Chapter 4: Ripples and Watchers
The days following the battle were restless.
Kai had made camp in the upper floors of a partially collapsed mall, one of the few spots in the ruined district that still had structure and cover. He slept lightly, the Water Goblin standing guard without needing rest. The city was quieter now—but that silence felt more like a warning than peace.
He'd spent most of the time learning.
The Water Goblin didn't speak often, but it responded to thought. When Kai wanted to practice, it showed him. When he needed support, it moved as an extension of his will.
Each exercise brought them closer in sync.
\[Soul Link Status: Active]
\[Elemental Bond: Water – Stable]
\[Current Elemental Sync: 21%]
\[Weapon Form: Bow of the Tides – Level 1]
\[Next Threshold: 25% Sync – Unlock Water Burst Skill]
Today, he stood on the rooftop of a crumbling apartment building, aiming his elemental bow toward targets made from rubble. The weapon shimmered like it was made of sculpted water, yet it felt solid and deadly in his hands.
He pulled the string, focusing not just on force—but flow.
An arrow formed mid-air, fluid turning solid at the moment of release. It struck the concrete dummy dead center, bursting into a splash that knocked the target back a foot.
Kai smiled faintly. "Getting better."
But progress came with questions.
He hadn't seen another like him. Others who awakened after the Rift gained system classes—fighter, mage, healer, assassin. Useful, yes. Powerful, sometimes. But none of them had summons. None of them had elemental weapons formed from the soul of a monster.
Why him?
He sat, breathing slowly, letting the wind cool the sweat on his forehead.
When the goblin had died in front of him, its body didn't just vanish. The element of water had lingered, resonating with its corpse. Kai hadn't even known what he was doing—he had simply reached out, trying to survive. The element responded.
The Soul Link system had awakened, not just because of Kai… but because the **element had chosen** the goblin as a vessel. And it had allowed itself to pass on through him.
The Water element had made its choice.
And now it flowed through both him and his summon.
---
Far from the city, in a black site bunker beneath the remnants of a military base, alarms pulsed low and red.
A group of researchers huddled around a large holographic display. On it, a recording played over and over: a young man forming a bow made of water, fighting with a summon beside him.
"Still no class reading?" one technician asked.
"None," replied a woman in a clean white coat. Her eyes were sharp, calculating. "He's outside the system's framework."
The director, an older man with a jagged scar over one eye, folded his arms. "Then he's either a threat... or a key."
---
Back in the city, Kai stood at the edge of the rooftop, watching smoke rise in the distance.
There were more dungeons. More monsters. More death.
He wasn't sure yet what he was supposed to do. But he had power now. A gift—or a curse—from something ancient, elemental, and alive.
And if the system wanted to watch him… let them.
He had only just begun.
\[Elemental Sync: 25% – Water Burst Unlocked]
His bow surged with energy. The next shot would be more than just water.
It would be a message.
End of Chapter 4