The world returned to him in fragments.
Sound came first. The soft hum of hospital equipment. The distant murmur of footsteps in the hallway. The faint rustle of fabric as Phoebe shifted beside him.
Then sight.
A translucent glow hovered before Chris's eyes, faint but unmistakable. It was not projected onto the room. It existed closer than that, layered directly over his vision, impossible to ignore yet invisible to anyone else.
The moment his focus touched it, the air seemed to freeze.
The beeping of the heart monitor stretched into a long, distorted echo. Phoebe's breathing slowed until it became almost imperceptible. Even the flickering fluorescent light above stopped mid pulse.
Time did not stop.
It thinned.
Chris felt it instinctively, like stepping into deep water. His thoughts sharpened as the world slowed to a crawl.
The glowing window expanded.
Words etched themselves into existence, not appearing all at once but assembling with deliberate precision, as though written by an unseen hand that demanded his attention.
[ Divine Authority System ]
[ Status: Dormant ]
[ Host confirmed ]
Chris's heart pounded, yet the sound barely reached his ears.
His first instinct was fear.
This was not unfamiliar.
He had seen systems before. Heard of them. Hunters whispered about strange awakenings, about abilities that defied classification. But this felt different. He could feel weight behind it. Pressure. Purpose.
Not a gift.
A structure.
More text formed.
[ Purpose: Ascension Through Command ]
[ Path: Authority Based Evolution ]
[ Final Designation: Godhood Candidate ]
His breath caught.
Godhood.
The word struck deeper than any blade ever had.
The window pulsed once, then more information unfolded.
[ Authority is not strength of body ]
[ Authority is the right to command existence ]
[ You will not become a god by power alone ]
[ You will become one by hierarchy ]
Images flooded his mind.
Not visions, but concepts.
Ranks. Chains of command. Layers of authority stacked upon one another like an endless military structure. At the bottom were the expendable. At the top were beings whose words reshaped reality.
He understood immediately.
This system was not about raw force.
It was about command.
[ Current Rank: Initiate of Authority ]
[ Command Capacity: 0 ]
[ Summon Access: Locked ]
[ Authority Units: None ]
Chris frowned.
No summons.
No angels.
Nothing.
The system answered before he could question it.
[ Authority grows with rank ]
[ Rank grows through trials, survival, and conquest ]
[ Weak authority cannot command higher beings ]
[ Angels do not answer the unworthy ]
The words carried no mockery. No cruelty.
Just fact.
Chris clenched his jaw.
So even if the system promised godhood, it offered nothing freely. He was still weak. Still human. Still alone.
Another line appeared.
[ Time Dilation Active ]
[ Internal Processing Time: 7 minutes 42 seconds ]
[ External Time Elapsed: 4.3 seconds ]
His pulse spiked.
Minutes.
He had spent minutes reading and understanding this.
Yet the world around him had barely moved.
Phoebe still had not finished her breath.
The door to the hospital room was still mid swing from a passing nurse outside.
The implications unsettled him more than the system itself.
This was beyond human.
[ System Explanation Continuing ]
Chris focused.
The glow shifted, reorganizing itself into something clearer, more structured.
[ Authority System Overview ]
[ Rank Structure mirrors military command ]
[ Each rank increases command capacity ]
[ Command capacity determines number and tier of subordinates ]
[ Subordinates can be summoned or deployed ]
[ Higher ranks unlock divine legions ]
[ Final ranks grant conceptual authority over existence ]
He swallowed.
This was not just summoning creatures.
This was ruling them.
[ Example ]
[ Initiate: No command rights ]
[ Officer Tier: Minor entities unlocked ]
[ Commander Tier: Angelic units unlocked ]
[ General Tier: Legions unlocked ]
[ Sovereign Tier: Divine Hosts unlocked ]
[ God Tier: Absolute Authority ]
The words Absolute Authority burned themselves into his mind.
[ Warning ]
[ Authority backlash occurs when command exceeds rank ]
[ Attempting to summon beyond capacity results in erasure ]
His stomach twisted.
Erasure.
He had already experienced that once.
The system paused.
Then delivered its final message.
[ Ascension begins at zero ]
[ Survive ]
The glow vanished.
Time snapped back into place.
The heart monitor resumed its steady rhythm. Phoebe exhaled. The light flickered.
Chris sucked in a sharp breath, sweat dampening his skin.
Less than five seconds had passed.
But he felt changed.
Not stronger.
Heavier.
As if something immense now rested just behind his soul, waiting.
The door opened.
This time, it did not belong to a nurse.
Two men entered the room, followed by a woman in a dark coat bearing the insignia of the Gate Investigation Bureau. Their presence was immediate and oppressive. Not hostile, but sharp. Evaluating.
Hunters.
Inspectors.
The woman stepped forward. Her gaze locked onto Chris with unsettling intensity.
"Chris Hale," she said. "I am Inspector Voss. These are my colleagues."
Phoebe stiffened.
"We were told you are awake," Voss continued. "We need answers."
Chris nodded slowly.
"I understand."
They did not sit.
That alone told him everything.
Inspector Voss activated a recording device. "Start from the moment you entered the gate."
Chris inhaled.
This was the most dangerous part.
He could not tell the truth.
He could not explain a demon playing with their lives, nor an entity that erased his squad from existence. He could not mention godhood or systems or authority.
No one would believe him.
And even if they did, the consequences would be worse.
"I don't remember everything clearly," he began.
It was not a lie.
"After we entered, the environment felt wrong. Stronger monsters than expected. The mana density kept increasing."
Voss's eyes narrowed. "You are saying a yellow gate escalated?"
"Yes," Chris replied. "But not in a normal way. It felt unstable. Like it was collapsing inward."
One of the inspectors scribbled notes.
"What about your squad?" Voss pressed.
Chris hesitated, allowing silence to stretch.
"They were fighting," he said carefully. "I remember hearing them. Then something changed. The pressure spiked. My vision blurred. After that, nothing."
"You are the only survivor," Voss said flatly. "An S rank hunter found no traces of battle. No remains. No blood."
Chris met her gaze.
"I can't explain that," he said quietly. "If I could, I would."
That part was true.
The room fell silent.
Inspector Voss studied him for a long moment, as if trying to peel him apart layer by layer.
"Do you believe something intelligent was inside that gate?" she asked.
Chris paused.
"Yes," he said.
That was as far as he would go.
Voss clicked off the recorder.
"We will continue this investigation," she said. "You will be under observation."
After they left, Phoebe exhaled shakily.
"You lied," she whispered.
Chris closed his eyes.
"I survived," he replied
.
Night fell.
The hospital grew quiet.
Chris lay awake, staring into the darkness.
The system did not reappear.
But he could feel it.
Waiting.
And somewhere far beyond the walls of the hospital, something ancient shifted its gaze.
Not surprised.
Amused.
And for the first time since his return, Chris felt it clearly.
He had not been brought back as mercy.
He had been returned to climb.
And whatever waited at the top was already watching.