The first thing I noticed was the rain.

Not the sound of it.

The cold.

It soaked through my shirt as I stood beneath the flickering lights of an empty street, staring at the red glow of the traffic signal ahead.

11:47 PM.

I sighed and checked my phone again.

2% battery.

"Of course."

I shoved it into my pocket.

I'd had a terrible day.

My boss had yelled at me.

My landlord had called about the rent.

And my mother had sent me three messages asking when I was coming home.

I hadn't answered any of them.

Not because I didn't care.

I just didn't know what to say.

My life had become a collection of things I kept postponing.

Tomorrow I'd fix things.

Tomorrow I'd call Mom.

Tomorrow I'd find a better job.

Tomorrow I'd become someone I could actually be proud of.

There was always a tomorrow.

Until there wasn't.

The pedestrian signal turned green.

I stepped onto the road.

Then I heard it.

HOOOOONK!

I looked to my left.

A truck was coming straight toward me.

For one impossible second, everything became silent.

I saw the driver's terrified face.

I saw the headlights.

I saw the rain hanging in the air like thousands of tiny pieces of glass.

And then—

CRASH.

Pain.

White light.

Then nothing.

Somewhere beyond death

I opened my eyes.

There was no hospital ceiling.

No ambulance.

No pain.

I was standing in darkness.

Complete darkness.

I couldn't see my hands.

I couldn't feel the ground beneath my feet.

"Am I dead?"

My voice echoed.

Then another voice answered.

"Yes."

I froze.

The voice hadn't come from anywhere.

It had come from everywhere.

"Who are you?"

"That is irrelevant."

"Where am I?"

"Between worlds."

I laughed nervously.

"Okay. Either I'm dreaming, or I've officially lost my mind."

Silence.

Then a strange blue light appeared in front of me.

A circle.

Symbols began forming inside it.

I couldn't understand them.

Yet somehow, I knew what they meant.

[SOUL CONFIRMED]

[WORLD OF ORIGIN: EARTH]

[CAUSE OF DEATH: ACCIDENT]

[REINCARNATION ELIGIBILITY: CONFIRMED]

I stared.

"Reincarnation?"

"You have been granted another life."

My heart began beating faster.

"Another world?"

"Yes."

"Like... magic?"

"Yes."

"Monsters?"

"Yes."

"Superpowers?"

There was a pause.

Then—

"Yes."

For the first time since the accident, I smiled.

"So I really get a second chance?"

"Not exactly."

My smile disappeared.

"What does that mean?"

The blue circle changed.

Thousands of symbols appeared.

Then one sentence formed.

[WARNING: YOUR SOUL IS ABNORMAL.]

"Abnormal?"

"Your existence does not conform to the laws of the destination world."

I stared at the message.

"Is that bad?"

The voice didn't answer immediately.

Instead, another message appeared.

[UNIDENTIFIED AUTHORITY DETECTED]

[UNIDENTIFIED AUTHORITY DETECTED]

[UNIDENTIFIED AUTHORITY DETECTED]

The symbols began shaking violently.

For the first time, the voice sounded uncertain.

"This shouldn't be possible."

"What shouldn't?"

"You shouldn't possess an Authority."

I swallowed.

"What is an Authority?"

The darkness trembled.

"A power that even the gods cannot command."

Before I could ask another question, something grabbed me.

Not physically.

It felt as if reality itself had seized my soul.

The blue light exploded.

[REINCARNATION BEGINNING]

"WAIT!"

The darkness disappeared.

And I fell.

Three hundred years later

I opened my eyes.

Sunlight hit my face.

I immediately sat up.

"Ow!"

My head hurt.

I looked around.

Trees.

Huge trees.

Their trunks were wider than cars, and strange blue flowers floated several feet above the ground.

Birds with four wings flew between the branches.

I stared at them.

"...Okay."

I slowly stood.

"This is definitely not Earth."

A notification appeared in front of my eyes.

Not a hallucination.

Not a reflection.

A translucent blue window floating in midair.

[WELCOME TO ASTERIA]

[LEVEL: 1]

[RACE: HUMAN]

[NAME: UNREGISTERED]

[CLASS: NONE]

[AUTHORITY: ERROR]

I blinked.

"System?"

The window remained.

I reached toward it.

My finger passed through.

Then another message appeared.

[SPECIAL CONDITION DETECTED]

[THE WORLD HAS REJECTED YOUR EXISTENCE.]

