Apocalypse: Rise of the SSS-Rank Sovereign

Chapter 2: Rejection

Lucian gasped, sitting bolt upright as a violent rush of fresh air flooded his lungs.

There was no smell of burning ozone. No gaping, fatal wound in his chest. No collapsing abyssal void ready to tear his soul apart. He was sitting on a painted wooden bench in the middle of a sun-drenched city park. The morning sun felt warm, almost foreign, against his skin.

A loud, aggressive car horn blared from the adjacent street. “Hey! Watch where you’re going, idiot!”

Lucian blinked rapidly, his mind racing. All around him, people in crisp business suits hurried past, completely absorbed in their phones. The rich aroma of roasted coffee beans and car exhaust filled the air.

Slowly, with trembling fingers, Lucian looked down at his hands. they were smooth. the jagged ugly scars from a decade of brutal frontline warfare were completely gone. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. The digital clock on the screen read: July 3, 2016. 6:45 AM.

“Ten years…” he whispered, his voice cracking before growing terrifyingly steady. “I’m really back. The exact day it all started.”

Right then, the vibrant blue sky turned a deep, sickening blood-red.

Massive, golden runes fractured across the clouds like burning lightning. Simultaneously, every smartphone, tablet, and electronic device in the park emitted a deafening static shriek and died.

The bustling city became deathly quiet for one agonizing second. Then, a cold, mechanical, genderless voice echoed directly inside the minds of every human on Earth.

[Attention all inhabitants of Earth.]

[The Tutorial Period has concluded. The Universal System has officially integrated your planet. Dimensional Gates will open in sixty seconds. Survive or perish.]

Pandemonium erupted instantly. Screams tore through the park as people began running in blind, directionless terror.

“What’s wrong with the sky?!”

“Is this a terrorist attack? My phone is dead!”

While the crowd panicked, Lucian stood up with absolute calmness, he had survived this nightmare once before. But this time, he wouldn’t be a mindless grunt bleeding for ungrateful traitors.

He walked deliberately toward a nearby construction barrier, wrapped his fingers around a heavy, solid steel pipe, and ripped it free. It felt beautifully balanced in his hands.

Suddenly, a brilliant golden screen materialized exclusively before his eyes.

[Ding! SSS-Rank hidden condition detected: ‘Soul of the Fallen Emperor.’]

[Activating unique system: The Empire Builder System.]

[Host: Lucian Vance]

[Class: Monarch (Unawakened)]

[Level: 1]

[Current Quest: Claim your first Domain by clearing the nearest Dimensional Rift.]

[Time remaining: 00:45]

An Empire System? Lucian’s eyes narrowed. In his past life, he had never heard of such a thing. A cold, dark ambition ignited in his chest. This time, I will build something unbreakable. An empire rooted in absolute strength and fiercely loyal hearts.

Enter the Predator

Before the sixty seconds could even expire, human nature began to rot.

A crowd of terrified citizens had gathered near the park's central fountain, surrounding a tall, heavily built man wearing a tailored, expensive suit. It was Dominic Cross, a wealthy hedge-fund manager and local gym-rat. A cruel, predatory aura already surrounded him.

Dominic’s body was pulsing with a faint blue light. He had just triggered an early, rare B-Rank Vanguard awakening.

"Everyone shut up and listen to me!" Dominic roared, grabbing a panicked businessman by the collar and throwing him to the ground to assert dominance. "The voice said to survive! I have a combat class! If you want my protection, you hand over your wallets, your jewelry, and you do exactly what I tell you to do! Anyone who disobeys gets thrown to whatever is coming out of those skies!"

The terrified survivors cowered, instantly submitting to the first tyrant to show power.

Just then, a young woman in a neat business suit sprinted into the park plaza. Her breathing was ragged, her high heels clicking frantically against the pavement. Her face was pale with terror, but her eyes held a fierce, unyielding determination to survive.

It was Elena.

In his previous life, she would eventually become the 'Ice Valkyrie,' one of humanity's most ruthless and powerful S-Rank fighters. But right now, she was just a twenty-two-year-old office worker running for her life. Behind her, chasing her from the shadows of the trees, was a grey-skinned creature with rows of razor-sharp teeth—a Level 1 Goblin Hound.

"Help me!" Elena cried out, sprinting toward Dominic's group. "There's a monster behind me!"

Dominic looked at Elena, his eyes sweeping over her beautiful face and slender figure with immediate, disgusting greed. He smirked, deliberately stepping back. "I don't protect freeloaders, sweetheart. You want my help? Crawl over here, beg on your knees, and promise you'll belong to me after this. Otherwise, enjoy being dog food."

Elena froze, her blood running cold. She looked at the snarling beast closing in, then at the human monster demanding her submission. Despair threatened to swallow her whole.

Thud.

A heavy, deliberate footstep echoed through the plaza.

Lucian stepped directly between Elena and the lunging monster. His eyes softened for a fraction of a second as he looked at her. He had met her too late in his past life, after the world had already broken her. This time, he would save her before the darkness could touch her soul.

“Get behind me, Elena,” Lucian commanded. His voice wasn't loud, but it carried the heavy, unshakeable weight of an emperor.

Elena gasped, her breath catching in her throat. “How do you know my—”

“If you want to live, stay close to me,” he said, his tone shifting into a deeply comforting, fiercely protective warmth. “I can protect you. I promise.”

Looking into Lucian's calm, fearless eyes, Elena felt a strange, sudden wave of absolute safety wash over her. In the middle of an alien apocalypse, this stranger felt like an immovable fortress. She instinctively stepped behind him.

The Goblin Hound leaped, its jaws snapping inches from Lucian's face.

Lucian didn't even blink. Utilizing a decade of perfected, high-tier combat muscle memory, he pivoted flawlessly. The steel pipe blurred through the air, striking the creature’s skull with precise, shattering force.

Crack.

The Goblin Hound didn't even have time to shriek. It collapsed instantly, dead before it hit the concrete.

[Ding! You have killed a Level 1 Goblin Hound. 10 XP gained.]