Chapter 1 – “The Day the Dream Got Teeth”
Opening Chapter of Volume 1 – Realm: Nocturnis
---
“If you could live in any world, what would it be?”
Mikey Sanjiro always answered the same way.
> “A fantasy world. Magic, dungeons, danger—I want a world that makes sense.”
Not because he wanted to be a hero.
Not because he hated his life.
But because in those kinds of worlds, effort mattered. If you worked hard, trained smart, risked everything, you could rise. Power wasn’t inherited—it was earned.
This world? It felt like you could try forever and still go nowhere.
So Mikey dreamed.
And on April 5th, he woke up in his dream.
---
His alarm buzzed at 7:00 AM.
Mikey rolled out of bed, groaning, stretching, blinking at the morning light filtering through the blinds.
It was Awakening Day.
He yawned, threw on his hoodie, and shuffled toward the window like always.
Then he stopped.
Then he stared.
Then his brain refused to process what he was seeing.
---
Outside, Tokyo looked the same. The street. The buildings. The vending machine at the corner that never worked.
But walking past it was a man in full armor, jogging like it was just cardio time. Sword strapped to his back. Like it was normal.
Two teenage mages on mana-boards zoomed overhead, trailing sparks of blue light behind them.
A literal elf crossed the street, earbud in, sipping vending machine coffee like she did it every morning.
Mikey just froze.
“…okay.”
He rubbed his eyes.
Still there
He opened the window. The breeze was warmer than usual—charged, almost electric.
He turned, bolted downstairs.
---
His mom stood in the kitchen, flipping eggs like nothing was wrong. Still in her apron, humming softly. Same as always.
“M-Mom?”
She glanced back. “Morning, sweetie. Running late again?”
“Do you… see what’s happening outside?”
She raised a brow. “Hmm? Oh—you mean the patrol? Dungeon Security’s doing an early sweep. There’s a Class C gate opening nearby today. Shouldn’t be a problem.”
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“A Class C what?”
“A dungeon gate. Don’t look so shocked, honey. That’s normal. You’ve seen hundreds by now.”
Mikey just stared.
She slid eggs onto a plate and smiled at him like everything made perfect sense.
“Don’t forget your Awakening card. Big day.”
She turned back to the stove.
> No.
No, this isn’t right.
This was his house. His neighborhood. His mom.
But now dungeons existed, and she was acting like they always had.
> They don’t remember.
His hands trembled slightly.
> But I do.
---
Twenty minutes later, he was walking toward the train station with his two best friends:
Renji – tall, quiet, always serious. Sharp eyes, black coat, blades strapped to his back like he’d been born with them.
Akira – silver hair, electric core already sparking under his skin. Laid-back, smirking, the type to joke in the middle of a boss fight.
They weren’t freaking out.
“Okay,” Mikey said, pulling them aside. “Level with me. You two remember what the world was like yesterday, right?”
Renji gave a slight nod. “No mana. No gates. No classes.”
Akira took a bite of melon bread. “Woke up, saw some dude flying, almost pissed myself. So yeah—confirmed. We’re not crazy.”
Mikey exhaled in relief.
It wasn’t just him.
Everything had changed overnight.
But only the three of them remembered.
---
On the train, Mikey stared out the window.
Holographic ads floated in the air:
> “Newly Cleared Guild Dungeon – Apply Now!”
“S-Rank Lightning User Destroys Rift Boss!”
“Hunter Academy Entrance Trials This Summer!”
Akira tapped the side of his glasses, voice low. “Pulling overlay.”
The lens flickered faintly—only visible to them.
> CODEX SYSTEM: ONLINE
[Mana Scan: Active]
[Environment: High-Density Zone]
[Gate Activity: 1.3km – C-Rank Classifier]
[Personal Sync: Stable]
“Still can’t believe this thing works in this version of the world,” Akira muttered.
Their Codex AIs—the secret systems only a few chosen people ever got—were still functional. Still synced. Still linked to something outside the System everyone else followed.
Renji said nothing, but Mikey knew he was scanning too.
> We woke up in a fantasy world.
But we still have access to cheat-code tech.
And no one else remembers the change.
---
They reached the Tokyo Hunter Evaluation Center by 10:00 AM.
Steel gates. Armed guards. Mana detectors.
Hundreds of teens stood in line, each clutching their Awakening cards, waiting to be scanned.
Inside, the air buzzed with tension and energy.
This was it.
The day your class, rank, and combat future got decided.
Mikey’s heart was pounding—but not with fear. With excitement.
This was the world he dreamed about.
Magic. Adventure. Growth. Risk. Real stakes.
He was finally here.
---
Renji went first.
Ten minutes later, he walked out calmly and handed Mikey his result card.
> [Class: Assassin]
[Trait: Phantom Step]
[Rank: B]
Mikey grinned. “Damn.”
Renji just shrugged. “It’s a start.”
Akira went in next.
Sparks literally trailed behind him as he walked out.
> [Class: Mage – Electric Specialization]
[Trait: Surge Core]
[Rank: B]
Akira held up his card like a trading card. “Guess who’s your local living battery now?”
Mikey laughed, fist-bumped him, then stepped into the scanner room.
Here we go.
The scanner pulsed blue. A voice echoed in his ears.
> [Class: Assassin]
[Trait: Gluttony – Status: Dormant]
[Rank: F]
The pod went silent.
A thin slip printed from the wall.
No system celebration. No guild interest.
Just a quiet label:
> F-Rank. Unfit for immediate combat deployment.
---
He stepped outside.
Akira and Renji looked at him, waiting.
“…Assassin,” Mikey said quietly. “Trait: Gluttony. F-Rank.”
Akira blinked. “Wait. F?”
Renji’s brow furrowed. “That doesn’t track.”
“Guess the system doesn’t like me,” Mikey joked weakly, trying to smile.
They didn’t laugh.
“Gluttony,” Akira said, thinking. “Could be passive. Maybe scalable. Might not kick in until you start fighting. That happens, right?”
“It happens,” Renji said. “Rare, but possible.”
Mikey didn’t reply.
The world he’d begged to be part of?
Just told him he didn’t belong.
---
That night, he sat on his bed in the dark, staring at his Codex screen.
> [Mikey Sanjiro – F-Rank – Class: Assassin]
[Trait: Gluttony – Status: Dormant]
[Codex Sync: Stable]
He felt nothing.
No anger. No tears.
Just silence.
Then—his screen glitched.
A new window formed.
> [Access Unlocked: Personal Realm – NOCTURNIS]
[Time Ratio: 1 hour in real world = 5 days inside]
[Confirm Entry?]
Mikey stared.
A pulse of cold adrenaline ran through him.
He tapped YES.
And the world shattered around him.
---
[END OF CHAPTER 1 – “The Day the Dream Got Teeth”]
