Another regular, humdrum day like any other. Groaning, I barely forced myself up from my bed and managed to stand. Despite only being in my mid 20s, my back definitely felt like it was in its 60s, no doubt in large part due to all the slouching I did at my desk.

Ah, I should really start using that gym membership that I’ve just been paying for half a year now.

After finishing my usual morning routine, I began my daily walk to the library to get some new material for the day. Thanks to a series of careful investments I’d made over the years with the moderate nest egg I’d been left when my parents had passed, I’d managed to snowball it to a considerable amount; nothing amazing but enough to live comfortably upon for the rest of my life. As such, at the ripe old age of 26, I’d already achieved my life’s dream: becoming a lazy bum. I planned on spending the rest of my days rotting away comfortably at home doing absolutely nothing of value. Isn’t being able to lay in bed on your phone the whole day the ideal life?

With a skip in my step as I looked forward to yet another day of hard work watching mukbang videos, I quickly made my way down the bustling street.

And at that moment, the sky split and the world stopped.

Two gargantuan hands had reached out and torn the fabric of space itself, revealing an endless void beneath. The hands then retreated, but surprisingly what came through the tear was a normal sized, humanoid figure that appeared as a blur of rapidly shifting colors. Despite being a vast distance away in the sky, I was somehow able to clearly perceive its appearance and its words, almost as if it was being directly transmitted to my mind.

“Denizens of this world, congratulations on being selected for the 9th Epoch Realm Wars! The most superior specimens of your race shall be given the honor of competing for the ascendance of your world amongst 100,000 others. Should all your combatants fall, however, this world shall be immediately disposed of and recycled. As your world is of the lowest tier, 1000 participants shall be allowed to join. The selection shall begin in 3 solar days. Please prepare yourselves accordingly and--” With a pause and a wicked grin, the figure said, “My deepest condolences.”

And just as quickly as the figure had appeared, it vanished into the ether and the world quickly returned to normal. Panic and confusion immediately set into the surroundings, turning the once peaceful street into a hive of chaos.

What the hell had just happened? Was this some elaborate hoax by people trying to film one of those prank shows? Some sort of lab experiment that had broken free? Deeply confused, I quickly turned around and pushed my way through the surging crowds to head back home instead of getting my errands done, planning to hunker down until things had settled down.

The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

On the news, I saw that world was ablaze with discussion about what had transpired; apparently that strange figure had been visible to everyone else in the world simultaneously somehow. The internet was rife with talk about aliens, whether this was some huge government conspiracy, if our world was really going to be scrapped and destroyed, etc.

Putting aside the usual mindless junk I watched, I spent the rest of the day endlessly browsing different articles, comments, forums and videos. It was a nice break from the admittedly occasionally monotonous routine I had settled into as of late. To be honest, I still thought this was some sort of sham, and that eventually someone would come out and say “Surprise! It was just a joke!” After all, it was simply too absurd to be believed; some random otherworldly being coming out of nowhere and telling us we have to fight to the death or we get thrown into the trash compactor?

As such, after the initial shock of what had happened settled down, my rational brain quickly convinced me that there was nothing to be concerned about and I even began to view the situation in a humorous light, watching people endlessly argue with each other over what had happened. Whatever it was, it wasn’t something that would threaten my peaceful life- the world would flow on past me as it always had while I simply basked in its current. Even if problems did arise, that was others to solve and take care of, not me. Wasn’t that how the world had always worked? Sure, I was apathetic trash, but as long as I could cosplay a turtle and stay in my little shell for the rest of my life doing nothing, it was fine.

Even on the 0.0001% chance (self-calculated) that what had happened was real, it was still ok. After all, hadn’t that figure said only the most superior individuals would be selected? Other than being a little sharp, I was quite the terrible representative of the human race; physical fitness of a geriatric with 2 hip replacements, average height, blind as a bat without glasses, and the reaction speed of my grandmother with Parkinsons (may she rest in peace). Hell, I got the crap kicked out of me last week by an old man at the park after I stole the last bench spot from him. Although, that doesn’t really count since he cheated and used the legendary power “Old man strength” against me.

As such, there was absolutely no chance I would even be in the realm of discussion of being selected. I know saying such things is terrible luck and all, but come on, let’s be serious. I just have to sit back and wait for 3 days to see if something really happens.

As the next few days passed and the world continued to stir itself into a frenzy, I relaxed at home maintaining my usual daily routine. Some world leaders appeared to take it seriously and began gathering various Olympic athletes, professional players, and geniuses while others like I, dismissed it as some sort of hoax.

Soon, the moment of truth approached; 72 hours exactly had elapsed since the figure had appeared. I stood outside staring at the sky in with a half smirk on my face as nothing happened. See? What did I tell you?

Chuckling, I began to turn around to head back inside when a vast voice reverberated throughout the world.

“Selection commenced.”

Huh? Why am I glowing and slowly fading away? Surely not, right?

Ah, shit.