It was Sunday morning — sunlight streamed through the curtains, dust floating lazily in the air. Ashley was folding laundry while humming, Hazel and Nicko played with building blocks on the floor, and Kyler sat quietly on the couch with his laptop.
The past week had been good. Too good, maybe.
The money from trading kept growing — quietly, cleanly — until the account crossed ₱100,000.
No one knew except him.
He had kept it that way, for safety.
But deep down, a thought had started to bother him. What if someone noticed?
If a co-worker checked his lifestyle, or some system flagged his growing balance — curiosity could turn dangerous.
Kyler didn't like attention. He wanted to live simple, unseen.
When the System's timer reset, he decided on his next creation. He typed it calmly, without hesitation:
> Skill Created: Phantom Trace.
Effect: Conceal the user's identity and movements from any detection. Allows sensing of harmful intent around the user.
The moment it activated, the world around him felt softer — quieter.
It wasn't dramatic. There was no sound, no light.
Just… stillness.
He couldn't explain it, but he felt the difference immediately. It was as if the air forgot he existed. His phone, his online accounts, even the faint hum of data that followed every action — all of it faded into background noise.
For the first time since the System appeared, Kyler felt truly invisible.
He stood by the window, watching people below in the street. The city moved like a current — busy, unaware. No one would ever know what he could do.
Then came the second part of the skill — faint, instinctive, almost like intuition. He could feel when something or someone carried ill will. It wasn't detailed, no names or visions, just a cold ripple through his chest whenever danger was near.
It was overpowered. Completely unfair.
But it was also… peaceful.
Kyler didn't test it. He didn't want to use it for anything reckless. He simply went back to folding clothes beside Ashley, pretending nothing had happened.
She smiled when he helped her. "You've been quiet lately, hon. Everything okay?"
He nodded. "Yeah, just tired. Work's the same."
She laughed softly. "You always say that."
He smiled. "Because it's always true."
They went on with their day — cleaning, watching cartoons with the kids, cooking lunch. Normal. Warm. Exactly how Kyler wanted it to stay.
Later that night, when everyone had fallen asleep, he opened the laptop one last time. His trades showed another quiet gain. He erased a few logs, keeping everything small and ordinary. Nothing suspicious. Nothing traceable.
He stared at his reflection on the black screen.
The man staring back looked the same — plain shirt, tired eyes — but there was something colder behind them. Not dangerous, just aware.
Phantom Trace wasn't just a defense. It was a reminder. The stronger he got, the quieter he needed to become.
He closed the laptop, stood up, and looked at his sleeping family.
Ashley's hand rested on Hazel's shoulder, and Nicko mumbled softly in his sleep.
Kyler smiled faintly. "Safe," he whispered.
The System didn't answer. It didn't need to.
The city outside glowed faintly under the night sky, unaware that somewhere in a small apartment, a man who could no longer be found by anyone chose to stay hidden — for them.