The black bus rattled as it rolled past the towering gates of the Dawn Faction, the metal walls shrinking behind them until they became nothing but a silver line in the distance.
Riven sat quietly by the window.
A boy he didn't recognize occupied the seat beside him. Even though most of them had grown up in Section A and attended the same schools, that didn't mean they all knew each other. The Wall was crowded, divided, cliquish. And Riven—being an orphan—had always found it harder to talk to kids who still had parents waiting at home.
He told himself it didn't matter.
It did.
He leaned his head against the glass and opened his System.
⸻
[Riven Harlow – Level 4]
EXP: 400 / 1600
Race: Human
Evolved Ability: Lightning
Strength: 11
Speed: 11
Defense: 11
Health: 21 / 21
Energy: 21 / 21
Mana: 12 / 12
⸻
He had just invested his unassigned stat point into Defense, evening it out with Strength and Speed. Balanced felt safer. Cleaner.
After reaching Level 3, he'd unlocked an Inventory. It was nearly empty—just a spare handkerchief and a few useless scraps—but seeing the space still made him feel… ahead.
He had already added Jordan, Joey, and Luka to his Party.
They just didn't know it.
They couldn't even see the System.
All Riven could see when he focused on them were faint outlines of their health and energy—like ghostly bars hovering over their heads. It made him feel powerful.
It also made him feel alone.
How long is it even going to take to reach the academy? he wondered.
That was when the System flickered again.
⸻
[SYSTEM: User is being infected by a sleeping toxin.]
[SYSTEM: Resistance +1]
⸻
Riven blinked.
"…What?"
The message appeared again.
⸻
[SYSTEM: Resistance +1]
⸻
Every five seconds.
He looked around.
One by one, students slumped in their seats. Heads tilted. Mouths fell open. Soft snores filled the bus, blending with the rumble of the engine.
Riven slowly stood halfway from his seat and glanced toward the front. Through the rearview mirror, he caught sight of the bus driver.
Gas mask.
The man who had ushered them onto the bus earlier?
Also wearing a gas mask.
His heartbeat picked up.
Without hesitating, Riven reached into his Inventory and pulled out his handkerchief, pressing it over his nose and mouth.
The System shifted.
⸻
[SYSTEM: Resistance +0.01]
⸻
"…That's it?" he muttered behind the cloth.
He lowered it for a moment.
⸻
[SYSTEM: Resistance +1]
⸻
Raised it again.
⸻
[SYSTEM: Resistance +0.01]
⸻
"So breathing it directly levels it faster…" he whispered.
This could be useful. Sleep resistance. If someone ever tried something like this again…
Maybe he could endure it.
He slowly removed the handkerchief.
Another pulse of toxin hit his lungs.
⸻
[SYSTEM: Resistance +1]
⸻
His eyelids felt heavier now.
The world dulled around the edges.
Just a little more…
A sharp impact struck the back of his neck.
Not hard enough to break anything—but precise.
Pain shot down his spine.
"Wha—"
The world flipped sideways.
Darkness swallowed him mid-sentence as his body collapsed back into the seat.
⸻
A tall, lean man stood behind him.
Orange hair spiked upward like flames. Sharp eyes. Calm expression.
He adjusted the glove on his hand and looked down at Riven for a moment longer than necessary.
"You're going to ruin my plans," the man thought quietly.
His gaze moved across the bus—rows of unconscious children, breathing slow and steady.
"I'm trying to make sure you, your brother, and your little friends all end up at the same academy. If you stay awake and cause a scene, that complicates things."
He exhaled softly.
"The academy already made a mistake putting two brothers in the same base. By the time they realize it, it'll be too late to switch placements."
His lips curved faintly.
"Call it a clerical error."
The man turned and walked back toward the front of the bus as the vehicle continued down the empty highway.
Outside, the Dawn Faction walls disappeared completely from view.
At an unknown point in time, Riven's eyes snapped open.
Wind brushed against his face. The scent of grass filled his lungs.
He was standing in the middle of a massive grassy field, trees towering in every direction like silent walls. Surrounding him were thousands of students, all dressed in academy uniforms, all looking just as confused.
