The nurse's office was sleek and sterile. The placid walls gave off a feeling of calmness to whoever came in.
Rhys came to the nurse's office often because he was always kicked around. So, when he walked in, the nurse simply sighed.
By now, she could recognize him by just his footsteps. She expected him to come in bruised and battered like usual, but she saw that he looked completely fine when she looked up.
"Nurse Garcia, may I go rest? I feel a little sick."
"Fine."
Rhys didn't actually feel sick, and the nurse knew that. If he was sick, she could've healed him. After all, she was a Powered, and healing a mere Powerless like him was a cakewalk.
But at this point, she didn't care much for her job. Unlike back then, working as a school nurse was tiring, especially during the later hours when most Powered courses took place. Kids constantly came in injured, and she had to expend a lot of her Energy to heal them.
'He probably came here to avoid the other kids' She thought.
'Had he finally gotten tired of eating shit?'
She thought lowly of Rhys, and for good reason. He seemed to take anything thrown at him, whether it'd be fists, rocks, or other people's powers. In short, he was a wuss.
Rhys laid down on a bed. A few other students accompanied him in the room, all of which were visibly injured. While he felt like a sore thumb, he definitely did not want to be like them.
'System, is there a way to increase the time ratio?'
'[Yes, by collecting [System Fragments]'
'Can [System Fragments] be used for something else?'
'[System Fragments] are used to upgrade the system. This feature will be unlocked once you collect your first [System Fragment].'
Rhys rested his head on the soft pillow, opening the system menu and then clicking [Enter Realm]. He immediately felt drowsy and soon, he was asleep.
The nurse, who went to check up on the students, saw Rhys, sleeping quietly. A strange sight, it was.
'That kid always seemed to be busy. And now, he is sleeping during school?'
Nurse Garcia had always been a bit cold. Her job as a school nurse wore her down into the bitter woman she was now.
It was a strange sight indeed, but it made her feel relieved for the young Powerless.
----------------------------------------
Rhys immediately woke up to the sound of sizzling. He looked around lazily and saw a tall woman cooking food on a stove. Her back was turned to him, so he couldn't see her face.
He looked down at his hands and saw that they were bigger than usual. In fact, he felt taller than usual, too.
He glanced down further and saw that he was wearing a suit and tie. He was sitting at a dinner table with two children. One girl and one boy, both around 10-12 years old. They ate their food silently with smiles plastered on their face.
On a cabinet nearby, there laid a telephone. It was a slightly discolored greyish-yellow, with 9 buttons and a long spiral cord.
'An antique telephone?'
It was the type that only collectors would have in their houses.
'Am I in the past?'
He was stumped. Who, and where was he? Who was this lady? Who were the children? Were they his? Was the lady his wife?
He was an adult, or at least in an adult's body. After the short moment of confusion dissipated, it became clear.
He was the husband of the lady that was cooking, and the children were his. Or at least that was what it looked like.
'I'm not even out of high school yet, but do I have to deal with children?'
He was a child himself!
Or an adolescent to be more specific, but that wasn't the point.
'This feels weird'
The young boy suddenly stopped eating his food and asked Rhys,
"Dad, don't you have work to go to?'
'Oh yeah, I'm an adult...'
But where did he work? He was still confused.
[Loading...]
[New mission has been generated!]
-----------------------------
Mission: Suit and Tie
Obtain your first [Archetype]
Rewards: New function(s) unlocked, +3 All stats, +15 exp
----------------------------
[Guide] has been enabled]
[Welcome to your first [Realm], Host]
The blue panels appeared before Rhys's eyes as the monotonous voice of the system read out the prompts in its full length. It was still emotionless, like usual.
[This tutorial will guide you to obtaining your first [Archetype]
[After obtaining your first [Archetype], you will no longer have [Guide] enabled]
Rhys was listening attentively when a sudden voice interrupted him. It was his wife, or at least who he thought was his wife.
"Honey, you're going to be late for work. Is something wrong?" Her voice was sweet like candy.
"Ah, sorry. I was distracted." Rhys responded. He looked at the scene in front of him. Happy children, a sweet wife- it made him envious. Those children, if only he could be happy like them.
In front of him was an example of family.
What was his?
Ah, he got distracted again. He had to go to work. In this world, he was an adult.
[Walk out the door]
'Don't point out the obvious...'
He felt like a toddler being taught to stand.
He tidied his uniform before heading out the apartment door. The sky was gloomy, and the sun barely poked out of the grey clouds. As the wind passed by, Rhys shivered a bit. He was not used to the chilly weather.
[Walk down the stairs]
His apartment was on the upper floors of the complex, so he had to walk down the long flight of stairs that eventually lead to the lowest floor. Only then could he exit the building to begin his work.
What did he work as anyways? Judging from his residence, Rhys assumed that he worked as some sort of office worker. A salaryman maybe.
[Go out the door]
'Yes, yes...'
Rhys was getting a little impatient with the system's hand-holding. He wasn't a baby for god's sake!
[Take a turn left. Don't walk onto the streets.]
'...'
Rhys simply stayed silent. He wasn't going to win over the System, so there was no point in complaining.
He looked at the streets. They were filled with cars, buses, and taxis. Traffic lights flashed, signaling when to stop and go.
It was, to Rhys, quite interesting. Seeing past technology operate in day-to-day life like this was strange, but also cool. The same antiques and gunk in his world were being used right before his eyes. It was fascinating.
There was no sign of any supernatural abilities. It was all so abnormal yet normal at the same time. It was...peaceful.
[Continue forward...]
[Don't cross...]
[Turn right...]
[...]
...
After navigating the roads with the aid of the System, he finally arrived at where he worked.
Rhys was all too excited.
Just too jubilant...
Simply too ecstatic...
For the monotony of office work.
'This...is my first task?'
He was yet again stumped.