Zane leaned back in his chair, staring at the glowing blue interface that floated in front of him.
[Level: 1]
[XP: 0/100]
This was his starting point. Strength, agility, charisma, intelligence—all at a solid five. Mana at zero. Core unawakened. Those were the cards he'd been dealt. But with this system? The rules of the game had changed.
"Alright, system," he said, his voice steady. "Show me what you've got. Give me a quest."
[New Quest Generated]
Quest: Help a Neighbor
Objective: Complete a favor for a nearby resident. Reward: 50 XP
Zane squinted at the screen. "Help a neighbor? That's it? No slaying mana beasts? No unlocking ancient secrets? Just… errands?" He drummed his fingers on the desk, mulling it over. "Fine. Let's see where this goes."
Outside, he spotted Mrs. Tiller struggling with a box that looked like it might topple her at any second.
"Need a hand, Mrs. Tiller?" he asked, walking up.
Her face lit up. "Oh, Zane, you're such a dear! My son sent me this treadmill, but it's too heavy for me to handle."
Zane hefted the box without breaking a sweat and carried it inside, setting it down in her living room.
The familiar chime echoed in his head.
[Quest Complete]
XP Gained: 50
As he stepped back outside, he sighed. "This is what I'm grinding XP for? At this rate, I'll hit Level 2 and still feel like a delivery boy."
By mid-afternoon, Zane had cleared out several more quests. Fetching a soccer ball from a tree? Check. Helping Mr. Barker deliver groceries? Check. Picking up trash in the park? Double check.
Each task brought the same chime of completion. The XP bar inched forward until…
[Level: 1]
[XP: 100/100]
[Level Up!]
You have reached Level 2. Attribute Points Gained: 1.]
A rush of energy surged through him, and Zane eagerly opened his stats. His eyes immediately went to Mana, the stat he'd been unable to touch before.
"Let's try this again," he muttered, placing the new point into mana.
[Error: Attribute Allocation Failed.]
He frowned, leaning closer as though glaring at the screen would unlock some hidden explanation. "Why not? What's stopping it?" His mind churned. "Is it because my mana core isn't awakened yet? That's gotta be it. It doesn't make sense otherwise."
Shaking his head, he redirected the point to Intelligence instead. A faint clarity washed over him, like his mind had just sharpened by a fraction.
Later, Zane stared at the system screen again.
"Alright, system," he said, arms crossed. "Why the errands? What's the point? Are you testing me? Warming me up? Or are you just running me in circles?"
The glowing interface, of course, offered no reply.
His next quest appeared moments later.
[New Quest Generated]
Quest: Heal the Mana Beast
Objective: Assist the injured mana beast in the park. Reward: 100 XP
Zane's eyebrows rose. "Finally, something with a bit of substance."
At the edge of the park, Zane found a small crowd of kids gathered around a mana beast the size of a housecat. Its shimmering green fur and scaled tail were unmistakably magical, but its leg was twisted painfully.
"It's hurt!" one of the kids exclaimed, stepping back to let Zane through.
Zane crouched beside the creature, feeling a pang of sympathy. "Anyone have a mana crystal?"
A boy hesitated, then handed over a tiny shard. "Will this work?"
Zane nodded. "Yeah, it should." He gently pressed the crystal near the beast's leg, watching as its energy seeped into the injured limb. The leg twitched, then straightened with a soft snap.
The mana beast blinked, its glowing eyes locking onto Zane's. For a moment, it just stared. Then, it turned and darted into the underbrush, disappearing as quickly as it had appeared.
[Quest Complete]
XP Gained: 100
[Level Up!]
Zane stood, brushing dirt off his hands as the kids cheered behind him. He couldn't help but smile, but the questions in his mind lingered. "That's more like it," he muttered, heading home.
Back in his room, Zane opened his stats again, a growing sense of determination in his chest.
[Level: 3]
[XP: 0/300]
[Attribute Points Available: 1]
[Current Attributes:]
Strength: 5
Agility: 5
Charisma: 5
Intelligence: 6
Mana: 0
He stared at the mana stat for a long moment. "There's something blocking it," he said quietly. "And I'm going to figure out what."
With that, he leaned back, a smirk tugging at the corner of his lips. "At least now, I'm starting to feel like I'm actually getting somewhere."