When the two boys were sneaking back into the room, they expected one of three things to happen.
One: their parents would be waiting for them, having discovered that the twins were gone.
Two: Joey would be awake after his sleep.
Or three: nothing at all—both parents asleep, and the two of them able to sleep the next day away like nothing happened.
But behold, option number two was the correct outcome.
Joey was awake—wide-eyed, pale, looking like he had just crawled out of a nightmare.
"Hey, Joey," Jordan said groggily, barely standing as he dragged himself toward his mat. All he wanted was sleep.
"Guys—guys—you won't believe what happened to me. I mean, I know you probably won't believe me because they said it happened to you too, but—"
Before Joey could finish, Jordan collapsed onto his mat and was out cold.
"I guess that took a lot out of him," Riven thought.
It doesn't seem like Joey wants to know where we've been. I say we keep it that way.
Riven found his scapegoat in his brother. He mimicked Jordan, acting just as exhausted, letting himself slump down onto his mat. He pretended to fall asleep—until, a few seconds later, he actually did.
"Oh, come on," Joey thought.
He stood there, conflicted. What he experienced felt real. Too real. And the person—no, the version of him—that spoke in his head had said the same thing happened to Riven and Jordan.
The only way to truly confirm it was to ask them.
But both boys were asleep.
Joey wasn't stupid. He knew they'd done something wrong—something they weren't supposed to do at all.
And yet… here he was, alone with his thoughts.
⸻
Two hours later, the door opened.
"Oh, you're awake—and those two are still asleep?" Candice said softly as she stepped inside.
Joey stood near the window. He didn't want to walk around the house—it wasn't his, and he felt that would be disrespectful.
"Come on," she said kindly. "I made breakfast."
Joey nodded and carefully stepped over the twins as he followed her out.
On the table were three plates—eggs, sausage, and bacon.
A perfect breakfast. The kind you only ever see in fiction.
After a small prayer, Joey ate quickly, making sure to finish every last bite. When he was done, he thanked Candice and washed his plate himself, using as little water as possible.
"If you don't mind me asking—and this is no offense—but why aren't you in the factory today?" Joey asked.
He'd been over enough times to know their schedule.
"Oh, they gave both me and Kaden time off," Candice replied. "We tried to ask if we could work anyway, but they wouldn't let us."
She turned on the TV, flipping through channels.
Joey was just about to head back to the room to try talking to the twins when—
"Oh my…" Candice whispered.
Joey heard the tension in her voice.
"Did something happen?" he asked—but stopped mid-sentence when he saw the screen.
"Today on Dawn Wall News: Alicia Cross, the widow of Carver Cross, has been arrested by Dawn Guards for child abuse crimes. This revelation comes as a shock to many, as reports suggest the abuse has been ongoing for years. Citizens now question whether the Guards will truly protect the people and enforce the legal system."
"Shit," Joey whispered.
He bolted for the door.
He needed to see if his mother was still there—though deep down, he already knew the answer.
The moment he opened the door, he froze.
A man stood there, fist raised, ready to knock.
He wore a red and white–silver uniform.
"Ah, thank you for opening the door for me, young man," the man said—then paused.
"…Ah. There you are. I knew you were here. Good. Then this should be the correct choice."
"Oh my god—Kaden!" Candice yelled.
⸻
Minutes later, Joey was ushered back into the room with the twins while the adults spoke in the dining area.
"Now," the man said calmly, "you must've heard the news. Alicia Cross has been arrested for child endangerment."
"Yes," Candice replied. "We just saw it."
Kaden, though still catching up, understood quickly.
"We were searching for the boy," the man continued, "but had no leads—until reports stated he'd been seen frequently with your sons. Riven and Jordan."
"Y-yes, sir," Kaden said quickly. "They're very close friends."
He spoke carefully. This man held power—real power. One wrong word could ruin their children's futures.
"Good," the man said. He handed them a stack of papers, a pen, and a black steel card.
"What… is this?" Candice asked, though she already knew.
"Adoption papers," the man replied. "Or rather, the beginning of them. We want you to take the boy in—at least until the academy."
The parents' eyes widened.
"I'm sorry, sir," Candice said. "But we don't have the money to support three boys. We barely manage with two."
"That's why this exists," the man said, sliding the card forward. "One hundred thousand units."
Silence.
They had never imagined holding that amount of money in their lives.
"I have a question," Kaden said, lifting the card.
"Yes?"
"If we say no… do we keep the card?"
Candice stared at him in shock.
The man smiled. "Yes. You do."
Kaden laughed softly. "Good. Joey—get in here!"
Joey slowly stepped forward, rubbing his shoulder.
"Y-yes, sir?"
Kaden placed the card into Joey's hand.
"Then this isn't our choice," Kaden said, patting his shoulder. "With this much money—and the academy coming up—you'll be fine on your own."
Joey hesitated.
He's right… I won't need anyone.
Then a voice echoed in his mind.
Is that really what you want?
Your mother had money—and you were still alone. Did you like being alone?
"No…" Joey answered silently.
Then why give this up? You can have a mother who cares. A father who's here. Two brothers who could understand what you're going through.
Candice has already been a better mother than your own ever was.
Joey swallowed.
"I want to get adopted," he said aloud.
"Good choice," the man said, sliding the papers closer.
"Are you sure?" Kaden asked one last time. "This is permanent."
"Yes," Joey said firmly. "I'm sure."
"All right, good, good," the man said. "This isn't all the paperwork. You'll need to come in for the rest of it. I'd advise doing it now while you have time off."
"Um… sure. Let us get ready," Candice said.
She gently pushed both herself and Kaden toward their room to change. When they came back out, ready to go, she turned to Joey.
"Tell the boys what's going on," she said firmly. "And tell them that if they have anything against it, it's final."
