Prologue-

  December 31, 1999 - the night the impossible happened.

  At the stroke of midnight heralding the new millennium, Blue Rings appeared across the world, and Alien Beings emerged from them.

  These creatures possessed forms only seen in fantasy worlds and began attacking humans without warning. Countless people died or suffered injuries.

  The chaos was quickly contained.

  Police and armed citizens joined the fight, while military forces mobilized to suppress the threat.

  Modern Weapons proved equally effective against the Alien Beings, and the creatures responsible for mass slaughter began falling one after another.

  Just as nations anticipated restored peace, the Blue Rings spanning the globe refused to vanish.

  Months later, these phenomena were officially designated as Gates, with Alien Beings continuing to emerge from them.

  The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  Then came the day when powerful entities emerged that modern firearms could barely counter, causing massive casualties. But at this critical moment, an inexplicable miracle occurred-

  Superhumans possessing special Ability status windows, so-called Awakened, began appearing.

  The Awakened joined forces with military and government agencies to combat the enemies emerging from the Gates, eventually pushing into the Gates themselves to purge the Alien Beings. Five years after the Gate conquest wars, peace returned to the world.

  The Gates naturally remained, but with Awakened and military forces capable of handling the threats, they no longer posed danger.

  Two years after the new order stabilized, some Awakened went rogue and clashed with government forces.

  Thus emerged the Villains.

  Their motives varied, showing off power, craving authority, seeking material wealth, but their core philosophy remained the same:

  As Awakened, they considered themselves superior to ordinary humans, and therefore inferior civilians should submit to their betters. Awakened embracing this absurd ideology ignited conflict.

  The confrontation ended abruptly, but its social impact proved severe.

  The Awakened Act restricting Awakened emerged in response.

  While the growing Awakened population eventually required legal regulation, the chaos caused by Villains led to legislation that severely curtailed Awakened human rights.

  Protesting Awakened rose up and established the global Awakened Association to fight for their rights.

  Five years after the Awakened Association's formation, refined legal systems finally eased tensions.

  It was during this period that the Hunter profession emerged-

  Awakened who specialized in entering Gates to hunt Monsters and retrieve valuable resources.

  Time flowed onward. Thirty years had passed since the Gates first appeared. In a world where Awakened constituted 20% of the global population, a new order and peace had finally been established.

  -

  A/N: new chapter is scheduled and will be available in a few hours