Dan was still lost in thought, replaying everything that had happened, when he heard something.
A faint sound against the window.
~Drip~
His eyes opened, and he slowly turned his head toward the glass.
Another drop struck the window.
~Drip~
Dan frowned. ’Rain? It wasn’t supposed to rain tonight... Don’t tell me...’
He immediately got to his feet and walked toward the window.
Outside, the streetlights reflected off the wet pavement. At first glance, everything appeared normal. The rain was light, barely more than a drizzle.
Then another drop struck the glass.
~Drip~
Dan’s eyes narrowed as he watched the liquid slowly slide down the window.
Noticing something, his expression changed.
The drop wasn’t clear: it was red, blood-red.
Dan froze and for a moment, it felt as though his heart had stopped beating.
"No..." He muttered in disbelief, stepping closer to the window.
Another drop struck the glass.
Then another landed and wihin seconds, the drizzle began to intensify. More crimson droplets splattered against the window, streaking down the glass in thin, bloody trails.
Dan stared in disbelief. The rain outside wasn’t merely tinted red. It was red. It looked exactly like blood.
His breathing grew heavier as he watched the strange rainfall spread across the neighborhood.
The streets were gradually being covered in crimson droplets, while the windows and rooftops of nearby houses were stained by the same unnatural liquid.
Dan’s mind immediately returned to the system’s notification.
[The First Sign of the Apocalypse: Harmless Blood Rain.]
His expression slowly changed. "It actually happened..."
He had wanted proof. Now he had it.
And somehow, seeing it with his own eyes was far more terrifying than he had expected.
Dan quickly grabbed the remote and turned on the television.
The news was already covering the phenomenon.
A reporter appeared on the screen, standing inside a studio while footage of the crimson rainfall played behind her.
"...authorities have publicly stated that the unusual red rain poses no immediate physical danger."
Dan stared at the screen.
"Officials are urging citizens to remain calm while scientists investigate the cause of this unprecedented weather phenomenon. At present, there have been no confirmed reports of physical harm directly caused by the rainfall."
Dan glanced back toward the window as he blood-colored rain continued to fall.
The reporter continued. "While the phenomenon remains unexplained, authorities are assuring the public that there is currently no reason to panic. Scientists around the world are working to determine exactly what is causing the rainfall."
Dan barely heard the rest. His attention was drawn to another breaking-news alert that suddenly appeared across the bottom of the screen.
[SCIENTISTS CONFIRM WORLDWIDE BLOOD RAIN]
Dan’s eyes widened.
The reporter’s expression became noticeably more serious. "Scientists from multiple countries have now confirmed that the unusual red rainfall is occurring across the world. More concerningly, preliminary laboratory analysis has detected biological components in the rain that are consistent with human blood."
Dan stopped moving, watching as the reporter continued; "Samples collected from widely separated regions have reportedly shown remarkably similar compositions, including the presence of hemoglobin and other biological components commonly found in human blood. Further testing is currently underway."
Dan slowly turned his head toward the window.
The crimson rain continued to fall.
For several seconds, he simply stood there. His eyes drifted toward the system panel still floating silently before him.
There was no longer any room for doubt. Whatever this system was... Whatever that mysterious voice had done... The apocalypse was real.
And if this was truly only the first sign, Dan had no idea what was coming next.
The crimson rain continued for several more minutes before gradually losing its intensity.
What had begun as an impossible downpour slowly weakened into a light drizzle.
Then, eventually, the final red droplets slid down the windows and disappeared.
The neighborhood fell silent once again.
Dan remained standing before the window, staring at the wet streets below.
Faint crimson stains remained scattered across the pavement and rooftops, serving as an eerie reminder that what had just happened was anything but normal.
A notification suddenly appeared before him.
[The Blood Rain has ended.]
[Does the Host accept the reality of the Apocalypse?]
Dan stared at the words for a moment. This time, there was no hesitation.
"Yes." His voice was quiet but firm. He had wanted proof, and the system had given him exactly that.
He had witnessed the impossible phenomenon with his own eyes. Then he had watched scientists confirm on live television that the rain contained biological components found in human blood.
There was no reasonable way to dismiss it anymore.
The apocalypse was coming. And if the system was truly capable of helping him survive it, Dan had no intention of wasting time.
Another notification appeared.
[Host is advised to add a wife to start up his family as soon as possible.]
Dan stared at the words floating before him. There was only one person who came to mind. His thoughts immediately returned to the same woman he had considered before.
’Sophie.’
The decision wasn’t entirely unexpected. He had already considered making Sophie his wife before the blood rain appeared. But after witnessing that impossible phenomenon with his own eyes, the hesitation he had once felt had weakened considerably.
He still didn’t know what the future held. But if an apocalypse was truly approaching, he couldn’t afford to waste time.
His mind drifted back to the evening they had just spent together.
He remembered Sophie sitting beside him, carefully cleaning the wound on his jaw and examining the bruise on his chest.
He remembered the quiet moments they had shared. The subtle glances. The strange sense of familiarity that had returned despite the years that had passed.
Then there was Lily; the little girl had grown deeply attached to him, and somewhere along the way, Dan had become just as attached to her.
He didn’t fully understand when or how it had happened.
He simply knew one thing. He couldn’t bear the thought of standing by and watching Lily face an approaching apocalypse without doing everything within his power to protect her.
Dan slowly exhaled. There was still one thing he couldn’t completely understand.
Why did he still have feelings for Sophie after all these years?
He knew Lily wasn’t his biological daughter, and that complicated everything. He also had no idea how Sophie would react if he suddenly told her that he wanted her to become his wife.
Under normal circumstances, he probably would have spent days thinking it over.
But these weren’t normal circumstances and the apocalypse was truly approaching, he needed to prepare as quickly as possible.
And Sophie was someone he already liked.
Someone he cared about more deeply than he was willing to admit, no matter how much he tried to ignore or deny it.
Most importantly, she was someone he could genuinely imagine building a family with.
Dan’s gaze hardened as the last trace of uncertainty faded from his eyes.
He had made his decision. "Add Sophie to the Ultimate Family."