The evening sky was painted in an orange hue as the sun dipped after today's work.
Kassian leaned against the bus window, earbuds in, 'Way Down We Go' humming lazily in his ears.
It was the last day of the college trip. The tour bus was quiet, most of the students asleep after a long day of mountain trekking.
He tried to sleep too, his gaze drifting to the passing scenery outside the window, his black hair ruffled by the wind.
"Kass, I'm kidnapping your shoulder for the night," said a short blonde-haired girl sitting beside him.
She leaned her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes.
Kass didn't reply. His gaze stayed on the city lights below as the bus descended the slope.
It was a miracle, someone like him, who spent most of his days reading webnovels, watching anime, and playing games, actually had friends.
Especially a girl willing to sleep on his shoulder.
Unlike the classic shut-in weebs who never left their rooms, Kass was a rare breed… one who actually liked traveling. Especially to quiet places, far from noise.
As the world moved past him in a peaceful rhythm, suddenly—
CRRRAAACK!
A sound like the world itself fracturing echoed across the sky.
Kass's sleepiness vanished. His eyes snapped upward.
High above, far in the distance, a massive tear split through the heavens, as if someone had cleaved the sky with a sword.
From it poured a thick, translucent mist of pale blue and reddish-black energy. Along with it came ear-piercing screeches… like every monster in hell had just broken free.
His eyes widened as if they might pop out. He could hear everything, even with his earbuds still in.
The bus erupted in noise. Every student jolted awake, rushing to one side to get a better look.
The blonde girl beside him practically climbed over him, her head sticking out the window.
Soon, shouts filled the bus.
"What the hell is that?!"
"The sky just split open! Did someone nuke the fucking sky?!"
"Wouldn't be shocking with how often wars break out these days!"
The blonde girl whispered, eyes wide, "Kass… are you seeing what I'm seeing?"
He sighed. "No shit. I'm seeing your ass, get off me."
He shoved her off his lap and leaned out the window himself.
She quickly came back, and the two of them stuck their heads side by side, staring at the bleeding sky as if watching the end of the world unfold.
Many students pulled out their phones to take pictures and record videos.
After all, that's the first thing you should do during a world-ending cataclysm: make sure future generations know you were here.
Then, suddenly, before every being on Earth, glowing runes flared to life within their minds, forming translucent panels only they could see.
"Holy fuck! Guys, I think we're getting gamified or something!"
A fellow gamer on the bus shouted, eyes wide with excitement instead of fear.
Kass blinked. A similar panel floated in his mind, like a faint mental projection, its runes glowing softly.
For a moment, he just stared blankly.
His life, once filled with reading webnovels, playing games, and laughing at overused "system apocalypse" plots, was probably one of them now.
And instead of fear, he felt a grin tug at his lips.
He was more than ready to live it, not just read it.
Kass forced himself to calm down as he read the panel.
[ The Will of the Realm – 'Omnira' speaks. ]
[ Children of 'Earth', your world's corruption has reached its limit. The hatred, blood, and despair you have sown have birthed 'Vitium' — and its excess now poisons the Spirit Realm that lies parallel to your own. ]
[ To restore balance, two paths stand before you: Merge with the Spirit Realm… or Evolve, and cleanse the taint you have unleashed. ]
[ 'Aether' now flows through your skies. Awaken, ascend… and perhaps, save what remains. ]
[ In 3 months' time, Earth shall begin its evolution and expansion. Mountains will shift, oceans will rise, and storms will devour the weak. Those who wish to live… enter the Spirit Realm before the first tremor of rebirth. ]
The messages from the Will of the Realm – 'Omnira', or whatever the system was, ended there. Kass couldn't make sense of much.
Especially Vitium? Spirit Realm?Was that supposed to be the underworld or something? he wondered.
As he was still digesting the thought, Kass noticed the birds fleeing from the rift in the sky suddenly vanish — like they'd been teleported out of the world.
He blinked, rubbed his eyes, but they were still gone.
With a sigh, he turned his attention back to the main panel floating in his mind, showing what looked like his status or maybe his soul record.
Before he could even check it—
"Ahhh! Look out!"
The junior professor, Sheila, screamed at the driver, who was still glancing at the runic panel in his mind while steering down the slope.
Everyone snapped their attention to the front… and the bus erupted into chaos.
"Holy shit! What the fuck is that?!"
"Stop the damn bus, you bald idiot!"
Right in the middle of the road, a massive crack in space had formed, spilling that same reddish-black energy from the rift in the sky.
The bald driver slammed the brakes, but it was too late. The bus skidded straight into the crack in space.
"Kyaaa!! Kass, I feel… so… bleeegh!" Sera, the blonde, threw up while clinging to Kass. The strange energy made nearly everyone nauseous.
Kass held her tightly and ducked down in their seats, bracing for impact.
Then, glowing words flashed in everyone's minds, but no one was in the mood to check them.
[ You have entered a Tier 0 – Crack. ]
[ Scenario starting... ]
The bus burst out the other side of the crack, but instead of the road, an eery forest stretched before them.
The driver panicked, slamming the brakes again and again, but the bus only skidded out of control before crashing headfirst into a massive tree.
SKREEEEE—CRAAASH!
Wood splintered, glass shattered, and screams filled the air as the bus finally came to a stop.
* * *
Minutes passed in an eerie silence before Kass finally groaned from under the seat, cursing the driver.
"Who the fuck gave him a license?!"
He knew it wasn't the driver's fault, but he needed someone to vent at.
Looking down, he found Sera lying unresponsive beside him. Panic shot through him as he slapped her cheeks, trying to wake her.
Then he noticed her chest rising and falling and finally let out a shaky breath.
It looked like she'd just passed out from the impact. Well, being the gentleman he was, he'd made sure to cushion the blow… with her body, which was surprisingly soft.
He finally stood, lifting Sera into his arms and setting her on the seat. That's when his hazy mind caught something odd, the clothes they were wearing.
She, like him, had been in a T-shirt and shorts, yet now both of them wore gray kimonos with robes and hakama pants.
Even around their necks hung straw hats, held in place by thin cords. Not just them — the others, still groaning and struggling to stand, wore the same thing.
They looked like a group of merchants from the era of samurais.
Kass's mouth fell open in a wide O. He'd read about scenes like this in novels countless times, but living it was something else entirely.
That's when he remembered the blinking messages in his mind and focused on them.
[ You have entered a Tier 0 – Crack. ]
[ Scenario started. ]
[ 'Unique' Scenario: The Attempt on the Shogun's Life. ]