The boys—along with Nico—started going to the park every day to train.
At first, it was just routine. Push-ups. Running laps. Light sparring. Testing abilities.
But after a few days, Jordan and Riven both realized the same thing.
Joey was too skinny.
Not just lean—malnourished.
There was no way the boy could get stronger if his body had nothing to build with. No muscle. No reserve. No fuel. Training alone wouldn't fix that.
So after leaving the park one afternoon, they made a decision.
The next day, they showed up with food.
Real food.
Meals their parents had made—meat, rice, bread, vegetables. They didn't make a big deal out of it. They just handed it to Joey like it was normal. Like it was expected.
And they did it again the next day.
And the day after that.
Every single day.
At first, Joey ate quietly, clearly embarrassed. But slowly, his cheeks filled out. His arms stopped looking fragile. Color returned to his face. His movements grew steadier, stronger.
Healthier.
Two and a half weeks passed.
And then—
something finally changed.
⸻
[SYSTEM: LEVEL UP]
⸻
"Finally!" Riven shouted.
He straightened, flexing his forearm instinctively.
His body had changed—really changed.
The flabby skin he used to hate was gone. Muscle sat tight against his frame now, firm and defined. If someone saw him standing next to Jordan, there would be no doubt they were twins.
Identical faces. Same height. Same presence.
The only differences were obvious.
Riven was slightly bulkier, while Jordan stayed lean and sharp.
And their hair.
That was the only way their parents could reliably tell them apart.
Riven pulled up his status window.
⸻
[SYSTEM STATUS]
Riven Harlow — Level 2 (0/150 EXP)
Race: Human
Strength: 9
Speed: 8
Durability: 8
Health: 13 / 13
Energy: 13 / 13
Unassigned Stat Points: 1
⸻
All of his stats had gone up by two—purely from training.
Satisfied, Riven was about to close the window when another notification appeared.
Then another.
Then another.
⸻
[SYSTEM: NEW SKILL UNLOCKED — Green Whisper (Level 1)]
A passive healing skill.
Heals the user over time during combat.
Healing duration: 12 seconds.
Initial healing is slow, but effectiveness increases with upgrades.
⸻
Riven stared at it.
"…Not bad," he muttered.
Still, he had hoped for something more combat-oriented. Something aggressive.
Before disappointment could fully settle in, more notifications appeared.
⸻
[SYSTEM: CONNECTION STRENGTHENED]
Auto Absorption — ACTIVATED
⸻
"Auto… absorption?" Riven frowned.
He searched the description, but nothing else appeared. No explanation. No details.
Annoying.
"I'll check it later," he decided.
Then another alert pulled his attention away.
⸻
[SYSTEM: NEW TAB UNLOCKED — WEAPONS]
Weapon Tutorial Available.
Select ONE weapon type to receive guidance and compatibility analysis.
⸻
Now that's more like it.
That was exactly what he needed—something to help him fight properly.
Before he could open the tab, he noticed two more alerts waiting.
⸻
[SYSTEM: NEW SKILL UNLOCKED — Lock On (Level 1)]
Allows the user to perceive information others cannot.
Skill potential unknown.
⸻
The description was vague—far more than the others.
Which made it unsettling.
Riven saved it for later and moved on to the final prompt.
⸻
[SYSTEM: NEW TAB UNLOCKED — PARTY]
Allows the user to invite others into a Party.
Trusted members may become Bonded Party Members.
A Bonded Party Member is permanently connected to the user.
They continue to grow even when separated.
This bond cannot be revoked lightly.
⸻
Riven froze.
"…What?"
This wasn't just sharing power.
This was giving someone else access to the system—or at least a branch of it.
Levels. Growth. Visibility.
A double-edged sword.
The system made one thing clear:
Trust was mandatory.
There were only three people in the world Riven trusted with his life.
His mother.
His father.
And his brother.
He hadn't told his parents anything—not about the system, not about his lightning. Testing it on them would feel like betrayal.
But his brother?
That was different.
Later that day, as Riven was getting ready to head to the park, he suddenly grabbed Jordan by the shoulder and pulled him into their room, closing the door behind them.
"Riven—what are you—?"
"I need to test something."
Jordan frowned but listened as Riven explained everything.
The system.
The skills.
The new tabs.
Then Riven activated Lock On.
A translucent interface appeared beside Jordan's head.
⸻
[Jordan Harlow]
Level: None
Race: Human
Ability: Ink
⸻
Riven blinked.
"It's… similar," he muttered. "But different."
Jordan had no stats. No level.
Was it because Lock On was only level one?
Or because Jordan wasn't part of the system yet?
After explaining what he saw, Riven opened the Party tab and selected Invite.
