The walk to St. Jude's Academy felt longer than usual. The morning air was crisp, but Xavier didn't feel the chill; he only felt the suffocating weight of the blue screen hovering in his peripheral vision. The timer was a rhythmic heartbeat of neon light, counting down the seconds of his life.
21:42:10… 21:42:09…
"Become a Chaser," Xavier mumbled, his voice a low drone. "Become a Chaser. Join the ESDF. Become a Chaser."
He was so deep in his own head, staring at the translucent text, that he didn't see the crowd gathering at the front gates. He walked straight into a solid wall of muscle and expensive fabric.
"Watch it, Zero!"
Xavier stumbled back, his improved vision immediately locking onto the snarling face of Asher Williams. Asher looked ready to swing, his fist already tightening, but then he saw the look in Xavier's eyes. It wasn't fear. It was a vacant, haunting intensity.
Asher scoffed, shoving Xavier aside. "Forget it. I'll let you pass today. It's the last day of the year, and I'm not letting a piece of trash ruin my mood."
Asher turned to his friends, throwing his arms wide as he looked up at the towering spires of the Academy. "Fuck you, bitches! Today's my last day as a high school nobody! ESDF, here I come!"
His roar drew the attention of half the school. Students cheered, others watched in awe. Nobody dared to laugh. In their eyes, Asher was already a hero, a titan in the making.
Xavier watched him for a moment, then turned and walked into the building. He didn't feel small anymore. He felt like he was carrying a bomb in his chest.
The school was a chaos of liberated teenagers. With finals over and the year officially winding down, the teachers had retreated to the faculty lounges, leaving the classrooms to the students. Music echoed through the vents; lockers were being slammed shut for the final time.
Xavier sat at his desk, staring into nothingness. To his classmates, he looked like he was daydreaming, or perhaps finally losing his mind. In reality, he was watching the seconds bleed away on his System menu.
18:15:04…
The final bell rang, a long, shrill sound that signaled the end of an era. Xavier didn't join the rush for the doors. Instead, he climbed the stairs to the roof.
Leo was already there, leaning against the safety railing. The wind whipped his hair as he looked out over the sprawling mega-city. The sun was a warm, golden orb hanging over the skyline, reflecting off the glass of the distant corporate towers.
Xavier sat down beside him, letting his legs dangle over the ledge. For a long time, they just enjoyed the silence.
"Hey, Leo," Xavier said softly. "You know how we get the choice now? Between finishing the last two years of school or enlisting in the ESDF recruitment exams? What are you doing?"
Leo smiled, a relaxed, easy expression. "You already know, man. I'm finishing high school. My dad already said he'd hook me up with a position in one of his major company buildings. I'll be sitting in an air-conditioned office while the rest of the world is sweating in a hangar."
Xavier nodded. "I forgot. Your dad owns one of the biggest tech companies in the Northern Continent."
"Hey, don't say it like that," Leo said, bumping Xavier's shoulder. "Look, if you can't find a job after you graduate, I can probably hook you up. Nothing crazy, but I can get you in as a high-ranking admin or something. You'd be set for life."
Xavier stayed silent. He watched a squadron of military transport planes V-line across the horizon.
"I was thinking," Xavier started, his voice barely a whisper. "What if I join the ESDF? What if I become… a Chaser?"
Leo stood up abruptly, the smile vanishing from his face. "Xavier, no offense buddy, but you're a Zero. You know the stats. You know what happens when someone with less than 10% tries to link with military tech. You'll go crazy, or worse, the feedback will paralyze you. It's a mental crash waiting to happen."
He put a hand on Xavier's shoulder, his expression deadly serious. "And even if you survived the link, the exam isn't a joke. Kids from all over the world—prodigies with 20, 25% output—go there to compete. Only the best of the best get selected. It's a slaughterhouse for people like us."
Xavier looked up at him, then forced a small, hollow laugh. "I'm joking. It was just a thought."
Leo exhaled, visibly relieved. "Good. Had me worried there for a second. Come on, let's get out of here."
Xavier sat on the back of the bus, his forehead pressed against the vibrating glass of the window. He watched the world go by—the neon signs, the bustling crowds, the holographic advertisements.
"Who am I kidding?" he whispered to himself. "It was a nice thought. Having a System. Being a hero. But Leo's right. I'm just a kid with a 0.0 on his screen."
He closed his eyes, prepared to let the timer run out. If the System deleted him, maybe it was for the best. No more Asher. No more disappointment.
The bus screeched to a halt at a red light. Xavier opened his eyes and looked out at a massive billboard overlooking the transit station. It was an ad for a new amusement park, showing a family laughing on a high-speed coaster. But it was the slogan at the bottom that hit him like a physical blow.
"LIFE IS BUT A CHOICE. MAKE THE RIGHT CHOICE AND COME ALONG FOR THE RIDE."
The words seemed to glow, vibrating with an intensity that Xavier felt in his marrow. Make the right choice.
"Stop the bus!" Xavier yelled, startling the passengers.
