"Do you want peace? Then you should be ready for war."
"War? What war? Wait—who are you?! Come back!"
"Ah… HAAH… HAAH… HAAH…"
David jerked upright in bed, breathing heavily, chest rising and falling rapidly.
"…Eh? A dream?"
He wiped the sweat from his forehead and leaned back slightly, trying to steady his breathing.
It had been almost a week since the incident, yet the strange timer in his system continued counting down without the slightest pause.
"System."
A faint translucent interface appeared in front of him.
Name: David Adebayo
Age: 17
Status: None
Exp: 3
Awareness: 2.90
Timer: 21 Days Remaining
(9 Days / 30 Days Completed)
David stared at the screen quietly.
Nine days had already passed since the system appeared.
Yet nothing had happened.
No explanation.
No warning.
Just a silent countdown moving closer to zero.
Knock knock.
"David, good morning. It's me, Mmeso. Can I come in?" her voice called softly from the other side of the door.
"Wait—hold up—shit!"
David jumped out of bed immediately.
"I rushed to the bathroom to wash my face—even though I haven't brushed yet… wait a minute! I'm coming!"
Water splashed loudly.
Bru bru bru.
"Sorry! You can come in now!"
The door opened gently.
Mmeso stepped inside.
Morning light streamed through the window behind her, outlining her figure in a soft golden glow. Her light brown skin seemed to glow warmly under the early sunlight, smooth and radiant in the quiet morning air.
She wore a simple fitted top and relaxed home shorts, casual clothes for the morning, yet they fit her perfectly. Her long legs moved with natural grace, and her dark hair, slightly loose from sleep, fell softly around her shoulders.
There was something calm about her presence.
Something quietly confident.
She paused for a moment, her sharp eyes scanning the room before resting on David.
For a brief second, it felt like she was studying him.
David, meanwhile, could only stare.
Then she looked up and smiled.
The smile was soft… bright… dazzling in the gentle morning light.
For a moment, David forgot how to speak.
"…H-hey… good morning," he finally said. "How was your night?"
"It was okay," she replied.
"So… is there something you need from me?"
"No," Mmeso said. "I just came to tell you Skywhite is here."
David blinked.
"Eh? How?"
"I don't think I told him where I'm staying."
"Yeah… about that," she said with a small shrug. "I told Gift… and Gift told him. That's probably how."
"Oh."
David frowned slightly.
"But for him to come this early… it's just 8 a.m.."
Mmeso raised an eyebrow.
"Wait… you don't know where Joseph or Gift lives, do you?"
"…Hehe…"
David scratched the back of his head awkwardly, clearly embarrassed.
"…No."
Mmeso stared at him for a second.
Then she sighed and shook her head, trying not to laugh.
"You're unbelievable, David."David rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, letting out a small embarrassed laugh.
"Ok… I'm coming down," he said quickly. "Let me just take a quick shower first."
Mmeso nodded.
"Don't take too long. He's been waiting for a while."
"Yeah, yeah, I'll be fast."
She turned and walked toward the door. For a brief moment, the morning light followed her as she stepped out, and then the door clicked shut behind her.
David exhaled.
"Skywhite is here already… this early?"
He glanced at the faint system interface still hovering in his vision.
Name: David Adebayo
Age: 17
Status: None
Exp: 3
Awareness: 2.90
Timer: 21 Days Remaining
(9 Days / 30 Days Completed)
David frowned slightly.
"Twenty-one days left…"
He shook his head.
"Whatever this thing is planning… I need to get stronger before it reaches zero."
Without wasting another second, he grabbed a towel and stepped into the bathroom.
A moment later, the sound of rushing water filled the room.
Shhhhhhh…
Warm water ran over his head and shoulders, washing away the lingering heaviness from the dream. For a brief moment, he allowed himself to relax.
But the words from the dream echoed faintly in his mind.
Do you want peace? Then you should be ready for war.
David closed his eyes under the water.
"…War," he murmured quietly.As David finished his shower, he stepped out of the bathroom and quickly dried himself with a towel. The cool morning air brushed against his skin as he walked back into the room.
He pulled on his training shorts, then slipped into his socks and shoes, tightening the laces firmly.
Today was another training day.
As he stretched his arms, he remembered what Officer Chibueze had said a few days earlier.
"Look… while we don't know what's going on with the world right now, and we don't know what will happen when that timer hits zero, you should train your body as well."
"You can't just rely on weapons."
Then Chibueze had made another suggestion.
"Why don't we all stay together until the end of the month?" he said. "It will be safer. We train together and prepare for whatever happens when the countdown ends."
Since then, mornings had become intense.
David, Chibueze, and even Mmeso trained hard—pushing their muscles until failure, doing different aerobic drills and workouts.
Push-ups.
Sprints.
Squats.
Burpees.
They trained until their breathing became heavy and their muscles burned.
But for Divine and Ada, the routine was lighter.
Basic stretching.
Light jogging.
Simple coordination drills.
Nothing too extreme.
Just enough to slowly build their strength.
David grabbed a towel and wiped his face before opening his door.
Just then, he heard Divine's voice coming from downstairs.
"Oh! This time he has to join us!"
Ada sounded confused.
"Who?"
"Skywhite!" Divine said excitedly.
Then she burst into laughter.
"Haha, I can't wait to see how he embarrasses himself!"
Mmeso sighed lightly.
"Divine…"
"What?" Divine replied. "You know he talks big. Let's see if he can actually keep up."
David smirked slightly as he started walking down the stairs.
Skywhite…
This morning might be more interesting than he expected.