Apocalypse — 10:00 PM, December 31, 2025, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan
It was Ōmisoka, New Year's Eve in Japan, the height of the holiday season, yet there were very few people outside celebrating through the night.
This winter had been abnormally cold. The knife-like wind could frostbite exposed skin in moments, and the outdoor temperature could plunge to -30°C, a level of cold that left people in this temperate monsoon climate shivering in fear and hiding indoors, unwilling to let the wind "rebuild their faces."
Takashiro Kyoko, who lived in Nihonmatsu City in Fukushima Prefecture, had no intention of going out to begin with. With the weather like this, she stayed curled up at home.
Outside the window, the winter gale howled with snow mixed into it, but it had no effect at all on Kyoko, who was wearing headphones.
In the dark bedroom, the weak glow of her computer screen lit up the face of a fair-skinned girl tinged with the faint pink of cherry blossoms.
Several empty instant noodle cups sat on the desk, along with piles of snack wrappers.
Kyoko's slender fingers hammered ceaselessly across the keyboard, the clatter filling the room. Together with the roar of the PC fan, it formed a symphony of pure torment.
"What the hell are you idiots even doing?! Is nobody guarding home?! Why are they already at A site and you still haven't thrown recon?!"
The screen was already showing the enemy team's victory summary. Face flushed red, Kyoko turned on voice chat and performed a furious one-woman concert.
Bless those kind teammates who tried so hard to cure Kyoko of her gaming addiction.
Maybe because Kyoko had input a little too much "information" into the computer all at once, her gloriously jury-rigged machine—one that even the legendary bargain-PC forum veterans would have praised—finally blue-screened and died on the spot.
Kyoko, however, wasn't even surprised anymore. She had already planned to replace this computer days ago. If not for being broke, she would have switched to a new setup already.
She took a sip of her ice-cold imported soda, picked up her phone, leaned back in her gaming chair, and checked her messages.
Aside from a few ads, there were just the usual 99+ messages from her group chats, nothing especially important. As for parents or other family... they had died in a car accident back when Kyoko was in her second year of middle school. Now, as a third-year high schooler, she had long since been alone.
Well, not entirely alone. There was still one guardian who kept an eye on her: her mother's friend, Kawano Chiyo, a thirty-two-year-old woman.
Even though Kawano Chiyo was fourteen years older than Takashiro Kyoko, outsiders would probably take them for sisters at a glance—aside from the difference in hair color.
Chiyo was blonde. Kyoko was black-haired.
Her deadbeat parents had at least left her one fully paid-off apartment. Between inheritance and insurance compensation, there was roughly 30 million yen, enough for Kyoko to live pretty comfortably—provided she could actually get the money out of Chiyo's hands.
Of course, Chiyo wasn't trying to embezzle it. She was just afraid that if she handed it over, Kyoko would blow it all recklessly.
"The allowance Sis Chiyo gives me is enough to live on, but if I want money for a new computer, I'll have to work a little harder to convince her..."
The girl lounged lazily in her gaming chair, shook her head, gave up fantasizing about the future, and decided to sleep.
The dark circles under her eyes proved she had been battling for quite a while.
With no one around to control her, and having been a gaming addict in her previous life too, Takashiro Kyoko had only gotten worse. She often pulled all-nighters, and during school breaks she repeatedly pushed the limits of the human body. Thankfully, her physical condition was good enough to survive it.
Why?
Well, if in your previous life you had just finished the college entrance exam at eighteen, all set to enjoy your vacation to the fullest—only to get hit by a car and die the moment you stepped out of the exam hall—what would you do?
That was why, carrying a mountain of resentment into this life, Takashiro Kyoko had thrown herself completely into indulgence the moment she was free from parental supervision.
As for the consequences, the sturdy Kyoko would only say that her mental condition was perfectly fine and that physically she could punch a cow to death in one blow.
