Kane woke up to the sound of shuffling outside his dorm. The usual morning bustle of recruits preparing for their day was already in full swing. He rubbed the sleep from his eyes and sat up, thoughts swirling in his head. His encounter with Damian yesterday had left a bitter taste in his mouth, but it had also sparked something new—a sense of direction. The system's latest objective, 'Surpass Damian Flames', still rang in his mind like a bell.
He stretched and glanced around. Liam's bed was neatly made, already empty. Leo's side was a mess, as usual, though his absence was a clear sign he had left in a rush. Alex's training gear was gone, likely packed for another grueling morning session.
"Guess it's just me today," Kane muttered under his breath, swinging his legs over the edge of the bed.
---
The dorm hallways buzzed with life, recruits passing by in small groups, some heading to their combat drills while others carried stacks of books and glowing slates. Kane didn't feel like lingering. He had something important to do, something that had been nagging at him ever since the system had shown up in his life.
His friends had their own plans for the day. Leo had mentioned an elemental synchronization class earlier in the week, something about perfecting his control over air.
'I begin to wonder sometimes if Leo even realizes that he has no air elemental control' Kane chuckled slightly as he proceeded forward. 'Well, on the bright side, people won't be suspicious of us'
Liam, who loved strategizing, had gone off to attend a seminar hosted by a third-year known for his defensive tactics. Alex, of course, was probably already in the combat arena. His recent fixation on dodging techniques had been the subject of many late-night issues about wanting to avoid another very embarrassing sparring defeat.
That left Kane with an unusual sense of loneliness. Normally, the four of them would stick together, navigating the academy's challenges as a team. But today, he felt a strange sense of freedom—and a daunting weight of responsibility.
"I'll catch up with them later," Kane told himself as he made his way toward his destination.
---
Kane stopped in his tracks as his gaze met the large spiral building, a building of great importance and possibly one of the most important possessions the academy currently had.
The Grand Archives stood like a monolith or even more so like an obelisk in the center of the academy grounds, its spiraling structure gleaming under the morning sun. It wasn't just a library; it was a technological marvel, a testament to the academy's fusion of ancient wisdom and cutting-edge innovation.
The building seemed alive, its translucent walls pulsing faintly with shifting auraof blue and gold. As Kane approached, the air around him grew cooler, almost as if the archives exuded an aura of knowledge waiting to be uncovered.
In short, he felt the vibes from a distance.
At the entrance, a floating panel hovered, continuously scanning every recruit that entered.
He got within range and the floating panel which immediately stopped to scan his presence with a faint ding just like it did with the others. A holographic assistant materialized, its form sleek and humanoid. Its voice was smooth, almost soothing but obviously, it had no gender. It looked a male teenager but talked like a fairy young woman.
"Welcome to the Grand Archives," it said, its glowing eyes flickering slightly. "State your query or desired section."
Kane hesitated. He had come here with a purpose, but saying it out loud made it feel all the more real. "I'm looking for information on... Abilities related to screens" he said, trying to sound casual. "Anything related to unique abilities that work as interfaces."
The assistant's glowing eyes paused for a fraction of a second before responding. "Query accepted. Access to restricted topics requires Level C clearance or above. General information can be found on the second spiral."
Kane frowned. Of course, it wasn't going to be easy. He nodded and stepped through the shimmering doorway, the hum of energy intensifying as he entered.
---
The interior of the Grand Archives was even more grand and breathtaking. The spiral design extended upward, seemingly endless, with rows upon rows of shelves that weren't shelves at all. Instead, holographic projections floated mid-air, displaying shifting texts and diagrams. Small drones zipped through the air, retrieving requested data for the recruits below.
It was like entering a heavenly store room for knowledge. The distinct movement of orb-like material and books made it look all the more magical.
Kane stood at the base of the second spiral, where glowing orbs hovered in neat rows. Each orb acted as a portal to vast stores of information, projecting interactive screens when touched. He approached one labeled "Phenomena & Mysteries of Abilities" and took it to a nearby seat that scattered throughout the archive.
The orb was a very rare piece of gear with great mental fortitude. It was a new piece of equipment that was designed solely for privacy and most of all silence in the library.
