A cold wind blew through the half-shattered windows of the once-bustling city, now reduced to broken buildings, silence, and despair. The streets were empty. Not because people didn't want to be outside, but because fear had locked them in. And for good reason.
Then, without warning—every dead screen across the city flickered. There was that didn't saw this or heard the news from friends or family.
The broken television sets. The shattered smartphones. The blank monitors in abandoned malls. Even shattered mirrors twisted, the glass vibrating unnaturally. Light poured out of each reflective surface until all of them displayed the same thing: a figure.
He was massive. Towering. His skin was a deep obsidian, but not like any human tone—more like the surface of a black hole, absorbing light rather than reflecting it. His head was smooth and round, no visible ears. Several small glowing eyes blinked in odd patterns across his face, giving him an eerie omniscience. When he opened his mouth, it didn't move like a human's—it spiraled open, revealing layers of sharp teeth and pulsing tendrils inside.
The people watching froze in horror.
"I am Zerak'thul, your new sovereign," the alien king spoke. His voice was deep and strangely melodic, vibrating through metal and bone alike. "Your resistance is admirable… and futile. You have seven of your Earth days to kneel. Surrender your species, your resources, your blood. Serve us, and some of you may be allowed to live... as slaves."
Gasps and screams erupted across the city as the alien continued, "Defy us—and your extinction will not even leave ash."
Then, just as suddenly, the screens went dead again.
***
Far from the city's heart, in a more remote and forest-scarred area, *Ejilah* stood atop a cliff, eyes narrowed at the horizon. He had watched the broadcast through the reflection of a puddle. The system's screen still flickered faintly behind his eyes, giving him statistics and a feeling he couldn't ignore.
"So," Ejilah muttered. "The king finally shows his face."
His stats were growing—slowly. He was now Level 2 in alien form, strength at 21, health nearly full again after using his regeneration boost. His energy, however, was dangerously low.
He clenched his fist. "Seven days… then it begins."
But there was something strange—Ejilah could feel it. A cold sensation crawling down his spine. As if Zerak'thul had sensed his presence the moment he spoke.
***
Back in the base of the gang, Sin watched the screen fade with a dark frown. Soldiers and gang members stood frozen. Some had tears in their eyes. Others clenched their weapons tighter.
Aron stood behind him, a lump forming in his throat.
"This is worse than we thought," Aron said.
Sin didn't answer at first. His hands were crossed, his mind racing. Then he turned slowly, addressing the room.
"Now you understand why we can't afford weakness," he said coldly. "They want to enslave us? They want to take our world?"
He slammed his fist into the nearest table, shattering it. "Then we rip their king apart."
The room erupted in murmurs.
"But where the hell is Ejilah?" someone asked.
Aron stepped forward. "We've searched the entire city. He's gone."
"He's not gone," Sin replied. "He's just somewhere... leveling up."
***
In another corner of the city, Aron led a search team on foot. He moved fast, eyes scanning alleyways, rooftops, and every hiding spot he could think of.
He hated feeling helpless. The weight of Louisa's disappearance. The guilt of the bank mission. And now this warning of world-ending slavery.
Everywhere they went, there were no signs of Ejilah.
"We've checked all the known safe houses, the ruins, the training grounds—nothing," one gang member muttered.
"Maybe he's dead," another whispered.
Aron stopped in place and turned with eyes burning. "He's not dead. If Ejilah was dead, we'd know. The aliens would've paraded his body like a trophy."
Still, the silence of the city haunted them. It was like Ejilah had become a ghost, completely untraceable.
And the truth was, they were right. Ejilah wasn't even in the city anymore.
***
On a rocky path in the far outskirts, Ejilah walked alone—his body sore, his breath heavy. He had used the last of his energy to defeat a group of level 2 aliens in the forest outskirts.
Now he was heading toward an abandoned laboratory he'd spotted in the system's map—one that might hold more secrets from the past… perhaps about his father.
He sat down, pulling up his system screen.
[User: Ejilah]
[Race: Alien (Lv. 2)]
[Kill lev 2: 78/100 ]
[Strength: 28]
[Agility: 25]
[Endurance: 21]
[Stamina: 22]
[Energy: 120]
[Health: 100]
"Still too weak to face him," he muttered. "But if I survive seven days... Will even I be strong enough."
He looked up at the stars.
"How did I turned from a killer to a hero, who just wants peace. ", Ejilah thought with a sigh.