She handed him a card as well.
"Just in case you're hungry while we're gone."
As they walked outside, Kaden couldn't help himself.
"Excuse me, sir," he said, "but what is your name?"
"My name is Damien," the man replied calmly. "I'm a direct descendant of the Dawn Faction."
"A direct descendant?" both Candice and Kaden exclaimed at the same time.
"Yes," Damien said as they stepped into a car parked in front of the house—one that immediately drew the attention of several curious neighbors.
A direct descendant was someone who came straight from the bloodline of one of the main factions.
Most of the four major factions had developed in a similar way: four powerful groups had merged into one, forming a single faction. With the introduction of evolved abilities, these factions rose to a level comparable to the government itself.
However, two factions did not follow this structure—the Broken Veil and the Dawn Faction.
Instead of splitting their knowledge among multiple leaders, everything was passed down to a single individual. This made their direct descendants far more unique—and far more mysterious—in the public eye.
⸻
Three hours later, the boys finally woke up.
They hadn't expected the news waiting for them.
"So… you're our brother now?" Jordan said, his eye twitching.
"Uh… yeah," Joey replied nervously. "Is that a problem?"
"What? No," Riven said quickly. He could tell why Joey had done this—the boy wanted a family.
"It's just… we went to sleep tired as hell, and now we wake up with a new brother."
He gave Joey a small smile.
"But we're happy you're staying. You're gonna have a better time here than you did with your mom."
The moment Riven said that, he noticed Joey's expression falter. The hurt in his eyes made it clear—despite everything, Joey still had feelings for his mother.
Jordan noticed it too.
"Sorry, man," Riven said quietly, not wanting to push the wound any deeper.
"It's okay," Joey said, waving a hand. "Do you guys wanna go out and exercise?"
He changed the subject a little too fast.
"Oh, no," Jordan replied nervously. "We've had our fill this week."
"Good," Joey said quickly—almost like he didn't want them to say yes in the first place.
Then he paused and looked at Riven.
"Riven… what's a system?"
Both brothers froze.
"So it is true!" Joey blurted out.
"H-How do you know?" Riven asked, completely caught off guard.
"I guess we should compare notes," Joey said with a nervous laugh.
The three of them sat down together as Joey began explaining what had happened to him. With every word, the shock on Riven and Jordan's faces grew.
"So… you know what's going on?" Joey asked once he finished.
"Kinda," Jordan said, rubbing his temple like the headache was already forming.
"Okay. So yeah—we all went through the same thing. Riven was first. Then me. Then you."
"At first, we thought it might be a bloodline thing," he continued. "Since we'd never heard of this happening to anyone else. But now that it happened to you too, it means this might've happened to other people before."
"Yeah, but why is it happening?" Joey asked. "And are they even real? Our future selves—or just… things in our imagination?"
"You kinda debunked that yourself," Riven said.
"How so?"
"We never told you about the system," Jordan said. "Or what it can do. Yet you said that version of yourself knew about it."
Jordan leaned back slightly.
"He also knew about the party tab. That's something we didn't even explain. They know things we don't."
Before anyone could speak again, a familiar notification appeared.
⸻
[SYSTEM MESSAGE]
You have been invited to a party.
Accept?
Y / N
"Riven, did you forget what yourself said?" Jordan asked his brother.
"Don't worry," Riven replied, waving it off. "He already knows about the system. And it looks like he's in the same situation we are."
Riven glanced at Joey.
"He even advised me to invite him to the party. And he's our brother now—why shouldn't we trust him?"
Before either twin could say anything else, a soft chime echoed in the air.
⸻
[SYSTEM PROMPT]
Accept invitation?
[YES] / [NO]
⸻
Joey swallowed and selected YES.
The moment he did, another notification appeared.
⸻
[SYSTEM MESSAGE]
You have invited Joey Cross to your party.
A regular party member has been added.
This party member does not yet possess stats.
Stats will unlock once the bond with the user deepens.
"So… what now?" Joey asked.
"Truthfully? I don't know," Riven shrugged.
"The version of myself said we see them whenever something big happens in our lives. I guess you meeting us counts as big."
He paused.
"We'll probably see them again when we get to the academy."
"Oh—right. Thanks for reminding me," Joey said. "Myself said something too."
Both twins looked at him.
"He said to hold back when we get there."
"To hold back?" Riven frowned. "Why?"
"I don't know," Joey admitted. "That's all he said. Just… hold back."
"I don't like this," Jordan said quietly. "Your version is telling us to hold back, Joey. Mine told me to prepare to see death."
He crossed his arms.
"I wonder if those two warnings actually line up."
"We should train more," Joey said, half to himself. "Be prepared."
"Calm down, tiger," Riven chuckled. "Honestly, I don't see us getting much stronger just by training normally."
He thought for a moment.
"The only real way to speed things up would be going out and trying to cause conflict."
"…Like fighting?" Joey asked nervously. He still wasn't used to the idea of having power.
"Yeah—and I knew you'd be against that," Riven said. "But even if we trained every single day, we'd probably only reach, at most, Level Five."
"And that's assuming Mom and Dad don't stop us," Jordan added. "Which they definitely will, especially during the last month. They'll want 'family time.'"
Riven let out a small sigh.
"So how about this? We grab something to eat, then think things through later."
He took the card back from Joey.
"I know a place. Come on."
Riven headed out the door, with Joey and Jordan following behind him. As the three walked, Jordan's eyes narrowed slightly—an idea forming in his mind.
Lock on, he thought.
A faint shimmer appeared in his vision.
⸻
[SYSTEM SCAN]
Name: Joey Cross
Ability: Light
Awakening Level: 3
⸻
Jordan stopped walking.
"…Awakening Three?"