The city stretched far and wide, neon streetlights cutting through endless grids like glowing veins. I stood by the window of my workshop on the seventy-fifth floor, looking down at the streets below. From this height players and NPCs looked like tiny black dots, spells of every color streaking through the air. I activated the zoom function on my high-tech contact lens and narrowed my view. Finally, I could see clearly how players tested their spells, crafted their items, and argued over their newest Auto-Mode setups, relying on the system to do everything for them.
Most of them overrelied on Auto Mode. They didn't understand the system the way I did. I turned away from the window and sat on my office chair, spinning it to face the desk in my workshop. A sword blueprint and rare materials were neatly arranged around an incomplete blade in the center. I focused on it and activated Analyze.
[Incomplete sword]
[Rarity: High Rare]
[Completion Probability: 94%]
"Alright," I muttered. "Let's see if I can finish this and push it to a higher-tier rarity."
I picked up my tools and activated a skill from my secondary job, [Jack Of All Trades – Omni Crafting]. You're probably wondering what I was doing. I had recently created a unique job called Jack of All Trades, and this was the first true compatibility test with my primary job, [Mechanic]. Most players thought it was money-hungry, which was true, but they also believed it was bland and limiting, they were wrong.
I knew better. Anything created using Mechanic skills counted as technology. No restrictions. No limitations. No arbitrary rules. Whether it looked like a sword, a gun, or even a magical staff, once I built it, I could use it freely no exceptions.
I was using my hands and physical tools when this was just a game Because of Manual Mode. It allowed players to create anything freely, based on job, skills, knowledge, and control but it came with stress, a higher failure rate, and no safety nets. Players who couldn't handle it relied on Auto Mode, letting the system craft items automatically. Convenient. Safe. Perfect for those who liked gambling with probability. Not me. I liked control. I liked understanding why something worked or failed. That knowledge lets me push the system to its limits.
This was my world. The idea of creating anything piece by piece new spell formulas, combat techniques, skills, even entirely new jobs was intoxicating if you knew how to calculate, tweak, and push the system toward perfection. As I worked, the system updated.
[Completion Probability: 96%]
I lifted the incomplete sword and examined it. Its sleek cyberpunk design gleamed. The matte black blade had sharpened edges glowing with neon purple light. Thin cracks ran across its surface, pulsing faintly with energy. The hilt was etched with faint magical circuit conduits disguised as technology. Once completed, the blade's lethality would be terrifying.
{Image Here}
[Completion Probability: 98.7%]
The percentage didn't just measure how close it was to completion it also measured how close it was to a guaranteed upgrade. I would have liked to push it to Legendary, but my skill level and materials weren't high enough. I adjusted the energy output, aligned the conduits, and reinforced the hilt. In Manual Mode, every adjustment mattered. The system chimed.
[Assembly completed]
[Weapon Type: Melee]
[Rarity: Low Epic]
[Ability: Electrify]
I paused and exhaled softly.
"Your name will be," I muttered, "Purpify."
[Ding! Name Updated]
[Name: Purpify]
Below me, other players bickered over Auto Mode efficiency, completely unaware of the hidden low, mid, and high sub-tiers within each rarity. They would never reach the peak of a tier by relying on Auto Mode crafting. I smiled. Jack of All Trades gave me something no one else had a true edge that allowed me to combine skills, jobs, and techniques seamlessly.
I lifted Purpify and tested its balance. Sparks leapt from the edge as I swung, leaving trails of neon purple light that sizzled through the air. The cracks along the blade pulsed rhythmically, channeling the energy I had painstakingly calibrated. The hilt's magical conduits thrummed, resonating with each movement. It felt alive. Every adjustment I had made, every reinforcement in Manual Mode, proved its worth. A single strike could decimate a common to epic monster or an overconfident player.
Then everything changed.
A low, unnatural rumble shook the city. NPCs froze mid-action, spells hanging in the air like frozen droplets. Players stopped, eyes wide, bodies rigid. The world seemed to hold its breath. Red system notifications flashed urgently across my vision before vanishing, leaving a single, stark warning.
[Global Event Triggered: Reality Shift Imminent.]
Golden light pierced the clouds, and the wind rose, forming spiraling vortexes that twisted and roared like a living storm. I tried to Analyze the phenomenon. Nothing. Scanning players on the street, random numbers filled my vision and disappeared, just as the final alert appeared.
[Warning: After this event, death is permanent.]
[All players will be transported to a new world.]
Panic rippled through the city. Screams and nervous laughter filled the streets. Many players froze, unsure what to do. Losing avatars, jobs, and items terrified most of them and who could blame them? They had poured countless hours into the game, endured failure after failure, all while the outside world demanded everything.
Yet for those who truly understood the system, this chaos was an opportunity.
I tightened my grip on Purpify. Sparks arced along the blade, dancing and crackling. Energy surged through its circuits as the ground beneath me split, sending shards of code and light shooting into the air. I grabbed what I could and stuffed it into my inventory as white light engulfed me.
It felt like floating in space before suddenly falling, faster and faster, then slowing to a crawl. When I opened my eyes, the sky above was surreal green, faint auroras flickering like distant magic. Towering trees surrounded me, sunlight filtering through leaves, painting patterns across the forest floor. No neon lights, no ads, no signs of the city remained only raw, breathing wilderness.
Something was wrong. The breeze brushed against my skin unnervingly. The grass beneath my hands was damp and alive. The air smelled of wet earth and moss. Trees loomed like ancient giants, their branches creaking softly, and in the distance, something shifted.
"Animals…" I muttered, raising Purpify instinctively.
I steadied my breathing and summoned the system, which flickered into view.
[Name: Rylen Advent]
[Race: High Human]
[Primary Job: Mechanic (Max)]
[Secondary Job: Jack Of All Trades (Lv.50)]
[Gamemode: Manual]
Everything I had was intact. But this world was alive, too alive. If death was truly permanent then every action from now on mattered. My advantage was immense, but not infinite. As I looked into the forest's depths, I felt the pull of the first challenge: monsters, resources, and mysteries to uncover.
"I wonder," I muttered.
"How far my skills can reach in this world."