That evening felt strange and heavy. Laira, Kael, Carlos, and Leina sat in the kitchen, thinking about what could possibly help Endel. But no word, no attempt to bring him back into reality had any effect. Endel remained as if switched off—his body was here, but his thoughts wandered somewhere else. He didn't respond, didn't react, and all they could do was watch him like some living, yet empty shell.
Carlos was already ready to leave, but unease gnawed at him. Leina too was preparing to go, yet all eyes kept returning to Endel, who sat by the window unmoving, staring into the darkness. His face was devoid of emotion, and that frightened them most of all.
"We won't achieve anything just sitting here," Kael said quietly, lowering his head heavily.
Carlos and Leina exchanged glances. Carlos, losing patience, approached Endel again, his hand trembling as he tried to place it on his friend's shoulder. But Endel didn't move.
At that moment, just as Leina was about to break the silence, Endel suddenly spoke. His voice was low, almost chilling, and his words hung in the air like storm clouds.
"Don't go to school tomorrow," he said without turning his head. His eyes stayed locked on the window, his face empty, expressionless.
The words were so strange that everyone froze. Leina and Carlos looked at each other with confused expressions, unable to understand what he meant. Why would he say such a thing? What could have driven him to warn them?
"Endel," Carlos said cautiously, trying to grasp what was happening. "What do you mean? Why can't we go to school?"
But Endel gave no reply. Instead, he stood up and slowly made his way toward his room, never looking back. His steps were uncertain, like those of someone unwilling to stay in this world. The others instinctively followed him with their eyes, afraid he might collapse again. When the door closed behind him, a strange silence wrapped around the house.
"He… he told us not to go to school," Leina whispered, her voice trembling with both fear and confusion. "What does that even mean? Why would he say that of all things?"
Of all the possibilities she could imagine, this wasn't one of them.
"I don't know," Kael answered, arms folded across his chest. His expression was stern, but his eyes betrayed worry. "Maybe he wants us to look at the situation differently. Maybe he's trying to tell us something? But what?"
Laira walked up to Endel's door but didn't dare enter. Her heart was beating faster than usual, and the moment felt unbearably heavy. She knew her son was enduring something far deeper than simple exhaustion of body or spirit. It felt as though Endel knew something they didn't.
"I can't understand what's happening to him," Laira said, her voice shaking. "It's like he's lost his soul." Kael simply stepped forward and embraced her.
Carlos stood by the window, glancing back at his friend's parents, then toward Endel's closed door.
"I don't understand any of this," he muttered, a thin sweat forming on his brow.
Leina turned to Carlos, doubt flickering in her eyes as if she feared voicing her thoughts.
"Endel didn't say that for no reason. It's… it's like a warning. But of what? And why didn't he say more? Why so suddenly? It's as if something's going to happen tomorrow…"
By the time they sat back down, none of them could form clear thoughts. They all felt the night carried something greater, something beyond their understanding.
Night came quietly, yet the tension in the air was almost palpable. Laira and Kael lay in their bed, unable to sleep. Each lay in the dark, turning over their son's words again and again. Why did Endel tell them not to go to school? How did it connect to what he had been through? What was he hiding—or unable to say? Questions chased each other endlessly through their minds.
The same questions haunted Carlos and Leina.
When morning came, no one dared break the silence filling the house. Leina and Carlos stood outside Endel's door, but didn't enter—they lingered there as though uncertain what to do.
Inside, Endel sat by his window. He was motionless, as if the world outside no longer concerned him, as if he belonged to something else. Yet in his head, fragments of memory returned—visions of that day, that "time," when everything had changed.
"That time," he whispered to himself, staring into emptiness. "That time when I saw death and couldn't escape it. It wasn't just a dream… not just a nightmare. It could happen again… And when I saw Carlos and Leina alive, something inside me broke… I don't know what's real anymore."
Every detail of that day came crashing back, relentless, offering no peace. He knew he had to speak, but doubt chained him. What if no one believed him? What if they thought he had lost his mind? Yet within him, a spark of resolve began to burn. He couldn't stay silent any longer. The more he thought about it, the worse it became.
