The Last Ridiculous Deadline and the Most Absurd Contract

The air in Zen Kuon's cramped rented studio apartment smelled of stale coffee and failure.

On the 24-inch monitor that cast a pale blue glow onto his face, the render bar for a stop-motion animation finally hit 99%. That miserable project was a silly commercial for herbal diet pills, and Zen, a 25-year-old indie content producer, had sacrificed twenty hours of sleep for it.

Zen leaned back in his squeaky chair, scratching his thin stubble. "I make unfunny visual memes for garbage medication, while other people out there are living epic destinies," he muttered into the silence. The bitter taste of failure was his default flavor; he was desperately longing to experience a different life, yet he was trapped in a sad cycle of deadlines and overdue bills.

Just as the render bar solidified into a full 100% and a new notification for a payment extension popped up, his entire computer screen was abruptly blown out by a blast of golden-purple light. All software and icons vanished. In the center, a holographic interface—ancient yet magnificent—was carved in light, radiating a heavy aura, as if it originated from a distant galaxy.

[WELCOME TO THE QUANTUM LIFE EXPERIENCE SYSTEM (QLES)]

REQUIREMENTS: SOUL PACT AND ABSOLUTE OBEDIENCE.

REWARD: LIMITLESS LIFE EXPERIENCE.

You have reached the threshold of Existential Exhaustion. Do you accept this Contract of Destiny Change?

Zen stared at the text. A virus? A joke? Yet, the crushing weight of the interface banished his doubt. This felt like the final chance the Universe was willing to offer. What more did he have to lose?

With lethal exhaustion but a sudden spark of hope, he pressed: [ACCEPT AND BEGIN EXPERIENCE].

The moment Zen’s finger touched the interface, a chilling, electrical energy enveloped him. A voice, resonating like thunder in a vacuum, boomed inside his mind:

[CONTRACT CONFIRMED. FIRST KEY PROFESSION ASSIGNED.]

[LOCATION: ALTHEA — CRISIS WORLD LEVEL 8.]

[CURRENT KEY PROFESSION TASK: CATASTROPHIC ANIMATION CONTENT PRODUCER. MINIMUM 50 FRAMES WITHIN 48 HOURS.]

White light swallowed everything. Zen felt himself being forcibly pulled through reality. His body felt like it was being wrung out by different dimensions. As his consciousness collapsed, one final thought boiled up in his panic, overcoming his fear of death or transference:

Why... why do I still have a deadline no matter what world I’m in?!