Dual System: Ascension of A Nameless Nobody

Chapter 2 Level One

"Hey! Get your own loot!"

He wasn't yelling at a person, but the monitor in front of him.

With a headphone on, and the microphone by his lips, he was practically sunk into another world, jamming away at his keyboard, swerving his mouse, all while controlling his avatar.

[Hah, no way, dude. Finders Keepers!]

As the glowing, legendary item he sought for was plucked from right in front of him, he nearly yelled out in rage, but instead closed the game, angrily tossing his headphones off.

He let out a drawn-out, disheveled breath as he sat at his chair, leaning his elbows on the gray desk.

"Loser."

Yup, this is me. A good-for-nothing dropout who has nothing better to do than to lash out at a video game. Simply put--

I'm a loser, he thought.

"Ah…" He sighed out as he leaned back in his chair, nearly tipping it back.

As he settled back down, he brought his attention to his phone, tapping the flat touchscreen as it woke up with its bright screen greeting him.

He adjusted his glasses as the brightness pierced his lenses, causing him to squint.

[1 New Message from "Mom".]

He read the notification, seeing the contents of the text.

[How did the interview go? Did you get the job?]

For a moment, he left the text open, hovering his thumb over the digital keypad before shutting his phone back off and laying against the desk.

Life is so dull. I just wish…something interesting would happen, he thought to himself.

His gaze was pointed towards the window, peering at the pale, blue sky as the sounds of children playing outside and passing cars could be heard.

It was only the sounds of the city that mitigated his loneliness, just slightly, which is why he kept that window open.

THUD.

The entire apartment shook as the desk he laid against vibrated aggressively, causing him to jump up with wide eyes.

"What the…?"

A bomb? He thought.

Causing him to wince from the sheer radiance, a flash of light poured in through his window as the vibrations continued, becoming more aggressive as his keyboard rattled atop his desk.

What's going on?! An earthquake? He thought.

As he stood to his feet, he nearly fell as the entirety of the apartment throttled, causing him to stumble his way to the door before exiting in a hurry.

The first thing he saw upon leaving his apartment, and looking over the railing from the second floor were other people—simply looking upwards with eyes filled in awe and utter complexion.

What're they looking at…? He questioned.

As he brought his gaze up as well, he saw it.

Even through the clear lenses of his glasses, it's monumental appearance wasn't dulled.

When he saw it, he froze.

The clouds were parted forcefully from a pair of colossal, white hands that opened the light of Heaven itself, shining down on the world. From that tear in the skies, protruding from the seraphic realm beyond, a face emerged–if it could be called as such.

It possessed no features, yet at the same time its gaze could be felt; utterly petrifying.

"God."

Though it didn't introduce itself, peeking out from the contorted horizon as the clouds of the world spiraled around the heavenly gateway, he knew immediately what it was.

Everyone in the world did, and without fail, everybody in the world saw it.

"Children. My disappointing children."

Its voice echoed throughout the world below the clouds in further vibrations. It was deep and bellowing, all-powerful and daunting.

There weren't any thoughts going through his head; he was simply petrified by the presence of "God".

"You've led this world, and yourselves, into depths of depravity unsalvageable.

"War. Genocide. Unspeakable avarice. The inability to unite. All such factors of the sins you could not overcome."

"This test was a failure. You have failed as a species."

"As such, this world will now be destroyed, and this time, remain in oblivion. Armageddon has come. There are none others to blame but yourselves. I've watched over this world since its inception, and all chances have been squandered."

All he could do was stand there with a lump in his throat as he listened to the augury of what was to come. To him, he felt completely targeted by these words--"a drain on society,"--he knew he wasn't exempt from the words fo God.

"However, in my boundless benevolence, I will give you one more chance at life. One more chance to prove the worth of humanity."

"...'Armageddon Game'..."

"Armageddon Game"? He repeated in his thoughts.

"What's that?" He heard a female from across the street ask out.

"Tell us what the hell is going on?!" A delinquent nearby shouted out.

Though "God" was too far above to hear their words, continuing on with his mystical words spoken from a mouthless expression.

"From this moment onwards, you will all partake in a game: "Armageddon Game". You will be forced to fight, if you wish to survive not just in this falling world, but to reach the "Tower". I am sure most of you are familiar with how games function."

A game? Hold on…like a video game?! He thought.