It was able to create a mental link with its user so that information could be obtained without the need of making any noise and also done discreetly.
The orb flickered to life, its holographic screen scrolling with detailed entries in Kane's head.
Much time had passed now and nothing of relevance had come through, it was talking mostly about stupid theories on how essence stones could give energy.
He moved on and searched for other books but all of them still had unnecessary information.
After another hour of searching, he finally caught sight of a distinct orb by the very edge of a shelf, he took it and activated it.
Looking at the content, a faint smile escaped his lips. It was the most related thing to the system that he had seen today.
There were three individual sub terms,
Kane scanned through them, his eyes darting across phrases like Legacy Systems, Experimental Constructs, and Cognitive Interfaces.
One entry caught his attention:
> "Cognitive Interfaces: Rare phenomena where abilities manifest as sentient or semi-sentient entities, providing users with guidance but often with unknown motives. Users report experiences of external influence, as if guided by a force greater than themselves…, remaining file isn't here, get access to the upper floors of the archive for more information"<
His smile quickly turned to a frown, when he thought he was getting somewhere, the damn orb had to do something about that.
But still…
Kane's heart raced as he read the passage. It sounded eerily similar to the system he had been using. Could it be external? Could it be... using him for its own goals? The idea sent a shiver down his spine.
****
It was already night time already, although the planet they were in had an odd way of showing that, it was very clear to Kane because of his tablets notification.
He packed up and hurriedly stepped outside to get back to the hostel.
As usual people were living their lives, the aura of tangibility and happiness dyeing the air was almost choking. To Kane, none of them really mattered.
He loved to talk with her s friends, right.
But that was it. He never felt the urge to make other friends, he just didn't need the distraction even more so now that his life was going in an awkward direction.
He stopped by a food Store to get some food for himself after recalling that he hadn't eaten since after breakfast.
After that, he continued his strides towards the dorms.
As he rounded a corner, his attention was caught by a commotion near a metallic bench. A group of older boys stood in a loose semi-circle, their laughter sharp and mocking. In the center, a girl about Kane's age clutched her bag tightly, her face pale under the harsh glow of a nearby streetlight. One of the boys snatched at her arm, his tone dripping with arrogance.
"C'mon, you think you're too good for us?" the leader sneered, his friends chuckling in cruel harmony.
Kane hesitated for a moment, his heart racing. The logical part of him screamed to walk away—he wasn't particularly strong, nor was he some kind of hero.
Dwelling more on the matter, he had come to a logical conclusion. He was gonna act like he didn't see anything.
'I'm sorry miss, it only I was strong enough'
Just as he was about to take his first step away, a notification came in.
[New objective: Defeat the three boys that are harassing the girl]
[Reward: 50 exp per person]
Looking at this notification, Kane didn't flinch rather he just smiled. Of course he was going to leave the situation to the hands of the gods but seeing that the system was urging him on;
"Wouldn't mind if I obey," Kane muttered.
"Hey!" Kane called, his voice wavering slightly but rising above the noise. "Leave her alone."
He was going to pretend like he was scared so that his opponent could lose sight of his through motives.
The group turned in unison, their laughter stopping abruptly. The leader, a broad-shouldered boy with a sneer permanently etched onto his face, sauntered toward Kane. "And who are you supposed to be, huh? Her knight in shining armor?"
"I'm just someone who doesn't think bullying is okay," Kane replied, forcing steel into his tone, though his hands tightened nervously around his tablet.
The boys advanced on him, their sneers growing wider. One of them shoved Kane's shoulder lightly at first, testing his reaction. When Kane didn't back down, the push turned into a hard shove that sent him stumbling back. His tablet clattered to the ground, the screen flickering for a moment before going dark.
"Big mistake, library boy," the leader snarled, stepping closer. Kane could feel the weight of their mocking gazes and the pressure of his own vulnerability. But as his glasses slipped down his nose, and he adjusted them shakily, he locked eyes with the girl, still standing frozen nearby.
'I won't be able to use my tricks if she's still here' Kane scoffed, it was night time already and the dark alley was covering most of their faces but still… he couldn't risk being discovered.