"Where are we?!" a boy shouted from somewhere deeper in the crowd.
"How in the world would any of us know?!" a girl snapped back.
Voices rose. Panic spread fast. Arguments broke out as students turned on each other, frustration bubbling to the surface.
Riven exhaled slowly.
I won't be able to find the others in this mess. That's if they're even here. Jordan probably isn't. We're literal twins. The academy loves splitting up family. If he's here, they made sure we're far apart. So either I'm alone… or Joey or Luka is somewhere in this crowd.
A sharp ding echoed in his mind.
⸻
[System Quest: Make your way out of the forest]
Reward: 100 EXP
⸻
Riven sighed.
"One hundred EXP… that's nothing right now," he muttered under his breath. "I need more than that if I want to level up."
Still, a quest was a quest.
He lifted his head, scanning the forest. Which direction was he even supposed to go?
Then he saw it.
Hovering faintly above the trees in the distance was a translucent arrow, pointing forward.
"…Of course."
"Let's just get this over with."
He started walking.
As he passed through the crowd, a boy with light blue hair noticed him.
Harkel Voss narrowed his eyes.
Where is he going? he thought, watching the calm, almost bored look on Riven's face. Is he just trusting his instincts?
Harkel stepped away from the crowd, distancing himself. From his shadow, a dark blob rose like liquid smoke before shaping itself into a long spear.
He planted the spear into the ground.
"Alright… go."
The weapon began spinning rapidly, humming as it rotated.
A few nearby students backed away nervously.
After several seconds, the spear slowed… then stopped.
The pointed end aimed in the exact same direction Riven had gone.
Harkel blinked.
"…Huh."
Maybe that guy wasn't guessing after all.
The spear dissolved and reformed into a sword in his hand, the weapon he was most comfortable with.
Without another word, Harkel followed the same path.
He wasn't worried about Leo. With Leo's senses, he'd be fine.
—
Meanwhile, deeper in the forest, Leo moved quietly between trees.
His nose twitched.
He could still faintly smell Harkel's scent in the air.
He definitely has a plan, Leo thought. Better to regroup than wander alone.
Leaves crunched behind him.
Leo stopped.
Someone was following him.
He turned slowly to see a boy with black hair and a noticeable blood-red streak near his bangs.
Luka.
"Is there something I can help you with?" Leo asked calmly.
Luka rubbed the back of his neck. "Uh… you look like you know where you're going. I don't know where my friends are, so… I figured sticking with someone confident isn't a bad idea."
Leo studied him.
He wasn't heartless. But he also didn't want dead weight.
"Can you fight?" Leo asked bluntly.
They both stopped walking.
Luka swallowed. Sweat rolled down his chin.
"Yeah," he said. "I can."
Leo's nose flared.
Something was close.
Before he could warn him—
The bushes exploded.
A large creature lunged straight at Luka.
"Watch out!" Leo barked.
But Luka had already moved.
He twisted to the side just in time, the beast crashing into the grass where he'd stood.
Luka stumbled back, eyes wide. "What the heck is that?!"
The creature was about the size of a small car, its body covered in black, matted fur. It had a long snout instead of a nose, dark empty eyes, and jagged teeth that looked strong enough to rip through bone. Its claws dug into the earth as it turned toward them, snarling.
"It's a Rataclaw Beast," Leo said calmly, though his hands were already changing. Dark fur spread over his forearms as his fingers lengthened into claws. "They're ranked Level 1 or 2. Since you dodged that easily, it's probably Level 1."
The beast lowered itself, ready to charge again.
But before it could—
A thin red line shot forward.
It sliced through the air with terrifying precision.
The cut ran from between the creature's eyes down its snout, nearly splitting it in half.
The Rataclaw froze.
Then it collapsed.
Dead.
Leo turned slowly.
Luka stood there with his hands still shaped like claws, faint red energy fading from his fingers. His eyes were wide… then suddenly lit up with excitement.
"It worked! It actually worked!" Luka shouted, jumping once in place. "I've been practicing that move all month!"
He stopped and looked at Leo with a grin.
"So… does that answer your question about whether I can fight?"
