People don't become strong overnight—unless they remember every pain.
That night, Ethan remembered everything: every drop of rain, every glance of pity, every heartbeat of betrayal.Memory had become both his weapon and his curse.
The morning wind carried the sharp scent of gasoline.Ethan leaned against his battered electric scooter, his whole body trembling—not from cold, but from overload.
Last night's memories flooded his mind in perfect sequence.Faces, streets, house numbers, flashing lights—hundreds, thousands of them—rushed through his head like a storm tide.He could recall every receipt's tip amount, every customer's tone, every turn of every street.
It was all too clear.So clear it hurt to breathe.
[Skill Activated: Enhanced Memory Lv.1][Side Effect: Cognitive Overload]
A sharp pain detonated behind his skull.Ethan fell to his knees, forehead pressed against the cold pavement.Tinnitus roared in his ears. Flashes of white seared behind his eyelids. Each breath came jagged, uneven.
This wasn't a miracle—it was punishment.
"Are you… helping me, or trying to kill me?" he rasped.
The light screen stayed silent for a heartbeat before a cold system chime echoed through his mind:
[Reminder: Weak emotions hinder evolution.][Suggestion: Rebuild self-worth through achievement.]
Ethan let out a hoarse, broken laugh."Even the System thinks I'm pathetic."
He pushed himself upright as sunlight cut through the gray sky, stabbing into his eyes.The city was waking—pedestrians filling sidewalks, engines rumbling, voices rising.Everyone hurried toward their own lives…while he stood among the ruins of his own.
He opened his phone. The next mission appeared, crisp and merciless:
[Mission 002: Establish a business entity][Objective: Register and complete one operational model within 7 days][Reward: Skill — Computational Foresight Lv.1][Failure: Skill rollback + memory degradation]
"Memory degradation…"The phrase sent a chill down his spine.
He finally understood—The System wasn't salvation. It was a wager with his own soul.If he slowed down, even for a moment, he'd be consumed.
Ethan drew a deep breath, gaze locking onto the city bathed in morning light.The streets glimmered as if last night's storm had never happened.But he remembered. He would always remember.
From this point on, there was no turning back.
"Alright…" His voice steadied, low and resolute. "Let's get started."
He wiped the thin trail of blood from his forehead and zipped up his soaked delivery jacket.The scooter engine coughed awake, growling like some wounded animal refusing to die.
Ethan twisted the throttle and merged into traffic.There was no hesitation in his eyes—only focus, sharp as glass.Every route, every red light, every possible shortcut calculated itself in his mind.
The city unfolded beneath him like a living circuit.Pain burned in his veins, but it only fueled him further.
His counterattack had begun.