The Lower District buzzed with life.
People hurried through the crowded streets, each occupied with the struggles of their own daily lives.
Towering above the flow of pedestrians, a gigantic digital billboard played a familiar recruitment commercial.
A fully armed squad was battling a grotesque monster.
Its limbs bent at impossible angles, somehow keeping its twisted body upright. Where its head should have been, there was only a massive slit that resembled a gaping mouth.
Gunfire erupted without pause.
Blades flashed through the air.
Although every fighter wielded a different weapon, they all shared one thing in common—each was enveloped in a faint golden glow.
Their Aura-enhanced attacks struck the creature relentlessly.
The monster writhed in agony beneath the barrage, yet stubbornly refused to fall.
Then a brilliant beam of light descended from the sky, landing between the squad and the monster.
A young woman stepped forward.
She appeared to be in her early twenties. Shoulder-length golden hair framed her delicate features, while amber eyes and porcelain skin gave her an almost ethereal beauty. Yet the coldness in her expression made her seem distant, almost untouchable.
She walked straight toward the monster.
Her icy gaze never wavered.
As if sensing the approaching danger, the creature pulled open the giant slit atop its head and let out a deep, guttural roar.
The squad immediately scattered, taking cover behind nearby barricades.
Only the woman remained where she was.
The monster gathered its strength.
A massive sphere of destructive energy burst from its mouth.
She didn't move.
She simply murmured a single phrase.
"Concept Release..."
For a fleeting instant, the world seemed to hold its breath.
"...Radiance Unbound."
Her body dissolved into blinding light.
Before the monster could react, she was already above it.
She shone like the sun itself.
Golden radiance poured from her body, illuminating everything beneath her.
With a casual wave of her hand—
Countless spears of light descended from the heavens.
They pierced straight through the monster's body one after another.
The creature convulsed violently before collapsing to the ground.
It never moved again.
The camera suddenly zoomed in, filling the screen with the woman's face.
Triumphant music swelled.
Large golden letters appeared across the display.
Fight alongside Hero Tia!
The Helios Combat Corps is recruiting Aura Users and Concept Wielders!
Interested applicants, please visit the Central Administration Building.
New recruits are always welcome!
The image slowly faded...
Only to restart from the beginning moments later.
A young man stood silently before the billboard.
His eyes remained fixed on one particular line of the advertisement.
The expression on his face was impossible to read.
Inside a small convenience store in the Lower District, several employees busied themselves serving customers.
"Hey, Ethel! Grab me a few bottles of beer!"
"Drinking in broad daylight isn't exactly healthy, you know."
The black-haired clerk, who looked to be around twenty-five, carried several bottles over with an easy smile. After handing them to the customer, he watched the man leave with the same friendly expression.
"Seriously, how do you stay cheerful after working here all day?"
A female coworker sighed wearily.
"It's simple."
He smiled.
"Just stay in a good mood. You can do it too, Nicole."
"I can't even convince my face to smile anymore..."
"Practice."
Before their conversation could continue, the front door swung open.
Two obvious street punks wandered inside.
They carried a few broken items in their hands, glanced around the store, and quickly set their sights on Nicole.
"What's the deal with the junk you sell here?"
"Yeah! This thing broke after barely any use. Pay us back!"
Their accusations were as clumsy as their acting.
Nicole didn't even bother responding.
People looking for an easy payout weren't exactly rare in the Lower District.
Seeing themselves ignored only irritated them further.
One of the thugs raised his hand.
"Picking on a woman?"
Ethel's calm voice interrupted him.
"That's pretty pathetic."
Both men immediately turned toward him.
"The hell did you just say?"
A fist shot toward his face.
Right.
Left.
High.
Low.
Red trajectories flashed across Ethel's vision as a familiar voice echoed inside his mind.
He slipped past a left hook.
A right hook.
Then a straight punch.
The sweeping kick followed immediately after.
Ethel jumped over it effortlessly.
At the same time, Aura surged into his right leg.
His kick slammed squarely into the thug's stomach.
The impact launched the man completely out of the store.
He crashed into the wall across the street before collapsing unconscious.
The second thug froze.
Then—
Behind you. Ten centimeters to the left.
The voice spoke again.
Without even turning around, Ethel tilted his head aside.
The sneak attack missed by mere centimeters.
Aura gathered around his left elbow.
He drove it backward with explosive force.
A dull thud echoed through the shop.
The second thug folded over before collapsing onto the floor, clutching his stomach.
Ten minutes later, Ethel stepped out of the convenience store, now dressed in his own clothes.
He wandered down the street with a quiet sigh.
"Guess it's time to find another job."
He hated letting people know he was an Aura User.
He did his best to hide it, but using Aura had become second nature. At his previous job, he'd exposed himself after instinctively catching a falling load before it crushed someone.
Not every Aura User chose to join the Combat Corps.
Still, Ethel wanted nothing to do with the attention that came with being one.
The city he called home—Helios—was one of humanity's Seven Cities, led by its renowned Hero, Tia. Every city maintained multiple Combat Corps to defend humanity against their greatest enemy:
The Concept Demons.
Concepts were abilities far rarer than Aura itself.
Only a small fraction of Aura Users awakened one, usually after the age of seventeen.
Those blessed with a Concept could do more than reinforce their bodies with Aura. By channeling Aura through their Concept, they could bend reality itself, manifesting the very nature of their power.
These elite fighters were known as Concept Wielders.
Standing against humanity were the Concept Demons.
No one knew where they came from. Only that they hunted humans, possessed Concepts of their own, and grew stronger over time.
Most were born far beyond humanity's borders.
Eventually, they would march on the cities.
That was why the Combat Corps existed.
To fight.
To protect.
"...Most people wouldn't volunteer to fight monsters like that."
Ethel muttered under his breath.
As if the heavens had chosen that exact moment to mock him, the city's emergency broadcast crackled to life.
"Attention. Attention. A Concept Demon has been confirmed on Twenty-Sixth Street in the Lower District. Combat Corps units are en route. All civilians are to evacuate the area in an orderly manner."
"...Twenty-Sixth Street?"
Ethel slowly raised his head.
The street sign standing directly in front of him read:
26th Street.
ns216.73.217.39da2
and then Add to home screen.