Haru stood at the edge of the chaos, the morning sun glaring against the massive obsidian tower rising from the heart of the city. People were everywhere—civilians gawking, news drones buzzing in the sky, and rows of police and military barricades holding back the growing crowd.
He wore his regular hoodie and jeans, nothing special. His glasses were slightly cracked from the beating, but they still worked.
"It's real," Haru whispered to himself, clutching the phone in his pocket. "I… I made that."
The structure was exactly as he remembered it—the Abyssal Shrine, the first dungeon in his game. Dark spires twisted upward like claws, ancient glyphs glowing faintly on the stone, and the grand emblem of the twin goddesses engraved above the gate.
He pushed through the crowd, eyes wide. His heart pounded in his chest, but he tried to remain calm.
"There's no way this is just a coincidence. I designed every inch of that thing…"
A sharp voice cut through the air.
"Keep the perimeter tight! No one gets past the line without clearance!"
Haru's eyes followed the sound. A young woman in a tight police uniform barked orders with crisp precision. Her short blue hair framed a strong, serious face. She looked no older than her mid-twenties, yet the other officers obeyed her without question.
"She's… not from the game," Haru muttered. "So what's her role in this?"
Then, his gaze shifted—and froze.
Standing by a sleek black car, cocky as ever, was Takeshi Kuroda.
Surrounded by two of his usual rich-boy cronies, Takeshi leaned on the hood, watching the scene like it was a movie made for his amusement.
"Tch… look who showed up," Haru muttered under his breath.
Takeshi glanced around, and for a moment—just a flicker—his eyes met Haru's.
Haru tensed.
Don't engage. Don't give him the satisfaction.
He turned his eyes back to the dungeon.
"He probably doesn't even realize it yet… that I made this."
And just as the thought crossed his mind—everything stopped.
The air shimmered.
Light fractured like glass.
Then—
DING!
A glowing screen appeared before Haru's eyes—transparent, digital, unmistakably a UI window from an RPG.
Not just in front of him.
Everyone got one.
Gasps erupted through the crowd.
"What the hell is this?!"
"It's like… like a video game menu?!"
Haru's heart skipped a beat.
"No… way. This is the interface I designed…"
The screen hovered silently for a second, then the text began to appear.
[WORLD SYSTEM MESSAGE]
To all inhabitants of Earth:
The Balance has been Broken.
Light and Darkness have clashed.
The Cycle Begins Anew.
"What the hell does that mean?" someone yelled.
"Is this a prank?!"
"It's a hack, right? Some VR stunt?"
But Haru knew better.
His hands were trembling.
"This… this is the intro text from Update Patch 0.0.1 Beta," he whispered. "No one else should even know about that… unless—"
More text flashed across the screen.
Players will soon be granted access to their Base Classes.
Choose your alignment: Light or Darkness.
Goddess Selection: Pending.
The Dungeons are Awakening.
Prepare.
"This is bad…" Haru's eyes darted around. "They're just calling it a game, but the system is real. This isn't some ARG."
Then, a final message appeared.
First Contact Event begins in: 00:59:58
A countdown.
One hour.
People murmured, confused and afraid. But Haru? He was silent.
"An Event… already?" he muttered. "It's following the system's path. But… this wasn't supposed to happen yet."
His heart pounded harder.
He wasn't ready.
No one was.
But the world was moving forward anyway.
And this time, it was his game. His rules.
Whether he liked it or not.