"In six months from today, the "Tower" will open itself, only to those that reach "level 20", and the rest of you…will be doomed to perish in this world."

"Good luck, humanity."

Without much explanation, leaving more questions than answers, the colossal, mysterious "God" retreated back into the heavens, leaving the skies to a dull gray as the earthquakes finally came to an end.

"What the hell was that about…? The world is ending…?" He muttered to himself.

[Angel System Activation.]

[Processing User Information…Creating Status.]

It was an emotionless, stoic voice of a feminine A.I., spoken directly into his mind, and not his ears.

He was left stunned at the sudden interface that filled his vision, nearly falling back as he waved his hands in front of him, though it did nothing to deter the golden, futuristic numbers and displays that he saw.

"Huh–?!"

By the surprised yells and utterances he heard from the surrounding area from the people in the parking lots and in the streets, it seemed everybody else was experiencing the same thing.

"Get the hell out of my eyes–!"

A blonde-haired punk shouted out, covering his own eyes and thrashing around, to no seeming avail.

[Greetings, Jeong-Hui. Welcome to "Armageddon Game".]

Before he could process a single thing, having fallen onto his rear as he sat on the apartment balcony, he saw an endless array of lights begin falling from the sky.

The street lights were going haywire, and the power lines swayed in the strong winds that began to pick up.

"What's that…?" He muttered.

[Question Recognized.]

[Processing…]

["The Defects of Heaven" currently descending. Estimated Number: 1.000.000+.]

"One million?! What the hell are "Defects of Heaven"?!" He asked out, gripping his own, curly, red locks.

[Question Recognized.]

[Processing…]

["The Defects of Heaven" do not fall under one description. In essence, they are the failed creations of "God". Most of which were created with the purpose of killing. In that regard, they are the bane of humankind. Good luck, Player Jeong-Hui.]

"Good luck?! What's that supposed to mean?! Hey–!" He yelled out, but there was no response as one of the plummeting lights crashed down nearby.

Concrete, dirt, and dust was thrown around after the impact of the plummeting entity, though most of the people who were still left utterly perplexed approached the crash site, gathering around.

"A meteor…?"

"Fuck, the world really is ending…!" A man panicked, holding his head.

"Wait, I see movement…" A brunette woman noted.

As he peered over the railings, he witnessed all of the dozens of people that surrounded the crash site, which was obscured by dust, stopped completely.

Slice.

Suddenly, their torsos parted from their lower bodies, sliding off as a storm of blood painted the street.

What the fuck…?! He thought.

He quickly covered his mouth, preventing himself from spilling bile from his lips as he tucked himself against the wall in fear and disgust.

Guts spilled onto the street, causing half of the onlookers to run while screaming, and the other half remaining frozen in fear.

"No way…" A middle-aged man said through chattering teeth.

Finally, the entity responsible for the abundant death revealed itself from the crater in the street as the dust parted.

It stood twice as tall as the surrounding civilians, clad in what didn't look like skin, but a sleek, white armor and golden stripes along the accentuated musculature of its body.

Slice. Slice.

Without any hesitation, it used its arms that resembled weaponized, blade-limbs to cut apart the nearest, frozen people, splattering their parted corpses onto the desecrated street.

This isn't real. This isn't real. This isn't real! He repeated in his mind.

There was nothing he could do, or rather, he was far too frozen in fear himself to do anything.

"System…! System, help me!" One man attempted to utilize the system, but was unable to do anything before having his entire body split in half by the gigantic, sword-limb of the heaven-fell entity.

"System…? What the hell do I do?" He muttered to himself with a quivering, bottom lip.

[Status Updated.]

[Class Decided: Beginner Assassin.]

[Gathering "Life Data"...Determining "Starting Level"]

"Starting level?...It's not set to zero?" He asked out in surprise.

After a moment of witnessing a blinding amount of gold numbers run across his vision as the interface sped through information, he received an answer from the system.

He removed his glasses, but it didn't change anything as he placed them back on.

[Players' beginning level is determined by a multitude of factors: life experience, karma, position in society, and beliefs.]

"...So what level am I?" He asked worriedly.

["Life Data" gathered. Processing…]

[Level 1: EXP: 0/25.]

"Huh?! Level 1?!...I mean, I expected that, but still–!" He complained, though the system didn't seem to pay any mind to his words.