My smile disappeared.

"What?"

The forest suddenly became silent.

No birds.

No insects.

Nothing.

Then I heard a growl behind me.

I slowly turned.

Something stepped out from between the trees.

It was a wolf.

Except it was enormous.

Its body was covered in black scales, and flames burned inside its mouth.

Above its head floated a red symbol.

[F-RANK MONSTER]

The wolf stared at me.

I stared at it.

Neither of us moved.

Then it smiled.

At least, I think it smiled.

Its jaws opened.

I took one step backward.

"Uh..."

The monster lunged.

I raised my hands instinctively.

[AUTHORITY ACTIVATED]

The world stopped.

The wolf froze in midair.

The wind stopped.

The falling leaves stopped.

Even the flames inside the creature's mouth became motionless.

I stared in disbelief.

Then a voice whispered inside my head.

Not the voice from before.

Something else.

Something ancient.

[Authority identified.]

[Name: Sovereign.]

[Effect: Unknown.]

[Evolution requirement: Unknown.]

I looked at the frozen monster.

Then at my hands.

A strange black mark had appeared across my palm.

And for some reason...

I wasn't afraid anymore.

I smiled.

"Second life, huh?"

The black mark pulsed.

The frozen world began moving again.

And the monster charged.

This time—

I charged back.

The monster charged.

Its claws tore through the earth as it sprinted toward me.

I didn't move.

Not because I was brave.

Because my body hadn't figured out what the hell was happening.

"Move!"

My brain screamed at me.

My legs refused to listen.

The wolf opened its jaws.

Flames erupted from its throat.

I threw myself sideways.

BOOM!

The fireball struck the ground where I'd been standing.

Dirt and burning leaves exploded into the air.

I rolled across the ground and crashed into a tree.

"That..."

I coughed.

"...was fire."

The wolf turned toward me.

Its golden eyes locked onto mine.

I suddenly understood something.

This wasn't a game.

There was no reset button.

If that thing killed me, I was probably dead.

Again.

"Great."

I pushed myself up.

"I just got reincarnated and I'm already about to die."

The monster growled.

A red window appeared.

[F-RANK MONSTER: INFERNAL WOLF]

[LEVEL: 7]

[THREAT LEVEL: LOW]

I stared at the last line.

"Low?"

I pointed at the enormous wolf.

"That's your definition of low?"

The wolf disappeared.

My eyes widened.

"Where—"

Pain exploded across my chest.

I was thrown backward.

My back smashed against a tree.

I couldn't breathe.

The wolf stood over me.

Its claws rose.

I closed my eyes.

Not again.

I didn't want to die again.

Something inside me snapped.

The black mark on my palm burned.

The world became silent.

[SOVEREIGN ACTIVATED]

The wolf stopped.

Its claws hovered inches from my face.

I opened my eyes.

The creature was trembling.

Not me.

It was afraid.

"What...?"

I slowly raised my hand.

The black mark spread across my palm like ink flowing through water.

A pressure filled the forest.

The wolf lowered its head.

Its legs began shaking.

I could feel something.

A connection.

Not words.

Not thoughts.

An instinct.

The monster understood something that I didn't.

It had encountered something above itself.

Something it could not fight.

I whispered one word.

"Kneel."

The wolf's body slammed into the ground.

BOOM!

Its legs buckled.

Its head pressed against the dirt.

I stared.

"No way."

I hadn't commanded it with magic.

I hadn't touched it.

I had simply...

ordered it.

The system appeared.

[SOVEREIGN]

[Target: Infernal Wolf]

[Authority difference detected.]

[Target has submitted.]

[Dominance established.]

I looked at the monster.

"Can you understand me?"

The wolf slowly lifted its head.

It nodded.

My mouth fell open.

"You're kidding."

I crouched.

"What's your name?"

The wolf tilted its head.

A new window appeared.

[Target possesses no assigned name.]

"Then..."

I thought for a moment.

"How about Nero?"

The wolf stared at me.

Then it lowered its head.

[Name accepted.]

[Infernal Wolf has become: Nero.]

I blinked.

"Wait."

The system changed again.

[Sovereign has gained experience.]

[Authority Level: 1]

[New function unlocked.]

[COMMAND]

I smiled.

"So that's how it works."

I looked at Nero.

"Stand."

The wolf stood.

"Sit."

It sat.

"Turn around."

It turned.

