System: There's Something Wrong With My System.-Chapter 50 - Three Days Later

- Three Days After Meeting the Other Harbingers.

After the last incident, Lynn, the Harbinger of Water, and Hugo, the Harbinger of Fire, have been staying with us under the guise of "protecting" me.

It’s been three days since then. And during this whole time, the Zero Zone has been eerily silent. Unnaturally so.

No Shadows.

No anomalies.

Just an oppressive stillness, like the very air was holding its breath, waiting for something we couldn’t see.

The café was quiet, the soft hum of the fridge the only sound besides our voices. It was well past peak time, no customers, no bustle, just the low golden sunlight spilling across the floor through half-closed blinds.

"...Lisa, is it always like this?" I finally asked, breaking the silence.

Melisa sat at one of the corner tables, slouched in her chair, eyes locked onto her phone. The blue glow illuminated her face, her fingers moving with practiced speed.

She didn’t look up. "It is," she replied flatly. "Before you awakened, the Shadows were rare. We mostly hunted the Lost ones, stragglers that wandered in too far. Things only got loud after you showed up"

"Then why are they quiet now?" I pressed, frowning.

From behind the counter, Moona emerged, drying her hands with a small towel. The scent of roasted coffee and caramel sugar clung to her like a familiar aura. Her ponytail bobbed as she leaned casually on the back of my chair.

"The last attack probably messed the Shadow Realm up badly," she said, shrugging. "Even that place has limits"

She paused, then her lips curled into a teasing smirk. Her gaze sharpened with playful intent.

"But forget that, Kail," she drawled, nudging my arm lightly, "you’re performing tonight, right?"

I blinked. "Huh? What?"

Her grin widened. "Don’t ’huh’ me. Everyone’s been waiting for it. You blew everyone away with that last performance, and now, they want more. Come on, don’t act shy"

I scratched the back of my neck, glancing toward the windows. With everything going on lately, the idea of getting on a stage felt... surreal.

From her seat, Lisa finally looked up, sliding her phone to the side. Her expression was unreadable, but her tone was calm.

"Just do it, Kail. The zone is quiet, there’s no point training right now. You’re already stronger than any of us. But strength without understanding is reckless. What you need now... is clarity"

She paused, letting her words settle before continuing.

"Maybe when that old man comes back, he can train you properly"

"Sir Mahesa won’t be returning for a while," Lynn said softly from her corner.

She had been silent until now, completely absorbed in a thick, timeworn tome. Her voice was smooth, like cool water flowing over river stones, calm, clear, deliberate. She didn’t look up, just turned another page.

"He’s been given a task"

"...A task?" I echoed, brows furrowed. Grandpa said he’d be back in a few days. But if Lynn was saying this...

"What kind of task?"

This time, Lynn gently closed the book with a soft thud. Her pale fingers lingered on the leather cover. Then she met my gaze with those clear blue eyes of hers.

"The world is shifting," she said. "Sir Mahesa was ordered by the Principal to find the others, to gather the remaining Harbingers... and form the Circle"

"...The Circle?" I repeated.

Lynn nodded. "The Circle is our last line of defense. A formation of Harbingers meant to stand between mankind and the end. And now, with you, the first Harbinger of Light born in centuries, your awakening is both a blessing... and a warning"

She leaned back, resting her book on her lap.

"... A sign that Ragnarok is coming"

That word again.

Ragnarok.

The Ancestor mentioned it too, warned of a coming storm. Even the System gave me a mission related to it: to gather the Harbingers, to earn their trust.

I raised my hand slightly, and with a mental flick, summoned my interface. Translucent blue panels shimmered into view, hovering quietly in the air before my eyes.

[Current SP: 999,999,999+]

Unlimited.

There was a time I would’ve screamed in joy seeing a number like that. Now... I wasn’t even sure what it meant anymore.

The last few quests only rewarded SP. And now, with more than I could ever use... did quests still matter?

What’s the point, if I already have everything?

"...So it really is that serious, huh," I muttered, dismissing the interface with a wave.

"It is," Lynn affirmed quietly. "The world stands on the edge of collapse. The weight of salvation... rests on our shoulders"

I leaned forward slightly, narrowing my eyes. "...Lynn. What happens if we fail?"

