Prologue
I expected chaos.
People screaming in the streets. The sky splitting open. Monsters clawing out of dimensional tears. Fire. Screams. Blood.
But I woke up to chirping birds and the distant hum of a train.
It felt wrong. Like time had hiccupped.
Except it hadn't. I had.
---
Ten years.
That's how long until the world falls apart.
That's how long I have to change everything.
I clenched my fists. The smooth skin. The unscarred knuckles. I wasn't the bloodied warlord anymore. I was seventeen. A student again. Somehow, impossibly, I'd been reborn a full decade before the collapse.
And this time, I'd do it right.
---
System online.
A pulse surged in my skull as digital light flashed behind my eyes.
[Doomsday Survival Protocol v0.91] Initialized
Syncing memory bank…
Adapting to new host state…
Alert: Mission priority unchanged. Humanity survival rate: 0.00002%.
Begin Operation: Rewrite Fate
---
I walked the cracked sidewalk toward Shinraku Academy.
Every brick, every bush, every echo of gossip was the same as before. Kids laughed without knowing the clock was ticking. The sun was too bright. The world too intact.
It made my stomach twist.
Then I saw her.
---
Ayaka Sakamoto.
Before she became my wife. Before she destroyed everything.
She was standing under cherry blossoms, sunlight catching the glint of her phone. That laugh—that same effortless, sweet sound—tore open something jagged in my chest.
[Target Scanned: Ayaka Sakamoto]
Beauty Rating: 92
Bond: Uninitiated
Loyalty: 0%
Future Corruption Detected. External Influence: High.
Subject was manipulated via charm-based mnemonic implants. Likely culprit: Ichiro Takeda.
Ichiro.
That smiling snake.
---
A sudden flash burned through my mind.
Ichiro's voice, soft and soothing, wrapped around her like silk.
"You deserve more than him, Aya. You know that… deep down, right?"
Her lips trembled. "But… Ren's done so much for us—"
"Has he, really?"
Then those cold fingers on her cheek. A whisper.
"You trust me, don't you?"
And she nodded.
Just like that.
---
I shook it off and turned away.
Not yet. She wasn't mine anymore. And this time, I wouldn't fall so easily.
---
Priority 1: Stockpile supplies.
I knew what was coming. The first wave of societal collapse hits at Month 4. Cities implode. Networks die. Food vanishes. I needed to be ten steps ahead.
And I remembered the perfect place to start: an abandoned bomb shelter under the Shuto Mall. Untouched in this timeline. A hidden gem. In the future, warlords fought over it. Now, it was ripe for the taking.
---
I skipped class and made my way across the city.
The tunnel behind the mall was exactly as I remembered—rusted grates, broken lights, stale air.
System Ping: Hidden structure detected. GPS lock acquired.
I found the reinforced door behind the junk pile.
"Manual override code… 108739."
The keypad beeped.
Click.
The door creaked open, revealing concrete stairs spiraling into shadow.
---
[Shelter Claimed: The Vault]
Tier: I
Storage: 3,000 units
Structural Integrity: 84%
Upgradable? Yes. Hidden? Yes.
Auto-repair initiated.
---
The base was a forgotten cold war bunker, complete with rations, water filters, medical kits, even solar reserves buried in the rock. I grabbed a flashlight and started cataloging the interior.
[Scavenging Subroutine Active]
Efficiency Bonus from Memory Recall: +420%
Looting Phase Initiated
---
Food Scavenge Run: 1st Pass
My route took me through an old military surplus outlet. In the future, it was looted dry. Today? Shelves were untouched.
Freeze-dried meal pouches (3-month supply)
9 water purification bottles
Field cooking kit
High-calorie protein bars
Solar hand crank charger
Foldable shelter tarp
My backpack groaned with weight, but I pushed through.
---
Medical Run: 2nd Pass
I hit an underground clinic next. Their supply room hadn't been inventoried in weeks.
3 bottles of iodine
Surgical gloves, gauze
Prescription-grade antibiotics
2 adrenaline shots
Painkillers (morphine, acetaminophen, tramadol)
I smiled. This was life insurance.
---
By late afternoon, I dragged my haul back to the Vault, stashed the gear, and collapsed on the cot.
That's when I heard footsteps.
---
Slow. Careful.
I gripped the pipe I'd rigged into a club.
A flashlight beam hit my face.
"You live here?"
Her voice was sharp. Controlled. But curious.
Rei Tanaka.
---
Shoulder-length ash-black hair. Blue eyes. Guarded expression. She wore a patched bomber jacket and steel-toed boots like armor.
[Target Detected: Rei Tanaka]
Beauty Rating: 91
Ability Affinity: Supernatant [Dormant]
Loyalty: 2%
Potential early awakener. Timeline deviation possible.
---
She kept the light on me. "This base yours?"
"Found it first," I said.
She raised a brow. "I was tracking some... energy. Static in the leyline. You feel it too, don't you?"
Her instincts were awakening. The Vault was buried on a convergent leyline fracture. No wonder she was drawn here.
I gestured at the spare bunk. "You can stay. But earn your keep."
Her eyes narrowed. Then she cracked a crooked smile. "Cool. Dibs on the warm blanket."
---
[Bond Initiated: Rei Tanaka]
Loyalty: 3%
Compatibility: 67%
System Function Unlocked: Supernatant Awakening Pathway
---
Meanwhile — Rei's POV (short section)
I watched him from across the room.
He didn't act like other guys. No flexing. No nervous jokes. Just silence. Purpose. Like he was waiting for something.
When he glanced at me, his eyes were sharp. Measured. Like I was a puzzle piece he already knew the shape of.
Something about him… buzzed under my skin.
I'd seen weird things lately. Dreams I couldn't explain. A glow in my fingers I thought was a hallucination.
But this place? It made it stronger.
And so did he.
---
Back to Ren
I stared at the cracked ceiling of
the Vault and took my first full breath since waking up in this timeline.
The world was intact. The betrayals hadn't happened. The monsters weren't here—yet.
But I was ready.
Tomorrow, I'd face Ayaka.
And Ichiro wouldn't be far behind.
---
[Doomsday Countdown: T-3,651 Days]
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