Apocalypse: Starting With Three Unique Blessings-Chapter 70: The Visitor (2)

Some time later, deep in the Silent Forest, a human sized black vortex materialized as a figure stepped out.

Magnus emerged from the void with Vorax still curled around his neck.

He glanced up at the sky. The sun was still out, but it was already shifting toward the evening.

He had lost track of time while exploring Vorax’s Void Realm. With the two artificial suns in that space never moving, he couldn’t rely on them to measure time.

But he had no regrets.

He had thoroughly explored the entire realm, which was vast. Though he hadn’t found anything as valuable as the herb garden, he had still come across several intriguing places.

As soon as he exited the portal, Magnus bade Vorax farewell.

Vorax returned to its massive form and disappeared into the tress, leaving Magnus alone.

Not wanting his men to worry, Magnus wasted no time and headed straight back to his territory.

Fortunately, this time, he didn’t run into Robert or any search parties.

Looks like the scolding worked...

Or maybe, after witnessing his strength during the trial, his men had begun to trust him more, realizing he could take care of himself. Either way, despite his long absence, no one had been sent after him.

Still, he could sense the relief in his men when they saw him return.

Magnus didn’t linger.

Without wasting time, he went straight to his room. His body was covered in blood from the battles earlier, and he didn’t want to attract unnecessary attention. The last thing he needed was people making a fuss over something irrelevant.

But the moment he stepped inside—

Something felt off.

His senses flared.

Someone was here.

A voice, unfamiliar and calm, came from the corner of his room.

"Hello there, Player number one thousand."

Magnus’s eyes sharpened as he turned toward the voice.

A man stood in the corner, smiling warmly. His face was affable, his posture relaxed, and he wore a simple yet stylish blue robe.

Despite his friendly appearance, Magnus’s instincts screamed danger. This man was powerful.

His body reacted on instinct. Voidreaver was already half-summoned, ready to attack, when the man spoke again.

"No need to be anxious. If I wanted to kill you, you would have died the moment you walked in—before you even registered my presence."

The man’s voice was calm and matter-of-fact, his smile never fading.

Magnus froze.

The words struck him.

The man was right.

Even though he wasn’t releasing any aura, Magnus’s senses warned him—this was the kind of danger he had never encountered before.

If this man had wanted him dead, it would have already happened.

Even with Voidreaver’s buff, Magnus wasn’t confident he could do anything against him.

But that didn’t mean he would lower his guard.

"Who are you?" Magnus asked, his expression cold and wary.

"Oh, I’m Reynold. A mere merchant. And also a player, just like you."

Magnus didn’t respond immediately. His brows furrowed at the words.

A mere merchant? Who was he kidding?

From the overwhelming sense of danger Magnus felt from him, it was obvious Reynold was no ordinary merchant. He was far more than that.

As if sensing his thoughts, Reynold’s eyes flickered with something unreadable for a moment before he returned to observing Magnus.

While Magnus was trying to figure out Reynold, Reynold was also deep in thought about Magnus.

’What was that evil aura I sensed just now?’ Reynold mused, his brows furrowing slightly.

When Magnus entered, he had sensed something—a darkness so sinister that, for the first time in a long while, his heart clenched in fear.

That was unusual.

At this point, there was nothing in this world that could truly threaten him anymore. He might not be the strongest, but even the strongest would struggle to kill him. He was confident in his ability to escape any situation.

Yet, the aura he felt just now...

It was different.

It wasn’t just dangerous.

It felt like an unavoidable death—something inevitable, something absolute.

A chill had run down his spine, something he hadn’t experienced in a very long time.

Is that his specialty? Reynold wondered.

Each of the Thousand Players had something unique about them, something that set them apart, something that made them a force to be reckoned with.

Could that terrifying aura be Magnus’s?

He needed to find out.

And he needed to be careful.

I should keep a close eye on this one. He’s an unknown variable. I can’t let him interfere with my goals.

