The ceiling above me had lost all colour long ago.
I stared at it like I always did, counting the faint cracks that looked like spider webs frozen in time.
Outside, the city hummed with distant chaos—screams, gunfire, the growls of monsters, and the endless static from dead radio signals.
The noise made silence feel like a foreign memory.
The world had ended.
And I couldn't even lift a finger to do anything about it.
I am Lucian Foster, 22 years old.
Paralysed from the neck down for the past seven years.
Before the Mana Apocalypse, I thought losing my body was the worst fate imaginable.
Seems like I was wrong.
"Brother... I'm back." Her voice cracked a little as she stepped inside.
Plastic bags brushed the floor.
Lia, my little sister, looked smaller than ever in a torn hoodie. She set down a few cans and a half-stale loaf of bread.
Her hands trembled.
Her eyes—once bright and full of life—were dull now.
Empty.
"How… was it?" I asked, forcing my dry throat to work.
She gave me a tired smile—one of those fake smiles she used whenever she didn't want me to worry.
"Fine. I traded the last monster cores for these. We'll be okay, brother. Just rest."
We both knew she was lying.
She had a D Rank talent. It was average, according to what she had told me.
Potential capped what you could become.
Anybody with a D Rank or lower got trapped in a slow crawl while A Rank, S Rank, and above skyrocketed.
She was, by design, limited.
The bastard she trusted—the one who promised protection—had awakened, seen his status log, and found that he had an A Rank talent.
He left her when he discovered that she had such limited talent compared to his.
He hadn't even looked back.
I should never have let her get close to someone like that.
But what right did I have to interfere? I was already a burden she had to bear and care for.
Even if I wanted to know my potential, it wouldn't matter.
Your status only awakens after your first kill—something I'll never have. And no, you cannot use or absorb mana without having a status window—at least that is what I know.
In short, I am useless.
"I'm sorry," I whispered.
"Brother?" She turned to me, confused.
"I'm sorry... for being a burden." My voice trembled.
If only I could move—maybe I could have fought, helped, done something.
Even if I didn't get an overpowered talent, even then, I could have protected her, would've been beside her–not letting her shoulder the burden alone.
But no. I had to be paralysed. I had to lie here, be fucking useless, while my little sister risked her life just to keep me alive—
Before I could drown in my self-loathing, I felt her arms wrap around me.
Her warmth was faint, but felt real.
"Brother, don't blame yourself," She said softly.
"You're not the only failure here. I trusted the wrong people. I even—" Her voice broke.
"He left me. So don't say you're a burden. I've failed too."
I didn't know how to answer, what to say.
So I just stayed silent, feeling her warmth.
The night settled like a shroud, heavy and cold.
The power had been gone for weeks; the only light came from a candle that struggled to stay lit.
For a while, there was only the sound of the wind through broken windows.
Then I heard something else.
Wind hissed through broken windows. Then—pounding at the door.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Lia froze.
The flame of the candle flickered, making her face pale.
"Who's there?" she whispered, stepping in front of me.
Voices came from outside—rough, mocking, hungry.
"Someone's in there. I saw a girl go in earlier." One voice.
"Think she's got food?" Another one asked.
"I want something more than food." A third one replied with a cackle. The others laughed along.
My throat closed.
Lia backed away from the door, trembling.
I couldn't move.
I couldn't scream.
The wood splintered. The door burst open.
Three men stepped inside—filthy, wild-eyed, grinning like animals.
"Well, what do we have here…" One of them said, his eyes leering over Lia, over her body.
"Cute little thing. Shame she's wasting away here."
"D-don't come closer!" Lia shouted, grabbing a dagger in her hand, fingers white around the hilt.
She had scavenged it.
It was small, rusty and barely sharp.
Her hands shook so badly that she almost dropped it.
They laughed.
"Stop! Please!" I begged, my voice shaking.
One of them looked at me and sneered.
"A cripple? How the fuck is he still alive?''
His question was valid since even normal people struggled to survive in this world.
Even I wouldn't have if Lia hadn't been protecting me.
"Should we kill him first?" Another one asked, twirling a dagger in his hand.
"I haven't killed anyone in a long while." He grinned widely, revealing his slightly yellow teeth.
He raised his dagger and stepped toward me.
The blade flashed.
Before I could even process, Lia moved.
Schlkt!
Blood sprayed across my face.
And then… she fell.