The morning bell rang through the concrete halls of Eastbridge High, sharp and metallic, like a warning siren. Students drifted in with the usual mix of boredom and bravado, their backpacks clinking with mana vials and dungeon scrolls instead of textbooks. Posters for the school's elite Dungeon Training Division plastered every wall—smiling S‑Rank alumni, dramatic action shots, bold promises of glory.
Carter Kane walked beneath them unnoticed, a shadow slipping through brighter lives.
He kept his head down. It was easier that way.
"Hey, Dead Last!"
The nickname hit him before he even turned. Lucas Brandt stood across the courtyard with his entourage, all three wearing reinforced training uniforms that gleamed under the morning sun. Their badges shimmered with polished silver—B‑Rank trainees.
Carter's badge was a dull bronze. Unranked. Practically a joke.
Lucas smirked. "Try not to embarrass us at the raid sim today. Wouldn't want the dungeon to eat you before the monsters do."
Laughter followed, sharp and predictable. Carter forced a thin smile, nodded once, and kept walking. His stomach twisted, but he swallowed it down. He was used to this.
Being invisible would've been a step up.
---
Third period: Hunter Tactics.
Mr. Hargrove stood at the front of the room like a statue carved from old battles—scarred face, mechanical arm, and a voice that could cut stone.
"Listen up," he barked. "Tomorrow's your field assessment in the Windspire Rift. It's unstable. If you're dead weight, your team will leave you behind."
He didn't look at Carter. He didn't need to. Everyone knew who he meant.
Around him, students tapped through their AR visors, reviewing skill trees and loadouts. Carter stared at his own interface.
Blank. As always.
> [NAME: Carter Kane]
> [RANK: Unranked]
> [CLASS: None]
> [STATS: …Unavailable…]
Seventeen years old and still no class. No system. No skills. He wasn't even allowed into beginner dungeons alone. The only reason he was going into Windspire was because the school needed warm bodies for the assessment.
A "learning experience," they called it.
Sure. If the lesson was how to die early.
---
The bus rattled through the outskirts of Eastbridge that afternoon, carrying them toward the rift gate. Carter sat in the back, watching the skyline warp as they neared the spatial fold. Above the city, a jagged blue scar split the air—flickering, unstable, humming with power.
The Windspire Rift.
"Just stay behind us," muttered Kiera, the only girl on his assigned team. She didn't look at him when she said it. "And don't do anything stupid."
Carter nodded. He had no plans to be a hero. He just wanted to make it back alive.
The gate shimmered as they crossed, and the world snapped into something else.
---
Windspire wasn't deep, but it was vicious. Jagged cliffs spiraled upward like broken teeth, and the wind howled through narrow passes with enough force to knock a grown hunter off balance. The air tasted metallic, charged with mana.
Lucas led the team with his glowing longsword, slicing through low‑level wind fiends with practiced ease. The others followed confidently.
Carter trailed behind, gripping a basic dagger that felt more like a prop than a weapon.
They fought. They advanced. They joked.
Carter flinched at every shriek, every gust of wind that felt too sharp.
Then the ground trembled.
A pulse of energy rippled through the dungeon, bending the air. Cracks spiderwebbed beneath their feet. A second rift tore open—violent, violet, wrong.
Something stepped through.
A hulking creature of smoke and bone, its form shifting like it couldn't decide what shape it wanted to be. Its eyes burned like dying stars.
> [WARNING: ENTITY CLASS — UNKNOWN]
> [DANGER LEVEL: EXTREME]
> [FLEE IMMEDIATELY]
Screams erupted.
Lucas ran first.
Then Kiera. Then the tank. Then the healer.
No hesitation. No backward glance.
Carter turned to run too—until he saw him.
Eli. A freshman. Frozen in place, trembling, tears streaking down his face. The creature loomed behind him, claws rising.
Carter didn't think.
He sprinted back.
Shoved Eli aside.
And took the hit meant for him.
Pain exploded through his body. He felt himself lift off the ground, slam into a rock wall, and slide down. Warmth spread across his chest. His vision blurred.
Red.
Black.
Nothing.
---
Cold.
Silence.
A weightless void, empty and endless. No pain. No fear. Just drifting.
Then a whisper—neither human nor machine—echoed through the darkness.
> [System Error Detected… Reinitializing Core Protocols…]
A soft blue glow flickered into existence.
> [SYSTEM REBOOTING…]
> [Welcome, Carter Kane.]
His eyes snapped open.
He was in his bedroom.
Alive.
Breathing.
But the world felt… different. Sharper. Brighter. Wrong and right at the same time.
A faint screen hovered in front of him, glowing with impossible light.
> [You have been selected for SYSTEM REBOOT.]
> [You are the only authorized user.]
> [Your journey begins now.]