A flash of white light.

Caelum returned to the real world.

But the moment his vision cleared and he took in his surroundings, he froze on the spot.

He was standing there in a simple T-shirt and casual pants, planted right in the middle of a vast stretch of ruins. Broken concrete, twisted steel, and scattered debris filled his entire field of vision.

His expression slowly stiffened.

"Where’s my place?"

He turned his head left and right, scanning the area again as if hoping he had simply misremembered the location.

Then his voice rose a notch.

"Where did my entire apartment building go?!"

Without hesitation, he activated [Universal Omniscience].

Information flooded into his mind in an instant, laying out everything that had happened while he was away.

A few seconds later, Caelum let out a long sigh, rubbing his temple.

"So that’s what happened..."

During his time inside the game, New Kirk had experienced over a dozen game intrusion incidents of varying scales.

And unfortunately, one of them had struck right here.

The battle had been intense enough to completely level his apartment building, reducing it to nothing but rubble.

He had always known something like this would happen eventually.

Game intrusions were becoming more frequent, and no place was truly safe.

But still, he had not expected it to happen this fast.

He had barely been gone.

And now his home was gone too.

That was just ridiculous.

While he stood there processing it, a group of construction workers approached from a distance, wearing safety gear and carrying equipment.

The middle-aged man leading them waved at him.

"Hey, kid! This area’s about to be cleared and rebuilt. It’s not safe to stay here. You should leave."

Caelum snapped out of his thoughts and gave a small nod.

"Got it."

There was no point dwelling on it.

What was done was done.

He turned and walked away, already thinking about his next move.

If he had to rent a new place, it might as well be somewhere better.

After a bit of consideration, District F came to mind.

Compared to the other districts, it was quieter, less crowded, and had a more relaxed atmosphere.

Exactly the kind of place he preferred.

With that decided, Caelum set off toward District F.

At the same time

New Kirk, Disaster Monitoring Bureau.

A sharp alarm suddenly blared throughout the control room.

Staff members immediately sprang into action, pulling up real-time data onto the massive central display.

"Report! A high-intensity disaster signal has appeared above New Kirk! Strong biological and energy signatures confirmed!"

The data streams updated rapidly.

Within seconds, the preliminary classification appeared.

"Estimated threat level: S-Class!"

"What?!"

The room erupted in shock.

Several people nearly lost their composure on the spot.

An S-Class disaster was no ordinary threat.

It was the kind of catastrophe capable of wiping out an entire nation if left unchecked.

The director’s expression darkened instantly.

"Confirm again. Is this a game intrusion?"

A technician shook his head, hands flying across the console.

"No game intrusion signal detected!"

The director frowned deeply.

"So the source is native to our world..."

That made it even worse.

If it was not tied to a game world, they had even less information to work with.

"Director, the signal is descending rapidly! Estimated time to impact: thirty seconds!"

"Location?"

"District F!"

The director’s eyes sharpened.

"No time for interception. Issue an emergency evacuation alert immediately!"

"Evacuation protocol initiated!"

New Kirk, District F.

"Warning! Warning! Unknown disaster detected above New Kirk! Estimated impact zone: District F! All residents evacuate immediately!"

"Repeat! Evacuate immediately!"

Panic spread through the streets like wildfire.

People abandoned everything, rushing toward exits and transport routes, fear etched across every face.

"Run!"

"Move, move!"

Amid the chaos, however

Caelum stood alone on the street, completely calm.

In his hand was a rental flyer he had just picked up along the way.

He glanced at the listed price, then at the room size, quietly weighing the options.

Even though he now had the ability to create matter using cosmic energy and was effectively beyond the concept of money, his habits had not changed much.

He had no interest in living extravagantly.

He preferred things simple, practical, and comfortable.

Even something as trivial as buying a popsicle, he would still pick the cheaper one unless he really felt like splurging.

Renting a place was no different.

Value for money mattered.

As he stood there thinking

Boom!

A blazing streak tore across the sky.

Before anyone could react, it slammed straight into the ground right in front of him.

The impact unleashed a violent shockwave that exploded outward in all directions.