She held my gaze. Her expression was unreadable. Calm. Cold.

"Then Light fades," she said, "and the Shadows reclaim everything"

A silence fell over the café.

The low hum of the fridge, once comforting, now felt heavy.

"...Is there anything we can do?"

"There’s nothing," Lynn said, her voice barely more than a whisper. ERagnarok is the work of Fate. And when it comes to Fate, there’s no escaping it. Ragnarok will happen, no matter what we do. All we can do... is wait for it to begin"

---

For a moment after Lynn spoke, silence blanketed the room. No one dared to speak. Even the low hum of the fridge seemed to fade into the background, as if the air itself held its breath.

The chime above the door jingled.

"Hy! I’m back!" Hugo’s voice rang out as he entered the café, holding two grocery bags in each hand. "Unbelievable... asking a Harbinger to do shopping. Only you guys would pull that off"

He chuckled to himself, oblivious to the heavy tension clinging to the room. But Hugo wasn’t completely insensitive. The moment he glanced at everyone’s faces, his smile faltered.

"...Huh? Did something happen while I was gone?"

Lynn stood up quietly, brushing aside a strand of hair as she avoided his gaze.

"Nothing. We were just... talking about something." Without another word, she excused herself and headed toward the restroom.

Hugo blinked, caught off guard by her sudden coldness. Before he could say anything else, his attention shifted to Mikail.

"Oh, Mikail, let’s go spar-"

"Not now, Hugo. We’re still working," Mikail cut in flatly, rising from his seat and walking toward the small indoor stage at the back of the café. "I’ll check the instruments"

"So you’re really going to perform tonight, Kail?" Moona asked as she followed behind, wiping her hands on her apron.

Mikail gave her a half-shrug. "Do I even have a choice?"

"Nope," Moona replied with a bright smile.

Mikail sighed and shook his head, resigned.

Left standing near the entrance, Hugo watched them go. He turned to Melisa, silently asking for some kind of explanation, but she avoided his gaze and quietly followed the others without a word.

And just like that, he was alone in the middle of the café, surrounded by silence once again.

"...Huh"

--------

Hours slipped by unnoticed, and before long, night had fallen. One by one, the tables filled with customers, their voices rising in a warm blend of laughter, clinking glasses, and casual chatter. The café came alive with a comforting buzz, like a heartbeat pulsing through the walls.

Then, without warning, the lights flickered and went out.

A hush fell over the room, sudden and complete, as if the darkness had swallowed the noise. All that remained was a single spotlight illuminating the small stage at the front, casting long shadows across the wooden floor.

The air shifted, thick with anticipation.

The flicker of candlelight from a few tables tried to reclaim the dark, but the stage commanded all attention now. Conversations died on lips, forks paused mid-air, and every eye turned forward, drawn to the quiet gravity of the moment.

It was a silence not born of fear, but of expectation... something was about to begin.

There was no grand announcement, no spotlight flare, no dramatic cue. Just quiet footsteps. Mikail, still in his uniform, white sleeves rolled to the elbows, apron loosened but not removed, walked slowly toward the stage.

And with that, the air shifted again.

Conversations halted. Heads turned. A quiet wave of realization swept across the room like a ripple across still water. All eyes were locked on him. Especially the girls.

Since his last performance, Mikail had gone viral. The video of him singing, effortlessly, emotionally, and captivatingly, had exploded across social media. Overnight, he became an online sensation. People couldn’t get enough. His voice, raw and clear. His presence, magnetic. And his face, well, that only sealed the deal.

To the café regulars, Mikail was no longer just the soft-spoken barista. He was him, the man who became an idol in a single night.

But not everyone was smiling.

In the far corner of the café, seated with her drink untouched, Moona watched in silence. The spotlight wasn’t on her, but it didn’t need to be. Her expression said it all.

She was the one who had asked Mikail to sing tonight. The one who thought this moment would bring him closer to her, just like the other nights, when Mikail sang a song, a song that she knew was for her.

But now, as the crowd leaned in, caught in the orbit of his voice, something stirred in Moona.

Not anger. Not even hurt.

Just... a quiet ache.

Not at Mikail. But at the way they looked at him now. At how he never looked back at her like that.

And maybe, just maybe... a little jealousy too.

....

...

..

.