Naruto_Uzumaki_0118

Ethan Cole is a 24-year-old man who’s been dealt a cruel hand in life. Orphaned at a young age, he clawed his way through foster care, poverty, and loneliness. Just when things seemed to improve—he landed a steady job and fell in love—he was betrayed by the one person he trusted: his girlfriend stole his savings, racked up debt in his name, and vanished.

Drowning in debt, jobless, and emotionally broken, Ethan is standing on the edge of a bridge one rainy night, ready to end it all. That’s when his phone buzzes with a strange notification:
"Do you want to win a billion dollars? A chance to reset your life. Click now."

With nothing left to lose, he taps it.

Instantly, his world goes black.

100 Humans vs. 1 Gorilla: The Billion Dollar Gorilla Game

The Trial of Flames had ended, but the scorch marks it left behind lingered—in both the labyrinth and the souls of those who survived it. Alessia and Ethan stood once more at the edge of the ceremonial platform, surrounded by the dwindling few who had endured. The overseers had not spoken since the last trial concluded. The silence that followed was not relief. It was dread. Something was coming. Something final.

A divine hush fell across the arena.

Then, without announcement, the sky tore open. Not with thunder or lightning, but with golden light, soft and slow like dawn breaking over a still battlefield. From that radiance descended a being neither man nor beast. Draped in translucent robes that shifted like smoke and glass, it had no face—only a mask carved from starlight. Its voice was felt rather than heard, vibrating through bone and breath.

"You have passed the trial. You have endured the pain of fire, mind, and soul. But to rise, one must choose."

A symbol burned into the ground—a circle with three lines intersecting at its heart. A place of judgment.

He did, heart hammering. The light shifted to surround only him. Alone again, beneath celestial scrutiny.

"You are ready. But readiness demands sacrifice."

Three figures emerged from the shadows. They were familiar. Contestants he had fought beside. One of them was Juno, the quiet strategist with sharp eyes and a sharper mind. Another was Tyren, who had once saved Alessia from a falling spike trap. The last... a stranger. But one who looked eerily like Ethan himself.

The being gestured, and the platform beneath the trio shimmered. Their fates hung by threads.

"One must fall, so the Chosen may rise."

"Because power is not given. It is paid for. This is the currency."

Alessia stepped forward, defiant. "Let me take his place."

The crowd—what remained of it—held its breath.

Ethan turned to Juno. Her expression was calm, resolved. She had known this was coming. Tyren met Ethan's gaze without bitterness. The stranger merely smiled—a twisted, knowing smile.

His mind spiraled. Juno had helped them during the second round, manipulating votes that had saved Ethan's life. Tyren had never asked for anything in return for his loyalty. The stranger… was an unknown. Why was he even included? A test within a test?

Alessia reached for Ethan's shoulder, grounding him.

"If you don't choose," she whispered, "they'll all die."

He faced the being. "What happens to the one I sacrifice?"

"Erased. Utterly. Body, memory, soul."

A fate worse than death. A vanishing.

Juno gave a slow nod. "I'm ready, Ethan. If it means you rise."

Tyren remained silent, eyes hard, but accepting. The stranger stepped forward suddenly.

"I'll make it easy for you. Choose me. You don't know me. You never will."

Ethan hesitated. "Why are you here?"

The stranger grinned. "Because I am what you fear becoming. A killer who chooses too easily."

The overseers remained still. So did the divine judge.

In that moment, Ethan felt time stretch. His memories burned within him—those he had saved, those he had lost. He wasn't just a survivor. He was becoming something more.

The Choice