It was April. As soon as the lecture finished at 2:45 p.m., college freshman Yu IlHan left the Business Hall quicker than anyone, as if he was afraid that he won’t be the first out.
He didn’t know anyone, so there was no one to stop him, but he still walked with effort and left the square to go to the hill.
This was the first time he felt something was off.
‘There are no people.’
There were loads of lectures which ends at 2:45 p.m. Of course, not everyone would be like Yu IlHan and go gome as soon as the lectures end, but isn’t it strange that there are no people on the square or even on the hill?
‘It’s not the school festival yet… what is this… is there some school event that I don’t know?’
If that was true, then it made sense. Since Yu IlHan left all the group chat after admittance! It wasn’t like he was pressured to leave and he left on his own too!
Yu IlHan, who became sad for some reason, walked down the hill regardless of whether people were there or not. In fact, he wanted to take the shuttle but forget shuttles, not even cars went by.
Is some civil defense drill going on inside the college? Is there some school-scale hide-and-seek? He thought various things but he just let it go. Here is a guy who hadn’t held a girl’s hand for all 20 years, so he didn’t think it was strange that there is no presence inside the campus.
However, that thought completely disappeared when he exited the front gate.
“What is this?”
There are no people.
“What is this!?”
There are no people!
“What happened? What happened!?”
Yu IlHan, who was in a state of panic, ran around all over the place while repeating the same words like an idiot. None. Nowhere. It was impossible to think something stupid like ‘they all went on a picnic’. To escape from reality, the reality was too strong.
None. There is no one!
He peeked through the windows of the restaurants he visited. The food on top of the plates on the table were still giving off steam, and the chairs were slightly pulled backwards as if someone was sitting on it a few moments ago.
Moreover, whether it was the chopsticks or the spoons and the like, they were all over the table. It gave off a feeling as if some people disappeared right in the middle of their meal.
The other restaurants and stores were the same. Was it only that? What about those abandoned cars in the middle of the road? The cars in the road were all crashed into each other as if the drivers disappeared in the middle of driving, and some of them caught fire and there were some which leaked oil and were about to explode.
“F*ck.”
He couldn’t grasp the situation but he sure did judge that the situation was dangerous. Yu IlHan ran to the point of sweating until there were no cars in the road. As if waiting for him, an explosion sound of ‘BANG’ could be heard and tickled his ears.
Heated wind blew from that place, and he ran away from the place even faster as if he was pushed by that wind. He cried for some reason.
When he escaped the disaster, it was when he arrived at the bus stop.
“Let’s go home first.”
It might get better if he eats the food his mom made, wash up, and have a good sleep.
When he escaped from the disaster, these kinds of idiotic thoughts started invading his mind again. However, this time, it wasn’t long before he woke up from his delusion. It was because the bus didn’t come no matter how long he waited.
“What the hell? F*ck…… What the hell is happening?”
Yu IlHan self-boasted that his mentality was strong. He passed his elementary school middle school, and high school days alone all this time. As a result, he came to a famous university which could be ranked on one hand, and he had confidence that he would do well here in the future too.
The character for person(人) is said to be representing two people leaning against each other, however he didn’t need anything like that. He belived that he could do everything alone like the number ‘1’ which stands up on its own. And so he liked his name ‘Yu IlHan’(means unique).
However, even so, not this.
“Did I come to some other world alone or something? or what……”
His situation was so absurd that he blurted out something stupid. Of course, nothing changed. The bus didn’t come and due to running so hard, his legs were starting to ache. He became even more sad, that when he noticed, beads of tears were falling onto the ground.
To think I’d cry when I became a university student…
Ah, f*ck. When would I cry if not in a situation like this? I’m sad that I was isolated in elementary school. but now I’m being bullied by the entire JongNo district.
He knew that the situation wouldn’t change no matter how he cried, so Yu IlHan came to his sense immediately. He was tired at hot. First, he wanted to go home.
“Let’s walk.”
Even though he knew that there was no one listening to him, Yu IlHan still spoke loudly in case someone was there. Then he dejectedly started the one and a half hour journey home.
He came home, but as expected, his mother woasn’t there. To wait for his father to come back, he checked the time, but all clocks, including phone clocks or PC clocks, were stopped. Of course, his father didn’t come home no matter how he waited. Clearly, a few hours had passed but the sky outside the window was as blue as ever.
He turned on the TV but all he got was a blank screen, and the radio was the same. The internet was not renewed no matter how he waited. He felt as the humans on earth had really disappeared. Leaving Yu IlHan behind in the unflowing time.
The water was still running so he took a shower, and the gas was running so he ate some ramen.
“Fuu.”
It’s delicious - that fact made him even more dejected and he ate while crying.
When he was full, now he was sleepy. Regardless or if there were humans or not, or whether the night came or not, he thought he’d sleep. Something might change if I sleep - With that naïve thought, he was about to lie down hon his bed when…
...A beautiful woman with white, feathery wings on her back showed up in front of him.
[Whoa, there really is one!]
It was a woman with a very rude first line.
“Wh, who are you?”
Yu IlHan, who stuck to the policy of being nude when sleeping, pulled up his blanket. The woman looked at that scene as if it was ‘quite’ a sight, then she hurriedly fixed her expression.
[Khm. You can call me what you recognize me as.]
“A trespasser of private property?”
[I’m the envoy of God. An Angel.]
