At first, Aleks couldn't see nor make out what was actually appearing in front of him. His eyes were still blurry – it must have been the effect of that strange headache attacking him out of nowhere.
His eyes were red. The only thing he *could* vaguely perceive was the colour of his pupils, which were emerald green. Of course, he didn't know they were red; he just assumed the headache was causing the distortion. Where he was, there was no way to tell his eyes were literally bloodshot.
After all, there wasn't a single mirror nearby. The truth was, mirrors could only be found in the bathroom, and those weren't full-length mirrors showing the whole upper body – just the head and maybe a quarter of the torso.
There was a reason for that rule, and it was actually a good one. Aleks didn't live in an ordinary world. He lived in a world that had suffered immensely over the last decade. His world was one of chaos and horrors.
And why is that?
It's pretty simple, really. Even though Aleks never got the chance to be isekai'd into another world and reincarnated, *his* world now felt eerily like one of those terrifying fantasy realms.
Though he was nearly the only teenager who hadn't had his Awakening, time was running out. According to the experts, it was researched and proven that if a teenager hit sixteen without any Awakening, they should forget about ever gaining special abilities.
And the truth was, Aleks desperately wished and desired to have any form of Awakening – even something as seemingly minor as mind reading.
It seemed his headache and blurry, watering eyes were worsening by the second. When he tried squinting and blinking, it was no use. Because whenever he did, whatever had appeared before him flickered – not like the first bright light, this wasn't a light after all. It was something different.
Aleks felt his eyes watering intensely. He tried wiping them, but not only were they watering, they also felt like they were burning – as if he'd cut a full onion or accidentally rubbed them with hot pepper.
'Shit, shit, shit,' he cried internally. Everything he attempted seemed futile.
The wall he'd used for balance earlier now supported him as he sat leaning against it. He knew, one way or another, he'd have to get his ass up and go wash his eyes.
And he did exactly that. Despite having a hard time retaining his balance – thanks to the headache making him feel like a three-year-old was banging stainless steel pot lids inside his skull like a drummer – he pushed forward.
One thing he never stopped trying was shaking his head. It was useless, but his sheer resilience kept him trying.
His blurry vision worsened with each step. It was no secret he knew the layout – it was his place, a small two-room apartment with the essentials: a bed, food, a television to follow news about the demonic invaders, a fridge, and a bag of clothes.
But with this unbearable headache, it felt like he was losing his eyesight – something he absolutely couldn't afford. He already felt helpless without an Awakening.
All the way to the sink, Aleks kept bumping into things. His hands became his guides, feeling ahead before taking each step.
He finally made it to the sink. He tried turning on the tap to wash his eyes, but he just kept rotating it. Nothing came out – only gurgling sounds.
This time, he closed his eyes completely, unable to withstand the burning sensation any longer.
"Oh, come on, seriously?" Frustration boiled over.
He tried opening his eyes again, hoping the brief rest had helped.
As soon as he opened them, the very same indistinct thing he couldn't make out was there, hovering before him. It wasn't just appearing; it was floating. Its colour seemed… reddish.
He flinched and squinted, trying desperately to discern it, but it was futile. He even tried to touch it, but his hand phased right through.
"What the hell is this?" His curiosity surged despite everything.
Aleks wasn't an idiot. Though he could barely see anything, he could still pinpoint one crucial fact: This couldn't just be his eyes. This thing… it had a message.
That's when he realized he had no choice: he had to go all the way to the bathroom to get the water he desperately needed to wash away the agonizing pain in his eyes. He knew and understood perfectly well why the kitchen sink tap had no water.
So he felt certain he'd find water in the bathroom. Aleks kept staring at the mysterious floating thing, clinging to the hope that if he watched it long enough, it would finally reveal itself clearly. But he was wrong.
Frustrated, Aleks tore his gaze from the darn thing and scanned the room, searching for the bathroom door. Luck was on his side – he spotted it, though his vision made it look like multiple doors were open simultaneously.