I couldn't help laughing.

"Okay, this is awesome."

Then—

A voice came from behind me.

"That's enough."

I froze.

Someone was standing in the forest.

A girl.

She looked around my age.

Silver hair.

Dark cloak.

A sword hanging from her waist.

And pointed ears.

I stared at her.

She stared at me.

Then she looked at Nero.

Her expression changed completely.

"How..."

She slowly drew her sword.

"How is a human controlling an Infernal Wolf?"

I raised my hands.

"Honestly? I have absolutely no idea."

She didn't lower her sword.

"You're lying."

"I'm really not."

She stepped closer.

A blue window appeared in front of me.

[TARGET IDENTIFIED]

[NAME: UNKNOWN]

[RACE: HIGH ELF]

[LEVEL: 31]

[CLASS: MAGIC SWORDSMAN]

[THREAT LEVEL: A-RANK]

My stomach dropped.

Level 31.

A-rank.

I looked at Nero.

Then at the girl.

Then back at Nero.

"...Maybe we can all just calm down?"

The elf's eyes narrowed.

"You don't understand."

She pointed her sword toward me.

"If the kingdom discovers that a human possesses an Authority..."

She paused.

Her expression became fearful.

"...they will kill you."

I stopped smiling.

"Why?"

She looked at the black mark on my palm.

"Because that mark belonged to the last person who almost destroyed this world."

The forest went silent.

I stared at my hand.

The mark pulsed.

Once.

Twice.

Then a message appeared.

[RESTRICTED MEMORY FRAGMENT DETECTED.]

[THE PREVIOUS SOVEREIGN HAS BEEN LOCATED.]

I looked at the elf.

"Who was the previous Sovereign?"

She lowered her sword.

For the first time, she looked genuinely terrified.

"The Demon King."

My blood ran cold.

The system appeared one final time.

[MAIN QUEST UNLOCKED]

Find out why you were reincarnated.

Reward: Unknown

Failure: World Collapse

I stared at the message.

Then I laughed.

Not because it was funny.

Because somehow...

I'd only been in this world for less than an hour.

And I was already being told that the fate of the entire world depended on me.

I looked toward the distant mountains.

"Fine."

I clenched my fist.

"If this world wants me dead..."

I smiled.

"...it's going to have to try harder."

"Wait."

The elf's sword was still pointed at me.

"You're telling me I'm carrying the power of the Demon King?"

She nodded.

"Yes."

"And you aren't going to kill me?"

"I haven't decided."

I stared at her.

"That's reassuring."

Nero growled beside me.

The elf immediately shifted her sword toward him.

Nero's ears flattened.

I stepped between them.

"Relax."

The wolf stopped growling.

The elf's eyes widened.

"You really can command it."

"I guess."

"That's impossible."

"You've said that about five times already."

She ignored me.

Instead, she studied me carefully.

"What's your name?"

I opened my mouth.

Then stopped.

My old name suddenly felt strangely distant.

It belonged to the person who had died on Earth.

The person who had spent years waiting for tomorrow.

The person who never really did anything with his life.

I looked toward the sky.

"...Kai."

The name came naturally.

"My name is Kai."

The elf repeated it.

"Kai."

She lowered her sword slightly.

"I'm Lyra."

A system window appeared.

[NAME REGISTERED]

[KAI]

[LEVEL: 1]

[RACE: HUMAN]

[CLASS: NONE]

[AUTHORITY: SOVEREIGN]

I stared at it.

"So you can see my status?"

Lyra frowned.

"Status?"

"This."

I pointed toward the floating window.

She stared at the empty air.

"There is nothing there."

I froze.

"You can't see it?"

"No."

I waved my hand through the window.

"You seriously can't see this?"

Lyra shook her head.

"Are you sure you're not insane?"

I sighed.

"That's exactly what I was afraid of."

We spent the next hour walking through the forest.

Lyra led the way.

Nero followed behind us.

And I tried to understand this new world.

According to Lyra, the continent was called Eldoria.

Humans, elves, dwarves, beastfolk and demons lived across it.

Magic existed everywhere.

But magic wasn't the only source of power.

Every person was born with something called a Gift.

Some could control fire.

Some could heal wounds.

Some could strengthen their bodies.

Others possessed strange abilities that couldn't easily be explained.

"The stronger the Gift," Lyra explained, "the higher someone's rank."

"What ranks?"

"F through S."

I nodded.

