"I'm glad that your mom is dead now, she was such a nagging old bag, making the whole neighborhood sick and tired of her voice," An elderly woman peered at the freshly dug grave, a coffin resting within its depths. "But now that she's gone, it's time for you to pony up the rent. You're already late this month," she scolded Rigel.
The old lady bumped into Rigel who was like a stick five years ago and made him fall to the ground. Nobody was showing any sympathy or empathy toward him because they knew how hopeless he was.
Rigel stood up and took the humiliation like it was nothing to him because he was no longer the same. He realized that he needed to start working out and get rid of his pathetic and weak body.
"Hey there, Rigel! What's with the dirty trousers" A man in baggy clothes and jeans patted Rigel's back. "Is that your mom in there?" He pointed at the coffin with a malicious grin on his face.
"Oh right! Your mom killed herself! Anyway, now that she's gone, you must be rolling in dough, huh? That's why I'm here. You better bring over four crates of beer to my place tonight. If you don't, well, remember what happened last time? I'm going to break your arms. I'll see you tonight!" The man playfully smacked Rigel's cheek, leaving a noticeable red mark.
Once again, nobody seemed to care about Rigel, and they all looked at him with disgust. It was clear that everyone was itching to leave, completely heartless in their disregard for him. If it weren't for Father Richard, they probably wouldn't have shown up at all and would have been having a party to celebrate his mother's death, without a shred of remorse.
After Father Richard gave his final speech, everyone left and didn't care about the burial. Father Richard stayed until the burial was over, and then he looked at Rigel who was standing still.
"Rigel, come with me. Let's have some coffee," Father Richard said as he put his hand on Rigel's back.
"I'm sorry, Father. I have some business to take care of," Rigel answered calmly and didn't show any sadness or anger.
Father Richard noticed the changes in Rigel, and he could see it in Rigel's eyes. He was glad that Rigel didn't look depressed, but he pitied him for how people treated him. He couldn't do much for him, and he had nothing to offer to comfort him either.
"You're on your own now, but if you need anything, you can see me, okay?" Father Richard said as he forced his smile and patted Rigel's shoulder.
Rigel didn't say anything and just nodded his head and left as Father Richard watched him leave.
*Smack!*
"You're not my son! You're his son! Don't you dare call me mother or mom!" The woman's eyes bore into Rigel with a potent mixture of loathing and fury. "I should have aborted you and killed you four years ago when you were still a burden inside me! You're nothing but a mistake!" With her harsh words, she spun on her heel and stormed out of the room, slamming the door shut and locking it behind her.
"Mom! Mom!" Rigel yelled as he started crying and banged on the door. "Mommy!" Rigel started to sob as he tried to open the door.
"Be quiet! I'm not your fucking mother! If you don't stop, I'm not feeding you!" The woman yelled and her voice pierced through the door.
In the dim, solitary corner of the room, Rigel retreated, his tiny frame trembling as he wept silently, hugging his knees. The shadows swallowed him, intensifying his fear of the dark, his cheek stinging from the harsh slap and his heart aching from the heartlessness of the woman who had given birth to him.
*Beep!*
"That's sixty bucks, buddy," the cashier reminded Rigel, eyeing him curiously, but Rigel's face remained a bit distant. "Sir?" He asked with his eyebrows raised.
"Oh, I'm sorry," Rigel responded with a sudden snap back to the present, quickly grabbing his wallet. He realized he didn't have any cash on hand, so he used his debit card to cover the beer bill.
With the beer safely stashed in the backseat of his car, Rigel settled into the driver's seat, lost in a sea of memories. He never thought he would think about the past life's memories that he had buried deep inside. It was unpleasant, but he had spent almost all his life thinking about it that he got numb and it no longer affected him.
"You got the beers?" The man leaned over for a glimpse of the car's contents. "You did! Good on ya!" He playfully patted Rigel's head, then gave him a rough shove.
The man's name was Derek McCoy, Rigel's elementary school friend who turned out to bully him all the way to high school. Derek knew everything about Rigel and what kind of situation he was in, and he had been using Rigel for a decade.
Rigel glanced into the house, where people were reveling, dancing to thumping house music. He never experienced it in his previous life, but he didn't regret it because soon the invasion would occur. He didn't want to make a scene and he knew that his current body was too weak to fight anyone.
"Party time, boys!" Derek shouted, showing the crates in his hands to his friends.
