Riven made his way into the tall dormitory building.
As soon as he stepped inside, he saw a massive open area filled with tall locker-like structures lining the walls. At the far end of the room stood an elevator—its doors already open, as if it had been waiting for him.
Riven walked inside.
The elevator panel displayed numbers ranging from B1–10, then B11–20, all the way up to B90–100.
His eyes widened.
So… I'm on the top floor, he realized.
Riven pressed 90, watching as the doors began to close.
He'd never been in an elevator before. He'd heard stories—how rich people used them all the time—but this was his first experience. He found himself oddly fascinated.
Just before the doors shut, two boys rushed in.
"Hey! Can you hold that?" one of them asked.
Riven quickly reached out and stopped the doors.
"Thanks," said a blue-haired boy as he stepped inside. Beside him stood a tall, dark-skinned boy with a powerful build.
"Riven?" the blue-haired boy asked.
"Uh… yeah," Riven replied cautiously. "Do I know you?"
"We've got a lot to talk about," the boy said with a smile.
He glanced down at the panel, and his smile widened even more.
"Looks like you picked the right floor. Me and Leo are going there too."
"Okay… that's cool," Riven replied.
Still, an odd sense of déjà vu crept over him.
⸻
The elevator chimed as it reached the top.
The doors opened, revealing what looked like a small lobby, almost like something you'd see in a hotel. The floor was clean, the walls polished. Several doors lined the hallway.
Riven spotted his immediately.
B90.
He walked up and scanned the number into his wristwatch. The device lit up, transforming into a pseudo-key. The door clicked open.
Inside, the room was simple.
Six beds lined the walls in a straight layout. Each bed had a desk beside it. A small round table sat in the center of the room.
As Riven stepped inside, a bag suddenly appeared beside him—materializing out of thin air as if it had been waiting for him.
"Whoa… cool," he muttered.
He grabbed the bag and tossed it onto the end of the bed he chose.
"Oh—right, the door."
Riven turned to close it, but a hand stopped it midway.
He looked up.
Leo stood there.
"Oh—sorry," Riven said quickly. "Didn't mean to shut it on you."
"It's fine," Leo replied calmly.
Something compelled Riven to glance at Leo's wristwatch.
When he did, his eyes nearly popped out of his head.
[1]
…One?
So he's the strongest first-year, Riven thought, stunned.
Riven stepped aside as Leo entered. A bag appeared beside Leo instantly. Another appeared as Harkel walked in right after him.
"Wait," Riven said. "You two are in this room too?"
"Yeah," Harkel replied casually. "Told you we had a lot to talk about. Let's wait for Jordan and Joey first, though."
Harkel dropped his bag on the bed directly opposite Riven's.
Riven hesitated before speaking.
"That guy I fought… do either of you know his ability? Like the specifics of his Fiction Evolved power?"
Leo tilted his head slightly.
"You mean the entire ability?"
Riven nodded.
"In my opinion," Leo said, "it would be smarter to research it yourself. The academy library should have records on real-world abilities and fictional ones—Forced, Natural, and Fiction Evolved alike. If you want accurate information, start there."
"Noted," Riven replied.
The door opened again.
"You."
Riven turned to see Luka pointing straight at him.
"Yo," Riven said.
"Thanks for what you did during the second exam," Luka said, rubbing the back of his head. "If you hadn't helped me, I probably would've gotten an even worse rank than I already have."
Riven glanced at Luka's wristwatch.
[859]
That's… bad, Riven thought. Still—he passed.
I promised his dad. I'll protect him.
"Welcome, my final party member," Harkel said, extending his hand.
Luka shook it instinctively, then paused.
"Uh… excuse me," Luka said. "What do you mean by 'party member'?"
"Wait for Jordan and Joey," Harkel replied. "Then I'll explain."
There it is again, Riven thought. He's talking like he already knows them.
Before he could say anything, the door opened once more.
Jordan and Joey stepped inside, their bags spawning beside them instantly.
"Good," Harkel said. "Everyone's here."
Jordan glanced at Luka.
He's going to be a problem, Jordan thought. He didn't experience what the rest of us did.
"There's no need to keep secrets here," Harkel said. "I think it's time we're honest with each other."
"What secret?" Luka asked, clearly confused.
"Riven?"
Riven blinked. He had no idea what Harkel was referring to.
"Your system," Harkel started. "The thing that allows you to—"
Jordan clamped a hand over his mouth.
"Are you insane?" Jordan whispered sharply. "There's no way there aren't cameras in here."
"Oh, relax," Harkel replied after Jordan removed his hand. "Since the Clinton Games are happening, no Voss family rooms have cameras installed."
"Can someone explain what the hell is going on?" Luka shouted. "I'm the only one completely in the dark here!"
