September 14, 2026Saint Jude's Academy for Excellence
The air in the Great Hall was heavy with the scent of expensive floor wax and the rhythmic, frantic scratching of fifty fountain pens. It was the final hour of the Advanced Multivariable Calculus exam, a test designed to break the spirits of the brightest teenagers in the country.
Zeke sat in the third row, his posture relaxed to the point of appearing disrespectful. While the students around him—the heirs of oil magnates—were sweating through their blazers, Zeke was staring at a dust mote dancing in a beam of sunlight.
He had finished the exam forty minutes ago. For Zeke, the world had always been a series of solved equations. At Saint Jude's, he was known as the "Ghost Prodigy." He didn't just top the academic charts; he was the captain of the fencing team, a record-breaking sprinter, and a master of chess. He was an all-rounder in a world of specialists, possessing a body and mind honed to a razor's edge simply because he had nothing better to do with his time.
Instead of ambition, he was filled with a soul-crushing boredom. He had mastered his world too early, and now he was just waiting for the clock to run out.
Suddenly, the sunlight vanished.
The sky fractured, revealing a swirling void of bruised purples. Then came the vibration, a sound like a thousand glass bells shattering at once.
{THE 504TH HARVEST HAS BEGUN.}
{INTEGRATING EARTH INTO THE FIRST REALM...}
Zeke watched with a faint, predatory grin as his classmates vanished into white mist. When the light finally consumed him, he didn't fight it. He stepped into the kaleidoscope of warped reality with a single thought: Finally, a challenge.
{CONGRATULATIONS. YOU HAVE BEEN SUMMONED.}
Zeke opened his eyes in a vast, sterile white void. A translucent screen flickered before him.
{Welcome, Player 001-Earth.}
{Analyzing Soul and Physical Vessel...}
{Analysis Complete. Statistics are being calibrated based on your 'Mortal Life' achievements.}
{Status Window}
Name: Zeke
Rank: Rank E - Tier 0
Strength: 18 (Average Human: 10)
Agility: 19 (Average Human: 10)
Intelligence: 22 (Average Human: 10)
Constitution: 18 (Average Human: 10)
Charisma: 15 (Average Human: 10)
{Due to your exceptional 'All-Rounder' nature in the mortal realm, you have been granted unique starting Traits:}
Unique Trait: Psycho Rush
Effect: When adrenaline levels surpass a certain threshold, all physical and mental attributes increase by 50% for the duration of the combat. (Side effect: Emotional suppression).
Unique Trait: All-Rounder (Growth Type)
Effect: You are incapable of specialization. To maintain balance, your growth path is altered.
Standard Growth: Players receive +3 stat points per Minor Tier (distributed freely).
Zeke's Growth: You receive +1 to ALL five statistics (+5 total) per Minor Tier.
Major Rank Breakthrough: Upon reaching a new Rank (e.g., E-9 to D-0), you receive +10 to all stats (+50 total), while standard players receive +25 points to allocate.
Zeke stared at the screen. He realized the trap immediately. While he would always have more "total" power, a specialist who dumped all their breakthrough points into Strength would still hit much harder than him in a direct clash. He wouldn't be able to rely on brute force; he would have to use his entire toolkit to survive.
"Rank E-0," Zeke chuckled, his amber eyes glowing. "I'm starting at the bottom, but the foundation is perfect."
The white walls melted away. The scent of damp earth and fresh blood filled his lungs.
The Game had begun.