Rigel observed as Derek made his way into the house, the enthusiastic cheers of the crowd fading as the door slammed shut. He wasn't bothered by it and went back into the car, waiting for the announcement on the radio.
Rigel still remembered all the wounds on his body and they were all because of Derek and his friends. He didn't remember exactly how many times Derek broke his nose, shoulders, and wrist from bullying.
"I remember you died back then. So enjoy those crates of beers as my last gift," Rigel muttered to himself and then drove away.
Suddenly, the city plunged into darkness, when Rigel drove away from the city. The abrupt stillness was unnerving, leaving an eerie silence. But just as quickly as the lights had gone out, they flickered back to life, and then the radio transmitted a signal.
[Attention: This is an emergency broadcast from the Minister of Defense. An unknown entity has entered our country, posing potential risks. As a precautionary measure, we are initiating an evacuation and shelter protocol. Citizens are advised to remain calm.
Please remain vigilant and cooperative as we work to ensure your safety. The Minister of Defense is diligently assessing the situation and will provide further information as it becomes available. Your cooperation is crucial during this unprecedented event. Remember, your safety is our priority.]
"It's happening," Rigel stopped driving and pulled over because a strong earthquake hit the ground.
Rigel got out of the car and watched all the buildings shake. People were running out of their houses and stayed in the middle of the road. Everyone looked terrified after they heard the broadcast, and nobody knew what was happening.
"Look over there!" A man shouted as he pointed at the sky.
Rigel looked up and although it was nighttime, he could see a silhouette that pierced through the sky. A giant tower appeared out of nowhere, and it was far in the distance and it could be in another state. The same tower that he saw in his past life, and then it reminded him of Commander Hugo. He wondered how Hugo was doing after what happened back then in his previous life after Rigel died from a scout mission.
When everyone was petrified with what they saw in the distance, an explosion startled everyone. They had no idea what had happened, but police cars and military vehicles started to fill the empty roads.
People were walking to the sides as they watched all the military vehicles pass by. They were scared of a lot of things, but then the police proceeded to evacuate all the citizens.
"What's happening?!" A man asked as he pulled out his phone and checked if anyone streamed the thing that appeared in the distance.
"Look at this! What the hell is this?!" A woman showed off her phone to his friend and they looked at a tower and it looked like there was no end to it.
Everyone pulled out their phones and checked the video of soldiers making a parameter so nobody could get close to the tower. It looked like something that came out of a fantasy novel, and how the clouds were surrounding it, hiding the top half of the tower.
"Tower of Player," Rigel muttered as he entered his car and then drove away.
Rigel stayed on one of the hastily assembled military bases that the government had provided, a haven for the fortunate survivors. Three days had elapsed since the cataclysmic events unfolded, and sleep had become a luxury, for no one knew when the night might bring new terrors.
"What do you think they are? Aliens?" A guy asked his friend who sat next to him as they watched the news.
"Aliens came from outer space, or at least that's what I believe," His friend adjusted his seating, crossing his arms in contemplation. "But those things, they didn't just drop from the sky. It's like they came through some freakin' portals or something. Honestly, I have no clue what the hell they are," he confessed, sighing with a heavy heart.
"Thank God it's almost over, right? If those things keep coming, I don't know what would happen to us," The guy pointed out and took a sip of his coffee. "Two hundred thousand people died because of this in just three days," he continued as he shook his head in disbelief.
Rigel wasn't bothered by the people talking around him since he was busy working out his weak body. He already knew everything, and he was preparing for what was coming for him later.
Everyone found out that the attacks didn't only happen in France, but the whole world was attacked by the same creatures. These creatures appeared to be a blend of prehistoric monstrosities and creatures ripped from the pages of ancient legends and myths.
The second one was that the towers appeared in each country, and they all had the same structure and shape. They were all identical and nobody knew what those were and nobody could enter the towers no matter how hard they tried.
For those who were fantasy novel readers, they believed the situation was something that came out of fantasy novels. They believed those towers were something that could only be entered by Players or Awakeners. Some were excited about it and said something that their prayers were answered, some wished that they were wrong.
"Gather up!" A soldier shouted at all the refugees.
Rigel gathered with the others and looked at the soldier who walked up the podium. A lieutenant colonel stood there and looked at all the refugees.