He took a breath.
"If I'm going to be stuck with you guys, I need honesty."
"I say we sit at the table," Harkel said calmly. "I've been waiting for this moment."
They all gathered around the round table.
"Go in order," Harkel continued. "Tell Luka what happened to you. Me and Leo already know… somewhat."
Riven looked at Jordan.
Jordan nodded and mouthed, They know. Be honest.
Riven swallowed.
"Hello, everyone," he said. "As you know, my name is Riven Harlow."
He paused.
"My main ability… isn't lightning."
He exhaled.
"It's a system."
" "A… system?" Luka questioned, clearly unsure if he'd heard that right.
"Yes," Riven replied. "Like something based on RPG games. You know—leveling up, stats, skills, all that."
"I know a bit," Luka said quickly.
He was lying.
"Yeah… I got my system from the video game Legend of the Evolver."
Harkel's eyes narrowed slightly. "Wait—so you got a system reward?"
"No," Riven said, confused. "What's a system reward?"
"It's nothing," Harkel replied, waving it off. "Continue."
Riven nodded.
"Long story short, I was messing around in the game. At some point, I found an item that let me travel to any legendary location of my choosing… but it depended on my blood."
Luka frowned. "Your blood?"
"It took some of it," Riven continued. "After that, I was teleported to the Land of the Fey. The system said I'd meet a king there… but instead, I met a god."
"…A god?" Luka muttered.
The entire thing sounded like pure fantasy.
That was—until Riven reached into thin air.
An item materialized in his hand.
He placed it on the table.
A red spear, its surface scarred and darkened as if blood had been permanently soaked into the metal.
"Where did that come from?" Luka asked sharply.
"My inventory," Riven said firmly. "Because I have a system."
He met Luka's eyes, serious now.
"That god put me through hell. Real pain. I still get nightmares about it. It wasn't some illusion—it hurt. Every second of it."
Riven clenched his fists.
"But after everything… he said he'd give me one gift. And I guess what I said led to him giving me the system."
He paused.
His gaze shifted to Jordan.
Jordan nodded. "Keep going, Riven. This is the part we need to talk about the most."
Riven swallowed.
"I met another version of myself," he said quietly. "Someone who might've been… my future. At first, I thought it was just in my head."
He hesitated.
"Until—"
"Until it happened to me," Jordan said, finally speaking up.
"After Riven told me about the system and we drank a potion he got from the game, I also met a future version of myself. Mine was different from his. His felt more like an introduction… while mine was more of a warning."
Jordan exhaled slowly.
"Long story short, my future self said: Prepare to see death. I still don't fully know what he meant, but I've been getting more nervous every second since. I'm here, though. And it feels like every time we see those versions of ourselves, it means something big has already happened—or something is about to change."
Joey swallowed and raised his hand nervously, like he was being called on in class.
"Me," he said quietly.
Everyone turned to him.
"When I got my vision, it was different from both of yours. Your visions had something to do with the system. Mine happened before I even knew the system existed."
Joey hesitated, then continued.
"When I met my future self, he told me about the system and said I needed to convince Riven to invite me earlier—so I could grow stronger. I think I got my vision when I did because Mrs. and Mr. Harlow were about to adopt me."
He stopped there, clearly unwilling to say more about what had happened—or why the adoption mattered so much.
Jordan broke the silence.
"So… what about you two?"
Riven frowned. "What about them?"
Jordan gestured toward the others.
"They went through the same thing we did—meeting another version of themselves. From what Harkel said, his future self even mentioned the three of us… and Wren Fallow."
"Who?" Riven asked.
Jordan just shrugged. "I don't know. Your guess is as good as mine."
"Ahem." Harkel prepared.
"I met my future self after the Clinton Games began . He told me there was a way for me to become king—but only if I gathered four strong allies. Allies who would play a major role in everything that comes next."
He looked around the group.
"That's when he mentioned all of you. When I went to talk to Leo about it, he wasn't on board at first… until the next day."
Harkel bumped Leo's shoulder lightly.
Leo scratched the back of his head.
"Yeah. After Harkel talked to me, I got my vision too. And unlike you guys…"
His expression darkened.
"It wasn't something I was happy about."
"What happened?" Joey asked.
Leo met their eyes.
"My future self told me that if I don't join Harkel, there's a good chance I'll become an Alpha Wolf."
"An Alpha Wolf?" everyone repeated—except Harkel.
Leo nodded.
"Yeah. You see, Leo isn't my real name. Since you're all Wallborn—no offense—you probably don't know what kind of weight my family name carries."
His voice hardened.
"My real name is Leo Ashvale. The Ashvale family… is one of the founding bloodlines of the werewolves."