9:00 AM. Unit 1418.
Jae-Min stood in the storage room. The room was empty now. Cleared out. The concrete floor exposed. Cold. Raw.
In three days, this room would hold a diesel tank. A water reservoir. A generator. The lifeblood of his fortress.
But right now, it was just a box.
His phone buzzed.
"Shieldworks team arriving in 30 minutes. - Anton"
Jae-Min walked to the living room. Opened the fridge. Empty. He had stored all the food in the void two days ago. The fridge hummed. Cooling nothing.
He closed it.
Three days since the regression. Sixteen million spent. Guns in the void. Food in the void. Bunker under construction.
Ji-Yoo arrived tomorrow.
His chest tightened.
In his first life, he had never seen her after the news report. The burning wreckage. The frozen mountain. The rescue teams giving up after three days.
Now she was coming home.
He walked to the second bedroom. Ji-Yoo's room. The bed was made. Clean sheets. A guitar stand in the corner. Empty. She hadn't been here in two weeks.
He sat on the edge of the bed. The mattress creaked.
Her shampoo was still on the nightstand. Strawberry scent. She always bought the same brand. Never changed.
He picked up the bottle. Read the label. Set it back down.
She would be safe here. Behind the walls. Behind the steel. Behind him.
He would make sure of it.
A knock on the door.
Sharp. Professional.
Jae-Min opened it. Anton Reyes stood in the hallway. Behind him, six workers in black Shieldworks polo shirts. Carrying toolcases. Drills. Welding equipment.
"Morning, Mr. Del Rosario." Anton nodded. "We start today."
"Where?"
"Storage room first. We need to reinforce the floor before we install the tanks. Then the walls. Then the windows."
"How long today?"
"Eighteen hours. We'll work through the night."
"Do it."
Anton waved his team inside. They filed past Jae-Min. Professional. Quiet. Eyes forward.
Anton lingered.
"Mr. Del Rosario. A few questions."
"Ask."
"The building management. They approved the renovation. But they asked why you need blast-proof windows."
"What did you tell them?"
"VIP client. Privacy concerns. Standard panic room installation."
"They believe it?"
"They believe the money." Anton paused. "But the building administrator. Mr. Castañeda. He's been asking questions. Wanting to see the permits. Wanting to know why a logistics manager needs a military-grade bunker."
Jae-Min's jaw tightened.
"Handle him."
"I did. Cost you fifty thousand extra."
"Fine."
"But Mr. Del Rosario." Anton's voice dropped. "Castañeda is connected. His brother works in the mayor's office. If he pushes hard enough—"
"Then make him stop pushing."
Anton studied him. Nodded slowly.
"Understood."
He walked into the storage room. The sound of drills filled the apartment.
2:00 PM. Living Room.
Jae-Min sat on the couch. The noise was deafening. Hammering. Welding. Cutting. The walls vibrated.
He didn't mind. The noise meant progress. Progress meant survival.
His phone buzzed. Unknown number.
"Jae-Min. It's Mom. Your father wants to talk to you. Call us when you can."
Jae-Min stared at the message. His thumb hovered over the screen.
Twenty-five days.
He pressed call.
It rang twice.
"Jae-Min-ah."
His father's voice. Deep. Gruff. Disappointed.
"Dad."
"Your mother told me what you said. About the plane."
"Yes."
"Son, I need you to listen to me."
"I'm listening."
"You're not well. I know you think you are. But no sane man calls his parents to tell them they're going to die in a plane crash."
"Dad—"
"Let me finish." Hermano's voice was hard. Cold. "I've talked to a doctor in Seoul. A psychiatrist. He said this kind of paranoid episode can happen to anyone. Stress. Overwork. A bad breakup."
Jae-Min's hand tightened around the phone.
"He recommended a facility. A rest home. They can help you. Get you back on your feet."
Jae-Min didn't speak.
"Your mother and I discussed it. We think it's for the best. When we get back to Manila, we'll take you there ourselves."
"Dad."
"I know you're angry. But this is for your own—"
"I'm not going to a psychiatric facility."
"Jae-Min—"
"I'm not crazy."
"Then stop acting like it!"
Silence.
Jae-Min closed his eyes. His chest burned.
In his first life, his father had died screaming. Burning alive in a metal tube crashing into a frozen mountain. And now that same father was telling him he needed to be locked up.
"Dad. Please. Just don't get on that plane."
"Jae-Min—"
"Please."
A long pause.
"I'm sorry, son. We'll talk when we get back."
The line went dead.
Jae-Min lowered the phone. Set it on the couch.
The drilling continued. Hammers pounded. The walls shook.
He didn't move.
Twenty-five days.
They wouldn't listen. They wouldn't believe. And when the plane went down, they would die thinking their son was insane.