She looked at Yu IlHan and spat out each word with strength emphasize that she was an angel.
Yu IlHan also knew that she wasn’t normal the moment she appeared in the room, he could accept the fact naturally without being shocked much at her confession. To be shocked, today’s happenings were much more shocking.
However, his thoughts took reality too lightly. The angel’s next words proved that.
[Since I don’t have time, I will get straight to the point. You were left out from humanity.]
“......Left out?”
Yu IlHan’s expression became weird. Being ‘left out‘ was something which had a lot to do with his life. Starting from elementary school where he was left out in the picnic, middle school training camp, high school trip, and even in college MT……
[Lord God has perceived the Great Cataclysm on Earth, and to prepare for that God sent all of humanity to countless other worlds. And during that process, you alone were left out for some reason.]
And now he was left out on the scale of entire humanity!
His consciousness became distant. Yu IlHan, who grabbed onto his consciousness, asked the things he didn’t comprehend to the angel.
“What is this ‘Great Cataclysm’?”
[It means that the experience of the Earth is full and it is levelling up to the next level.]
He wanted to tackle that argument like when he was dragged to the morning soccer club to replace his father, but Yu IlHan barely suppressed it. And asked.
“What changes if the level up happens?”
[A higher system of energy than it is now will be opened on Earth. That is called Mana. Also, the Akashic Record will come into contact with earth, and the humans will receive rights to see some of its records. That is called Status.]
“That’s a very easy to understand explanation.”
[I’m quite capable.]
The angel was quite proud when he received a praise from Yu IlHan and she held out her chest. Yu IlHan, who was waiting for this opportunity, quickly continued asking starting with ‘but’.
“Why is there a need for humanity go to another world? In fantasy novels, they changed suddenly one day.”
[The fact that mana will be opened to Earth means that the animals that evolved from Mana, that is, monsters…… means that you will have to confront them.]
He already expected these things from when he heard the word ‘mana’.
[The animals adapt faster to mana than humans so if the humans are left as they are, a danger of extinction after the Great Cataclysm exists. There are already more than tens of worlds that humans went extinct on so Lord God judged that there is a need for the humans of Eart to adapt to mana in a safer environment.]
“So, that means that the humans were sent to other worlds where humans already have adapted to mana?”
[Of course. The other worlders will receive a fixed amount of status as reward tol train them. Of course, there maybe people who won’t adapt well, but we can’t look after all of them.]
That was obvious. Even Yu IlHan thought that they did enough. However, he had a question left.
“These monsters, can’t we kill them with guns? Cannons?”
[A monster made up of only higher system of energy cannot be killed even by a nuclear missile.]
“Then there really is a need to upgrade humans.”
[Of course. That’s why Lord God is merciful and loving.]
The angel uselessly held out her chest again in arrogance. Yu IlHan, who waited for this opportunity, asked her with the most sad expression he could make.
“Then me?”
[......]
The angel lost her words.
“What about me?”
When Yu IlHan pressed answers, she slightly turned her head away from Yu IlHan and answered with a smaller voice.
[I think there was a mistake.]
“Please fix it.”
[The tickets are already sold out so…… You cannot go to another world.]
“No standing tickets?”
[No.]
“What kind of dog-shit God is that?!”
When Yu IlHan exploded, the angel who understood his emotions spoke in consolement.
[But there is a dropout bonus.]
“I don’t need it! Send me there too!”
[The moment the entire humanity were sent to other worlds, the time applied on Earth was stopped. So, you aren’t affected by time until the moment humanity returns and time flows again on Earth! To simplify, you won’t age. Well, in fact, this is the same for people who are sent to other worlds.]
“Send me there too, dammit!”
[Moreover, Lord God has promised you a status bonus when the Great Cataclysm occurs. Great, right?]
Stopping his tantru, Yu IlHan, who was tempted by the words ‘bonus’, looked up to the angel and spoke
“What about mana? I need to practice that too.”
[That won’t be possible unless the Great Cataclysm occurs.]
“No, send me there too! send me!”
[That’s not possible.]
With Yu IlHan throwing a tantrum again in front of her, the angel resolutely shook her head. It really seemdd like it wasn’t possible. Even though it’s God!
[God has set 10 years as the adaptation period. So please work hard just for that time. I will proivde you your meals.]
“......You said time stopped but I get hungry?”
[The cells don’t age but they are still active. You can just think that they don’t age.]
“That’s a little bit different from ‘time stop’, isn’t it?”
[You can’t use mana, so don’t you think you need to train your body at least? Think yourself lucky. The entire humanity, excluding you, has the chance to practice mana, but instead, the changes in their bodies will reset when they come back to Earth.]
And she’s saying this as consolement? Yu IlHan sighed and glared at the angel. The entire reason for him becoming like this was their fault, but she’s grandly saying how ‘merciful’ they are…
If this status bonus thing was something wortless, then I will go on a rampage - he thought.
“Fuu……”
10 years. Finally, Yu IlHan had the intention to confront reality.
10 years? Yeah, Can I not even endure that much? - With the innate positive attitude, he persuaded himself, and he spat out the last question to the angel in front of him.
“And why am I the only one left out? Why only me?”
[While writing the list of people to send to other worlds, Lord God never found you until the end. He said it’s a truly extraordinary concealment technique.]
“......”
And so, Yu IlHan’s Earth Alone life began.