The King of the Apocalypse

[Leon! Where's the food?! Aren't you supposed to deliver it by now? We're starving over here, Leon!]

[Leon goddamn Reagan! Where the hell are you?!]

[How long are you going to play dead, you piece of shit?! It won't work, so save it! You have three seconds. If you're not here with food by then, you can kiss any chance of Milla talking to you goodbye!]

[I swear to God, Leon, if I'd known you were a bum all along, I would never have convinced Milla to give you even a second of her time! She's finally starting to feel a little positive about you, and you're already letting it get to your stupid head!]

The messages kept coming. Notifications stacked without pause. It did not take long for the count to exceed ninety-nine.

Leon Reagan fixed his groggy eyes on the screen for a moment, then tossed the phone aside in irritation.

His head spun. A migraine throbbed as memories flooded his mind. Had he not just finished off the Undead Overlord? Where the hell was he?

Leon craned his neck. The room lay in a familiar mess. A bright red calendar hung on the wall.

It was July 7th, 2035, the seventh day of the apocalypse.

Had he somehow gone back in time?

Three minutes later, the chaos in his head finally eased. After sorting through memories from two lifetimes, Leon became certain he had returned to the past.

July 1st was the day the apocalypse began.

It struck worldwide. Unlike the zombies portrayed in movies, anyone could turn without warning. Their physical abilities far surpassed those of humans, and they evolved almost instantly by consuming either humans or their own kind.

A bite meant infection and transformation. Worse, animals and even plants could mutate under the same influence.

Most people believed the apocalypse stemmed from rogue scientists and experimental viruses.

Leon knew better. Humanity was never to blame. The true culprits behind this global catastrophe were the gods.

Earth was their sandbox. Humans were nothing more than breathing playthings. The apocalypse was merely their game.

Perhaps the gods grew bored of watching one side dominate the other, because they began granting random divine blessings to humans to stir things up.

On the seventh day, every major city received mysterious objects known as Awakening Orbs. Consuming an orb awakened a human, granting supernatural abilities that enabled them to take on various roles in this new world.

In his previous life, Leon missed his chance to claim a first-round orb. He had been delivering food for his so-called dream girl and nearly died in the process. The only orb he obtained came from the second round.

The difference was staggering. The gap between first- and second-round orbs was like night and day. Even so, Leon awakened as an (A) Demon Hunter and climbed into the top ten among the world's strongest humans.

In the end, he died in a final battle after defeating the Undead Overlord.

Leon stared at the calendar again. If his memory was correct, the first batch of orbs would begin appearing across the city by 5:00 p.m. that afternoon. There were only 1,000 in total. At most, that meant 1,000 awakened humans. In reality, the number would be lower. Zombies or mutated creatures could easily consume some of them.

By that point, half of the global population had already turned into zombies, though several billion humans still remained. In Reunis City alone, the population had once reached 8,000,000. After the outbreak, half were infected, leaving 4,000,000 survivors, who would then compete for a mere 1,000 Awakening Orbs.

The competition would be brutal. Still, Leon felt no real concern. At this stage, most people had no idea what the orbs were. One could sit right in front of them, and they would ignore it.

Not all orbs were equal. Each granted a different class and power rank. A person's awakened Calling depended heavily on the orb they consumed. Over time, people categorized orbs into ranks, from (E) to (A), then (S), (SS), and (SSS).

Leon's thoughts raced. In his previous life, a friend had mentioned that many of the first orbs appeared in urban areas. Among them was a single (SS) orb. Logan Clayton, the mayor of Reunis, had obtained it at the top floor of the Reunis Tower.

Logan gained an (SS) Calling known as The Six-Winged Fallen Angel. With it, he rose to become one of the top three fighters on the Helios Federation's Ruling Leadership Board.

In the end, arrogance ruined him. Fame and power clouded his judgment. Soon after, a massive zombie surge struck Reunis, and he died in the disaster.

This time, things would be different. Leon had returned to the past, and he would claim that orb first.

His phone vibrated across the room.

For now, Reunis City's internet still functioned. Leon remembered that most infrastructure would collapse within a month of the outbreak. By then, phones would be useless, water undrinkable, and the power grid dead.

He had no interest in the phone, but the constant vibration grated on him. He picked it up and answered.

The caller snapped, "Leon the Loser! Finally done pretending to be dead, you piece of shit? Do you even realize how hungry Milla and I are? Get over here with food, or I'll make sure she ignores you for the rest of your miserable life!

"God, the only reason a simp like you ever had a chance with her is because she's too kind for this world. If it were me, useless bums like you would never…"

The tirade dragged on.

Leon's frown deepened until a name cut through the noise: Camilla Lombard.

His expression turned cold.

He knew her far too well.

In his previous life, he had gathered every scrap of food he had saved and delivered it to her in person. He had crossed two zombie-infested streets and slipped past a horde inside Reunis Tower. He had nearly died.

He had not even stepped inside their room. He had only said, "I've run out of food too. Can you spare me some?"

That had been all it had taken. Camilla and her best friend had decided he was no longer useful and lured zombies to his location to make sure he died for good.

He had survived by sheer luck, barely managing to get away from a horde of undead.

He could have died before the seventh day even arrived.

Leon stilled as a thought struck him. 'Camilla is in that building.'