The air shimmered like a fever dream as the survivors stepped toward the invisible wall that now wrapped around their park-turned-sanctuary. At first, it was just a feeling—an odd shimmer in the light. Then someone gasped and pointed upward.
A dome.
Then, a system message blinked into the air in front of each of the newcomers:
>[Sanctum Recognition Detected]
This location is registered as a divine haven under [Kael Veythar].
Citizenship Request: Accept domain residence and unlock Player status.
—Accepting grants protection, limited benefits, and spiritual alignment.
—Rejecting removes access to all haven functions.
>[ACCEPT] / [DECLINE]
There was a beat of silence.
Then someone whispered, "What… is this?"
"Are we being drafted?" another muttered.
But before panic could spiral, Ji-Hoon stepped forward watching the pannel. "It's voluntary," he said understanding the situation. "But it's how you survive in this new world. It's how you awaken. And… it's how I protect you."
One by one, hands reached up toward the [ACCEPT] button.
The moment they passed through the invisible barrier, their expressions changed. Some staggered, visibly reacting to the sudden warmth in the air. Others gasped softly at the strange quiet—a silence that didn't press on the chest but instead lifted something from it.
"What is this…?" one of the survivors whispered. "It feels... different."
They didn't have words for it, but they all felt the same thing—like stepping from the end of the world into something sacred.
Ji-Hoon said nothing. He simply walked further in and turned toward them.
"You're safe here," he said. "But you're tired. Some of you are injured."
He held up his hand.
Golden light bloomed in his palm, soft and steady. Healing Light. A calm, divine warmth spread from his touch to the wounds of those closest—closed gashes, eased the swelling, smoothed bruises.
Choi Na-Ri gasped as the bandage on her leg was gently peeled away, revealing clear skin beneath.
"You healed me…"
Ji-Hoon didn't answer but he understood the need to do something as he knew he couldn't always count on his healing power. He stepped aside and summoned food and bottled water into his hands—both materializing midair in glimmers of gold and silver.
One by one, he passed them around.
Silence but not in surprise but awe.
The survivors sat, slowly, cautiously, eating like they were afraid it would disappear. But when the food stayed warm and real, when their pain didn't return, something shifted.
> [Shin Hyeon-Il – Trust increased to 64| Faith: 20 ]
> [Nam Gyu-Min – Trust increased to 61| Faith: 10 ]
> [Choi Na-Ri – Trust increased to 71 | Faith: 40 ]
> [Yoon Seok-Jin – Trust increased to 60 | Faith: 10 ]
> [Kang Soo-Bin – Trust increased to 56 ]
> [Lee Dong-Su – Trust increased to 54 ]
Ji-Hoon's system chimed quietly as the divine currency flowed in.
> [Faith Points +340]
He glanced over his shoulder—and noticed his own team watching too. Woo-Jin, Ji-Ah, Ye-Rin… each of them saw the calm in the newcomers. The healing. The miracles.
And something inside them shifted too.
> [Jang Woo-Jin – Trust increased to 100 | Faith: 100]
> [Han Ji-Ah – Trust increased to 100 | Faith: 100]
> [Seo Ye-Rin – Trust increased to 100 | Faith: 100]
> [Im Tae-Gyu – Trust increased to 100 | Faith: 100]
.....
> [Faith Points +400]
The numbers ticked higher.
Then, a new notification appeared.
----
> [Vessel Threshold Reached]
> You now have 11 individuals within Sanctuary with Trust ≥ 60.
>
> Recommendation: Construct a [Faith Altar] to harness passive devotion.
>
> Construction Cost: 1500 Coins / 1000 FP
>
> Output: +10 Faith Points & +100 Coins every 5 hours
>
> Proceed with Construction?
> [YES] / [NO]
----
Ji-Hoon pressed [YES].
The floor near the rear wall began to glow, faint lines of gold tracing out a perfect circle across the tiles. Light deepened, and then with a low hum, the Faith Altar rose.
Stone and radiant marble unfolded like paper in reverse—runes etching themselves in real time. At its center, a soft flame appeared. It didn't flicker. It felt like it "breathed".
