered. "Why is she still fighting?"
The little girl beside him said softly, "Because she promised."
The Breaking Point
The monster lunged — a blur of muscle and teeth.
Evelyn barely blocked it, the impact sending her flying backward into a car. The metal crumpled under her weight. She gasped, vision flickering, pain blazing down her spine.
[HP: 4%]
[Status: Near Death.]
The creature roared, charging again.
Evelyn pushed herself up, screaming, summoning one last root — it lashed weakly, snapping uselessly against the monster's hide.
She smiled faintly through the blood on her lips. "Guess that's all I've got left."
And yet, even then, she turned her body toward the children, raising her arms as if to shield them one last time.
The barrier dimmed. The dome of light rippled under the monster's claws.
[Barrier Integrity: 3% → 1% → 0.4%]
Min Jae watched her silhouette — small, defiant, breaking — and something inside him snapped.
The sound of his heartbeat drowned everything else.He wasn't thinking anymore. Only feeling — fury, grief, fear — all boiling together.
He screamed.
System Distortion Detected
[Unauthorized Emotional Surge Detected.]
[Checking Eligibility...]
[Awakening Threshold Surpassed.]
The barrier pulsed red.
Evelyn turned weakly, eyes widening — the teacher was stepping through, the system's light wrapping around him like fire.
His voice was raw, shaking. "Get away from them."
The monster turned toward him — too slow.
Min Jae's hand shot forward, catching its claws mid-swipe.
[Class Assigned: Berserker]
[Skill Unlocked: Fury Manifestation – Lv.1]
[Title Acquired: Unyielding Protector.]
Then he roared — a sound that split the air like a blade.
Evelyn, half-conscious, watched through the haze of blood as he tore the monster apart with his bare hands, eyes glowing crimson under the rain.
Her lips curved into a weak smile."So that's… what you were hiding."
And then, finally, she let herself fall — her system dimming as the world went black.