System's POV
chapter-4

A month had passed since Thirteen woke up in the hospital bed.

His father had asked a good friend to help his new body recover at the fastest rate possible. It was through this that Thirteen came to understand a little more about the world he was in, and it brought him many ugly memories.

"I knew it, I'm in Pangea," Thirteen muttered as he scrolled through the information on the cellphone in his hands.

He asked his parents for a cellphone, to which they agreed because they thought that he must be feeling bored in the hospital.

It also allowed them to contact him whenever they wanted to make sure that he was safe.

Although his body had miraculously recovered due to the power of a High-Ranking Wanderer, his mother still decided to have him stay in the hospital for two more days.

She was worried that there might still be some hidden injuries that their friend might have missed, and keeping him in the hospital for a few more days would ease more of her worry.

After almost losing her child due to an accident, Alessia had become overly anxious, and she didn't want to take any chances.

Thirteen didn't have the heart to tell her that her son had already died, and someone else had taken over his body.

In the end, he decided to live his life as Zion and protect his family to the best of his ability.

"So that's what happened after they challenged that gate," Thirteen gritted his teeth so hard as he read the lies that the five Monarch Clans had spread after clearing the Tier-9 Dimensional Gate that threatened to destroy the world.

Back then, they had called it "A Genocide-Level Threat", which was actually true. If they had indeed allowed the Gate to awaken fully, a Genocide would have descended upon the world, killing nearly all the people on the main continent of Pangea.

"Only the winners have the right to write history," Thirteen muttered. "The losers are buried in the sands of time and completely forgotten. These bastards only managed to clear that Gate because they were cowards—staying at the very rear of the formation and running away when the entire expedition force was almost annihilated."

One of Thirteen's hosts was part of the expedition and had played a crucial role in killing the Boss Monster.

In fact, after all the Heroes had died, his host was the one who had stabbed the core of the Beast, nearly killing it.

Unfortunately, he had channeled all of his strength in that one blow, making him unable to defend himself from the monster's last attack.

As his Master was dying, the five cowards charged forward, knowing full well that the monster no longer had any strength to resist.

Once the monster died and the Dimensional World started to crumble, one of those cowards laughed and addressed the people who had died to protect the world and the people they held dear.

"Thanks for all of your valiant sacrifices. We will make sure to take credit for all of your hard work. Rest in peace."

That same person then stabbed his Host's heart to ensure that none of the evidence of their cowardice would be brought to light.

"Monarchs?" Thirteen sneered. "More like Motherf*ckers!"

It took a while for Thirteen to rein in his emotions because this was his first time feeling this much anger.

As a System, there were limits to his emotions. Now that he was a human, those restrictions were gone, allowing him to feel intense and complex emotions that he had never experienced before.

After regaining his composure, he looked at the information about the world he lived in and learned about the changes that had happened in the past 300 years.

"Antares was taken over by the Jinns." Thirteen frowned. "My Host's country was destroyed after his death. It's worse than I thought."

The Jinns were Monsters that came from another world. They were creatures that had countless shapes and sizes.

But regardless of their form, they only wished for one thing.

Death and destruction.

The World of Pangea had Four Continents and one Mega Continent.

The Mega Continent was called Sirius, located at the center of the world. It was the continent that had more land mass than all of the four other continents combined.

The Four Continents were Antares, Aldebaran, Rigel, and Cygni.

Antares was the Continent located in the North, and it had already been conquered by the Jinns.

If not for the wide stretch of ocean that blocked their path, they might have started their movement to colonize the other continents.

The Continent of Rigel, located in the South of the world, suffered a similar fate. It was also taken over by Monsters. There had been numerous attempts to clear it, but ultimately, they failed in the end.

Cygni, the continent located in the West, would probably follow suit if their defenders fail to hold back the Monster Outbreak that would emerge from their gates.

Dozens of Dimensional Gates had already appeared, and they would be opening in a few years.

The Dimensional Gates would appear at random places, but the time when they'd open was fixed and always on time.

It was truly on time that there were even timers displayed at the very center of these gates, informing everyone how many minutes, days, months, and years they had left to prepare before the Monsters on the other side started their invasion.

It was as if the Gods were teasing the humans and showing everyone the countdown until their doom.

But all hope was not lost. People had gained the power to fight against these threats, and they were called Wanderers.

Wanderers were people who could traverse these Dimensional Gates and go to the world of Solterra, where the Jinn originated.

The Wanderers would often mobilize teams in order to clear these gates before they came to wreak havoc upon the world.

And the Cygni Continent had countless Dimensional Gates opening around the same time.

Several of them were in the Tier 6 and Tier 7 Categories, which had stronger Monsters that could end the lives of everyone in the continent in just a few days.

Unless a great deal of manpower was dispatched to clear these gates, all attempts would be futile.

Only the Central Government, the Five Monarch Clans, and the Ten Prestigious Families had the manpower to mobilize such a strike force.

As for whether they were willing to help or not, it was still unknown.

But Thirteen was certain that they would all mobilize their forces since the resources in each Dimensional Gate was nothing to scoff at.

It also allowed people to become stronger, helping them break through to the next Rank.

So far, there were nine Tiers of Dimensional Gates that had been recorded in the world.

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Tier 1 = 15 minutes before Monster Outbreak

Tier 2 = 30 minutes before Monster Outbreak

Tier 3 = 5 days before Monster Outbreak

Tier 4 = 1 month before Monster Outbreak

Tier 5 = 6 months before Monster Outbreak

Tier 6 = 3 Years before Monster Outbreak

Tier 7 = 6 Years before Monster Outbreak

Tier 8 = 10 Years before Monster Outbreak

Tier 9 = 20 years before Monster Outbreak

———————————-

The Rigel Continent was destroyed by a Tier 9 Gate, the first of its kind to appear in the world.

Thirteen's host had fought another Tier 9 Gate that had appeared in the Antares Continent, which was 'conquered' by the five individuals who ascended to the Monarch Rank after it was cleared.

Fifty years later, another Tier 9 Gate appeared in the Antares Continent.

The Five Monarchs, who were considered to be the strongest pillars of humanity, refused to make a move.

In the end, a forced evacuation had to be executed, transporting everyone in the Antares Continent to the main continent of Sirius, allowing them to survive a disaster that the Monarchs refused to deal with.

Of course. Why would they? The five of them were very clear about how difficult it was to conquer a Tier 9 Gate.

Even after becoming Monarchs, they were still not confident in their ability to survive the Monsters that were waiting inside the Dimensional Gate that led to the Antares' Continent's demise.

Currently, Thirteen and his family were on the continent of Aldebaran, located in the Eastern side of the World.

Although their continent had a fair share of troubles, the Wanderers in their land were able to deal with the Jinn Threats and keep their continent safe.

"So, Antares and Rigel have fallen," Thirteen muttered as he continued to read the information about the world. "The Sirius Continent is facing monsters in their Northern Regions (Arcturus), but it's still under control… at least for the time being."

After gathering all the information necessary, Thirteen closed his eyes to meditate and digest everything he had learned.

"I still have eight years before I get Spirited Away," Thirteen thought. "I better finish all my preparations before then."

When Thirteen opened his eyes again, he looked at the faces of the Five Monarchs of Humanity with a murderous gaze.

"Before I screw my old man, I'll be screwing you first," Thirteen said, killing intent oozing from his body as he looked at the man who had killed his Host in order to prevent him from informing the world of the truth.

"Aaron Ashford." Thirteen stared at the image of a handsome middle-aged man who had a smug smile plastered on his face. "Even if the Gods forgive you, I will not. I will make you pay, even if it will take me an entire lifetime to do it."