Within a hundred-meter radius, everything was instantly flattened.

Buildings collapsed.

Vehicles flipped.

The ground itself trembled violently as cracks spread across the concrete like a web.

At the center, a massive crater formed, smoke and dust billowing upward.

Screams filled the air.

"It’s here!"

"The disaster has landed!"

"Run!"

Someone shouted in confusion.

"Was that a meteor?!"

Clearly not.

The Disaster Monitoring Bureau had already confirmed strong life and energy readings.

This was no lifeless rock.

This was something alive.

Boom!

A heavy thud echoed from within the smoke.

The ground shook again.

A massive silhouette slowly emerged.

It was enormous.

At least fifty meters tall.

Its body was covered in thick, rugged armor-like flesh, its limbs heavy enough to shake the earth with every step.

Its face was twisted and savage, like a beast pulled straight out of ancient myth.

"ROAR!"

The creature unleashed a thunderous roar, filled with raw aggression and destructive intent.

Then

it lowered its gaze.

Right in front of it stood a human.

Still holding a piece of paper.

Still completely calm.

As if nothing had happened.

The creature paused for a brief moment.

Then a cruel, mocking expression appeared in its crimson eyes.

It raised one massive claw.

And slammed it down.

"Hm?"

Caelum finally looked up.

A giant claw filled his vision.

Boom!

Twenty seconds later

Several official players from the Disaster Monitoring Bureau arrived at the scene at full speed.

But what greeted them was nothing but silence.

And a massive crater.

"Where is it?"

Their expressions turned serious.

A white-haired girl stepped forward and jumped into the crater, crouching to examine the ground.

"There are clear footprints. Beast-type alien lifeform. Estimated height around fifty meters."

She paused, scanning the surroundings.

"But it’s gone."

Another player frowned.

"An S-Class entity doesn’t just disappear. If we don’t locate it, this could escalate fast."

"It might be hiding."

"Or worse, it’s intelligent."

A heavy silence fell.

"That’s... not good."

Meanwhile

Caelum had already arrived at the apartment listed on the flyer.

The building was quiet.

Too quiet.

He walked in and found the place completely empty.

No staff. No tenants.

Looks like everyone had evacuated.

He took out his phone and dialed the number printed on the flyer.

"Hello, is this XX Apartments?"

"Yes, I’m calling about renting a unit."

He paused, glancing down at his other hand.

"Oh, one more thing."

In his palm, a round, chubby hamster was being firmly held.

"Are pets allowed? And when can I come take a look? I’m already here."

"Squeak! Squeak!"

The hamster struggled violently, its tiny body twisting in his grip.

Then, to any normal person, an impossible thing happened.

It spoke.

"Human! What have you done to me?!"

Its voice was filled with fury and disbelief.

Just moments ago, it had been a towering beast capable of flattening a city.

And now

it had been reduced to this.

Caelum absentmindedly kneaded it like dough, squeezing and rolling it around while continuing his call.

No matter how hard it struggled, it could not escape.

Not even a little.

"I am the prince of the Astryx Empire of the Orion Arm! Insolent human, release me at once and restore my original form! Otherwise, you will face the full wrath of the Astryx Empire!"

Caelum did not even bother responding.

He simply kept playing with it.

Pressing it flat.

Letting it puff back up.

Repeating the process.

After a moment, he nodded thoughtfully.

"You’re pretty chubby."

He smiled slightly.

"I’ll call you Fluffball."

"I’ll pick up a proper cage for you later."

An interstellar hamster.

That was definitely a rare species.

"Fluffball?!"

The hamster froze for a split second.

Then exploded in rage.

"How dare you humiliate me like this! I swear, I will make you suffer the most agonizing death imaginable!"

Caelum ended the call and finally looked at it.

His expression was calm.

Almost amused.

"Seems like you still don’t understand your situation."

He raised his hand slightly and flicked his finger against its forehead like he was about to shoot a marble.

The hamster’s expression instantly changed.

Fear flooded its eyes.

"W-Wait! What are you doing?! Don’t... don’t do this... AAAAAH!!!"