Chương 3: West Gate

The following Sunday morning, Junya was exploding with energy. He felt as though the weight on his shoulders constantly weighing him down had eased after last night.

His day started a few hours earlier, starting off with the workout routine that he diligently practiced every day since he started living alone.

In his hand was a weight bar with 700 pounds worth of plates total.

"987!"

His breathing was sharp with each rep making it hard for him not to open his mouth. His body was in immense pain, but he persevered and seemed as though he would never tire.

'Time under tension, I gotta keep going!'

"1000!"

Junya roared, throwing the weights onto the floor.

"Phew, these don't seem so heavy anymore. I should be able to safely raise the weights. I wonder if i get more weights for Christmas."

Junya looked at his phone for his time, it was 7:43.

'If I do 1000 pull-ups in 13 minutes, I can get to the bus stop a few minutes earlier'

He chuckled at the sight of Imani as his wallpaper, and a broad smile filled his face like he was thinking of a joyous memory. Better yet, today was Sunday, meaning it was valentines day so he was even more eager to train with the goal to perform well in bed tonight.

He was prepared to have the stamina of a stallion so he could impress. Especially since in his eyes his package was nothing to scoff at.

"All 5 of em." He sniffed confidently, puffing his chest out.

Snapping himself out of the daydream, he started his pull-ups with a weight tied to his legs. He did an initial blitz of lifting his head over the bar before he started counting.

it soon became harder with each rep making his body feel like pudding after he was done.

He took a peek at the time, revealing he only had 2 minutes until he needed to get to the bus.

His eyes widened as he forced his body into the shower while brushing his teeth. He left and grabbed a slice of bread for breakfast while putting on his clothes. Then while hopping on one leg to fit the other shoe on his foot. His multitasking skills proved useful as he started brushing his hair while trying to button his shirt simultaneously.

He flopped toward the door and leaned into it to spar him the trouble of using his hands since it was already falling apart. Surprisingly waiting outside with a look of helplessness he saw Imani calmly standing in front of the door.

"W-what? Why aren't you at school, the bus leaves in 2 minutes!" Junya frantically asked.

"Idiot, the bus leaves in 30. I knew you would have tried cramming your training into the morning" Imani scoffed as she fixed his collar. Both their eyes met in a romantic fashion, but they blushed while looking in the distance.

"W-we should go to school" Imani suggested, prompting Junya to agree.

Junya lived in an apartment for orphans that lost their parents during the Eve of Chaos. It was a large apartment complex and many people lived in it as well, including students.

Although the apartment complex's initial intention maintained its use, over the years it became the squatting grounds for homeless people who lingered for meals that the military would carry.

Some would say the area around Junya's apartment was very sketchy.

It wouldn't be a lie to say he had to fight with homeless people once or twice. Thankfully this was easier considering they haven't unlocked Elo command like his bullies at school.

Looking at the streets, Junya would always wonder if what he saw was normal. Since he was so young, he would barely remember anything before the Eve of Chaos; he lived most of his life with the world in disarray.

The effects of the Eve of Chaos could be felt every day, it showed in the people, many were homeless and it had pushed some toward suicide. It wasn't uncommon to see someone getting rolled in white sheets.

Even worse, The sea levels are at an all-time high and mobs continue to occupy 49% of the world. Some refer to this as a complete miracle. Another repercussion of the Eve of Chaos was that out of the Hundreds of portals that ripped into the sky, they created a gateway for Mobs to roam the planet.

Mobs however were different from those portrayed in generic media. In fact, they were all sentient beings, able to talk and formulate plans. Mobs have been able to quickly pick up on the human language and history in a matter of weeks, proving they were able to research and adapt.

Paired with their uncanny smarts, they were also gifted with maniacal power. Some Mobs have been accused of creating ravines with a single move. Even taking over small countries in the Caribbean themselves which they occupied brazenly.

During the Eve Of Chaos, it spelt doom for humanity, however, all was not lost when people started receiving blessings. At the time, these blessings were unexplained, however, everyone who received one claimed it to be from a god.

These blessings granted inhuman powers, that which the likes of science are yet to understand. They enabled humans to create a grandstand against the Mobs pouring out of the portals; the standoff lasted months. Humans were able to fight an uphill battle and forced the Mobs back through their portals, however, that never stopped many of them from running away and seeking refuge in smaller islands.

The ratio of people who had blessings at the time and were able to use them was limited. Causing people from smaller countries to fall into an Invasion of different Mobs,

This forced more of the population to move toward the continents of Europe and America which have the largest human establishments compared to the others. As a last resort, humans built a reinforced wall around all the surviving towns and nations denying Mobs entry.

Unfortunately, the damage had already been done.

"Snap out of it, what are you thinking about?" Imani waved her hands in front of Junya's. "We're here"

"Huh?" Junya jumped out of deep thought, to see that he was in front of the bus door. 'I must have spaced out'

"Get in kid, we'll be late" The bus driver gruffed.

"Sorry, sir!" Junya bowed before hopping on the bus. He walked down the aisle looking for seats when he saw Russel Brook glancing at Imani who looked very uncomfortable.

Junya was weaker, but that never stopped him from glaring at Russel.

"Hmph, you lucky we're on a bus breadstick" Russel snickered while Junya walked by.

Imani walked him toward empty seats in the middle. As they sat down the bus began moving.

"Thanks for sticking up for me, I'm sorry I caused you trouble" Imani brightly smiled.

"It's nothing," Junya shrugged. Imani nodded and soon the bus started moving.

For all sheltered land, they would have exited at each cardinal position. Meaning this was north, south, east, and west. It was at these points where there would be Military Base where Junya's class was heading today.

They were traveling toward the west gate, which supposedly had the least confrontation with Mobs, according to Junya's knowledge.

This was the reason a lot of things tend to stray from the west. Due to this, the bus took 3 hours to arrive at their destination. They traveled across the sparse barren land, The impact of the Eve of Chaos clearly made its mark.

'Seems quiet, Only Military Mobsters are here to look out' Junya realized. 'I wonder what it is like when they are under attack'

Junya couldn't answer his own questions. After a while of waiting, Junya gently shook Imani awake, who fell asleep on his lap. They all walked out of the bus in a single file line and the teacher stood excitedly beside someone.

He had a strong build with a stocky torso and a broad chest where his muscular hands were folded. He wore a simple white shirt and black pants which were his uniform.

However, it was his signature red hair that everyone knew.

It was Russel's father, Grant Brook.