His mind was set, but his expression remained the same—affable, smiling, completely unthreatening.

If Magnus ever became a problem, he wouldn’t hesitate to remove him.

Unaware of Reynold’s thoughts, Magnus had his own suspicions.

"Player"? What does he mean by that?

His brows furrowed deeper. He had a vague idea of what it might mean, where this conversation was heading. But he needed to be sure.

"This ’Player’ thing you mentioned... What exactly does it mean? Does it mean..." His voice trailed off.

Reynold smiled.

"Yes, it does."

Reynold’s single response left Magnus stunned. It wasn’t that he hadn’t considered the possibility, but hearing it confirmed still felt strange. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

Ever since arriving in this world, he had wondered if there were others like him—other people who had been transported here just like he had. The thought had crossed his mind once or twice, but he never dwelled on it. There wasn’t much to go on, and it didn’t seem that important at the time. But now, hearing it from someone else made his mind buzz with questions.

"Are you the only one, or are there others like us?" Magnus asked, wanting to know how many there were.

He didn’t bother asking how Reynold had figured out he was also a player. He assumed the man had his own way of knowing.

Besides, Magnus felt a subtle familiarity with Reynold. It was faint, almost nonexistent, yet he could sense it on some level. He figured Reynold must be feeling the same thing—maybe even stronger—which might have been how he identified Magnus as one of them.

"No, there are a thousand of us. And yes, before you ask, we all came from Earth. We died on the same day but arrived here at different points in time," Reynold said, answering all the questions swirling in Magnus’s head.

The words hit Magnus like a shockwave.

A thousand of them.

And all from Earth.

He wasn’t sure how to feel about that. He would be lying if he said he missed his old life. There was nothing for him back on Earth. Here, he was respected. He had people who cared about him. Most importantly, he was strong—unlike in his past life. He didn’t regret being here, but he couldn’t help but wonder what had happened after their deaths. Did the death of one thousand gamers on the same day cause any stir?

As if sensing his thoughts, Reynold spoke again.

"Even though we all came from Earth, it seems we’re from different versions of it—different timelines, different histories. Based on what we’ve discussed amongst ourselves, we’ve counted at least twenty different Earths, maybe more."

"Oh," Magnus muttered.

He had never really thought much about things like parallel universes or alternate timelines. He wasn’t the type to overthink concepts like that. But hearing it now, it made sense.

"You also mentioned something about different timelines?" Magnus asked.

"Yes," Reynold confirmed.

"We all died on May 9, 2035, but we arrived here at different times. The earliest recorded player came ten thousand years ago."

Magnus’s eyes widened. His brain froze for a moment.

Ten thousand years?

That was almost as old as human civilization itself, just short by about two thousand years.

He knew this world possessed magic, and after his awakening, he could feel a surge of vitality that suggested his lifespan had increased. He assumed that as people grew stronger, their longevity increased as well. But ten thousand years? That was on another level entirely.

"Ten thousand? And he’s still alive?" Magnus asked, his voice laced with disbelief.

Reynold didn’t answer immediately. A flicker of something—uncertainty?—crossed his eyes before he finally responded.

"I don’t know," he admitted after a moment of silence. "Nobody knows."

Magnus frowned but stayed quiet, waiting for an explanation.

"The First Player, as we call him, is a complete mystery," Reynold continued. "Even though he arrived ten thousand years ago, his timeline doesn’t seem to match up with ours."

Magnus narrowed his eyes. "What do you mean?"

"The Second Player arrived one thousand nine hundred years after the First," Reynold explained. "That was about a century ago. But none of us have ever met the First Player."

Magnus’s frown deepened. He was beginning to understand what Reynold was implying, but it still left him with more questions than answers.

"If no one has met him, then how do you even know he exists?" Magnus asked.

Reynold smiled slightly, then raised his hand. A piece of parchment—made from beast skin—materialized in his grasp. He handed it to Magnus.