"It's okay," Kane said looking at the girl who just stared back with a dazed expression, Kane's voice quieter now but still resolute. "Just... run."
The girl hesitated, her wide eyes brimming with conflicted emotions. She seemed to want to say something, but Kane gave a small nod as if to reassure her. Finally, she bolted, her footsteps fading into the distance.
The boys' attention snapped back to Kane, who braced himself. "You've got guts, I'll give you that," one of them muttered before they descended upon him with mocking shoves and stinging taunts.
The reason why they had been so cocky from the start was because Kane purposely didn't turn off his grade reader so massive E rank danced above the wrist watch.
Appraisal:
Name: Daniel martins
Grade: D
Name: Evon vichor
Grade: E
Name: Isaac Berk
Grade: E.
As he digested this information, the frown on his face deepened. He hated the fact that weak worms like them had the guy to harass someone.
But what made the situation even worse was that earlier he had also inspected the girl and she was a grade C student so why was she afraid of them?, why?.
As he was still thinking, he didn't notice a punch that connected squarely with his cheek bone and sent him stumbling a few inches.
[Hp: -5]
Kane looked up at the attacker and saw that it was one of the E rankers.
Before he could react, he felt something sweep him off his feet. His view turned, one second he was standing straight and the next, he was staring at the sky.
Kane analyzed the situation, he noticed that Isaac and Evon were the ones attacking but the supposed leader wasn't. His theory was that maybe he didn't see Kane as a threat and felt it would be irrelevant if he fought.
He wanted his lackeys to do the job for him.
As for Kane, he was very glad about the leader's decision. Fighting two E rankers was already a problem and adding another D ranker would mean death for him.
[Stats point: 25]
He had twenty five unused stat points meaning that he could actually win if he made the right decisions.
Status
Name: Kane? (Just Kane)
Age: 16
Race: Human
Allies: 2
Level: 1 (0/100)
HP: 10/10
Energy Pool: 10/10
Strength: 10
Speed: 12
Agility: 10
Stamina: 10
Wits: 12
Abilities: 2
Stat Points: 25
Skill Points: 0
"You might wanna focus punk" Isaac shouted before throwing a punch.
[Martial arts: phase one activated]
Kane sidestepped almost instantly and stood behind Isaac who just stared with dazed eyes.
'How did he move that fast'
Jumping up slightly, Kane delivered a roundhouse kick towards Isaac's back which sent him stumbling.
Evon launched him self and threw out a punch of his own but kane casually fucked downwards before slamming his feet into Evon's face.
His attacks were powerful but weren't powerful enough to knock them out in one strike.
'why don't I change that?' Kane smirked.
[Strength: +5]
[Speed: +5]
He felt it, his shift in power, he felt lighter, he felt stronger.
The air around Kane began to fluctuate as Evon summoned his ability, his legs rose a few feet into the air and with a slight gesture of his hands, multiple air slashes emerged.
Kane ran head on towards the airs scythes, dodging and spinning like a professional combatant. He got to where Evon, readying his fist, he delivered an uppercut cut straight through Evon's chin knocking him out.
'Did he become stronger?, is he really grade E?' questions barged into Evon's head before he lay down flat.
[Exp gained: 50]
Seeing his friends getting hurt, Isaac was furious. He ran forward and also activated his ability. A green like substance formed in his palms and he started shooting them like bullets.
[Speed: +5]
Once again, kane was on the run. He skidded under a bench and jumped over a dustbin.
Isaac kept on shooting this green substance like a lunatic but the more he shot them, the more exhausted he became, and the more exhausted he became, the closer kane got to him.
"Stay away from me, ahhh" he shouted, his voice hinted fear and frustration but he continued.
Few seconds and his energy reserves had been depleted. Kane crossed the distance between both of them and knocked the wind out of him.
[Exp gained: 50]
Clap. Clap.
The sound of clapping filled the small space and kane turned instinctively.
Finally, it was the bosses turn.
A/N: please guys, I've been thinking of dropping this novel fo a while back now but it seems that a fraction ofy readers are still interested.
Please if you really are, show this by engaging the story actively, tell me my mistakes, like, dislike and many more. I promise that it is of great help to me.