Chapter 2 002
JOLT!
Kael Voss shot up from his bed, his entire body drenched in cold sweat as his heart pounded violently against his chest.
“What the hell…?” he muttered in confusion, eyes darting around the familiar small dorm room.
“How am I back here? Why aren’t I dead?”
The last thing he clearly remembered was stepping off the edge of the nine-story rooftop. The wind. The fall. And then…
A glowing holographic screen had appeared right in front of him while he was falling, followed by a cold robotic voice.
[TALENT ACTIVATED]
Before Kael could process what was happening, the same translucent blue screen materialized in front of his eyes again, causing him to flinch backward and tumble off the bed.
[SCAN COMPLETED]
[TRANSFER COMPLETED]
[CALL ON SYSTEM INTERFACE TO VIEW YOUR STATS AND QUESTS]
Kael stared at the floating window in shock and disbelief. “Have I gone mad? Is this what happens when you die?” He rubbed his eyes vigorously and opened them again, but the screen remained.
“It’s still here…” he whispered.
Hesitantly, he reached out to touch it, but his fingers passed straight through like it was made of light.
After a moment of hesitation, Kael muttered uncertainly, “System Interface.”
Instantly, the previous screen vanished and a brand new, more detailed panel appeared before him.
---
[ROAD TO BECOMING A HERO]
NAME: Kael Voss
LEVEL: 0
AGE: 16
RACE: Human
TITLE: None
HP: 10/10
TALENT POINTS: 10/10
ATTRIBUTES
Strength: 5
Speed: 5
Agility: 5
Bravery: 5
Reflex: 5
(Available Points to Distribute: 5)
TALENTS / ABILITIES
Talent Detector (Lv.5): User can analyze and discern other people’s talents.
Lightning Speed: Once activated, the user can move at extreme speed, causing the surroundings to appear frozen. (Cost: 5 Talent Points per use)
Talent Drain: User can drain the talent of others and add it to their own.
INVENTORY
No weapons currently stored.
DAILY QUESTS
Run 10km: Reward 5 Attribute Points
Lift a total of 10kg: Reward 5 Attribute Points
Complete 10 Push-ups: Reward 5 Attribute Points
OPTIONAL QUEST
Drain a talent to gain an instant level up.
Kael’s eyes widened in amazement as he read through everything. “This… this is just like the games I used to play.”
A spark of hope ignited in his chest. If this system was real, then he finally had a way to become strong. No more being stepped on. No more enduring daily humiliation.
He could finally get revenge on everyone who treated him like trash.
Still doubting, Kael decided to test it. “Put all 5 points into Strength.”
A warm surge of energy instantly flowed through his body.
[Strength: 10]
Kael stood up, walked to his bed, and gripped both sides of the wooden frame. With a low grunt, he lifted the entire bed off the ground.
Ting!
[Lift 10kg Quest Completed! +5 Attribute Points]
“Phew…” He gently set the bed down, breathing heavily. “It actually works.”
Still not fully convinced about how much stronger he had become, he dropped to the floor and started doing push-ups.
One… two… nine… ten.
Ting!
[10 Push-ups Quest Completed! +5 Attribute Points]
Kael smirked. The push-ups had felt noticeably easier than usual. Without wasting time, he added the new points.
“Add all points to Strength.”
[Strength: 20]
He grabbed the bed again. This time, it felt as light as a feather.
“There’s no doubt anymore,” Kael whispered, a dangerous glint appearing in his eyes. “I’m really getting stronger.”
A cold smile formed on his lips as he clenched his fists.
“So all I have to do is complete quests and level up… If that’s the case, then I’ll go from being the biggest trash in this academy to the greatest hero this world has ever seen.”
His voice dropped to a whisper filled with venom:
“And those who looked down on me… I’ll drain every last drop of their talent and turn them into worthless nobodies.”
---
Meanwhile, somewhere deep in Oak City…
Inside a faded black mansion hidden within a dense forest, an underground chamber was dimly illuminated by flickering blue candles.
Twelve figures dressed in long black robes and hoods sat around a large round table. At the center of the table stood thirteen candles. Twelve burned with bright blue and red flames, while the thirteenth had remained dark for years.
A deep voice broke the silence.
“I welcome you all to this emergency meeting.”
Before the speaker could continue, the thirteenth candle suddenly flared to life, burning brighter and more intensely than all the others.
The entire group shot to their feet in shock.
“Impossible!” one of the leaders exclaimed. “We have Master Harlan’s core… so how is the candle lit?!”
The man called Barnes slowly pulled out a small black orb from his pocket — an exact replica of the one Kael possessed.
“This is the fake,” he said grimly. “The real core has been ac
tivated by someone else. If the wrong person inherits Master Harlan’s true talent… we all know what kind of disaster that could bring.”
