"All I wanted was a new beginning... but what I got was something else entirely."
– From Kain's thoughts
[Ding!]
[Evolution System – Delayed Activation]
In a single moment, everything froze.
The air around me grew thick, and the light dimmed as if the universe itself bent down to whisper something unspeakable. There was no other sound but that indescribable metallic chime, as if a distant cosmic machine had begun to move.
And suddenly, a transparent screen appeared before me, glowing with a faint blue hue, suspended in the air directly in front of my face.
✦ System is activating...
Host identity verified: "Kain Swan"
Age: 17
Level: 0
Due to delayed activation, you will be granted special compensation.
[Delayed Activation Reward – Rank: SSS]
Seal of the Supreme Power – [Soul of the Fallen Dragon]
Contains a fragment of the essence of an ancient celestial being, capable of tearing space and time.
The sealed power exceeds the current holder's capacity.
Automatic protection has been activated: The seal can only be broken in moments of extreme danger or by gradually strengthening the body.
Emergency uses: 3
Warning: Excessive use may lead to the shattering of the body or the collapse of the mind.
I stared at the screen, my mind a blur, stunned by what I was reading.
Soul of the Fallen Dragon? SSS-rank?!
I didn't need video game experience or fantasy novels to understand how rare this classification was. I was obsessed with this kind of system in my past life. SSS meant the pinnacle of power, a rule-breaking ability... but, as expected... nothing this powerful comes without a price.
"It can only be activated in extreme danger, or after gradually strengthening the body?"
I looked down at the screen, and a new interface appeared with the title:
✦ Host's Basic Status
Name: Kain Swan
Race: Human
Level: 0
Progress: 0/10
Available Status Points: 0
[ Strength ]: 7
[ Agility ]: 6
[ Intelligence ]: 9
[ Vitality ]: 7
[ Defense ]: 5
[ Stamina ]: 6/6
I read it over and over, scrutinizing every number, every note.
My stats... are almost normal, nothing extraordinary. Just conventional numbers… nothing that stands out for a young man my age.
Then a new screen appeared:
✦ Active Sections in the System
– Status [✓]
– Quests [✓]
– Shop [✕ – Locked until Level 1]
– Inventory [✕ – Locked until Level 10 or by using 10 SP]
– Skills [✕ – No current skills]
Notes:
Experience Points (XP): Used to level up Free Points (Fp): Used to raise status stats Shop Points (SP): Used to purchase items or unlock sealed functions
✦ Generating the first guided quest...
Contact a member of the Cullen family.
Time limit: 10 hours.
Reward: 10 XP, and 2 SP
✦ Generating the first daily quest...
Run for a distance of 1 km
10 Push-ups
20 Squats
Time limit: 24 hours.
Reward: 6 FP.
I stood there, in the middle of the nearly empty school hallway, facing what seemed like an invitation.
An invitation to survive... or to be destroyed.
"Is this a dream? Was I so late that I became the side character in my own story?"
I had always dreamed of having a system, a power, something that would make me special.
But I never imagined that the price would be... all this waiting, and all these restrictions.
I raised my head, looking at the gray sky above "Forks".
Here, in this small, rainy town, my real story will begin.
And I didn't know that the system... was just the beginning.
🌀[End of Chapter Two]
✦ Next Chapter: "The Beginning of the Quests... and the First Cullen Encounter"