After registration, the crowd around the Awakening Bureau's desk gradually thinned.
Most students had made their choice. Those with combat-ready classes signed up immediately, fueled by the adrenaline of their new status. Others walked away quietly, realizing that a steady, safe job within the city walls was a better fit for their survival odds.
Lin Yi and Wang Hao moved toward the bus stop, their footsteps echoing on the pavement. The afternoon sun hung low over Jianghe City's massive defensive walls, stretching their shadows across the road.
Wang Hao was uncharacteristically quiet, his arms folded tight across his chest. He looked like a man trying to solve a puzzle that didn't want to be solved. Finally, he broke the silence.
"Lin Yi… are you serious about this? No jokes?"
Lin Yi glanced at him. "About which part?"
"The expedition," Wang Hao said, his brow furrowed. "This isn't a game. Experienced hunters get killed out there."
Lin Yi nodded, his expression neutral. "I'm aware."
"That's what's killing me! You say it like it doesn't matter ," Wang Hao countered. "You're a Laborer class. You should be far away from the frontline as possible."
Lin Yi let out a soft laugh. "If I spend my whole life behind the walls, I'll never actually know what I am. Besides, someone has to keep an eye on you."
Wang Hao sighed, looking at his friend. He'd known Lin Yi for three years, but today, something had shifted. The usual calm was still there, but it was layered over a quiet, immovable confidence.
"Fine," Wang Hao grumbled. "If you're going to be stubborn, then I'm going too. I'll stick to you like glue. At least when things go south, I can use my skills to help us retreat faster."
"I appreciate the effort," Lin Yi teased.
They reached the bus stop and sat down. As the city noise hummed in the background, Lin Yi turned his focus inward, summoning the system interface.
-------------------
[Minimal Effort Maximum Reward System]
Host: Lin Yi
Class: Laborer
Rank: E
Level: 1
[Attributes]
Strength: 9
Agility: 7
Constitution: 7
Spirit: 6
Inventory: 1 item (New notification blinking)
-------------------
Lin Yi opened his inventory. Inside the void-like space rested a single weapon.
At first glance, it was a simple hunter's dagger, but as he focused on it, the data expanded:
----
[Froststeel Hunter Dagger]
Quality: Rare
Attack Power: 52
Effect: [Frost Edge] – Each strike deals frost damage and slows the target's movement and attack speed.
-----
Lin Yi stared. The original reward should have been a Beginner Hunter Dagger—a common-tier weapon with maybe 5 or 6 attack power. This was nearly ten times that, and it carried an elemental enchantment.
In the hunter world, elemental weapons were luxury items reserved for veteran hunters. The system hadn't just given him more items; it had fundamentally evolved the quality.
"Lin Yi? You're staring into space again," Wang Hao said, waving a hand in front of his face.
"Just thinking about the gear I'll need," Lin Yi replied smoothly. He glanced around; the bus stop was mostly empty. With a slight flick of his wrist, he tested the system's extraction.
A faint, cold shimmer appeared in his palm. The dagger materialized, its blade reflecting a silver-blue light that seemed to pulse with a faint chill.
Wang Hao's eyes nearly popped out of his head. "Whoa! Where did that come from?"
"The Bureau," Lin Yi said, turning the blade to catch the light. "Standard issue for registrants."
"Like hell it is!" Wang Hao leaned in, his voice a hushed, frantic whisper. "I got a rusted iron shortsword that looks like it was found in a scrap heap. That... that looks like froststeel."
"Is there a difference?" Lin Yi asked, feigning ignorance.
Wang Hao looked like he wanted to faint. "Mid-level hunters save up for months to get a froststeel edge. How did you pull that out of a registration bag?"
"Luck of the draw?"
"That is not a Bureau weapon."
The cold, clear voice made them both jump. Su Qinghan was standing a few feet away, having approached with the silence of a natural predator. Her eyes were locked onto the dagger.
"Froststeel," she said, her voice trailing off as she inspected the quality. "The academy doesn't even issue those to the elite class for training."
Su Qinghan's gaze shifted from the blade to Lin Yi's face. She didn't look convinced, but she didn't push. "Luck is a fickle thing, Lin Yi. It won't help you when a pack of Shadow Wolves corners you in Sector Twelve."
"Sector Twelve?" Wang Hao asked. "That's where the expedition is going?"
"The Bureau officer confirmed it," Su Qinghan replied. She crossed her arms, her expression stern. "It's a low-level zone, but it's overgrown. Visibility is poor. If you're going, don't wander off. And don't try to be a hero because you have a frosteel blade."
"Noted," Lin Yi said, offering a small, enigmatic smile.
Su Qinghan lingered for a second, her eyes searching his for any sign of fear. Finding none, she turned to leave.
She then disappeared into the moving crowd without looking back.
Wang Hao exhaled a breath he seemed to have been holding. "Man... she's terrifying. But I think that's the most she's ever said to anyone who wasn't a teacher."
Lin Yi twirled the dagger once more, the cold steel feeling perfectly balanced in his hand, before vanishing it back into the inventory.
His eyes then drifted toward the distant city walls.
Three days.
In three days he would step outside Jianghe City for the first time.
And with this system in his possession, he had a strong feeling that the expedition might not go the way anyone expected.