Preparing for the first trial (1)

'The blessing of the god of Time as been used.'

'You will be sent back to the past.'

'Since it's your first time going back you will not be able to keep anything but your memories and the blessing of the god of Time.'

. . . . . . . . . .

"You're sleeping on the job again Malik! If you continue with this work attitude I'll have to fire you."

Malik opened his eyes in a rush and let out a loud gasp.

He looked all around him to see where he was.

He was surrounded by desks and office chairs. There was also his old colleagues and his old boss, all looking at him.

Seeing their face made memories rush through his head and he screamed out from the pain he felt.

He remembered everything he as ever seen and lived through. He felt every emotions he ever felt. He smelled, heard and saw every action he ever made.

All of his previous life flashed in an instant in front of him and everything was embedded in his memory.

"Argh!"

'Is this also part of the blessing?'

He then started to think about his information but nothing showed up.

'I can't see my information which mean I came back before the first apocalypse.'

It also meant the blessing was real and he really came back in time and before everything happened too.

He couldn't believe it. He really had come back in time. The blessing he had since the start who never helped him and only dragged him back was useful for once. Malik was about to cry of joy until he heard his boss again and realized where he was.

"You little shit. You not only sleep while you're at work but you also ignore your boss like that. That's it you're fi..."

Malik's boss was interrupted by the latter.

"What is today's date?"

"You really have no clue about any work ethic do you? I'll give you a tip before firing you, the computer in front of you, on which you're supposed to work, shows you that in the right corner. Now that I gave you this tip, you're fired." screamed Malik's boss.

Malik, who hadn't used a computer in over a century was a bit confused for a second and then remembered he had to move the mouse over the time icon and click to see the date.

18 PM, 6 May 20XX.

'Two hours before the first apocalypse. I'll need to prepare. If I can get a weapon this time I'm sure I can hit the top earlier like the military did the first time.'

The apocalypse was the first big event which led to humanity's downfall. All of the ten billions of people on earth would get sent to another dimension where they would start the trials. The trials were a nice word to describe what would later be called the ten great filters. The trials consisted of ten tests where one had to survive the best he could and always needed to evolve.

And the first trial was the 6 May 20XX at 20 PM.

At 20 PM everyone would get teleported to somewhere else in groups of ten to a hundred and most of the time only half would survive.

Malik, who didn't want to waste time, stood up.

"And for your information, no, you can't have today's pay." said the boss while looking angrily at the departing back of Malik.

Malik walked out of the building and looked in his pocket.

There was his keys and his wallet.

He opened his wallet and saw his credit card.

He was happy since he could buy himself a sword with it.

He would probably want to buy a gun if he didn't know any better but in the apocalypse people would evolve to the point where a normal katana would be deadlier than a machine gun.

Obviously, some people were smart and good enough to utilize guns in the apocalypse by using magic with it but it wasn't Malik's style and he wasn't about to change his fighting tactics now.

Malik remembered everything he ever experienced and knew where there was a weapon shop so he headed out to see if anything good was there.

'I hope I can find at least an F grade sword.'

In the other world, there were artifacts. They were items from every dimensions who demonstrated power beyond any technology.

They were classified with tiers going from F to E to D to C to B to A to S and finally to God tier. They were, then, further classified with a numbering of 1 to 10, 10 being the worst.

In the first trial, even a trash F tier weapon would be good since items who were considered artifact would have their power increased.

Malik entered the shop and went straight to the weapons displayed on the wall.

"Hello, dear customer. What are you looking for today." said the shop owner.

Malik focused on the swords laid in display. He had developed a keen eye over the years of fighting in the other world and could easily tell if a weapon or a person was strong.

'Those things can't even compare to the worst F tier sword.'

Unlucky for him, no swords or weapon displayed seemed useful in a real battle. They were all for display only.

'I don't think he has one but I won't lose anything by asking him.'

"Do you have any other weapon? One you could actually use in a real fight for example."

The owner snickered while thoroughly looking up and down at Malik.

"You have a good eye for this stuff don't you dear customer." said the owner while blinking at Malik.

"I do have some good stuff in the back but you need to be able to pay the price for those babies."

"Don't worry about the price. I can deliver the money if you have such good weapons." retorqued Malik.

The owner took Malik in the back of the shop. There was a trap which led to the basement in which three swords were sitting in luxurious looking boxes with glass side.

"Here is the real stuff. Chose whichever you want and you can pay me under the table. The price won't be too bad."

'He's selling illegal stuff? Well that won't be a problem in an hour.'

"Why under the table exactly?"

"Well, you see, these weapons aren't really legal to sell or own here so I'm already subject to huge risk by showing you these. But do not worry dear customer, I trust you won't spread this news anywhere, right?"

"You don't have to worry about that, that's for sure."

In front of Malik were three swords. One was, yet again, only for display. The second was too feeble and wouldn't last long if it clashed against steel or any hard metal. Which left Malik with the sword on the left.

It was a simple sword but it could utilize most of the strength he would have in the beginning. It looked sturdy and durable, which made it a great choice to start with. It was probably a between a F10 and a F9 but at this point any weapon would be better than nothing.

"Can I take it out of the box to see?"

"Obviously, yes, you can. Do what you want dear customer."

Malik took the sword out of the box and started to swing it in the air.

'Great. This would be good in the beginning for sure.'

It had great balance and was perfect for his style.

Malik looked back in the box and took out the sheath, which he attached to his waist.

He then put his sword in the sheath and walked to the owner.

"I'll pick this one."

"Good choice, good choice. You really have a keen eye, dear customer."