The light flashed once—and then everything went gray.
Not darkness, not emptiness. Just a muted, ash-colored glow. The bead at the center pulsed softly, as if it were breathing, as if it were absorbing something unseen. There were no violent waves of power, no dazzling effects, no sense of heaven splitting open. It was as quiet and restrained as the panel itself.
Luke stared.
That's it?
He didn't dislike the simplicity. In fact, he appreciated it. Still, for something that felt so important, the lack of spectacle was almost unsettling. The bead's pulse slowed, its color stabilizing, and the panel returned to its usual calm state.
Luke shifted his focus immediately, scanning the interface for changes. His excitement cooled into sharp concentration. He searched patiently, eyes moving from section to section, until—
There.
The personal panel.
More specifically, the Origin Unique section.
Luke's breath caught. His fingers moved before his thoughts could catch up, opening the section with restrained anticipation. This was the highest-grade draw the panel could offer. above the Rainbow grade. The peak.
Only one skill appeared.
No elaborate title. No excessive decoration.
Just two words, bold and plain.
THE ONE
Luke tapped it.
The description unfolded, line by line, and with every sentence his mind drifted further from comprehension. By the time he reached the middle, shock had hollowed him out completely.
What solar system did I save in my previous life…? No—saving one wouldn't be enough for this.
The words burned themselves into his awareness.
ORIGIN SKILL — THE ONE
Owner: Luke Valen
Type: Origin · Unique · Absolute
Level: 2
"You are not above the world. The world is below you."
You are THE ONE. The pinnacle that stands beyond gods, beyond systems, beyond endings. Even Absolute is only a lower step beneath your shadow.
Power does not measure you. Reality endures you.
Active Time: 9 seconds Cost: 99 Origin Points Stored Time: Up to 2 minutes Cooldown: 9 hours
Range dependse on the Skill level.
For nine seconds, the universe is forced to remember its place.
EFFECT I — UNBOUND
No law may touch you. No will may claim you."
You are not part of any world, era, fate, or system. All bindings fail. All seals collapse. All authority returns to zero.
Time, space, causality, destiny—irrelevant. The stronger the rule, the faster it breaks.
You are not resisting the world. The world is failing to contain you.
You are the incarnation of freedom.
EFFECT II — INVINCIBILITY "
Nothing may harm what cannot be defined."
You are untouchable. No damage. No effect. No influence. No erasure.
No concept can reach you.
Weapons shatter before intent forms. Spells die before completion. Reality refuses to acknowledge harm.
Death looks at you— and looks away.
You are not immortal. You are unreachable.
PASSIVE EFFECT — UNTRACEABLE
Status: Always Active
"If you do not allow it, you do not exist."
You exist outside perception. No being may track you. No mind may remember you. No system may record you—unless you permit it.
You are not hidden. You are unrecognized.
"You cannot hunt what the world cannot remember."
Luke didn't realize he had stopped breathing until his chest began to ache.
The more he read, the quieter he became. Not because the skill was complete—it clearly wasn't—but because even in its incomplete state, it was absurd. Unreasonable. Dangerous beyond imagination.
This is like handing a nuclear weapon to a child.
The thought surfaced uninvited, sharp and heavy. He forced it aside and read again, slower this time. The shock gave way to something darker—satisfaction. This wasn't power meant for growth or heroics.
This was a doomsday-level ability. A final card. A last resort.
Nine seconds.
Short—but in critical moments, nine seconds could decide everything.
Luke leaned back against the bed, exhaling slowly. Happiness was there, undeniable, but it was tangled with worry. This wasn't just abnormal. It went beyond fantasy.
What kind of life did I step into?
His gaze drifted back to the panel, to the remaining options he had ignored earlier.
World Weekly. Origin Points.
He opened the instruction section.
As he read, the tight knot in his chest loosened slightly.
Some knowledge makes you safer than ignorance.
The panel explained that
World Weekly would provide information about any single topic he entered—news, truths, hidden matters. It required twenty-four hours to process and One per day . Different topics require different numbers of uses , stacking up to nine uses. first one is free.
Origin Points were explained as condensed origin energy—an amalgamation of soul, body, will, and thought. Every living being possessed it. Some was consumed naturally through living, whether one acted or not. At his current level, he could safely regenerate a limited amount daily. At higher awakened levels, that number would increase.
He didn't yet know how much he could regenerate without damaging himself.
Still, understanding eased him.
The exhaustion hit all at once. Not just from the panel, but from days of pain, memory fusion, emotional strain. Luke lay back fully on the bed, staring at the ceiling.
He wanted to test the skill.
Badly.
But he restrained himself. Low-key. Stay quiet. That had always been his intention. And with only ninety-nine Origin Points, using THE ONE would drain everything in a single activation.
His eyes drifted to the corner of the screen.
Origin Points: 99
A bitter smile tugged at his lips.
Sleep tugged at him next, heavy and unavoidable. Fighting it, Luke raised his hand and typed into the World Weekly section.
I want to know about this world.
The panel accepted the request instantly. A timer appeared.
23:59:58…
Luke's breathing slowed. His fingers fell limp at his side. Within moments, only the soft rhythm of sleep filled the room.
Snzz… Snzz…
Outside, the rain continued to fall.
And deep within Nevarth, the legends waited to be remembered.