She sighed. "You truly are a confounding creature."
"Thanks" I said, smirking. "I get that a lot."
I blinked twice, brows furrowing. "But for real, why are you talking like… that? And why am I not?" I asked, gesturing between the two of us.
She paused mid-float, as if someone had slapped a dictionary across her face.
"I beg your pardon?" she retorted, one brow elegantly rising.
"You know…" I cleared my throat, and lowered my voice in imitation. "Thou shalt not tease mine patience, young mortal— or whatever?"
Her cheeks puffed up with offense. "I do not sound like that!"
"You absolutely do," I muttered.
She crossed her arms, hair drifting weightlessly like black silk.
"This manner of speech is simply how I have always conversed. It is not some… affectation."
"Right. Meanwhile, I sound like I just walked out of a convenience store in Seoul."
She stared awkwardly. "A… con-vee-nyense store?"
"Oh no. Oh lord, you don't even know what that is."
She leaned closer, curious despite her pride. "Pray tell… is it some kind of magical marketplace?"
"Honestly? Sure. Let's go with that."
She sighed, the air shimmering with faint light.
"Dreams weave oddly. The tongue thou speakest reflects thy era… as mine reflects my own."
What, the. Fuck?
I cleared my throat, eyes widened. "So… you're from the past?"
Her gaze softened just barely. "A distant age, young man. One long buried by time."
"That's… actually kinda cool."
She blinked twice, flustered returning. "C-cool…?"
"yep"
I cleared my throat once again, trying to stand a little straighter. "Since you already know my name— Si Hon, right? mind telling me yours?".
The woman blinked, caught off guard.
A faint glow shimmered around her as she placed one delicate hand to her chest.
"I am called Vesper" Her voice was soft, yet it rang like a bell.
"It is a name bestowed upon me long ago… in an age now forgotten."
"Vesper…" I repeated. "Kinda sounds like a perfume. Fancy~"
Her eye twitched just slightly. "It is not a perfume" she muttered under her breath.
"Sorry"
She raised an eyebrow. "Sorry? A miracle indeed, you saying it."
She straightened again, regaining her ethereal dignity.
She cleared her throat. "And thou art Si Hon. A curious name to mine ears. Sounds like someone made it on the spot." then giggled.
"Hey, your name isn't exactly normal either" I shot back.
Vesper's cheeks colored— not anger this time, but embarrassment. "I… suppose neither of us are quite ordinary."
Silence hovered. A comfortable, strange silence…
"So," I said, scratching the back of my neck, "now that we're introduced… what do you actually want from me?"
Vesper's eyes sharpened with worry.
"To warn you," she breathed. "For though this realm is but dream stuff… the peril approaching your waking life is all too real."
I laughed softly.
My throat dried. "…Okay. That suddenly got serious."
"A tragedy shall befall you. Your world… is thinning."
"Woah— what?"
She lifted her hand.
Shimmering images unfolded like pages of a burning book. Cities crumbling. The sky torn open. Something massive pushing through.
"Soon, gates shall appear across the earth— doors to realms not meant for mortal eyes."
"Gates?" I asked.
"Labyrinths. Dungeons. Prisons for beasts beyond your comprehension. When they open, monsters shall spill forth. Your world will warp into peril."
I laughed— Softly just enough for her not to notice. "Okay, that sound horrifying."
She sighs. Voice urgent. "Mortals will be forced into trials— games of survival, governed by rules you do not yet know. Power shall be given… but so too shall countless souls perish."
"Wait— power?" I blinked.
"Aether— Abilities. Skills. Your world will adapt… a system."
"…Like a video game?" I muttered.
She hesitated, unfamiliar with the term… but nodded slowly. "Yes. Stats, strength, swiftness, the endurance of your spirit… all quantified. Measured."
"And you're telling me" My pulse quickened— excitement mixed with fear. "I'm supposed to survive that?"
Vesper's gaze softened just barely.
"You will not SURVIVE— unless you prepare."
Silence— everything turned quiet, my breathing grew heavier, my eyes went hazy, my throat felt dry
"Which is why I shall grant you a System Call, a safeguard only you may wield."
I blinked. "Wait, but Why me?"
She floated closer, her voice soft as it trembled. "Because you were chosen."
I stared at her, throat tight. "A system just for me?"
She blinked. "Wait no. My bad."
"What?!" I flinched, stunned.
Expression flat, she exhaled slowly and ran a hand down her face. "You're corrupting me."
Her dark hair floated around her like ink in water as she shook her head.
"Nay. When the veil tears in a night's time, all mortals shall receive one. The world will shift into what you'd liken to a… game."
I looked at my hand. "…Everyone gets powers?"
"I-indeed. Stats, abilities, skills… advantages and consequences— Your species will be graded."
"Graded…? What are we, homework?!"
Vesper ignored my sarcasm. "Many shall rise. More shall fall."
"Then why give it to me now?"
Her eyes met mine. "To prepare you. Even three days' practice may mean the difference between life— and death."
A pause.
"Others will awaken confused. You… will awaken ready."
I managed a shaky laugh. "…So I'm like a beta tester?"
She blinked. "A… what?"
"Nevermind."
Sighting Vesper extended her hand, luminous symbols spiraling in her palm ✧. "Place thy hand upon mine. I shall bestow the System Call into your soul."
"This… won't hurt, right?"
"Mm. Probably not."
"Probably?!"
Before I could retreat, her fingers brushed mine
FLASH!
My vision exploded with glowing text.
[SYSTEM INITIALIZING…]
Heart pounding, I whispered, "…Woah."
Vesper's voice echoed, distant now.
"Remember, Si Hon… you have three days. Train. Grow. Survive."
The dream began to fade.
"When the gates appear… the world shall never be the same. I pray you do not fall."
My heartbeat kicked up as the dream around us began to flicker, pieces of the black box unraveling into light.
"Wait!" I reached toward her. And taking a half step even though there's nothingness beneath us. "If all that's going to happen… will we meet again? You're… kinda fun to talk to."
Vesper's eyes widened just for a moment. The glow around her dimmed, her expression shifting into something I couldn't read.
Sad?
Hopeful?
Afraid?
"When the time comes…" she murmured, reaching her hand toward me, "you will—"
***
I awoke with a startled breath.
Something poked my cheek.
"Mister?"
The kid face hovered inches from mine, finger extended.
"...That's weird. Thank God it was just a drea—" Before I could process the dream, my gaze drifted upward
A blue, translucent window floated in the air.
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[READY FOR A QUEST?]
ACCEPT / DECLINE
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"Nevermind..."