2026-08-03 03:01:45Arjun stood frozen.
The glowing blue screen hovered inches from his face, as real as the walls around him. [Survival System Activated] Host: Arjun Mehta Age: 24 Level: 1 Strength: 8 Agility: 7 Stamina: 9 Spirit: 6 Skill: None Inventory: Empty Points: 0 Remaining Time Until Apocalypse: 99 Days 23 Hours 58 Minutes He stared at the countdown. His heartbeat quickened. It wasn't a dream. He really had returned. He clenched his fists until his nails dug into his palms. "I have another chance..." His voice cracked. This time, his parents wouldn't die. His younger sister, Ananya, wouldn't be trapped inside a burning shopping mall. Rohan wouldn't sacrifice himself to save him. None of it had to happen again. Not if he moved fast enough. A soft chime echoed in his head. Ding! Main Mission Issued Become stronger before humanity notices the coming disaster. Objective: • Reach Level 5. • Earn your first skill. • Secure a safe house. Time Limit: 7 Days Reward: Bronze Supply Chest Failure: Survival rate reduced by 40%. Arjun took a deep breath. "So it starts." He opened the old metal cupboard beside his bed. Inside were a few shirts, two pairs of jeans, and a dusty envelope. He pulled it out. Ten thousand rupees. Every saving he had. In his previous life, he had wasted weeks worrying about money. This time... Money meant nothing. In a hundred days, the world's richest people would be begging for a bottle of clean water. His phone suddenly rang. The caller ID flashed. Mom ❤️ Arjun froze. His hands began shaking. For three long years in his previous life... He had dreamed of seeing that name again. He answered immediately. "Mom..." A familiar warm voice came from the other side. "Arjun, are you still sleeping? You promised you'd come home this weekend." His eyes became moist. She was alive. She was really alive. "I'll come today." There was silence. Then his mother laughed softly. "What happened? You sound emotional." He forced himself to smile. "I just... missed you." After hanging up, Arjun wiped his eyes. "I swear..." "No matter what happens..." "I won't lose you again." He grabbed his backpack. Laptop. Power bank. Knife. Torch. Medicine. Everything useful went inside. Before leaving, he stopped in front of the mirror. The man staring back looked ordinary. Thin. Black hair. Simple clothes. No scars. No fear in his eyes anymore. "That innocent version of me died three years ago." He locked the apartment and stepped outside. The city looked exactly as he remembered. Street vendors shouted. Students laughed. Office workers hurried toward buses. Nobody knew. Nobody could imagine that in just one hundred days... This peaceful city would become a battlefield. Suddenly— A loud argument broke out nearby. A delivery rider had crashed into a luxury car. A rich young man stepped out and slapped the rider across the face. "You idiot!" The poor rider kept apologizing. Arjun looked at the young man. His pupils narrowed. He remembered him. Karan Malhotra. In the future... Karan would awaken one of the strongest fire abilities. But instead of protecting people... He would become one of the cruelest warlords in northern India. Thousands would die because of him. Karan glared at the rider again. "You can't even afford my tire." Arjun silently memorized his face. "Not this time." Without another glance, he walked away. His destination was clear. Phoenix Sports Club. During the early days of the apocalypse, it had become one of the first monster spawning zones. More importantly... Hidden beneath its underground warehouse was something nobody discovered until months later. A sealed military cache. Inside were weapons, survival gear, and a mysterious crystal. That crystal had completely changed Arjun's fate in his previous life. This time... He intended to claim it before anyone else. As he reached the bus stop, the familiar mechanical voice echoed again. Ding! Hidden Mission Triggered Reach Phoenix Sports Club before sunset. Reward: Beginner Gift Pack. Arjun smiled for the first time since waking up. "Looks like the System wants me to hurry." He stepped onto the arriving bus. He had no idea... That someone sitting in the last seat was already watching him. A young woman wearing a black cap slowly lowered her sunglasses. Her sharp eyes never left Arjun for a second. Then she whispered into a hidden earpiece, "Target located." "We're not the only ones preparing for the apocalypse." Arjun, completely unaware, stared out the window. The countdown had begun. And so had the hunt. End of Chapter 2
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Chapter 201: The Things We Cannot Decide
The rain had stopped, but water still dripped from the library roof.Nox arrived early the next morning. Mara was already inside, checking the repaired shelves and arranging a new stack of books near the entrance.“You're early,” she said.“I wanted to finish the labels before the children arrive.”“Then I have something else for you.”She placed a small cardboard box on the table.Nox opened it. Inside were several envelopes, a handful of photographs, and a folded sheet of paper covered in handwritten names.“Someone donated these yesterday,” Mara explained. “They belonged to an old community reading group. We don't know whether the people named here want their photographs displayed or their letters kept in the library.”Nox examined the box.“Should we return them?”“We don't know who donated them or how to contact the people involved. That's why we need to be careful.”He lifted one photograph. It showed a group of children sitting beneath a large tree. Their faces were bright with