"These videos of monsters attacking people have been spreading everywhere lately. Looks like AI tech really is advancing too fast. As if anything this anti-scientific could happen in real life."
She glanced idly through the group chat and saw that everyone was discussing zombies and similar nonsense. With a sneer, she mocked the whole thing.
After all, there was no way something supernatural like that could actually appear in reality... right?
"My phone's about to die, and my head feels so dizzy. Yeah, I really need to sleep."
After plugging her phone in to charge, Kyoko sprawled across the bed in a starfish pose.
"Incidents of animals attacking people are rising exponentially. The Metropolitan Police Department reminds all residents to pay close attention to their personal safety."
"A powerful cold air mass is expected to arrive soon. The Natural Hazard Warning Bureau has issued a red alert for severe precipitation. Residents are urged to take precautions."
"An unidentified infectious disease is spreading in the United States. Large-scale cross-infection among patients has left hospitals short on beds."
Several notifications popped up in succession, but Kyoko was already so exhausted that she never saw them. She had fallen asleep.
Outside, the earth had already been buried beneath a thick blanket of monotonous white. A cold front sweeping in from Mongolia and Siberia had crossed the Sea of Japan and arrived here. Beneath the clear night sky, the ground temperature only grew worse.
Kyoko slept soundly, while a hundred kilometers away, a bloody slaughter was already unfolding.
Japan, Tokyo—inside an underground bunker.
A group of elderly officials stared at footage coming in from the Kyushu front.
"Group B doesn't have enough firepower! Even 120mm armor-piercing shells can't penetrate that thing's outer covering!"
"Corrosive liquid incoming! A mutated strain has been detected!"
"Our tanks are about to be overturned! Headquarters, requesting supp—"
The soldiers in the footage were facing a massive horde of infected. Their firearms had already overheated until the barrels glowed red. The defensive line built with flame failed to stop the monsters at all. Like demons straight out of hell, they roared as they charged into the human world.
Main battle tanks were flipped onto their backs, their split-open barrels lifted weakly toward the sky like withered flowers.
The fallen soldiers never even had a chance to turn into infected. The monsters had already devoured them completely. The stench of blood and scorched flesh, mingled with something even harder to describe, spread outward on the winter wind.
Gunfire, roaring, shouting, and the scream of the gale formed the accompaniment to the scene.
Even after smashing to the ground, a shattered bodycam continued faithfully transmitting this vision of hell on earth back to the Tokyo command center.
Everyone present erupted into alarm. None of them had imagined that a multi-ton tank could be so helpless against such monsters—fragile as a toy car kicked over by a child.
"Has things really gotten this bad already? And in less than a month..."
One high-ranking old man murmured in shock.
The information they had on hand was this: sporadic cases of the virus had begun appearing in the United States in July of last year, and Japan had discovered its first case in September, but everything had remained isolated. Combined with government censorship and control, it had never sparked mass public panic.
However, once winter arrived in November, the virus began sweeping across the world and spawning countless mutated variants.
From that point on, the situation reversed. It was still within control—but only barely.
The power of a modern nation-state was still formidable. But judging by how fast events were developing, it now seemed they were on the verge of entering a situation beyond recovery.
"The Air Force has already arranged bombing runs over the affected regions. Our guns and cannons aren't just for show. The situation will improve."
Another senior official nearby tried to reassure everyone.
But as if heaven itself were mocking them, an Air Force general and a Health Ministry official hurried into the room to report new developments.
"Minister Fujiwara, multiple outbreaks involving hundreds of infected have erupted across Tokyo. Saitama, Yokohama, Chiba, Kawasaki, and other areas have all seen outbreaks in the thousands. Large-scale riots have already broken out."
"Sir, the Air Force cannot launch. Weather conditions are too severe. Operations are being obstructed."
Fujiwara Shigetake felt powerless. It seemed the infection could no longer be contained the way it had been before. As the minister in charge of special emergency response, his face darkened as he picked up an internal line.
