A small, dim room—its heavy curtains blocking out the sun like a fortress wall—kept the darkness trapped inside.
Cold. Stifling.
Piles of trash were scattered across the floor, and a young man lay sprawled on his bed, fiddling with his phone.
"Damn it… There's nothing fun on the internet anymore. Just the same boring videos…"
He let out a frustrated sigh—huff—and reached into his bag of chips.
"Great… that's finished too. I don't even feel like going to the kitchen. If only Tina were here… I'd just call her to bring me another bag."
Unfortunately, his parents and his only sister had gone on a short trip to the village to visit their grandparents, leaving him alone at home.
He knew that if he went with them, he'd be forced to help with farming and taking care of animals—tedious, exhausting work.
So he chose to stay behind.
As always.
The older brother who still lived off his parents' allowance, wasting his life on the internet and doing absolutely nothing.
A twenty‑six‑year‑old with no willpower.
Not because he lacked anything—just because nothing in his life had ever felt exciting.
He had no passion, no spark. He didn't even know what he wanted from life.
Of course, he wasn't the only young person like that. Many had no clear dream or goal, yet still pushed forward and tried to live.
But he had never tried. Not really.
Every time he felt a surge of motivation—every time adrenaline boiled in his veins—his enthusiasm lasted a week, maybe a month… then died out.
The great flame of passion always collapsed into cold ash.
And now, like some pitiful creature, he had locked himself inside his home, accomplishing nothing.
A freeloader living off his parents.
Even his younger sister—only two years apart—had already finished her studies and landed a job at a major company.
Why was he so different? Even he didn't know.
To him, the world of fantasy stories was far more appealing than reality.
He spent most of his time daydreaming—imagining zombie outbreaks, dungeon gates opening, worlds collapsing.
Whenever he thought about such things, his heart raced.
Maybe he simply wasn't built for a realistic world.
Whatever the case, he was closer to his dream than he ever imagined.
Because suddenly, the ground shook.
"Huh…? What's going on…? Am I dizzy or is the ground actually shaking?"
The tremor intensified, as if some colossal creature was stomping across the earth.
Then—BOOM—a deafening explosion echoed through the city.
He rushed to the window and pulled the curtain aside.
What he saw made his breath catch.
"Oh my god… What the hell…? This… this can't be my city."
Their small town had transformed into a war zone in mere seconds.
Half the tall buildings had collapsed, and screams echoed through the streets.
His hands trembled, yet a wide smile crept across his face—without him even realizing it.
Still, he forced himself to stay calm. Staying inside during an earthquake wasn't wise, so he quickly threw on some clothes and ran outside.
The chaos hadn't reached his neighborhood yet.
He hid beside a parked car, trying to assess the situation.
Then a loud mechanical voice echoed from nowhere:
[Welcome to the Global Game. Fight for your survival.]
He blinked in confusion.
"That's it…? What kind of announcement is that? Even games give better tutorials…"
He swallowed hard and muttered a curse under his breath.
Then, a glowing orange screen materialized in front of him.
His heart leapt.
"A system… This is actually a system. Ha!"
He was lucky—having a system in a collapsing world was like winning the lottery.
But his smile froze as he read the stats displayed on the screen.
It felt like a bucket of ice water had been dumped over his head.
[Host Status]
Strength: 0
Magic: 0
Health: 5
Stamina: -100
Special Ability: —
Blessing: —
Training Qualification: Not Eligible
"What the…? Negative one hundred stamina? How is that even possible? This is worse than a normal human! And what does 'not eligible' even mean?"
His face flushed with anger.
He had finally gotten a system—only for it to be utterly useless.
Then he noticed a small downward arrow.
He tapped it.
[Until your stamina reaches zero, none of your stats can increase.
Note: Only when all base stats reach ten will you qualify for training.]
He groaned and ran a hand through his hair.
"With this garbage… leveling up is going to be hell. I'll probably die before that."
As he drowned in frustration, another notification appeared.
[System Spirit Awakening…]
A small orange orb materialized in the air.
Crack… crack…
The orb split open like an egg, and a tiny orange cat emerged.
It stretched, opened its eyes, and stared at him.
Another message floated in the air:
[Establishing connection between Host and System Spirit…
Loading: 1%… 10%… 20%… 100%
Connection complete. Please name your System Spirit.]
The cute creature melted his anger instantly.
He thought for a moment.
"Hmm… I'll call you Regal."
[Name accepted. Spirit Contract established.]
A soft, elegant voice echoed in his mind.
"You are my host."
He hesitated, then replied, "Yeah… I'm your host."
Suddenly he felt a cold, piercing gaze—like he was completely exposed.
The tiny cat's eyes widened in shock. Its fur bristled, and it hissed.
"Unbelievable… How could a superior being like me be bound to a pathetic loser like you? This must be a mistake. The system's standards must have dropped. I need to report this immediately."
He clenched his jaw.
He didn't need anyone reminding him how worthless his stats were.
The cat—Regal—spoke again.
"Host… you should just die. It'll hurt less. With stats like yours, you won't survive. You can't even enter the training program."
The little creature was unbelievably rude—openly telling him to die.
He balled his fists.
"You think I want to be like this? Die? No. I'm not dying. I'll survive. Somehow."
For the first time in his life, he felt a burning desire to live.
If this world was truly like the ones he dreamed of, then he wanted to experience it—no matter what.
Regal raised an eyebrow, surprised, then smirked.
"You're an interesting human. But you'll regret those words soon."
The boy grinned back.
"We'll see. I'll survive—and when I do, you'll treat me with respect and do whatever I ask."
Regal flicked his tail arrogantly.
"Fine."
"My name is Calix," the boy said. "Stop calling me 'host.'"
Regal only hummed in response and floated around, observing the world.
"After five hundred years, I'm finally awake… This world is different from all the others I've lived in. I'll just wait for this host to die so I can move on. Hopefully the system replies soon…"
The tremors had stopped, and the chaos outside had quieted.
Calix stepped forward to investigate.
But he saw no monsters. No people.
It was as if everyone had vanished.
Until he spotted a pack of wolves—five of them.
"Wolves… They usually move in larger packs. There must be more. I need to run before they notice me."
But suddenly, his breath caught.
His chest tightened.
He couldn't inhale.
A new notification flashed before him:
[Stamina depleted. Current stamina: -101.
Critical condition. Rest required.]
---