He took a deep breath. "I guess I have no choice."
Then came the struggle. He bumped squarely into a wall, convinced it was the bathroom door. He shuffled sideways, only to thump painfully into another wall.
"Ouch!" He shook his head violently and rubbed his throbbing forehead.
Defeated, he resorted to using his hands as guides once more. After an unnecessarily long struggle, his fingers finally found the doorframe.
"Phew, finally," he sighed with profound relief.
He stumbled inside the bathroom and went straight for the basin. He turned the tap with frantic hope... but just like the kitchen sink, only a hollow gurgle answered him. Nothing came out.
This time, the pain in his eyes was unforgiving. They felt completely inflamed, the redness threatening to swallow his emerald green pupils. Desperation overruled disgust. He forgot the basin, lunged for the toilet, and plunged his face into the bowl, using the cold toilet water to douse the fiery agony.
It was disgusting. But he had no choice. The grim solution worked – the burning sensation finally began to recede. His eyes were clearing.
He straightened up, dripping and blinking, searching for something to wipe his face. Finding nothing, he yanked off his t-shirt and used it as a makeshift towel.
To his horror, when he pulled the shirt away, it was smeared with startling red streaks. Fear spiked through him. Blood? Panicked, he scrambled back to the basin. He yanked open the small medicine cabinet mirror mounted inside the door, hung it hastily on the wall hook, and peered at his reflection, frantically checking for wounds.
But there was nothing – no cuts, no injuries. Just his own, increasingly confused face staring back. He was so distracted by the phantom blood scare that he completely forgot about the floating thing… and the real reason he'd endured this entire, rigorous hassle: to finally see clearly and figure out what the hell that thing actually was.
That's when his mind snapped back. He remembered why he'd endured all this agony: the floating system. It had vanished… and so had the headache, as if it never existed.
"I wonder where that thing wandered off to?" Aleks muttered, scratching his head. "Or maybe I was just hallucinating the whole thing?"
He managed to convince himself the floating anomaly was just his mind playing tricks – a cruel side effect of Dan's beating. Something felt deeply weird, though. Aleks seemed burdened, his thoughts fragmented. He'd even forgotten about the bloody t-shirt scare that made him grab the mirror!
He'd placed the stained t-shirt on the basin edge, unable to stop circling back to the floating system. Was my head really that damaged? Could I imagine something so vivid?
And even if he was hallucinating, seeing a doctor was impossible. Rent was due, the invasion had strained everything… life was overwhelming.
Just as his mind drifted from the mysterious system to hunting for his missing stipend money, it reappeared. Instantly.
[Ding!]
[Daily Quest: Drink 5 litres of hot water]
Aleks skimmed the notification. He didn't bother paying attention. He ignored it.
"What is this?" he chuckled darkly to the empty room. "Some kind of joke?"
[Ding]
[Daily Quest: Drink 5 litres of hot water]
The message repeated. Still naive and oblivious, Aleks decided to play along. He was sure it was a game.
"Okay," he challenged, hands on hips. "Let's say I don't do what you just told me. What are you gonna do? Punish me?" He half-expected silence.
He was wrong.
[Warning: Failure to complete this quest may result in severe punishment]
Instead of fear, Aleks just scoffed. "Yeah, right."
[Time Remaining: 23:59:02]
He didn't understand the countdown or its meaning. He dismissed it, turning to leave the bathroom.
[Time Deadline: 00:00:00]
[Results: Daily Quest has been incomplete]
[Alert: Now prepare for your punishment]
Aleks didn't see these final messages. He'd already walked away.
He didn't expect any of it to be real. But the moment he reached the bathroom threshold…
CRACK!
The bathroom floor ripped open beneath him. He plummeted into a searing chasm that looked like the Earth's boiling crust. His screams echoed distantly, swallowed by the roar of heat.
Then the floor sealed shut. Smooth. Silent. As if nothing had happened.