"I have to tell them what happened. It wasn't just a nightmare—it was the future," he thought as he rose to his feet and moved toward the door. It had taken him three whole days to pull himself together, even a little.
When Endel stepped out, Carlos and Leina were already there, waiting as though they had known he would appear. Their eyes burned into him, and he didn't know what to say. Without a word, he simply went downstairs.
They followed like shadows, careful not to disturb the fragile silence. In the living room, Laira and Kael sat waiting. Their faces changed immediately when they heard Endel's steps. They could see something was wrong. Kael tried to mask his worry, but Laira couldn't hide her fear. She saw in her son's eyes something beyond mere anxiety. Something she couldn't name, but could feel. Still, she was relieved to see him finally awake again.
Endel stopped at the doorway to the living room, facing his parents and his closest friends. He knew all their attention was fixed on him, and it weighed heavily. For a moment he stood in silence, taking deep breaths.
It felt as though time itself slowed. The air grew heavy, unbearable. Finally, he began to speak slowly:
"I don't know where to start. This wasn't some ordinary nightmare. What happened… it was real, I think. No. I'm certain."
The moment the words left his lips, a bright blue screen suddenly appeared before their eyes. It materialized without warning, identical to the one Endel had seen "that time." Strange, alien—something beyond their comprehension. It resembled an interface, yet its complexity and vastness surpassed human understanding.
[Server 204728 ready for launch!First scenario: Survive for 30 days.Countdown: 30 days, 0 hours, 0 minutes.]
Leina, Carlos, Laira, and Kael stared in disbelief. Though they had been listening to Endel, their eyes were instinctively drawn to the glowing screen. Confusion flooded their faces.
Endel, however, felt terror explode inside him. He had thought he was regaining control—but the sight of that screen shattered him once more.
"It's… it's here again," Endel whispered in horror as his knees gave out beneath him. "It's exactly the same… and now it's with us again."
Shaking violently, Endel collapsed to the floor. He tried to speak, but his voice faltered. His heart pounded, breath came in ragged gasps, and a freezing chill spread through his body. He had only convinced himself he was stable—but the return of that cursed message left him suffocating in dread.
The others rushed to help him, but they were too late when suddenly—
Crack!
Kael was the first to react. A former soldier, his instincts were sharp. Though fear flickered in his eyes, it was instantly replaced with battle readiness.
"Carlos, protect them!" Kael barked, snatching up a stool and smashing it against the head of the grotesque creature that burst through the shattered window.
The monster was small but unnaturally strong. Its body was covered in rough green skin, its twisted face hideous and malformed. It resembled a hulking goblin, but with more developed muscles and a feral snarl. With a screech, the beast reeled from the blow, fell back, then sprang forward again, relentless.
Carlos obeyed at once, shielding Laira and Leina, pressing them back against the wall to keep them safe. His eyes never left the monster as it prowled, searching for another opening.
Leina, horrified, could only stare at Endel, who muttered incoherently, like a man lost to madness.
Kael, seasoned by combat, assessed the situation instantly. He lunged again, never giving the monster a chance to recover. Every move was precise, honed by years of training, yet the beast's strength seemed boundless.
Meanwhile, Endel remained on the floor, trembling, whispering broken words, consumed by terror. Then—before his eyes—his system interface appeared.
[System Status]Name: Endel AstraliusDark Arcana: Return to the BeginningStatus: ActiveCondition: System boot complete. Functions stable. All features accessible: Status, Store, Information, Transfer, etc.Note: One new skill available. Would you like to read?
[Yes/No]
Unconsciously, he chose Yes. Immediately, knowledge of the skill surged into his mind.
[Skill: Berserk
Description:This skill awakens an ancient instinct of rage, plunging the user into a battle trance where emotions, pain, and fear are suppressed. In this state, both body and mind operate at their absolute limit, allowing the wielder to display incredible strength and speed. However, the longer the berserk state lasts, the more it strains and consumes the body and mind.]
Though fear still gripped him, the sight of his father being beaten by a pitiful creature became the final spark. At that moment, the chains of dread shattering his mind broke apart. Rage consumed him—searing, blinding, aimed solely at the monster.
His eyes flared red. With a roar, Endel launched himself at the beast.