Not long after that, the whole world was swept by waves of unexpected, drastic changes.
First, people realized that the Gates and the spaces behind them - which people started calling 'dungeons' - couldn't be left untouched. If they were, that led to the monsters escaping them, in what was referred to as 'dungeon breaks'. Why and how this happened was still unknown, the timings of the dungeon breaks after the Gates' appearances varied greatly, but the conclusion was one: the monsters in the dungeons had to be hunted down.
And so, the Awakened with combat abilities ventured into the dungeons to fight, frequently supported by military units armed with guns, at least in the early days, due to their low numbers. Through their enormous effort and sacrifice, they managed to bring the Gates under control, albeit fragile… And despite the countless casualties, the number of Awakened only grew, thanks to mass awakenings.
