"ETHAN! WAKE UP! OH MY GOD—I JUST GOT IT!"
Nathan burst out of his room, bare feet slapping against the floor as he ran down the hallway. He stumbled on the edge of the rug, caught himself on the wall, and kept going.
Heart hammering so hard it felt like it was trying to escape his chest.
"I JUST GOT THE SYSTEM NOTIFICATION!"
A door flew open.
Ethan stepped out of his room looking half-awake and completely unprepared, hair sticking up in uneven directions, shirt wrinkled like he'd pulled it on in a hurry. His eyes were unfocused.
"What?" he said. "What's wrong?"
Nathan barely stopped moving.
"I got it!" he yelled again, laughing at the same time, breath coming out in sharp bursts. "The system. It finally showed up."
Ethan blinked once.
Then again.
"…What?"
"I heard the sound," Nathan said, hands waving uselessly in front of him. "There was a window. Red. It said it was initiating."
For a moment, Ethan just stared at him.
Then his eyes widened.
"What?" he said again, louder this time. "You're serious?"
Nathan nodded hard. "I swear. I swear I'm not messing with you."
Ethan stared for half a second longer—then stepped forward and grabbed Nathan by the shoulders.
"You scared the hell out of me," Ethan said, half laughing, half breathless. "Do you have any idea what time it is?"
Nathan laughed too. It came out uneven and a little too loud.
"I don't care," he said. "I don't care at all."
Ethan pulled him into a rough hug, slapping his back once. "You idiot."
They were still standing there when another door opened slowly.
"…Who died?"
Lena stood in her doorway, rubbing her eyes with one hand. Her hair was a mess, and her shirt was twisted like she just got done rolling in her sleep.
Ethan let go of Nathan and turned. "Go back to bed."
"No," Lena said immediately. "You're yelling. Explain."
Nathan turned toward her, unable to stop smiling. "I got the system."
She squinted at him.
"…You what?"
"I got the notification," he said. "It finally came."
She stared for a second longer, then her eyes widened.
"Wait. Really?"
"Yes."
She rushed forward and hugged him, squeezing hard.
"You're serious?" she said. "You're not joking?"
"I'm not joking," Nathan said, laughing again.
"Finally," she said, pressing her face into his shirt. "I thought something was wrong with you."
"Hey," Nathan protested weakly.
Ethan rubbed his face with one hand. "Alright. Enough. Both of you."
Lena pulled back, looking between them. "So… does this mean he's a hunter now?"
"No," Ethan said immediately. "And it means you should be asleep."
"But—"
"Bed," Ethan repeated.
She pouted. "You're no fun."
Still, she shuffled back toward her room. At the doorway, she paused and looked back.
"Don't do anything stupid," she said to Nathan.
Nathan smiled. "I won't."
Satisfied, she disappeared and shut the door.
The apartment settled again.
Ethan let out a long breath and ran a hand through his hair. "Alright," he said. "What does it say now."
Nathan focused.
The red window appeared faintly in front of him.
[System Synchronization — 12%]
"12 percent." Nathan said while looking at Ethan with a wide grin.
Ethan's eyes widened. "That's fast."
Nathan nodded. "It says it has started synchronizing"
Ethan exhaled slowly. "That's good. That's really good."
After a moment, Ethan glanced at the clock. "You want coffee?"
Nathan nodded immediately. "Yes."
Ethan went to the kitchen.
Nathan stood there for a moment longer, then returned to his room. His computer was still on, screen dimmed but active. He sat down and immediately started typing.
"How long does system synchronization take?"
he hit search.
Forum posts filled the screen.
He clicked one, then another.
Most were useless. Complaints. Speculation. People arguing about personal experiences.
Then he found a longer answer, pinned near the top.
According to researchers and system scholars, the synchronization phase existed to establish a baseline. The system wasn't granting power yet. It was observing.
Body condition. Mental stability. Reaction patterns.
Stats.
Nathan leaned closer.
The post explained that once sync reached one hundred percent, the user would be able to access their status window. Until then, nothing could be viewed.
The status window wouldn't stay visible. It wasn't always there. It appeared only when the user focused on it.
That made sense.
Below the post, someone added historical context.
The system had appeared at the same time as the rifts. No one knew why. No one knew how. But without it, humanity wouldn't have survived the early years.
