Riven was lying back on his bed, engrossed in a book, when the door suddenly slammed open. Zayn rushed in, practically glowing with excitement.
"Get up! Meet me out in the field behind the dorm, right now!"
Riven blinked, trying to process what was happening. "Wait, what? Why—?"
But Zayn was already out the door before he could finish. With a sigh, Riven put down his book, mumbling to himself, "This better be good."
When Riven arrived at the field, Zayn was practically bouncing with energy, looking more excited than Riven had ever seen him. "Alright, what's all this about?"
Zayn's grin widened. "I want to spar. Right now."
Riven groaned, running a hand through his hair. "Haven't I beaten you up enough these past few days? Seriously, Zayn, you keep ending up on the ground."
"Not this time," Zayn insisted, a glint of determination in his eyes. "It's going to be different, trust me."
Riven sighed, walking over lazily. "Fine, fine, but don't blame me when you end up flat on your back again."
He assumed his usual, casual stance—barely paying attention. Zayn, on the other hand, took a deep breath. His mind raced as he focused, speaking to the system in his head.
[I'm ready to try Vector control.]
[Confirmed.]
Suddenly, his vision filled with the familiar arrows—each representing vectors in motion. He saw them everywhere, crisscrossing the air and outlining Riven's movements. Arrows appeared on Riven's arms, legs, and even on his face. Every part of him was in motion, and Zayn could see exactly how.
This time, it was going to be different.
As Zayn focused, Riven dashed forward. He wasn't moving as fast as usual, and for the first time, Zayn could clearly see the vectors on his body. He braced for the punch, his system activating as the force of Riven's punch was reduced by five times. When the fist made contact, it felt like it came from a regular person.
Riven blinked in confusion for a moment, clearly not expecting that result. But Zayn was already on the move, launching a punch of his own. As he threw it, he used his vector control to increase its speed and force fivefold, narrowly missing Riven, who dodged just in time.
"Not bad!" Riven smirked, his bored expression fading slightly. "But I'm just getting started."
He launched himself at Zayn again, faster this time, but Zayn had no problem blocking and countering. Riven's eyes widened, a flicker of surprise crossing his face. "Okay, now that's interesting."
The next attack came with a lot more force, and Zayn could feel it. He braced himself, ready to reduce the force again, but before he could, the system spoke in his mind:
[Warning: The incoming attack will knock you down regardless of force reduction.]
"Crap!" Zayn barely had time to think before Riven's fist connected, sending him flying backward. He landed on the ground with a groan, staring up at the sky as the world spun slightly.
Riven chuckled as he approached. "It was definitely different this time, but the result's the same. Still wanna go another round?"
An hour later, Zayn was still being tossed around like a rag doll, drenched in sweat and struggling to catch his breath. He looked like he'd just survived a storm—barely.
Riven stood nearby, arms crossed and amused. "Alright, let's call it a day before you pass out. You're making progress, though. I can see it."
Zayn nodded, panting. "Yeah… progress... at getting thrown around." He bent over, hands on his knees, trying to suck in enough air to stand up straight.
Just as he was about to say something else, the system interrupted.
[Alert. You have unlocked two new sub-skills: Rapid Mind and Dual Focus.]
"Huh?" Zayn blinked, still out of breath.
[Rapid Mind is a sub-skill directly related to your Vector Control. It allows you to accelerate your thinking process by a factor matching your vector control's increase. Would you like to test it?]
Zayn, still confused, muttered, "Uh, sure?"
Immediately, everything slowed down. Riven's lips were moving, but it was as if someone had turned his speech to slow motion. Zayn watched, wide-eyed, as Riven's words stretched into long, drawn-out syllables. It felt like an eternity before time snapped back to normal.
"That… was weird." Zayn shook his head, still trying to adjust.
[Dual Focus will allow you to process two thoughts at the same time. Would you like to test this as well?]
"No, no, I'm good. That's enough weirdness for one day." Zayn waved a hand, still disoriented.
The system then alerted him again.
[Your overall stats have increased.]
A holographic screen appeared before his eyes:
LEVEL 1/7
STR: 80
SPE: 100
VIT: 80
INT: 100
MAG: 450/???
TYPE: ENERGY
SUBTYPE: VECTOR
ULTIMATE SKILL: PANTA RHEI
SUB-SKILLS: RAPID MIND
DUAL FOCUS
Zayn grinned. "Hey, Riven, my stats just went up!" He tried to tell him about the sub-skills, but something stopped him. The system chimed in.
[Notice: Sub-skills are secret and will not display on your status screen for others to see.]
He blinked. "Wait, seriously? That's sneaky."
Riven raised an eyebrow. "Sneaky? What're you mumbling about over there?"
"Uh, nothing." Zayn laughed awkwardly. "Anyway, I think it's time to head back in. I need to wash off the stink of failure... and sweat."
Riven smirked, giving him a light punch on the shoulder. "You mean the stink of me kicking your ass?"
"Yeah, yeah." Zayn waved him off as they started heading back. "Next time, I'm the one doing the tossing."
Riven chuckled. "Right. We'll see about that."
Riven lay on his bed, staring at the ceiling, lost in thought while Zayn snored away in the bed beside him. The rhythmic breathing of his roommate did nothing to calm his own mind. He couldn't shake the thoughts racing through his head after the events of the day, especially after seeing Zayn's stats when they ate dinner. It hadn't been more than a week since they started sparring, but somehow Zayn's growth was explosive.
He turned onto his side, still restless, recalling how Zayn had managed to push him harder than he'd let on. Sure, he acted nonchalant, but the truth was Zayn had made him break a sweat for the first time in a long while. That was no small feat.
"Just what the hell did he do to grow that fast?" Riven muttered under his breath. With a quick thought, he summoned his own status screen:
LEVEL 1/7
STR: 120
SPE: 160
VIT: 160
INT: 100
MAG: 000/???
ULTIMATE SKILL: ARCHÉ POINT
His stats had only gone up slightly, despite the continuous training. Nothing like the jump Zayn had seen. He frowned, his fingers tapping the side of the bed in thought. Zayn's INT stat had jumped dramatically, reaching 100—and that seemed to be what made the biggest difference.
The professor's words echoed in his mind. "The most important stat... INT determines who will stand out and who will remain ordinary." Riven let out a slow breath, realizing that maybe his focus had been in the wrong place. His strength and speed were formidable, sure, but if intelligence was key to unlocking greater power… maybe that's where he was falling short.
Rolling back to his back, he stared at the ceiling again, his mind made up. He needed to find a way to increase his INT stat, too. If Zayn could do it, so could he. Tomorrow after class, he'd visit the library or maybe even speak to Professor Vincent directly. He couldn't afford to be left behind, not if Zayn's progress was any indication of what was possible.
He glanced over at Zayn, who was still snoring away without a care in the world. Riven smirked, though a bit of competitiveness lit up in his chest. "You've gotten stronger, Zayn, but I won't make it easy for you." With that, he finally closed his eyes, drifting off to sleep with plans already forming for the next day.