The light washed over them, subtle and warm.
The survivors stared—no longer afraid, no longer merely hopeful. Something else had taken root now, and that's hope.
—
The golden light of the Faith Altar still glowed faintly when the echo of footsteps returned from the far edge of the barrier.
Min-Seok's group had made it back.
They looked worn—shoulders slumped, faces streaked with sweat and dust—but alive.He noticed an axe on Woo-Jin's hand and other had protection gears that are used in sports. At the rear, trailing quietly behind them, was a new face: a young girl with a plush rabbit in her arms and grief tucked behind her eyes.
Ji-Hoon rose from where he was sitting, giving Min-Seok a silent nod. The man met his gaze briefly, then brushed past him without words—his eyes locked on his wife.
Eun-Ha stood, with a sign of relief, So-Ra clinging to her leg. When Min-Seok reached them, he dropped the bat to the dirt and wrapped them both into his arms, holding tight like something fragile could still break.
"I'm fine," he whispered, though his voice cracked. "We found someone."
So-Ra peeked out from her mother's embrace. Baek Ha-Eun stood a few feet away, not quite sure where to go. Her plush rabbit dangled loosely in one hand.
Min-Seok knelt again and gently waved Ha-Eun forward.
"This is Ha-Eun. Her parents… they didn't make it," he said quietly. "So-Ra, she might be scared. I want you to help her, okay?"
So-Ra nodded shyly, then stepped forward and reached out to the other girl.
"Do you want to sit next to me?" she asked.
Ha-Eun hesitated, then nodded.
As they walked off together, Eun-Ha's expression shifted. The sadness was there, yes—but beneath it, something else. A quiet fire. The way Ha-Eun stood upright despite her loss. The way So-Ra smiled, even after everything. It made her heart ache and hope all at once.
Min-Seok placed a hand on her shoulder.
"She hasn't cried once along the way," he said. "Not a single tear."
Eun-Ha bit her lip. "We'll take care of her."
"Yeah," he nodded. "We will."
Ji-Hoon turned away from the reunion. Something was off.
The light had dimmed—not just the day's sun, but the ambient warmth that had filled the sanctuary after the altar had risen. The air grew heavy again, like the pause between lightning and thunder.
A rustle came from beyond the edge of the barrier. Birds scattered from treetops.
Then came the sound.
A screech—wet, guttural, and wrong. Like rusted metal dragged through bone.
From the shadows between trees, it emerged.
Twisted. Bulging. Its flesh green-black and cracked with blistered veins. Horns jutted from its skull, jagged and uneven. Its back was hunched like a broken puppet pulled on strings too tight. The air around it shimmered with corruption.
A goblin. No something worse.
Behind it, smaller goblins scurried into view—mutated shadows of the ones Ji-Hoon had slain before.
They reached the edge of the barrier—and stopped.
The lead creature snarled, baring cracked fangs. It raised a rusted, jagged cleaver and brought it down.
CRASH!
The dome flashed gold. The weapon bounced back with a sonic screech.
It tried again.
CRASH!
Again, the light pulsed and held.
Ji-Hoon narrowed his eyes. His system responded.
> [Hostile Entity Detected – Corrupted Variant]
His hand reached to a weapon. This time, he didn't draw his bat.
He took the axe from Woo-Jin.
It landed in his palm with a dull thud—old steel, chipped edge—but it hummed with something new. His power flowed into it.
> [Skill Activated: Creation Spark]
Golden heat wrapped around the axe like flame without fire. It glowed at the edges, runes etched into its blade igniting with divine energy.
The corrupted goblin raised its weapon again.
Ji-Hoon moved.
He crossed the barrier like it wasn't even there.
The other goblins screeched perhaps in surprise.
Ji-Hoon ran straight at them.
The axe swung. CRACK! The head of the first goblin twisted with unnatural force, its skull splitting in two. The second lunged—Ji-Hoon rolled under the swipe and came up with a clean vertical swing. Black blood sprayed across the ground.
But the corrupted one didn't move. It simply watched.
