Only I Know That This World Will Eventually Perish

Strange Phenomenon

　The unfamiliar sound reaching his ears caused Ichijou Akira’s eyelids to lift up in a faint frown.

　A familiar ceiling――Or rather, a familiar underside of a desk welcomed him.

(……Ahh, that’s right. As I recall, I missed the last train, and I…………)

　Gazing blankly at the scene, Akira remembered last night.

　After returning to the office from the park, Akira got into the sleeping bag that he always kept under his desk and fell asleep.

“……?　It’s awfully noisy out there.”

　Akira frowned at the sound, which had doubled as an alarm. The sound that had not ceased since a few minutes ago was a siren or alarm of some kind. Was there a fire or an accident somewhere? The endless ringing was not something pleasant to listen to.

（What time is it? )

　With sleepy eyes, Akira opened his phone and checked the time.

　――10:02 a.m. Akira’s thoughts stopped for a few moments at the number displayed there.

“T-Ten!?　――Ouch! “

　In a panic, he jumped up and hit his head on the underside of the desk at the same time.

　Akira moved unsteadily and crawled out from under the desk, letting out a yelp at the impact of the shock.

　Then he rushed to get up and saw the company’s quiet, empty interior.

“Why, is nobody here?　Was today a day off?”

　No, that can’t be true.

　Today was Friday, a weekday. To begin with, regardless of whether it was a holiday or not, there was always at least one person who came to work in the Development Department Section 1.

　Even the chief, who claimed that work was her hobby, did not come to work.

　It was absolutely impossible for anyone to not show up for work. It was too unusual of a sight.

(Is this because of the siren?)

　It happened when Akira was thinking this.

“UUUUUUUUGGAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!! “

　A roar that made the air tremble. No, to be precise, the cry of something shook not only the windows of the office but also the air of the place.

“Wha――――”

　Speechless, Akira rushed to the side of the office window to see who the sound belonged to.

　And Akira witnessed the scene.

　A pack of black wolves ran through the street outside the window. A huge boar with big tusks, and a giant bee as big as a man’s head. A monstrous bird with huge wings that soared through the sky while cawing.

　――The world was being invaded by monsters.

　Yes, the nightmarish scene that could only be described as such was spreading outside the window.

“What the hell is this……?”

　Muttering, Akira stared at the scene, dumbfounded.

　His mind couldn’t understand. Or rather, it didn’t want to understand. Was this still a dream?　No, it must be. The strange events that have been going on since yesterday must have been a dream after all. You’d have to think so, because, that scene――――

　Suddenly, Akira spotted a small figure crouched in the street.

　Green skin, stature the size of a child. A hideous face and murky yellow eyes.

　――Goblin.

　What was there was a creature that could only be described as such.

　The goblins sat down and stuffed something into their mouths unceremoniously.

“What is it?　――――! ! “

　Staring intently at them, Akira finally noticed it.

　Bright red blood soaking the ground. Eyes looking in the wrong direction. A sloppily opened mouth. Limbs crushed and mangled, and that long sack-like thing spilling out of the belly that seemed to have been ripped apart by force.

“Uuuoooeeeee!! “

　It was when he recognized what it was.

　Akira sat there and vomited up everything in his stomach, unable to do anything about the sourness that filled his mouth.

　――――They were eating. People, they were eating people!　Monsters were eating us humans!!

“Haa, haa, haa……”

　Akira wiped his mouth and staggered to his feet.

“What the hell is that……? What the heck is happening here?!　The city, the world, is being invaded by monsters! “

　Akira muttered as he stumbled away from the window.

　Then, with a jerk of an expression, he pulled his phone out of his pocket in a panic.

“I-Internet!!　A news site should have a cause for this!! “

　As he said this, Akira immediately opened his phone and tried to connect to the Internet. Fortunately, the Internet connection seemed to be working even after the change to this new world, and he was able to connect to news sites right away.

　――Simultaneously worldwide? Numerous damages were caused by the emergence of monstrous creatures.

　――The Japanese government orders all households in the country to evacuate to designated shelters.

　――Unstoppable damage. The government requested the dispatch of the Self-Defense Forces to eliminate the creatures that had appeared.

　――The official name of the grotesque creatures is “Monsters”.

　――Europe declared a joint front against the monsters that had emerged.

　――Temporary withdrawal of U.S. troops. Is there no way to beat the pterosaur swarm that has emerged in the west?

　――Russia decides to annihilate a city that has fallen into the hands of monsters by bombing it.

　Numerous titles were displayed in the list.

　Akira’s gaze fell on each of those letters, and his thoughts stopped as he could not instantly comprehend their contents.

“Simultaneously worldwide?　Monsters?　Pterosaurs emerging in the West―― what the heck is this?!　What is the meaning of this?! “

　Raising his voice, Akira shouted.

　He frantically read each news topic, hoping that there must be some mistake, but all of them conveyed the same picture of the damage.

　From its contents, Akira finally understood that his previous everyday life had been shattered overnight.