⸻
[SYSTEM: INVITATION DETECTED]
You are inviting a person with whom you share a deep bond.
Do you trust this person with your life?
Would you like to designate them as a Bonded Party Member?
Y / N
⸻
"There it is again…" Riven whispered.
Something about the warning unsettled him.
Like betrayal wouldn't just hurt—it would break something.
But there was no hesitation.
This was the person he had been born beside.
The one who always stood up for him.
The one who never left.
His brother.
Riven pressed YES.
Jordan suddenly felt sick—like something had been added to him without permission. Power, weight, potential.
Then—
He saw it.
The system.
Floating in front of Riven.
And for the first time—
Jordan could touch it he could interact with it.
He grabbed the interface, pulling it closer, eyes wide.
"…So wait," he whispered.
"Does this mean I have a system too?"
"I don't know," Riven said honestly. "I think it's more like a branch of mine think, or say out loud "open system"."
Jordan swallowed, then focused.
"Open system."
Jordan chuckled like a madman as a separate screen unfolded in front of his face.
He let go of Riven's system that was in his hand, and focused fully on his own system.
It was nearly identical to Riven's—
except the stats were his.
⸻
[SYSTEM STATUS]
Jordan Harlow — Level 2 (0/150)
Race: Human
Strength: 8
Speed: 9
Durability: 7
Hp 13/13
Energy. 15/15
Unattributed Stat Points: 1
⸻
"Alright…" Jordan muttered, a grin spreading across his face.
Before he could celebrate further, a soft tap tap tap echoed.
Both boys turned toward the window.
A red-haired girl stood under the streetlight, tapping her forearm—her usual signal to hurry up.
Beside her stood a blond boy, his posture stronger, his complexion healthier than it had been days ago.
They met up outside and headed toward the park like usual.
As they walked, Riven fell silent, eyes drifting toward Nico and Joey.
There's no such thing as coincidence, he thought.
Meeting them… getting new skills… the system pushing me toward a party.
He shook his head.
Not yet. I don't know them well enough. Maybe once we reach the academy… maybe then.
"Hey, Jordan. You good?" Joey asked.
Jordan blinked. "Yeah. I'm fine."
He wasn't staring at the pavement.
He was staring at his system.
⸻
The run came first.
Twenty miles barely fazed the twins anymore. Nico struggled a little, Joey more than her—but they pushed through.
Afterward, everyone split off.
Joey moved to the pull-up bars.
Nico practiced controlling her flames.
Jordan and Riven stayed behind, opening a new tab together.
Tutorial.
Inside it—Weapons.
They'd seen guards carry weapons every day along the Dawn Walls. The glow, the craftsmanship… people stared at them like they were works of art.
When they opened the tab, weapon categories appeared—each branching into variations.
Sword.
Longsword.
Dual Sword.
"Didn't you say we could only pick one?" Jordan started—
But Riven had already made his choice.
⸻
[SYSTEM]
You have selected: Gauntlets
Would you like to begin the tutorial?
⸻
Riven walked off toward an empty section of the park, already preparing to train.
Jordan remained behind.
He stared at his own options.
After a moment… he chose.
Sword.
The grass beneath him faded as the tutorial activated.
The screen shifted—like a movie starting inside his mind.
⸻
A man with bleached white hair stumbled into view.
"Hello there," the man said casually.
"Welcome to weapons class."
His eyes sharpened.
"I'll be teaching you how to wield a sword.
A sword is not a toy. Once you choose this path—there is no going back."
⸻
[SYSTEM PROMPT]
Sword discipline detected.
Would you like to learn a sword style?
YES / NO
⸻
Jordan didn't hesitate.
He selected YES.
The screen shattered into branching paths.
⸻
[SYSTEM — MULTIPLE STYLES AVAILABLE]
Select one style to initiate synchronization.
[system: What style do you want to learn? Stillwind style breaker sword style flow step stylr iron root style rift edge]
Each sword style had three small dots beside its name—an option to expand, to see what that path would eventually lead to.
Jordan hovered over them one by one.
Descriptions bloomed into view: future techniques, combat tendencies, the kind of swordsman each style demanded.
Most of them promised power.
But one of them spoke to him.
The moment he opened it, something clicked.
⸻
[SYSTEM]
The Flow Step Style focuses on balanced offense and defense through constant movement.
By stepping, circling, and redirecting, you avoid damage while creating clean openings to strike.
Stopping reduces effectiveness.
⸻
Jordan exhaled slowly.
It wasn't about overpowering an enemy.
It was about control. About never being where the attack landed—while always being close enough to answer back.
The longer he stared at the description, the stronger the pull became
Jordan exhaled slowly.
It wasn't about overpowering an enemy.
It was about control—about never being where the attack landed, while always being close enough to answer back.
