The city had fallen into chaos.
People ran through the streets.
Some screamed.
Some clutched their heads, collapsing to their knees as foreign knowledge flooded their minds.
Others stood completely still.
Frozen.
Staring at their hands as faint traces of mana flickered between their fingers—
Uncontrolled.
Unstable.
New.
Ryan walked through it all.
Calm.
Unhurried.
Like this wasn't the end of the world—
Just the beginning of something familiar.
Alice hurried beside him.
Her steps uneven.
Her breathing slightly too fast.
Every distant scream made her grip tighten around his arm.
"I still can't believe this is real," she whispered.
Ryan glanced up briefly.
The sky looked the same—
But the air didn't.
It shimmered faintly.
Mana saturated everything now.
Invisible.
Everywhere.
"You'll get used to it," he said quietly.
Alice stopped.
Suddenly.
Ryan turned back.
Her eyes were closed.
Her brows drawn together tightly.
"My head still feels strange," she murmured.
"Like… something's trying to tell me something."
Ryan nodded.
"Your awakening."
Her eyes opened slowly.
"My what?"
Alice hesitated.
The chaos around her—
The screams.
The fear.
And now this.
"I… don't know if I can..."
"When the world changed," Ryan said, "everyone received something."
He watched her carefully.
"Abilities. Skills. Affinities."
Alice hesitated.
Then nodded slightly.
"I… think I understand something."
Ryan folded his arms.
"Try."
She closed her eyes again.
Completely still.
For several long seconds—
Nothing happened.
Then—
Her eyes snapped open.
"I can feel it."
Ryan's gaze sharpened.
"What do you feel?"
Alice looked down at her hands.
"It's… strange."
She turned slightly.
Toward a small tree growing beside the sidewalk.
Her fingers brushed against the leaves.
A faint glow appeared.
Soft.
Green.
Mana flowed from her fingertips.
The air around her hand cooled slightly.
The leaves shimmered—
As if responding to her presence.
The leaves trembled.
Shifted.
Alice gasped and pulled her hand back.
"I did that!"
Ryan's expression changed.
Subtly.
Interest.
"What exactly did you feel?"
Alice frowned slightly, trying to organize the thoughts forming in her mind.
"It's like…"
She hesitated.
Then—
"I understand them."
Ryan didn't interrupt.
"I can feel their life," she continued.
Her voice steadier now.
"Like something is flowing through them."
"And I can… touch it."
She looked at her hands again.
"I can push my mana into them."
"Help them grow… or… strengthen them."
Ryan exhaled slowly.
Plant affinity.
Rare.
Extremely rare.
That kind of ability—
Could change everything.
In his previous life—
People like her had been protected.
Valued.
Sometimes fought over.
Alice looked up at him.
Nervous.
"I don't know how I know any of this."
Ryan gave a faint smile.
"That's normal."
She blinked.
"It is?"
Ryan nodded.
"The Awakening gives you instinctive understanding of your ability."
Alice looked back at the tree.
"So I can actually use this?"
Ryan chuckled softly.
"Eventually."
Before she could ask anything else—
A sound cut through the air.
Low.
Rough.
A growl.
Both of them froze.
Slowly—
They turned.
An overturned bus lay across the street.
Its windows shattered.
Metal twisted.
From beneath it—
Something moved.
Metal scraped.
Slow.
Deliberate.
Something was forcing its way out.
Then—
It crawled out.
Its limbs dragged unnaturally against the pavement.
Too long.
Too thin.
Its skin gray.
Veins bulging dark beneath it.
Its mouth hung open—
Too wide.
Filled with jagged, broken teeth.
Alice's voice trembled.
"What… is that?"
Ryan stepped slightly in front of her.
"A corrupted."
The creature lifted its head.
Its black eyes locked onto them.
Then—
It screamed.
The sound was sharp.
Piercing.
Wrong.
Alice stumbled back instinctively.
Ryan stepped forward.
"Perfect timing."
Alice stared at him.
"You sound way too calm right now."
Ryan rolled his shoulders slowly.
"Because this is useful."
The creature lunged.
Fast.
Wild.
Ryan moved.
A step to the side.
Clean.
Effortless.
The creature's claws missed him by inches.
Ryan's fist drove forward.
Crack.
The impact snapped its neck instantly.
Its body collapsed.
Hit the pavement.
Twitched—
Then went still.
A faint red message appeared.
[Enemy defeated]
[Absorption activated]
A small surge of strength flowed through Ryan's body.
Subtle.
But real.
Ryan exhaled.
Satisfied.
Behind him—
Alice hadn't moved.
"You… you just killed him."
Ryan glanced down at the corpse.
"He was already gone."
Alice swallowed hard.
Ryan turned back to her.
"In the early days…"
"Most people died fighting even one of those."
Alice looked between the body—
And Ryan.
"You killed it like it was nothing."
Ryan shrugged slightly.
"I have experience."
Alice frowned.
"With what?"
Ryan didn't answer.
Instead—
He looked down the street.
Distant movement.
Shadows shifting.
More shapes emerging.
Low growls echoed through the city.
Ryan smiled.
"They're coming."
Alice's eyes widened.
"That's not comforting."
Ryan turned back to her.
Calm.
Certain.
"Don't worry."
He gestured toward the small tree she had touched earlier.
"Your first lesson starts now."
Alice blinked.
"My what—?"
Ryan stepped forward.
Positioning himself slightly ahead—
But not fully in front.
Not shielding her.
Not this time.
He cracked his knuckles.
Eyes locking onto the approaching figures.
"Welcome to the new world, Alice."
Down the street—
Three corrupted sprinted toward them.
Fast.
Hungry.
Unstoppable.
Ryan didn't move to intercept.
Instead—
He glanced at her.
"Show me what you can do."
Because now—
She wasn't someone he had to protect.
She was someone who could fight beside him.
Author's Note:
If you've read this far and enjoyed the story, please add it to your library... it really helps the novel grow.