The world will halt, and blood will claim the earth. Beneath an endless dusk, the orange sky will gnaw at creation itself.
When the Tower opens, creatures with no origin, no past, and no name will descend..... and the world will drown in their chaos.
Five years ago, these were the words spoken by one hundred thousand people at the same time.
Those people had been taken somewhere, and they were not alone.
Some stood before God himself.
Others saw the idols they worshipped, their lost families, and the people they admired deeply.
Yet one thing was the same for all of them.
They stood before a dead world. A place where countless Towers pierced the sky.
People panicked after learning this, before eventually calming down.
Later on, experts called it "Existence Optimization," the ability to return your existence to another state.
To be precise, the state you were in when you woke up. Each time you think of that dead world, it activates once every twelve hours.
Some called it the gift of God. Others called it the last mercy.
The powerful began building fortified shelters. The rich hid beneath the earth, creating their own safe heavens.
People like me couldn't afford to panic.
I still had to work. If I didn't, I'd die.....not from the apocalypse, but from hunger.
The moment I stepped into the storage house, I changed my clothes and prepared myself to carry sacks of onions on my shoulders.
I did this five days a week. From seven in the morning until eleven at night.
Horrible?
Yes..… very much so.
Even if I want to stop, I still have to continue… for as long as I live.
Even so, life is still good in its own way. Every Sunday, I go to church, and after that I spend time exploring the city.
I buy myself actual food and enjoy a few hours watching shows on my phone. This is the life I live.
And the next day, the cycle continues again.
***
Carrying the last bag of onions into the storage house, I found the other workers already waiting for me.
After placing it down with the rest, I hurried to change and met up with them.
We ordered food from the local stalls near our workplace before parting ways.
It was night, just a few minutes before midnight. Unlike my coworkers who owned motorbikes, I only had a bicycle.
If I wanted to go home, I had to cycle for at least half an hour before reaching the village where I lived.
With my trusty bike and a small flashlight, I rode through the dark, keeping my eyes on the road so I wouldn't end up scaring myself.
.....
"Fuck!" I yelled as my tire hit a nail, just a few minutes away from home.
Looking around, I noticed the place had changed. This area used to be empty, without a single tree growing here.
Now it looked like a small forest.
Hmmm? Was there always a forest here? I rode this road every morning. Just this morning, this place was still empty.
Thinking about it, maybe I was just hallucinating. I hadn't used Existence Optimization today.
I sighed, feeling stupid for skipping it.
Since I couldn't fix the tire even if I wanted to, I decided to walk the rest of the way, playing music to keep myself company.
I had only taken a few steps into the sudden forest —
"HELP!!!"
A scream? At this hour? A prank? Or was my mind just messing with me?
When nothing followed, I decided to ignore it, but then —
"Anyone! Please help!"
Hearing that, I let go of my bike and entered the forest, heading toward the direction of the voice.
This forest… is weird.
Fruits were growing everywhere. Bananas and mangoes in every few meters and… apples?
How? Those shouldn't grow here. Not in this country. Something is definitely wrong.
Before I could think further, another scream came, forcing me to push those thoughts aside.
Moments later, I saw the one who had been screaming.
A woman. Young. From her face and height, she looked like a teenager.
Looking around her, I saw several figures holding blades, pointing them at her.
Kidnapping? Criminals?
Doesn't matter. Helping her comes first.
I checked my sling bag, looking for anything I could use.
My phone. Three power banks. Two packs of cigarettes. A lighter. And an alcohol spray my boss gave me last week.
"…."
"Doesn't matter. I still have my fists."
Muttering that to myself, I rushed forward, punched the nearest figure, and sent him to the ground before the others could react.
Using that moment of confusion, I grabbed the woman's hand and ran back the way I came.
"Huh…?"
This woman… she's emitting the same energy as him.