"Anything above S?"

Lyra became quiet.

"Legends speak of SS and EX."

"And the Demon King?"

She looked at me.

"EX."

I stopped walking.

"That's a problem."

"Yes."

"What happened to him?"

Lyra's expression darkened.

"He disappeared three hundred years ago."

I looked at her.

"Disappeared?"

"After the final war."

She continued walking.

"The Demon King was defeated by six heroes."

"Six?"

"Six reincarnated heroes."

I stopped again.

"Reincarnated?"

Lyra turned.

"Yes."

My heart began beating faster.

"People from Earth?"

She stared at me.

"How do you know about Earth?"

I froze.

"...Lucky guess."

Lyra clearly didn't believe me.

But she continued.

"The six heroes came from another world. They were summoned by the gods."

I remembered the voice from the darkness.

Between worlds.

"How strong were they?"

"Strong enough to defeat the Demon King."

"All six survived?"

Lyra shook her head.

"Only one."

"Who?"

She looked toward the mountains.

"The Hero King."

I frowned.

"And the others?"

"Dead."

"How?"

"No one knows."

We continued walking.

Something about the story bothered me.

Six reincarnated heroes.

One survived.

A Demon King.

And now me.

Three hundred years later.

Coincidence?

I didn't believe in coincidences anymore.

By sunset, we reached the edge of the forest.

I saw it for the first time.

A city.

Huge stone walls stretched across the horizon.

Towers rose above them, each covered in glowing blue crystals.

Thousands of people entered through the enormous gates.

Humans.

Elves.

Dwarves.

People with animal ears.

People carrying swords.

People wearing robes.

This was a real fantasy world.

I smiled.

"Finally."

Lyra looked at me.

"What?"

"A city."

She sighed.

"Before we enter, you need to understand something."

"What?"

"You cannot tell anyone about your Authority."

"Why?"

"Because the moment someone discovers you possess Sovereign..."

She looked at Nero.

"...the kingdom will send its strongest soldiers."

"And?"

"And they'll kill you."

I nodded.

"Got it."

She looked surprised.

"You're not scared?"

I looked at the enormous city ahead.

Then at the black mark on my hand.

"No."

I smiled.

"I'm curious."

The City of Arkenfall

The city gate was crowded.

A guard stopped us.

"Identification."

Lyra handed him a small crystal.

The guard touched it.

A blue light appeared.

[LYRA — HIGH ELF]

[LEVEL: 31]

The guard nodded.

"Welcome back."

Then he looked at me.

"Your turn."

I stepped forward.

He handed me the crystal.

I touched it.

Nothing happened.

The guard frowned.

"Again."

I touched it.

Nothing.

He pressed the crystal against my hand.

Still nothing.

The guard's expression changed.

"What's wrong with this thing?"

Another guard came over.

"Give it to me."

He tried.

Nothing.

Then another.

Nothing.

Soon, five guards were surrounding me.

Lyra quietly stepped backward.

"Kai..."

"What?"

"I think we have a problem."

The captain approached.

He was an enormous man wearing silver armor.

"Boy."

"Yeah?"

"Who are you?"

"Kai."

"Where are you from?"

I hesitated.

"Far away."

The captain narrowed his eyes.

"What's your Gift?"

I smiled awkwardly.

"I don't have one."

Silence.

The guards looked at each other.

Then the captain laughed.

"Everyone has a Gift."

"Apparently not me."

He grabbed my wrist.

The moment he touched me—

BOOM!

A wave of black energy exploded from my body.

Every magical crystal in the gate shattered.

The guards were thrown backward.

People screamed.

The city bells began ringing.

Lyra stared at me in horror.

"Kai..."

I looked at my hand.

The black mark was glowing.

A notification appeared.

[WORLD LAW VIOLATION]

[FOREIGN AUTHORITY DETECTED]

[SUPPRESSION FAILED]

[SOVEREIGN HAS REJECTED THE WORLD'S LAWS.]

Then another message appeared.

[NEW TITLE ACQUIRED]

[THE UNBOUND]

The city gates began closing.

Soldiers rushed toward us.

Lyra grabbed my arm.

"Run!"

I looked at the hundreds of soldiers approaching.

Then at Nero.

Then at Lyra.

"Where?"

She pointed toward the city.

"Anywhere!"

I smiled.

"Great."

I had been in this world for less than a day.

And somehow—

I had already become a wanted criminal.