The night was silent. A faint wind rustled through the trees behind our house as the moon wandered across the sky in its pale light. I lay in my bed, but sleep was out of the question.
I could heal myself.
That realization wouldn't leave me alone. I had tested it multiple times—cuts, scratches, all of them disappeared within seconds. It was as if my body simply ignored injuries, as if it restored itself to its previous state.
But how did it work? Was it a conscious ability? Or did it happen on its own?
And then there was the SYSTEM.
I had no control over it, but it existed. The message wasn't my imagination. I had to be able to activate it somehow.
There was only one way to find out.
Slowly, I sat up. The house was quiet—my parents were already asleep.
I carefully sneaked to the door, opened it as silently as possible, and stepped onto the cold wooden floor. Step by step, I moved through the hallway, listening to every sound.
Then, I was outside.
The fresh night air filled my lungs as I walked through the garden towards the forest. I knew this place well—I had trained here, experimented with fire and water. But this time, it was different.
This time, I was searching for an answer.
I stopped in a small clearing, surrounded by tall trees.
The leaves rustled softly in the wind, but otherwise, it was silent.
I took a deep breath and focused.
First, I wanted to test my healing. I had tried small wounds—but what about more serious injuries?
I picked up a stone from the ground, weighing it in my hand. Then I took another deep breath—and slammed it with full force against my forearm.
A dull pain shot through my bones. The skin split open, blood welled up. I gritted my teeth and watched.
Seconds passed.
Then, the wound began to vanish. The skin pulled together, the blood disappeared, as if it had never been there. Within ten seconds, my arm was completely healed.
My heart raced.
It worked.
I could heal not just small cuts—deeper wounds closed up on their own as well. But how far could I go? What was the limit?
I took another deep breath and thought. What if I tried something else?
Fire.
I lifted my hand and let a small flame form in my palm.
The familiar, warm glow calmed me for a moment. Then, I exhaled—and let the flame slowly touch my skin.
The pain came instantly. I squeezed my eyes shut, feeling the burn—but then, just like before, it disappeared. The already reddened skin healed within seconds.
I pulled my hand back and stared at my skin.
My body simply ignored injuries.
"This isn't normal…" I murmured.
It wasn't just healing. It was as if my body restored itself to a previous state. But how?
Then I felt it.
A slight tingling in my head. A strange sensation, as if someone was watching me.
I straightened up and looked around.
SYSTEM.
I didn't know why, but I felt that it was somehow connected. I had seen the message—it had to exist somewhere. So I focused.
Show yourself…
Nothing happened.
I narrowed my eyes. Maybe I had to try differently?
"System."
No response.
I tried other ways:
"Status."
"Abilities."
"Activate."
But nothing happened.
I let out a frustrated breath. If it could send me a message, then I had to be able to communicate with it.
I thought of other possibilities—maybe it wasn't as simple as giving a command? Maybe it needed something specific?
My gaze fell back to my hand. I had injured myself—and then I had felt it. That slight tingling in my head.
Maybe I had to try again.
I reached for my dagger, slowly pulling it from its sheath. The cold blade shimmered in the moonlight. I knew it was crazy, but I had to know.
With a deep breath, I pressed the blade against my palm and cut.
Blood dripped onto the ground.
And then it happened.
A message suddenly appeared before my eyes, floating in the air as if it were projected directly into my mind:
[Ability Activated: Unknown]
My breath caught.
It worked. I could influence it.
But what did "Unknown" mean? Was it not fully developed? Or did the system itself not understand what my ability was?
As I pondered, my hand healed again. The blood disappeared, the skin became smooth.
I clenched my fist.
This was just the beginning.
Now I knew that I could heal myself—and that the SYSTEM existed. But there were still so many questions.
Where did it come from? Why did I have it? Who had shot me with the arrow?
I took a deep breath.
This was far from over. I had to continue researching, continue testing.
And if the SYSTEM existed, then it had to have rules.
I would find them.
I would understand what I truly was.