Chapter 200: The Choice to Knock
Leena returned to the library three days later.This time, she carried a small photograph.Nox was arranging returned books when Mara called him over. Leena stood near the desk, holding the photograph by its edges.“I found this while looking through an old suitcase,” she said. “I thought you might want to see it.”Nox approached.The photograph showed two children standing beside a railway platform. The younger one held a blue cloth bag. The older child stood close, one hand resting on the younger one's shoulder.“Is that you?” Nox asked.Leena nodded.“And the boy?”“My brother Daniel.”Nox looked at the photograph again. The boy's face was slightly blurred, but the expression was unmistakably cheerful.“Do you remember when it was taken?”“Not the exact date. I think it was shortly before we were separated.”Mara brought a clean folder and placed the photograph inside a protective sleeve.“Would you like us to compare it with the photographs in our records?” she asked.Leena nodded
Chapter 199: The Visitor Who Remembered the Ending
The second copy of the traveler's book arrived on the library table the next morning.Nox was helping Mara compare the pages when a familiar voice came from the entrance.“You found another one?”The woman from the previous afternoon stood by the door. This time, she carried no bag. She looked at the two copies lying side by side.Mara welcomed her inside.“You said your brother used to read this story,” Nox said. “Do you remember his name?”The woman hesitated.“Daniel.”Nox looked at the book again.Mara noticed his expression. “Do you know someone named Daniel?”“Not exactly,” Nox answered. “We've heard the name while looking through some old records.”The woman pulled out a chair.“My brother's name was Daniel Vale. We lived in the northern district when we were children. After our mother died, things became difficult. I was sent to stay with relatives, and Daniel went somewhere else.”Nox remained quiet.“Was it an assistance center?” he asked.“I think so. I was too young to und
Chapter 198: The Day the Story Changed
The argument began over a missing page.Nox noticed it while arranging the books in Story Harbor. A thin picture book lay open on the table, its pages held together by an old piece of thread. The story followed a young traveler searching for a place where the stars could be seen clearly.But halfway through, the numbers jumped from twelve to fourteen.“Someone tore out page thirteen,” Nox said.Sami looked over his shoulder. “Maybe it was the best page.”“Why would someone remove the best page?”“Maybe they wanted to keep it.”The little girl who had been listening shook her head. “Maybe it got damaged.”Nox examined the binding. The thread around that section was loose, but there were no fresh tears. The missing page had been removed a long time ago.Mara joined them. “That book has been in the library for years. We don't know its original condition.”“Can we find another copy?” Nox asked.“We can check the catalogue.”They searched the records, but the title appeared only once. Ther
Chapter 197: A Place for the Unfinished
The library’s reading corner was busier than usual.Sami had returned with two friends, and the little girl who loved the first book was sitting beside them. They had gathered around the shelf marked **Story Harbor**, arguing quietly about which story Mara should read aloud.Nox stood nearby, holding a box of donated books.“Can we read one that doesn’t have an ending?” Sami asked.Mara raised an eyebrow. “Every story in this box has an ending.”“I mean one where the ending doesn’t explain everything.”“That’s a different request.”Nox set the box down. “Maybe we can find one.”They searched the shelves together. Some books ended with a journey completed. Others ended with a door opening, a letter arriving, or a character deciding to try again. The children rejected each one for a different reason.“Too sad,” said the little girl.“Too easy,” Sami said.“That one has a dragon,” his friend pointed out.“Dragons can have unfinished stories,” Nox replied.Eventually, Mara chose a short b
Chapter 196: The Book That Came Back
The book arrived at the library in a paper bag.Nox noticed it because Mara set it apart from the morning’s donations. The cover was worn, the spine had been repaired with clear tape, and a faded label on the inside read: **Story Harbor**.“Is it one of ours?” Nox asked.“I’m not sure,” Mara said. “Someone left it at the desk before opening. No note, no name.”Nox looked at the cover. It was a collection of short stories, the kind with small drawings at the start of each chapter. He opened it carefully.A folded sheet slipped from the pages and landed on the table.Mara reached for it, then paused. “You can read it if you want. It was left with the book.”Nox unfolded the paper.*I borrowed this when I was little. I never finished it. I don’t remember who gave it to me, only that someone read the first story aloud. I found it while clearing a box. I thought it belonged here.*There was no signature.Nox read the note twice. “Maybe someone used to come here.”“Maybe,” Mara said. “But w
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