His phone buzzed again.
Ji-Yoo.
"Oppa. I land tomorrow at 3 PM. Terminal 1. Don't be late. 😤"
Jae-Min stared at the message.
Then he typed:
"I'll be there."
He set the phone down.
One person believed him. One person was coming home.
That was enough.
For now.
6:00 PM. Shore Residence 3. Ground Floor.
Jae-Min stepped out of the elevator. He needed air. The apartment was suffocating. The noise. The dust. The memories.
He walked through the lobby. Nodded at the security guard. Pushed through the front door.
The sun was setting. Orange and red. Manila was beautiful in the golden hour. Skyscrapers glittered. Traffic hummed. People walked. Laughed. Lived.
None of them knew.
Jae-Min crossed the street. Walked to a small sari-sari store. Bought a bottle of water. Opened it. Drank half.
He leaned against the store wall. Watched the sunset.
"Jae-Min?"
A familiar voice.
He turned.
Jennifer Avante stood three feet away. Wearing a plain white blouse and jeans. No makeup. Her hair pulled back in a ponytail. She looked different without Kiara beside her. Smaller. Nervous.
"Jennifer."
"Hi." She shifted her weight. Uneasy. "Can we talk?"
"No."
"Please. Just for a minute."
Jae-Min looked at her. Shy. Dedicated. Jolly. That's what the file said. But her eyes were worried. Scared.
"Kiara sent you?"
"No." Jennifer shook her head fast. "Kiara doesn't know I'm here."
"Then why are you here?"
She bit her lip. Looked at the ground.
"I've been watching you. For Kiara. I know. I'm sorry." Her voice was quiet. "But the more I watched... the more I saw..."
"Saw what?"
Jennifer looked up. Met his eyes.
"You're scared, Jae-Min. Not crazy. Not stressed. Scared. Like you know something terrible is coming."
Jae-Min didn't answer.
"The loans. The restaurant. The bunker construction in your apartment. The guns." Jennifer's voice cracked. "What are you preparing for?"
"Nothing."
"Don't lie to me." She stepped closer. "Please. I'm not doing this for Kiara anymore. I'm doing this for me. Something is wrong. I can feel it. And you're the only person who seems to know what it is."
Jae-Min stared at her.
In his first life, Jennifer had survived. She had been one of the last people alive in Building B. He remembered her. Starving. Crying. Holding a dead baby.
But she had survived.
"Go home, Jennifer."
"Jae-Min—"
"Go home. Lock your door. Stock up on food. Water. Blankets."
Jennifer blinked. "What?"
"Just do it. Please."
He pushed off the wall. Walked past her.
"Jae-Min! Wait!"
He didn't stop.
"Is it that bad?" Her voice was small. Behind him. "Whatever is coming... is it that bad?"
Jae-Min paused.
The sunset painted Manila in gold and red. Beautiful. Fragile. Temporary.
"Worse," he said.
He kept walking.
9:00 PM. Unit 1418.
The Shieldworks team had left for the night. The apartment was quiet. Dusty. The storage room was unrecognizable. Reinforced steel plates bolted to the walls. Fresh concrete poured over the floor. Cables snaking through holes in the walls.
Progress.
Jae-Min sat at the dining table. The table was covered in papers. Blueprints. Weapon lists. Supply manifests.
His phone buzzed.
Alessia.
His heart stopped.
"Jae-Min? It's Alessia from next door. Sorry to bother you this late. But there's been a strange man lurking in our hallway for the past hour. He's just standing there. Looking at your door. Should I call building security?"
Jae-Min stood up. Hand going to the Glock on the table.
"Don't call security. Lock your door. Stay inside."
He typed fast.
"I'm coming out."
He moved to the door. Pressed his eye to the peephole.
The hallway was empty.
But on the floor. Right in front of Unit 1418.
A small black box.
Blinking with a faint red light.
Jae-Min's blood ran cold.
Not a listening bug this time.
Something worse.
He opened the door slowly. Reached down. Picked up the box.
It was light. Cold metal. No markings. No labels. Just a single button on top.
He pressed it.
A hologram projected from the box. Blue light. Flickering. A map of Metro Manila. Red dots scattered across the city. Dozens of them.
And one green dot.
Right on Shore Residence 3. Building B. Unit 1418.
The green dot was him.
The hologram shifted. Text appeared. Typed out letter by letter.
CANDIDATE IDENTIFIED.CLASSIFICATION: ANOMALY.THRESHOLD STATUS: PRE-AWAKENED.PROTOCOL: OBSERVE. DO NOT INTERVENE.REFERENCE: OPERATION NARAKA.
The hologram faded. The box went dark.
Jae-Min stood in the hallway. Staring at the dead metal in his hand.
They knew.
Someone knew what he was becoming.
And they were watching.