In a dimly lit room, a row of books and papers lined the shelves. Between them sat a table, where a young man sat in a chair, engrossed in the final chapter of his favorite novel, Apocalypse.
"Hmmm, finally. I've finished it. That was more satisfying than any of the previous novels I've read."
After closing the book, he stood up from the chair and made his way to the bed. As he lay down, he caught a glimpse of the clock in the corner—1:00 AM. Looks like I'll be late for work tomorrow, he thought. With that, he drifted into sleep.
On a sunny day, inside a moving train, a 21-year-old man suddenly opened his eyes, shock written all over his face.
"Fuck, fuck, fuck! What's this??? Where am I? Wasn't I supposed to be in my bed??? Shit!!"
He took a deep breath. For now, let's calm down and observe the situation... hmm.
As he glanced around, taking in his surroundings, he realized, Oh, I'm inside a train, but—
"Arghhh!"
A sharp pain shot through his head as a flood of unfamiliar memories crashed into his mind. He felt as if his skull was about to split apart.
"Hah... huh... huh..."
He breathed heavily, his vision blurring for a moment. As he regained focus, he noticed a few passengers glancing at him with curiosity and mild concern. Realizing his strange behavior, he quickly composed himself and tried to act normal.
"Now then... looks like I've transmigrated."
He furrowed his brows. But I don't recognize this place...
Sorting through the foreign memories, he pieced together his situation. It seems I'm on my way to work... huh. This world looks just like Earth—normal in every way. But I don't recognize any of these places...
As the memories became clearer, he came to a startling realization. This world had the same level of technology and societal structure as Earth, but with one major difference—the entire world is united under a single government.
"Weird..." he muttered under his breath.
Then, another piece of information surfaced.
"My new name is Alex Dawn..."
He let out a long sigh as he recalled the life of this body's previous owner. This body belonged to an orphan... though he was lucky enough to be adopted at the age of 12 by two farmers. Unfortunately, both of them died in a bus accident, leaving him completely alone...
"Whew... so that's my new life, huh?"
Just as he was processing this, a ding suddenly echoed through the train—not just for him, but for everyone inside.
Ding!
ATTENTION, EVERYONE!
WELCOME TO THE STATUS PANEL.
YOU WILL NOW BE GIVEN THE CHOICE TO PICK ONE SKILL OF YOUR LIKING.
Thump, thump. My heart pounded uncontrollably. This... wasn't this exactly like the novel I read last night?
Just as that thought crossed my mind, chaos erupted around me.
"What the—?!"
"Huh?!"
"What's this?!"
"Shit, is this a game?!"
Looking around, I saw people reacting in different ways—some were shocked, others confused, and many had sheer terror written all over their faces. And then—
Ding!
"People above 60 years old will now be eliminated."
A horrifying sight unfolded before my eyes. The elderly—anyone aged 60 or older—suddenly turned to ash, their remains scattering into nothingness.
Screams of horror filled the train.
"What?! The hell?!"
"Are they... dead?!"
"Are you kidding me?!"
My eyes nearly popped out of their sockets as my body trembled uncontrollably. This... I'm inside, right? You've gotta be kidding me.
Ding!
"Please choose one of the skills listed below."
Before me, an array of skills appeared, each one seemingly more unreal than the last.
Poison
Bear Strength
Perception
Strength
Dash
Sprint
Jump
Glide
More....
There they were—just like in the novel. Only the names were visible for now. I knew that after choosing a skill, I would gain access to my status and see a detailed explanation.
Whew... I needed to stay calm. I had an advantage over the others—some of these skills appeared in the novel, while others didn't. Still, based on their names, I could make a rough guess about their effects.
Then, a quote I read months ago suddenly resurfaced in my mind:
"Worrying does not take away tomorrow's troubles. It takes away today's peace."
Right. I needed to focus on the present. I didn't know why, but in this moment, I felt an immense sense of gratitude toward the person who wrote that quote.