When monsters first emerged, ordinary weapons hadn't been enough.
The system had changed that.
Nathan thought about the livestream from earlier. The burning blade. The flaming arrows.
Without the system, none of that would have existed.
Nathan scrolled down the forum thread again.
He had already read the main answer twice, but his eyes were drawn to the comments beneath it. That was usually where the more practical information lived. Less theory. More lived experience.
One comment stood out. It was longer than most and had been upvoted enough to push it near the top.
It talked about stats.
Nathan leaned forward, reading carefully.
For a normal, untrained adult, most stats ranged between four and six. That was the baseline the system usually recorded. People who didn't exercise much tended to sit at the lower end. People who stayed active sat closer to six.
Olympic-level athletes were different.
They could reach seven or eight—but only in the areas they specialized in. A sprinter might have high agility. A weightlifter high strength. Rarely everything.
Nathan's pulse picked up.
He leaned back in his chair, staring at the ceiling.
"What am I going to get?" he muttered.
He ran through it in his head.
Strength? Probably not great. He wasn't weak, but he wasn't strong either.
Agility? Average at best. He could move when he needed to, but nothing impressive.
Endurance? Maybe a little better. He could sit for hours without noticing the time pass. That had to count for something. Right?
Intelligence—
He paused.
"High intelligence," he said quietly, testing the words.
Then he frowned.
He wasn't dumb. He knew that. But he wasn't a genius either. He'd always done fine in school. Never at the top. Never at the bottom.
He snorted softly.
"At least I'm not fat," he snickered to himself.
A shadow fell across his desk.
Ethan stepped into the room, holding two mugs. Steam curled lazily into the air.
"Here." Ethan said, handing one over.
Nathan took it. "Thanks."
Ethan glanced at the screen. "Still reading?"
"Yeah," Nathan said. "Trying to understand what's happening."
Ethan nodded. "Makes sense."
They stood there for a moment, neither speaking. Then Ethan gestured toward the balcony with his mug.
"Come on," he said. "Let's get some air."
Nathan followed him out.
The night was cool. The city stretched out before them, rows of buildings layered in dim light. It wasn't a spectacular view. No skyline. No shining towers.
But it wasn't bad either.
Distant warning beacons glowed faintly red near the edges of the safe zones. Traffic hummed far below. Somewhere, a siren wailed briefly and then faded.
They leaned against the railing.
Ethan took a sip of his coffee, then stared out at the city for a long moment before speaking.
"You know," he said, "I think I should come clean about something."
Nathan looked at him. "What?"
Ethan hesitated. "Part of me hoped you wouldn't awaken."
Nathan stiffened slightly.
Ethan noticed and raised a hand. "Not because I didn't want you to. Because I was scared."
Nathan stayed quiet.
"You always wanted to be a hunter," Ethan continued. "Ever since you were a kid. You talked about it all the time."
He exhaled slowly. "And I knew… if you got the system, you'd chase it. No matter what."
Nathan looked down at his coffee.
"I didn't want to lose you," Ethan said quietly.
Nathan swallowed.
"I get that," he said. "But you've already done enough for us."
Ethan turned to him.
"You took everything on yourself," Nathan continued. "After Mom and Dad. You didn't complain. You didn't stop."
He shook his head. "You don't have to do that forever."
Ethan studied him for a moment, then looked away again.
"…Mom would've liked hearing that," he said.
Nathan's chest tightened.
"She adored you," Ethan went on. "Always said that you felt things deeply."
He smiled faintly. "I wish she was here. To see you now. Talking about responsibility."
Ethan sighed and took another sip.
"Just promise me something," he said.
Nathan nodded. "What?"
"Be careful," Ethan said. "Don't rush. Don't take risks just because you think you have to."
He looked at Nathan seriously now. "Remember you've got siblings waiting for you at home."
Nathan nodded. "I will."
They stood there in silence for a while longer, the city breathing around them.
Eventually, Nathan returned to his room.
The red window hovered quietly in his vision.
[System Synchronization — 90%]
His breath steadied.
Almost there.
Nathan sat on his bed, hands resting on his knees.
For the first time in years, he didn't feel like he was standing still.
Whatever came next—
He would make it work.