Somewhere in a hospital, doctors and nurses rush through the halls, their footsteps echoing against the cold, sterile floors. Monitors beep incessantly, filling the space with a constant rhythm. In the middle of the chaos lies a frail figure, a seventeen-year-old boy named Raven Cross. Wires and tubes connect him to machines, his weak body sinking into the hospital bed. His black and white hair frames a pale face, and his crimson eyes stare vacantly at the ceiling.
Raven Cross—a loner. An orphan. A boy who spent his life battling sickness, and now, terminal cancer has its claws in him. He has no family by his side; his parents died years ago in a car accident he miraculously survived. But the crash left scars deeper than any physical wounds. Raven hates that he survived while they didn't. The anger and self-loathing he carries have shaped him into someone who avoids connections. Attachments lead to pain, and pain is all he knows.
He places a trembling hand on his chest, where the cancer eats away at him, a constant ache now sharper than ever. Around him, the sounds of doctors and nurses blur. They laugh and talk in the background, their lives continuing while Raven's slips away. He listens but remains silent. Observation has become his habit. Alone in his hospital room, he has learned patience and how to find meaning in the smallest details.
Suddenly, a sharp pain lances through his chest. Raven winces, his eyes fluttering as his body tenses. The machines start beeping wildly.
"We're losing him!" someone shouts.
The room erupts into movement—doctors and nurses crowd around him, hands reaching for equipment, voices rising with urgency. Raven can see their mouths moving, but he can't hear the sounds. His hearing fades, like water rushing over his ears. His vision darkens at the edges. The world spins away, but he catches one last sight—the bracelet on his wrist, a gift from his late mother.
"Mother… I'm sorry," Raven thinks. His mind grows quiet, and his final thought drifts into the void.
All I ever wanted was to be strong… to have ultimate strength.
Then, in the silence, a voice—a voice like none he's ever heard before—whispers to him.
"Raven Cross, your request is granted."
Raven's eyes flutter open. The first thing he sees is a bright, endless blue sky. Birds glide overhead, their wings stretching against the sunlit heavens. Raven blinks in disbelief and slowly sits up, feeling grass beneath his hands. The world around him is vast and breathtaking—a field of green stretching for miles, dotted with forests and shadowed by distant mountains.
"Is this… heaven?" he murmurs, squinting at the unfamiliar landscape.
Before he can gather his thoughts, a glowing blue screen appears directly in front of him, startling him so much that he flinches.
"What the hell is this?!" Raven shouts, eyes wide as he stares at the floating screen.
Words and numbers are neatly displayed in rows. Raven hesitates before reading them aloud.
Status Screen
Name: Raven Cross
Age: 17
Species: Human
Gender: Male
Occupation: Adventurer (Beginner)
Nickname: The Lone Crow
Level: 1 (Beginner)
Health Points (HP): 100/100
Magic Points (MP): 50/50
Strength: 10
Agility: 12
Attack: 15
Intelligence: 20
Skills: None
Abilities:
Flock Shift: Allows body to dissolve into a flock of ravens and appear elsewhere.
Unique Skill:
Gluttony (Absorb strength and abilities from defeated foes)
Items: None
Weapons: Beginner's Sword
Raven stares at the screen, stunned. "What is this supposed to mean? My stats? Skills? It's like a game…" He shakes his head, trying to process.
"I'm in a new world… aren't I?" he mutters, glancing at the vibrant horizon. "What an isekai moment, huh?"
He pauses, noticing the bracelet still snug on his wrist. Its familiar weight calms him, grounding him amidst the strangeness.
Looking out at the new world he's been thrown into, Raven exhales deeply. For the first time in a long while, he feels something stir in his chest—a spark of curiosity, of possibility.
Raven said, "So… what comes next?"
He tried to think, his mind racing as he glanced around. With a quiet sigh, he sat down by a nearby tree, letting the soft grass cushion him. Thoughts swirled in his head, and instinctively, he opened the glowing status screen once more. His eyes scanned the categories before stopping at Skills.
"I don't have any skills," Raven muttered, frowning.
Next, he scrolled down to Abilities and began reading them aloud in detail:
"Flock Shift… allows my body to dissolve into ravens and reappear somewhere else…" His crimson eyes widened slightly at the description.
He continued, glancing over to the Weapons section where it listed: Beginner's Sword.
"Beginner's Sword?" Raven questioned aloud.
He held out his hand, curious. Without warning, a gleaming blade materialized into his grip, the weight of it surprising him. He stood up, shifting the sword from hand to hand as he tested its balance. With a swift motion, he performed a small slash through the air. The blade whistled softly, cutting through the silence. Raven gave a firm nod of approval.
His gaze turned to a tree standing about twenty meters away. Narrowing his eyes, he whispered, "Skill… Flock Shift."
The moment the words left his mouth, his body dissolved into a flurry of raven-shaped shadows. Dozens of black birds scattered and swooped forward, converging near the base of the distant tree. In an instant, Raven reappeared, standing firmly, his form materializing as if he had never moved. He blinked in astonishment and nodded to himself again.
"This ability… it's incredible."
He raised his hand to test his other ability—his Unique Skill: Gluttony.
With focused determination, Raven extended his palm. A grayish-black vortex of aura spiraled out from his hand, swirling ominously as if trying to pull something unseen toward it. Raven stared at it, his expression a mixture of surprise and awe.
"What… is this?" he murmured. The vortex pulsed and rippled before vanishing as Raven clenched his fist shut.
He let out a shaky breath, his lips curling into the faintest smile. "This is my power. When I absorb things… I become stronger."
Raven gave a small nod, a sense of resolve forming within him. He walked back to the tree and sat down again, leaning his back against the rough bark. His crimson eyes gazed at the horizon, deep in thought.
"What can I do in this new life?" Raven wondered aloud. He tilted his head upward, watching the vast blue sky above him.
"New world. Magic and swords…" He smirked. "I guess I'll become an adventurer, travel the whole world, and grow stronger. I'll never be weak again."
As his hand touched the bracelet still snug on his wrist—the one his late mother had given him—he whispered quietly, "I promise… I won't waste this chance."
With a determined look, Raven stood up once more. His journey—the journey of an adventurer—had begun.