A 16 year old boy sat in his room on Earth, a tablet in his hands.
The screen glowed softly in the dim light, playing an anime episode.
Then—
In the blink of an eye—
Everything changed.
The familiar walls of his room vanished.
The bed, the desk, the posters, the quiet comfort of home… all gone.
He was no longer sitting in his room.
Instead, he stood in the middle of an unfamiliar chamber.
Dim lights flickered across the stone floor, and several figures surrounded him—men and women whose faces were hidden in shadow.
For a moment, the boy couldn't even breathe.
His hands trembled.
The tablet slipped from his fingers and hit the ground with a dull clack.
The screen flickered as it landed, the paused title of the anime glowing faintly on the display.
Restart from Zero
One of the figures stepped forward from the shadows.
The man looked at the stunned boy for a moment before speaking calmly.
"Welcome to Gaia."
◇◇◇
Some hours later, the boy stepped outside the facility where he had been summoned. The shock had mostly worn off, replaced by exhaustion from the long explanations and paperwork. Before releasing him, they had forced him through a tedious process just to create an official ID for this world.
He stretched his arms slightly and muttered to himself, "So… they summon me from Earth, tell me there's no way to go back, and then hand me an ID like I just moved to another country." He glanced down the street ahead of him. "Well… if I'm stuck living here now, I might as well see what this place actually looks like."
At first glance, the city didn't seem strange at all. Wide roads ran between rows of tall skyscrapers, and modern buildings stretched across the skyline just like any developed city back on Earth. Cars moved through traffic in neat lines while people walked along the sidewalks in casual clothing, chatting and minding their own business.
For a brief moment, it almost felt normal.
But when he looked more carefully, the differences started to appear.
People walked their pets along the street, but they weren't just dogs or cats. Some creatures had small scales and waddled beside their owners, others had tiny wings and perched comfortably on shoulders, and a few fluffy animals hopped across the pavement like animated plush toys.
Then he noticed the people themselves.
An elf walked past a nearby café while scrolling through something on a sleek tablet, occasionally adjusting the long silver hair that fell over one pointed ear. A few steps away, a human office worker rushed past while speaking into a phone, clearly late for something important. Across the street, an orc stood at a shop counter arguing loudly with the shopkeeper about the price of a tool. Near the crosswalk, a humanoid demon leaned against a pole while casually checking messages on his phone as he waited for the signal to change.
Humans, elves, orcs, demons—different species moving through the same streets, living their daily lives as if none of it were unusual.
The boy watched quietly, trying to process what he was seeing. He had imagined another world to be filled with castles, knights, and ancient villages. Instead, Gaia looked like a place where modern technology and magic had blended together into something entirely new.
And somehow… everyone here acted like it was the most normal thing in the world.
The boy glanced at the ID card again as he walked along the street.
"They said that with this ID I can get a lot of things for free," he muttered to himself. "Food, a place to rent, and some other perks… but only for a month."
He slipped the card back into his pocket.
"I guess I should use that time wisely. Might as well learn the history of this place while I can."
A large building soon came into view.
A library.
The boy walked inside and approached the counter, showing his ID to the librarian. After a quick scan, the librarian nodded and gestured toward the entrance.
"Temporary access granted."
The boy stepped inside.
The place was huge. Shelves filled with books stretched across the room, and several rows of computers were set up for people who preferred searching digitally.
He walked over to one of the computers and sat down.
The screen lit up as he typed his first search.
THE HISTORY OF GAIA
The results appeared almost instantly.
He leaned forward and began reading.
Long ago, the people of this world had begun summoning humans from Earth. These humans were called Earthians.
At first, the Earthians were treated as little more than slaves, brought to this world for their knowledge and skills. But the humans of Gaia eventually began to fight for their rights, arguing that the Earthians were still human, no different from themselves.
The conflict escalated.
Eventually, it led to a massive world war.
When the war finally ended, the world began to change.
Earthians used their knowledge of modern Earth to rebuild Gaia. Technology advanced rapidly as their inventions spread across the continents. Magic was integrated with machines, creating systems that blended both worlds together. Cities expanded, communication networks formed, and civilization advanced faster than anyone had imagined.
The boy tapped the side of the keyboard thoughtfully.
"And obviously…
…we couldn't live without our technology."
He glanced over at another desk where someone had left their phone lying beside a stack of books.
"Especially our phones."
He stretched slightly in his chair and looked out through the large window beside the computer.
The city of Gaia stretched far into the distance.
"So during the Great Revolution after the war…
…they rebuilt the world."
A modern city.
Powered by magic.
Designed by humans from another world.
