The System's Awakening

Dante floated in the abyss, his thoughts spiraling. He was dead—wasn't he?

Was this some kind of afterlife? Or was he trapped in a dream shaped by his final thoughts?

No, this felt too real. Too distinct.

A voice shattered the silence. Cold, mechanical, devoid of emotion.

"Welcome, Dante Everett. You are deceased. You have entered the Conqueror's System."

Dante twisted—if one could twist in a place with no form. "Who's there?" His voice lacked a mouth, yet it rang clear in the void.

No answer came. Only the unfeeling hum of the system screen.

"I am the System Entity," the voice intoned. "Created by the Supreme God to guide the World Conqueror."

World Conqueror. The title echoed within him. A crown of expectations placed on his nonexistent head.

"The balance of existence is shaped by conquest. Your role is to tip the scales."

Dante frowned. "And if I refuse?"

Silence. Then:

"Refusal is not an option."

"The first realm awaits," the voice announced. "Prepare for transition."

A force unlike anything he had known gripped him. The void trembled.

Darkness swallowed him whole.

Warmth. The scent of grass. The caress of a gentle breeze.

Dante gasped, bolting upright.

A sky stretched above him—not the battlefield, not the void, but something new.

He was somewhere else. Somewhere real.

He exhaled, steadying his racing thoughts. "Where am I?"

The System's voice answered.

"The first world of conquest."

Dante looked around, taking in his surroundings, the rich greens, the golden horizon.

This was only the beginning.