The longer he stared at the description, the stronger the pull became.
He made his choice.
⸻
The screen shifted.
Another video loaded, and the white-haired man appeared once more—this time standing in an open field beneath a clear sky, a single sword resting in his hand.
"You have chosen this path," the man said calmly.
"Now let me show you what this path has in store for you."
Without warning, he moved.
His advance was sharp, almost predatory—each step precise, each swing carrying the pressure of a charging beast. The blade cut forward in clean arcs, powerful enough to be lethal, yet never reckless.
But instead of committing fully, the man flowed.
He stepped aside at the last moment, letting invisible attacks pass where he had just been. His sword met resistance only briefly—parrying, redirecting—before slipping through open space to strike back.
Defense bled seamlessly into offense.
A block turned into a sidestep.
A sidestep became a cut.
A cut forced retreat.
He never stopped moving.
Jordan's eyes followed every detail—the footwork, the spacing, the way the man's blade always seemed to arrive after danger had already passed.
No wasted motion.
No hesitation.
Jordan didn't blink.
He studied it all, committing each movement to memory, already feeling his body itch to follow along.
This wasn't just a sword style.
It was a way of fighting that made sense.
When the white-haired man finished, he turned toward the screen.
"Now," he said simply, lifting a hand in a lazy wave, "you do it yourself."
The video froze.
Jordan blinked.
He looked down at his hands.
No sword.
No training blade. No system-generated weapon. Nothing.
For a brief moment, doubt crept in.
Then his eyes shifted to the side of the park.
A short length of metal pipe lay near the edge of the path—rusted, bent slightly at one end.
It'll have to do.
Jordan walked over and picked it up, testing the weight. It was crude. Unbalanced. Nothing like the blade he'd just watched.
But it was enough.
From a distance, Nico and Joey watched the twins with confused expressions. Riven had gone off to train alone, while Jordan stood in the grass holding a pipe like it was something precious.
Jordan planted his feet.
He didn't copy the man's stance exactly.
Instead of spreading his legs wide, he lowered his center of gravity and swept his foot across the ground, carving a rough circle around himself—a makeshift boundary.
He inhaled.
Then moved.
The first step was wrong.
Too stiff. Too slow.
The pipe swung wide, his balance shifting just enough that he had to stumble to keep from falling.
Jordan clicked his tongue and reset.
Again.
This time, he remembered the footwork. The constant motion. He stepped, circled, redirected—raising the pipe to block before turning it into a shallow counter.
The motion felt awkward.
His timing was off.
He overcommitted and nearly twisted his ankle.
He stopped, breathing hard.
Then started again.
Jordan focused on the white-haired man's movements—not the speed, not the power, but the flow. How each step fed into the next. How defense didn't pause before offense followed.
Step.
Turn.
Redirect.
The pipe scraped through the air, rough but controlled.
He messed up again—lost rhythm, feet crossing where they shouldn't—but this time he corrected mid-step, adjusting instead of freezing.
Sweat dripped down his temple.
He didn't stop.
Mistake after mistake, correction after correction, Jordan kept moving—learning, adapting, trying again.
And slowly…
The movements began to feel less like imitation—
And more like his own.
Time passed.
How much, Jordan didn't know.
He failed more times than he succeeded—missteps, uneven swings, moments where his balance nearly gave out completely. But each failure sharpened the next attempt, smoothing rough edges little by little.
That was when someone approached him.
Jordan looked up.
Nico stood a few steps away, a short metal pipe held loosely in her hands. Her expression wasn't amused or mocking—just curious. Interested.
"Hey," she said, nodding toward his movements. "You mind teaching me that sword skill too?"
Jordan hesitated.
"I think… I might go down that path when we reach the academy," she added honestly. "If they let us choose weapons, I mean."
Jordan didn't answer right away.
Instead, he glanced back at the space he'd been training in.
"Give me a minute," he said. "Let me try it three more times."
Nico stepped back without complaint.
Jordan returned to the circle.
Step.
Turn.
Redirect.
The first attempt was messy.
The second felt closer.
By the third, his body moved before his thoughts could interfere.
Something clicked.
⸻
[SYSTEM]
Flow Step Style — Level 1 Learned
⸻
Jordan froze.
A sudden rush flooded his mind—footwork patterns, timing cues, balance corrections. Things he'd only half-understood moments ago now felt clearer, heavier, more complete.
He staggered, gripping the pipe as the sensation faded.
So that's what it was…
When he finally looked up again, Nico was still waiting. Joey stood nearby too, watching quietly.
Jordan exhaled.
"Yeah," he said softly.
Then, louder—more certain:
"Yeah. I can teach you."
He looked between the two of them.
"Both of you."