A powerful cheat in the apocalypse

"Take this and hurry up before your weakness gives me murderous thoughts," said a man with slicked-back hair angrily as he handed a bottle to a young boy with blue hair and blue pupils, carrying a heavy backpack behind him.

"Th...thank you," the young boy smiled as he took the bottle and drank it. There were several wounds all over his body, and they all closed up after he drank its contents.

"Seriously! Rin, aren't you just going to back out? Sure, these are difficult times, the apocalypse is near, yes, but there are still people living peacefully out there."

"No! Thanks, I'm staying," replied the young boy named Rin. Then he sighed and looked around at the desolate land.

In 1990, while humanity was living in harmony, a phenomenon occurred, bringing about changes.

A gigantic tower had appeared. It was so enormous that no one could even see its end. When scientists decided to study it, they found nothing except one terrifying truth: the tower was unimaginably massive. What they could see was only the tip of the iceberg.

They ignored it, but over time, monsters and creatures began emerging from it, destroying and massacring everything. Humanity was powerless against them; no human weapon had any effect. Thirty percent of humanity had been wiped out, and it continued, but fortunately, a miracle happened.

Some humans began awakening special abilities, though no one knew how or why, and they were called Awakened. They decided to eradicate the enemy and prevent the end of humanity, but to do that, they first had to understand and destroy that gigantic structure. Thus, the Awakened began exploring the structure they named "Zenith."

Over time, the Awakened became the most respected and wealthiest people in society, thanks to their greater experience.

This young boy named Rin also possessed supernatural abilities, but they were much weaker. He was an E-Class and nothing more, incapable of evolving.

"As long as you stop being a burden," snorted a woman in the group as Rin stood up. There were twelve of them, and they had been a team for quite some time. Rin didn't really trust them, but he forced himself to.

They could throw me away at any moment because of my weakness! The thought terrified him.

"Hey, I found the portal to the next level," said a young boy in armor with black hair, pointing toward a portal that had just opened.

"Haha, well done, Eric," said the man with slicked-back hair before turning to Rin.

"See? At least be useful by finding portals for us next time."

"..."

Go to hell! I carry everyone's luggage, and I'm the useless one? Rin cursed inwardly. But he forced a smile.

"Alright."

"Let's go, and someone help him up," they all began walking toward the portal while Rin struggled to stand.

A hand suddenly wrapped around his left hand, helping him up. Rin turned his head to the left and was surprised.

"Maya...?"

She was a girl with black hair and black pupils-or rather, his ex-girlfriend. As she helped him to his feet, she snorted coldly.

"Don't say anything. If I didn't help you, who would?"

She then continued on her way, hurrying over to Eric and holding his arm.

"..."

Well, it's nothing, he thought as he walked toward the portal.

[ ????????? ]

But after barely taking a single step, a voice echoed inside his head, making him clutch it in pain. The voice sounded feminine, distant yet close at the same time, as if a woman were standing miles away screaming, yet her voice reached him both faintly and perfectly, as though she were right beside him. It was hard to explain if anyone asked.

Even what she was saying was incomprehensible, since it definitely wasn't in his language.

He held his head in pain while forcing himself forward, muttering to himself.

"Probably a monster... or the boss of this level!"

He hurried toward the portal despite the pain.

They were currently heading toward the end of Level 20. There were many levels, and they had no idea how many in total, but each level was another chaotic dimension with a powerful boss waiting at the end. The end of Level 20 contained the boss of the entire twentieth level.

When they passed through the portal, they found themselves in a world of ice. Everything was frozen to the point that their blood seemed to chill. They couldn't help but take a step back.

"Damn! It's freezing!" exclaimed a woman, clearly shivering from the cold.

"I didn't know this level would be this deadly."

A bald man pulled a bottle from his pocket and took out eleven small pills.

"I brought something to resist the cold, though the effects only last thirty minutes."

Everyone turned toward him in surprise and excitement.

"Cool, how did you know we'd end up in a place like this?" Eric asked.

"Always be prepared for anything. Remember that, kid," the man said with a smile as he handed them out.

"You only have eleven? There are twelve of us," Maya said, pointing at Rin.

No one said anything as they swallowed the tiny pills.

"I only counted the ones who'll be useful," the bald man replied simply.

"..."

Rin clenched his right fist slightly before sighing.

Just endure it... it'll pass... he told himself inwardly, his heart heavy.

Suddenly, a feminine laugh somehow both distant and close made him shiver. Then a voice echoed again, one he still couldn't understand.