He didn't wait for the next station. He shoved through the doors the second they hissed open and hit the pavement running. He didn't go toward his apartment. He ran six blocks in the opposite direction, toward the massive, obsidian-glass spire of the ESDF Regional Application Center.
The line was massive, a sea of ambitious teenagers and nervous parents. Xavier ignored the looks of disgust as he took his place at the very back. He waited for three hours, his heart hammering a frantic rhythm against his ribs.
When he finally reached the terminal, the clerk didn't even look up. "Name and current output?"
The clerk paused, finally looking up with a deadpan expression. "You're kidding, right? Kid, the minimum to even sit for the physical is 10."
"The law says any citizen of age has the right to register," Xavier said, his voice trembling but loud. "Sign me up."
The clerk sighed, tapped a few keys, and handed over a digital slip. "It's your funeral. Exam is in three days. Don't say I didn't warn you."
Xavier took the slip, his fingers shaking. He walked out of the building and all the way home, a manic, lopsided smile growing on his face. He felt insane. He felt alive.
"Call me crazy!" he shouted at a passing mag-train. "Who cares! Even if there's only a small probability, I'm taking that chance! The die has been cast, and I'm playing the hand!"
He burst through the door of his apartment, panting heavily, and leaned his back against the wood, laughing hysterically in the dark hallway.
Ping.
[QUEST COMPLETE: THE PATH TO GREATNESS]
[REWARD GRANTED: 100 STAT POINTS]
[ADDITIONAL REWARD: 50 SHOP POINTS (SP)]
Xavier's breath hitched. He scrambled to his room, changing out of his sweaty uniform. He felt a sudden burst of energy, a lightness he couldn't explain. He went into the kitchen and began cooking—actually cooking—using the last of the good meat they had in the freezer.
When Elena got home, she was greeted by the smell of steak and a son who looked like he had won the lottery.
"Xavier? What's all this?" she asked, her eyes wide.
"I just… I finished the year, Mom," he said, giving her a massive hug. "I love you. I just wanted to do something nice."
She laughed, the sound bright and rare. "Well, I'm not complaining! I guess finishing the second year is a big deal after all."
They ate together, laughing and talking about nothing. But as soon as Elena went to sleep, Xavier retreated to his room and locked the door. He sat cross-legged on his bed and brought up the blue menu.
[CONGRATULATIONS. YOU HAVE UNLOCKED: MANA CIRCULATION]
[YOU MAY NOW ALLOCATE POINTS TO THE 'MANA' ATTRIBUTE.]
Xavier didn't hesitate. "Allocate 50 Stat Points to Mana."
The world tilted.
A wave of heat exploded in the center of his chest, radiating outward like a ripple in a pond. It wasn't painful this time; it was exhilarating. His eyes tingled, his vision blurring for a split second as he felt a strange, cold sensation wash over his brain—as if he were suddenly aware of the electricity moving between his neurons.
He let out a sharp gasp, clutching his chest. When he looked at the menu, he froze.
[NAME: XAVIER REYES]
[MANA OUTPUT: 2.0%]
"Two…" he whispered. It was still low. It was still a fraction of what Asher had. But it wasn't zero. For the first time in his life, he wasn't empty.
He pulled up his standard, government-issued status menu. The orange light flickered to life.
[OUTPUT: 2.0%]
He laughed, a small, triumphant sound. It was real. The System was changing his actual biology.
He looked at the remaining 50 points. He needed to be able to move. He needed to be able to survive the physical portion of the exam.
He looked at the remaining 50 points. He needed to be able to move. He needed to be able to survive the physical portion of the exam.
The transformation was subtle but profound. His own body weight suddenly felt like nothing. He stood up and tried to lift his heavy oak bed frame. He couldn't quite get it off the ground, but he could move it with ease. He grabbed his heavy school bag and tossed it across the room with a flick of his wrist. It hit the far wall with a loud crack, leaving a dent in the plaster.
"Whoa," he whispered, looking at his hands. He felt coiled, like a spring under tension.
Ping.
[NEW QUEST AVAILABLE: SYSTEM INTEGRATION]
[OBJECTIVE: SYNCHRONIZE THE 'PLAYER SYSTEM' WITH THE 'WORLD STATUS MENU'.]
[REWARD: 10 INTEL POINTS]
[DESCRIPTION: WHY HAVE TWO SCREENS WHEN YOU CAN HAVE ONE?]
Xavier stared at the prompt. The two screens—one blue, one orange—sat side-by-side in his vision. He took a deep breath.
"Synchronize."
The two screens began to bleed into one another, the orange and blue swirling together until they formed a sleek, violet interface that looked far more advanced than anything he had ever seen.
[INTEGRATION COMPLETE]
[XAVIER REYES - LEVEL 1 PLAYER]
[MANA: 2.0%]
[STR: 35]
[SPD: 15]
[AGI: 15]
[INT: 10]
[VIS: 9]
Xavier sat back, his heart racing. He had three days until the recruitment exam. Three days to turn this 2% into something the world couldn't ignore.