"No wonder there were some unsolved missing person cases on Earth," the boy muttered while scrolling through the article. "Now I know the reason how… and why."
He paused for a moment.
"Well… half of it, actually."
Leaning back in his chair, he stared out at the sprawling city.
"But why are they still summoning us?"
Just then, another article appeared on the front page of the news feed.
"Summoning New Earthians Skilled in AI Development to Advance Gaia's Technological Systems."
The article explained that Gaia's governments were searching for people from Earth who understood artificial intelligence and programming. Their goal was to develop advanced AI systems capable of keeping Gaia's technology on par with Earth's rapidly evolving innovations.
The boy stared at the screen quietly.
Then he narrowed his eyes slightly.
"Something about this… feels off."
He couldn't explain why, but the more he read, the more something in the story didn't sit right with him.
◇◇◇
After a while, he left the library.
The afternoon sun had shifted lower in the sky, casting long shadows across the streets. The city continued moving around him—cars passing, people chatting, creatures wandering beside their owners—but his mind was still stuck on that uneasy feeling.
He walked for a while, exploring the unfamiliar city.
Then something caught his eye.
Between two buildings, a narrow pathway stretched into a darker alley.
A man had just walked into it.
Something about the way he moved felt… suspicious.
The boy hesitated.
Then curiosity got the better of him.
He followed.
The alley was quiet, the noise of the street fading the deeper he went.
Suddenly—
Something dropped over his head.
A cloth bag.
"What the—?!"
Before he could react, hands grabbed him.
Everything went dark.
When the cloth was finally pulled off his head, he found himself sitting in a dimly lit room.
Figures surrounded him.
Not just humans.
Elves.
Orcs.
Demons.
Several different species stood around him, watching carefully.
One of them stepped forward.
"Relax," the man said calmly. "If the government let you walk out of that facility so easily, it means you didn't receive any powers from the summoning."
The boy stared at them in confusion.
"But even without powers," the man continued, "you can still be very useful to us. So please… hear us out."
Another person in the room spoke up.
"The government is experimenting with the summoning ritual."
The boy frowned.
"They're trying to refine it so that one day they can summon a hero."
"A hero born with magic already inside their body."
"They're telling the public that the summoning is just for technological development," another voice added. "That they're bringing people from Earth to help build things like AI systems."
"That's just a cover story."
The room fell silent for a moment.
Then the first man continued.
"They're preparing for another war."
The boy's stomach tightened.
"And this time," the man said quietly, "it won't be a small conflict."
He looked around the room.
"It will be far greater than the Revolutionary War itself."
◇◇◇
A few moments later, the door to the room opened.
A human man entered, followed by several others.
The moment he stepped inside, everyone in the room moved aside to make way for him.
His presence alone seemed to command authority.
He looked around at the gathered group and frowned.
"What's going on here?"
One of the men answered quickly.
"Captain, we received information about this guy. We thought he could be a valuable asset, so we brought him here immediately."
The captain's expression suddenly turned pale.
"But the tracking detectors… were with me…" he said slowly.
His eyes widened.
"How… did you confirm he hasn't been implanted?"
The room went silent.
One of the men spoke nervously.
"We… we didn't check…"
The captain's face twisted in horror.
"YOU FOOLS!!"
His voice echoed through the room.
"YOU JUST GAVE AWAY OUR LOCATION!"
At that exact moment—
BOOM!
The door exploded inward.
Soldiers flooded into the room, rifles raised.
"DON'T MOVE!"
Before anyone could react, gunfire erupted.
One by one, the people in the room were shot down.
Humans.
Elves.
Orcs.
Demons.
It didn't matter.
Bodies fell across the floor as the soldiers methodically eliminated everyone present.
The boy sat frozen in the chair, still tied down.
His heart pounded violently as the screams faded and the gunfire stopped.
Within seconds, the room went silent again.
Everyone was dead.
Everyone…
except him.
A soldier stepped forward.
Then another man entered the room.
He walked calmly toward the boy.
"You've been a great help," the man said.
The boy stared at him in terror.
"You served your country well today," the man continued. "Your actions helped us neutralize a dangerous terrorist group."
The boy's breathing slowed slightly.
For a brief moment, he felt a tiny bit of relief.
The man nodded respectfully.
"Your bravery will be remembered for a long time."
He turned slightly as if preparing to leave.
"The country will remember that you didn't give up until the end."
The boy blinked in confusion.
"You will be mourned."
The man began walking toward the door.
"Thank you for your service."
The boy opened his mouth to speak…
The man never turned around.
He walked out of the room, then—
BANG—
◇◇◇◇◇
"If you're enjoying this, Volume 1 is available on Amazon Kindle."