"As you have heard, the situation is finally under control and we have exterminated almost all the monsters around the country. Under the Minister of Defense order, you're allowed to go back home, and if your house is destroyed, we have prepared a place for you to live temporarily. That's all, you're all dismissed," The lieutenant colonel explained as he looked at everyone and then left.
Rigel grabbed all his stuff and left the base to go to the temporary housing that the government had provided. He remembered in the past that his apartment got destroyed and he had no reason to go back there anymore. He could also work out more in the temporary housing since it had a gym.
A week had passed since the invasion, and Rigel had been working out nonstop. He had gained a bit of muscle and fixed his posture by a lot. He felt his condition was a lot better than ever even though he was still skinny. He didn't waste a minute doing nothing and kept gaining mass and turning it into muscle.
Rigel was eating his salad while watching TV until breaking news appeared. When he listened to the newscaster, he remembered that it was the time when the world discovered Player and System.
"Player is what they called it. We don't know exactly what it is, but as far as we know, these so-called Players are the ones who will save our world," The newscaster said as she locked her gaze on the prompter.
(At the meeting room in the Elysee Palace)
"Are you certain that all of you have the same message?" The Minister of Defense asked as he looked at the six people who had become players.
The first 6 Players from France, 2 women and 4 men sat next to each other. Jessica Garnier, Pregerine Stone, Christoper Rochefort, Maximilian Frost, Octavian Vale, and Theron Locke.
"Yes. It says that we have 52 days before the second wave. We believe what the second wave means is the time when those monsters will appear again," A blue eyes man with slick long blonde hair answered as he nodded his head. His name was Maximilian Frost.
The Minister of Defense, the General, and the President looked at each other with worried expressions.
"Not only that, but we also received an invitation as a Player the moment this panel appeared," A green eyes woman with short black hair added as she looked at the other Players next to her. Her name was Pregerine Stone.
"Invitation?" The president asked with his eyebrows furrowed.
"To enter the tower. It's called the Tower of Player," A gray eyes man with gray hair answered. His name was Theron Locke. "I think if we touched the gate of the tower, it would open up for us," he continued.
They discussed this for an hour until they decided to give them permission to enter the tower. Everyone was curious about what was inside the tower, and so they all went there to check it out.
The 6 players who arrived in front of the tower were asked by reporters, but the soldiers blocked them. The 6 of them with a few people stood in front of the gate, and then the players touched the gate.
The gate slowly opened inward and a strong wind blew right at them. They only saw a massive hall with pillars that supported the ceiling, and so they all walked in.
"Wait! We can't get inside!" A man said as an invisible barrier stopped him from entering.
He wasn't the only one, but everyone that was with the Players couldn't enter the gate. The players looked at each other with confused looks, so they tried to get out but they were also trapped inside.
The Players started to panic, but then they saw a bright light appear from behind them. They turned around and saw a gate appear on the wall, and 10 people entered the tower. Not long after that, more and more people came into the tower from gates that appeared on the wall.
After asking each other questions, they found out that all the towers around the world were connected. It became viral when they found out about the tower and what it was for, and what made it viral was the message that all players received when entering the tower.
"Trial of Players," Rigel said as he did some push-ups as he stared at the TV. "A hundred Players are required to start the Trial, and the purpose is to train Players to fight the upcoming disasters that will happen," Rigel continued.
Rigel looked at himself in the mirror and looked at his body transformation. His body was screaming because every part of his body was sore. He wasn't satisfied with the result and kept working out nonstop because he didn't have much time left.
(Six months later)
Rigel got out of the shower and covered his bottom half with a towel. He looked at himself in the mirror with his muscular body and how he became taller from just working out. He was currently 17 years old and he was glad that he had become taller compared to his past life.
He looked at the news and saw the monsters had occupied the majority of the country. The other countries in Europe were having a similar problem. He remembered in his past life that all European countries got annihilated, leaving only a few survivors from each country five years in the future.
When Rigel was deep in thought, a notification appeared in front of him in the form of a hologram screen. He looked at it and he had been waiting for that notification to appear for the last few days.
[Congratulations! You have been chosen as Player!]
[You are invited to enter the Tower of Players! You have 59 Days, 14 Hours, and 32 Seconds before the final wave or the invitation will be invalid!]
Rigel's cold expression when he read the notification showed his anger and hatred. He remembered the hardship he went through to reach the tower but later he got his status as a Player revoked by the system.
"Two months. I still have two months to improve myself," Rigel said as he closed the screen window and continued working out.
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