This time it wasn't a headache, but a violent tremor running through his body, forcing him to step back slightly, nearly making him fall because of the heavy backpack on his back. But no one noticed. They were all focused, searching for where the ice dragon might appear from.

Suddenly, part of the surrounding ice began to rise slowly, gathering together before them.

"Alert! The boss!" shouted the man with slicked-back hair.

They all took battle positions, preparing their weapons. Rin set down the heavy backpack and raised his right hand as a tiny fireball appeared.

I hope one day I'll be able to do more than this... he sighed before focusing.

The ice gathered together, taking the shape of a gigantic ice dragon five meters tall. At its mere presence, they all coughed up mouthfuls of icy blood, while frost began forming across their bodies, leaving them in shock.

"It's ignoring the effects of the pills?"

"N-no... How are we supposed to win?"

Several of them began screaming in fear and horror.

Rin, meanwhile, was already on the verge of death as his body slowly froze.

The dragon began attacking, devouring those who were closest to it. The others hurriedly fled at full speed, but the faster they ran, the faster the dragon flew after them, catching some of them and swallowing them whole. They had originally been seventeen, but only twelve remained now.

The man with the slicked-back hair spoke with visible fear, coughing from time to time.

"Use the portal and run, quickly!"

Without thinking, knowing they had absolutely no chance of winning, especially because of the freezing cold, they shoved Rin aside and escaped through the portal.

Seeing this, the ice dragon let out a deafening roar and charged forward in full flight. It opened its mouth and spat out a massive chunk of ice the size of a grown man. It landed directly at the portal's entrance, sealing it shut and crushing one of the people who hadn't crossed in time, his blood splattering across the ground.

Now only the man with the slicked-back hair, Eric, Maya, and Rin remained.

"Damn it," the man with the slicked-back hair cursed.

He raised his hand, and a giant spear materialized before bursting into flames. He hurled it toward the ice dragon, hoping to buy some time. The spear exploded halfway through its flight, and a massive explosion engulfed the dragon. But the explosion itself suddenly froze solid.

"W...What?" The man was so shocked he nearly fell backward. He immediately ran toward the portal, clenched his fist, and slammed it against the wall of ice blocking the way. Maya and Eric instantly joined him, striking it with all their strength.

The dragon, now enraged, flew straight toward them.

"If we had just a little more time, we'd make it out, Sir Dwayne," Eric murmured to the man with the slicked-back hair while continuing to strike the ice.

"Don't you have an idea to keep it busy?" the man asked while pounding the ice with all his strength. It seemed far harder than ordinary ice.

Eric smiled before looking at Rin.

The man snorted coldly and muttered,

"Why didn't I think of that sooner?"

Without another thought, he sprinted toward Rin.

"Do you want to die like a hero?" he asked with a cruel laugh.

What?

Before Rin had any time to understand what was happening, the man grabbed him by the shoulder and hurled him with all his strength toward the dragon.

Maya came to an abrupt stop, unable to believe what she had just witnessed, but remained frozen in hesitation.

Rin landed beneath the dragon's feet. The dragon stopped, stared at him, then began descending from the sky to crush him beneath its enormous body.

You bastards!

Rin rolled backward just in time, narrowly avoiding being crushed. He immediately started running as the ice dragon chased after him.

You idiot, don't you have a brain? They're going to escape while I'm stuck here! Who do you think you'll attack first afterward? Rin cursed furiously.

The cold was so intense that he could barely breathe. His lungs were nearly frozen, forcing him to slow down.

[Connection with Earth has been established! You will be transferred to the Chaotic World in exactly 20 seconds.]

A feminine voice suddenly echoed inside his mind.

Huh? W...What?

Before he had time to think, the ice dragon turned toward him again, still locked onto him, forcing him to keep running.

Meanwhile, the others had finally managed to break through the ice and rushed through the portal without looking back at Rin. Maya turned around, glancing through the portal at Rin as he ran, hesitating.

[Very well! Transferring to the Chaotic World.]

The feminine voice echoed throughout the entire world of ice, forcefully closing the portal and preventing Maya from seeing what happened next.

But a force...

At that very moment, the ice disappeared, and Rin, who had been running, came to an abrupt stop.

"...."

Everything had changed.

The sky, the earth... everything.

The sky was now a deep crimson, while the land was ruined, with rivers of lava scattered everywhere. Hundreds of corpses surrounded him.

A woman's voice echoed through the air, causing the entire world around him to tremble.

[Welcome to the Chaotic World.]

[Once you enter the Chaotic World, the trials begin immediately. Be prepared.]

Huh?

Before Rin could even respond, an enormous bolt of lightning struck him out of nowhere with such overwhelming force that he let out a scream.