"Prime Minister, the situation is no longer controllable. I hope you'll make preparations as soon as possible."
Silence hung on the other end of the line, but the call was not disconnected.
"...Understood. The cabinet has already made its decision. We are preparing to declare a nationwide state of emergency and tell the people the truth."
After the Prime Minister gave his reply, the call finally ended.
When Fujiwara looked back up at the real-time infection monitor, the entire Japanese archipelago was already covered in dense red dots.
12:00 AM, January 1, 2026
The Prime Minister of Japan addressed the nation and formally declared a nationwide state of emergency.
As the bells of the New Year rang out, bloodshed and slaughter descended silently upon the world.
Infections were already spreading within the military itself, making any attempt at control painfully difficult.
Hospitals, once symbols of hope, had become hell on earth. Animals once thought gentle now lunged savagely at human beings. Friends and family who had once been dear now became creatures trying to take your life.
Three hours after Japan entered its state of emergency, many of the world's major countries—including the United States, Britain, France, Germany, China, Russia, India, and Italy—also declared domestic states of emergency.
The virus was officially named "Sumeiro," the same name as a meteorite that had fallen several years before.
Internet controls tightened, but because governments had already released information, panic still spread throughout the public.
Four hours later, the United Nations General Assembly convened in emergency session. By 6:00 AM, the Global Special Events Security Maintenance Council had been established.
For a moment, humanity displayed an unprecedented degree of unity. It almost seemed as if things might turn for the better.
But then certain countries managed to make a complete disaster out of it anyway. Tens of millions of infected erupted at once across the Ganges basin, while American citizens raised the banner of freedom and obstructed government action, worsening the spread even further.
And then the sun itself taught humanity a lesson. A solar storm that had drifted through space for ages reached Earth on January 2, creating a geomagnetic storm in the skies above the planet. Satellite systems were destroyed, and humanity's information infrastructure suffered catastrophic damage.
The technological power humankind had always taken pride in was suddenly crippled.
Frigid weather spread across the middle and lower latitudes. Even regions near the equator began dropping toward temperatures barely above ten degrees.
An unknown force calling itself the Apostles Organization sabotaged infrastructure and launched attacks on government institutions.
Even armies and police—the very machinery of state violence—were still made of flesh and blood. Their chances of infection were no lower than those of ordinary civilians.
Doctors, soldiers, and workers operating on the front lines of infection control were even more vulnerable.
And when large portions of humanity's most fundamental support forces were wiped out, human power became pitifully small.
The few who were immune were still helpless in the face of fluid-borne infection.
Meanwhile, the infected side seemed bursting with vitality, as though all things were flourishing at once.
The virus was reshaping them. New mutant types appeared every day. Numbered infected specimens sent shockwaves through human society wherever they emerged.
The survivors all understood by then that human hands were aiding and accelerating the spread behind the scenes.
Extreme weather, infection waves, and civil unrest all descended on human civilization at once.
After thousands of years of brilliant development since the birth of civilization, an unprecedented global crisis had finally erupted.
In just one week, the Sumeiro Virus—capable of spreading through the air, bodily fluids, aerosols, animal vectors, and more—had conquered all seven continents, infecting vast swathes of the global population. Nearly half of all nations fell into anarchy.
Thus began the overture of sunset.
A new era had arrived.
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 178)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 115)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League ( 126 )
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter110)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter108)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter82)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter144)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 65
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 70
From Junkman to Wasteland 66
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 46
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 99
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 65
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 95
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass 99
The Way the Umamusume Look at 68
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 92
Naruto: Weaving the Future, Be 65
Zenless Zone Zero, but Kamen R 76
Multiverse Crossover: The Perf 66
My Cyberpsycho Girlfriend 65
Uma Musume: The Dark Trainer 47
Uma Musume: A Calamity Born fr 44
I, a Reincarnation-Loop Player 43
The Violent Girl Group Is Beat 26
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