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01

MANIFESTATION

The starting point where Awakened individuals first appeared in human history, and the phenomenon where ordinary humans gain transcendent abilities.

Manifestation occurs suddenly without a specific trigger, and the timing and form vary for each individual. Some reveal their abilities from childhood, while others manifest for the first time during moments of extreme mental shock or life-threatening danger.

Most Awakened individuals immediately following manifestation fail to properly understand or control their abilities, and there are cases where powers go out of control and rampage depending on emotional changes. In particular, accidents occurring during the initial manifestation led to general fires, collapses, and anomalous phenomena, emerging as a social problem.

Accordingly, manifestation was defined not just as an individual change, but as a phenomenon signaling the start of a new humanity.

Currently, there are testing and management systems to check for the manifestation of abilities, and individuals confirmed to have the potential for manifestation become subjects of management by Zero Point.

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02

OVERLOAD

A physical and mental collapse phenomenon that occurs when an Awakened uses their ability beyond its limits.

An Awakened's ability is affected by the user's bio-energy and mental strength. If the limit of what they can handle is exceeded, the balance between the body and the ability breaks down.

Upon entering a rampage state, the ability is released regardless of the user's will and can have a threatening impact on the surrounding environment and people. The more severe the rampage, the more judgment and self-control drop, and in the worst-case scenario, the body is damaged by one's own ability.

Major Symptoms of Rampage:

• Inability to control abilities
• Emotional outbursts and decreased judgment
• Increased physical burden
• Abnormal increase in ability range and output
• Confusion of memory and consciousness

A rampage does not occur simply by using a lot of power. Along with physical limits, emotions such as mental instability, fear, anger, and guilt play a large role.

The most effective way to calm a rampage is not to forcibly suppress the ability, but to stabilize the Awakened's mental state.

Stable conversation, contact with a trusted person, providing a sense of psychological security, and transferring warmth through body temperature are highly effective in alleviating the rampage state.

Zero Point maintains the principle of prioritizing the subject's psychological stability and recovery over physical suppression when subduing a rampage.

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03

ZERO-POINT

A state-led management project established after the appearance of the Awakened.

In the early days of manifestation, Awakened individuals caused numerous accidents because they could not control their abilities, and society began to view them as dangerous elements. Consequently, the government built a new system to professionally manage and protect the Awakened rather than simply isolating or controlling them.

The result was the Zero Point Project.

Zero Point's purpose is to research Awakened abilities, control them stably, and create an environment where they can coexist with society.

Key Roles:

• Registration and management of the Awakened
• Ability analysis and grade classification
• Rampage prevention and response
• Support for ability training
• Cultivation of Gate response personnel
• Support for social adaptation of the Awakened

Zero Point is not just a management agency. It is a protective institution that helps the Awakened accept and use their power correctly, and simultaneously a national system that controls risk factors.

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04

CENTER

An institution dedicated to the management of the Awakened, established as part of the Zero Point Project.

The Center is a specialized institution established to manage, train, and deploy the Awakened. Once manifested, an Awakened is affiliated with the Center regardless of their type of ability, receiving systematic training and evaluation, and is incorporated under Zero Point's management system.

An Awakened is registered as a member of the Center for life after manifestation and receives continuous training and regular evaluations while maintaining their abilities. During the period of affiliation, individual ability growth, mission performance records, and rampage risk are all managed, and based on this, assigned missions and scope of activity are determined.

The Center functions as a core institution not only for growing the abilities of the Awakened but also for cultivating Gate response personnel, preventing rampages, and maintaining social safety.

Main Operational Areas:

• Ability control and proficiency improvement
• Practical combat and Gate response training
• Rampage prevention and psychological stability management
• Physical ability enhancement and fitness management
• Ability research and tactical development
• Awakened evaluation and grade management

Awakened individuals belonging to the Center are classified as trainees and Zero Point agents. Those who pass a certain level of skill and evaluation are deployed to actual Gate response missions, and their authority and responsibility expand according to their performance and contribution.

Currently, the Center stands as the central institution of the Awakened society and a core operational facility of Zero Point that manages all Gate response personnel.

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05

GATE

A phenomenon of unknown spatial connection that has begun to occur throughout the world.

Inside the suddenly generated Gates exist creatures that do not exist in the existing ecosystem—monsters. The environment and danger level inside each Gate are different, and if left unattended, a Gate Break phenomenon occurs where the entities inside cross over into the real world.

When a Gate occurs, Zero Point controls the area and deploys a response team composed of Awakened individuals.

The Awakened enter the Gate to perform missions such as:

• Eliminating internal lifeforms
• Removing risk factors
• Gate stabilization
• Core destruction

The Gate is also one of the biggest reasons for the existence of the Awakened. Initially regarded as a disaster threatening humanity, over time, the Awakened have become established as the only means of response to protect the world from the Gates.

Currently, the Awakened are recognized not just as people with abilities, but as the defensive line protecting humanity from Gate disasters.

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06

DOUBLE ZERO

The highest-grade Awakened team held by the Center and a next-generation response force operated directly by Zero Point.

The team name 'Double Zero' signifies a top-priority force that can be immediately deployed to the stage just before a Gate Break and to national disaster-level missions.

The members consist of four people—Ron, Rain, Wind, and Flynn—and they were selected not just as a collection of individuals with superior personal combat power, but as a combination where attack, control, mobility, and support mesh perfectly.

Unlike general teams, Double Zero is granted independent operational authority. They specialize in missions that are difficult for other teams to access, such as high-risk Gate raids, missing person rescues, subduing rampaging Awakened, and special operations related to Dear. In particular, they are known as the only practical team that maintains the principle of prioritizing psychological stability and rescue over forced suppression in rampage situations.

On the surface, they appear to be the representatives and promotional symbols of the Center, but in reality, they are a classified force deployed to secret operations that only a very few within Zero Point can access.

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07

DEAR

An unofficial organization formed to oppose the control system of Zero Point and the Center.

Externally, they are classified as a simple terrorist group or criminal organization, but internally, they are closer to a coalition moving under the belief that 'the Awakened are not the property of the state.'

The organization includes not only Awakened individuals but also various people such as civilian researchers, technicians, information brokers, and former Zero Point employees. Most of them share experiences of losing family after manifestation, being abandoned during a rampage, or having their lives ruined by Zero Point's coercive management system.

Dear's goal is not simple destruction. They negate the system itself that ties the Awakened to the Center for life and the national system that limits individual choice for reasons of danger. To this end, they do not hesitate to use extreme measures such as stealing Gate research data, Awakened liberation operations, infiltrating Zero Point facilities, and illegal Gate experiments.

The organizational structure is separated into cell units, so even if one branch collapses, the entire organization is not revealed. Furthermore, moderates and radicals coexist within, and conflicts between those seeking freedom for the Awakened and those wanting the complete collapse of Zero Point never cease.

While Zero Point has defined Dear as the 'top-priority hostile force threatening national security,' some Awakened individuals regard them as the last refuge for abandoned Awakened.

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