> [Skill Activated: Astral Bind]
Chains of light burst from thin air—ripping through portals that shimmered open like torn veils in space. The corrupted goblin snarled and tried to run.
Too late.
The chains wrapped around its arms, legs, neck. It howled, but the bonds held tight.
Ji-Hoon raised the axe overhead.
The runes flared brighter.
And with one, final strike—he brought it down.
The chains pulled tight.
The cleaver dropped.
The corrupted goblin collapsed into ash.
Silence.
Then—
> [Level Up: 10]
"Huh..directly level 10?"...His vision blurred as new power poured in. His screen exploded with light.
> [ +300 coin]
> [New Ability: Summoning – Cost: 1000 FP]
> [Territory Upgrade: Barrier Radius increased to 250m. Passive cleansing activated.]
> [System upgrade: Registration slot increase by 10.]
>[System upgrade: Now everyone under you can purchase from the "Shop".]
A golden pulse erupted outward.
Trees bent under its force. Earth reshaped. The barrier shimmered and expanded, enveloping more land.
Everything hostile within its reach turned to dust, while Ji-hoon got the loot.
---
The air inside the Haven had settled. The survivors were scattered around in clusters, eating, some checking gear, or just trying to pretend to be fine.
Park Min-Seok approached Ji-Hoon as he finished logging items into his system.
"We checked the police box. And there was nothing left," Park began. "We found an axe and one airsoft rifle in a sports store. Also took some chest protectors and gear. That's about it."
Ji-Hoon gave a short nod. "Good work."
"What about you?" Park asked.
Ji-Hoon didn't answer immediately. Then he said, "We ran into some goblin. I handled it and found some survivors with few supplies."
"And now again I leveled up," Ji-Hoon added. "To level 10."
Park whistled under his breath. "Already? That fast?"
Ji-Hoon turned to his interface and swiped open the item registration panel.
> [Items Registered]
> • Axe – 300 Coins
> • Rifle – 700 Coins
> • Chest Protector – 150 Coins
> • Fish – 50 Coins
> • Fruits – 50 Coins
> • First aid – 100 Coins
> • Guards – 50 Coins
The gear shimmered out of view, stored now as patterns in light and code.
"I think we're ready to take the next step," Ji-Hoon said. "My quest's done. But the others still need to level up. Especially the new six."
He glanced at Dae-Hyun's group nearby—"Dong-Su, Soo-Bin, Gyu-Min, and the rest. Getting them to level 10 should activate their sponsor links and unlock their classes. I think that's where this system's really headed."
"Then what's the plan?" Park asked.
"We should search for herd of zombie as they are easy to deal or maybe goblin with some plans"
Before Park could respond, one of the office workers—Nam Gyu-Min—stepped forward. He'd been quiet until now, still dressed in the wrinkled slacks and unbuttoned blazer he'd escaped in.
"There's a place," he said, voice low. "A shopping district near the river side. I was there when it all started."
Ji-Hoon turned to face him fully.
"It's not too far. A kilometre towards south. Food court, grocery floor, electronics, retail chains, loading bays. It went bad fast. People tried to fight. We tried to blocked the lower stairwells but…" Gyu-Min swallowed. "There were too many zombies. I got out because I slipped through a service lift. And about the rest? I don't know."
"How many were there?" Ji-Hoon asked.
"Maybe twenty people and hundreds of zombie. Maybe more."
The air went still around them.
Ji-Hoon's voice was calm, but decisive. "We need a quick decision."
"You think they're still alive?" Tae-Gyu asked from the side.
"Maybe not all," Ji-Hoon replied. "But maybe some. Either way, it's a target-rich area. And structured terrain."
He turned toward the gathered survivors.
"We're going to split the group. Two teams—one will distract, one will kill untill they are level 10. We will have a natural advantage of higer place and we will block the roads with the cars so kill as many as you can while making sure you are safe."
"And about the survivors?" Ye-Rin asked.
"We will bring them here," Park said, finishing the thought.
Ji-Hoon nodded.
Then he looked back to Gyu-Min.
"You still remember the layout?"
"I do."
"Then you're coming with us."
---