Leo stared at the corpse.
Then back at Luka.
A small smirk tugged at his lips.
"…Yeah," he said. "You'll do."
The underground monitoring chamber hummed with quiet tension.
Rows of massive monitors covered the curved wall, each one displaying live footage of the new students scattered across the testing grounds of Sigil Gate Academy. Scientists in white lab coats moved between glowing consoles while officers in dark military uniforms stood with their arms crossed, eyes sharp and calculating. Pens scratched against clipboards as footage replayed in slow motion.
On the central screen, Luka's blood lashed outward in a crimson arc.
The footage rewound.
Played again.
Zoomed in.
"The boy is interesting," one of the female scientists murmured, adjusting her glasses as Luka's blood hardened midair. "Look at that control. It behaves like water when he moves it, but the moment he wills it—" she tapped the screen as the blood crystallized into jagged scarlet spikes, "—it solidifies like ice. That's not normal hemokinesis."
Another scientist nodded quickly while jotting notes down. "It's like a hybrid property. Liquid manipulation with instantaneous freezing. That kind of versatility at his age is… rare."
She glanced toward the man seated in the dim light at the back of the room.
"What do you think, Darius?"
The room quieted slightly.
Darius Kane sat with one leg crossed over the other, silver hair brushing against the collar of his black coat. His sharp gray eyes reflected the flickering footage as Luka's blood sliced clean through a training dummy.
He didn't blink.
"Eh," he said flatly. "It's something. Nothing I need to interfere with." His fingers tapped lazily against the armrest. "Keep observing the Voss children though. If we can—"
"You can what?"
The temperature in the room seemed to drop.
The heavy doors at the back slid open with a metallic hiss.
Every head turned.
Shen Voss stepped inside, long blue coat trailing behind him. His face was calm—but his eyes burned with restrained fury. The air felt heavier with every step he took forward.
Behind him, shadows gathered.
They thickened.
They twisted.
Then something massive rose from the darkness.
Ironshade towered over the room, a hulking mass of muscle and shadow, its body outlined in faint blue light. Its form rippled like smoke barely contained inside a monstrous frame. Empty glowing eyes locked onto the scientists, and several of them instinctively stepped back.
Darius slowly stood.
"Shen, it's been a—"
"Say another word," Shen interrupted, his voice low and steady, "and I'll bring this entire base down."
Ironshade's claws flexed, tearing grooves into the reinforced flooring without effort.
The soldiers reached for their weapons but hesitated. They all knew who Shen was. They all knew what he could do.
Darius didn't look afraid—but there was caution in his eyes.
"I know what you've been doing," Shen continued, taking another step forward. "Testing. Pushing. Manipulating situations around these children. Around my family's children." His jaw tightened. "You've grown careless."
Darius walked calmly to a nearby counter, picking up a glass filled with dark red liquid. He swirled it once before taking a slow sip.
"Hm. Bland," he muttered with a faint smirk.
Shen's expression didn't change.
"If I find out you've touched even one of my family members," Shen said quietly, "or if you interfere with my game again, I won't come alone next time. I'll come with the entire Voss army. No faction will save you. I'll finish what my ancestor started."
For a moment, silence.
Darius set the glass down.
"You won't," he said softly.
He began circling Shen, slow and deliberate. "Your nephews and nieces are enrolled at my academy. Your precious students." He stopped in front of him. "And your two sons."
The room felt like it was about to explode.
"You won't risk their lives," Darius continued calmly. "Even if you pretend you would, I know you better than that. So I suggest you step away before one of them… accidentally runs into a high-level beast."
Ironshade let out a low, vibrating growl that shook dust from the ceiling.
Shen's hands clenched.
For a second, it truly looked like a war would begin right there.
Then Shen turned.
"Destroy it."
Ironshade roared.
In a single explosive leap, the shadow beast smashed into the reinforced ceiling. Metal screamed. Concrete shattered. The top of the underground structure collapsed inward as alarms blared across the facility.
"Evacuate!" a scientist screamed.
Ironshade tore through support beams like paper, sending entire sections of the building crumbling. Soldiers ran. Scientists dropped clipboards and bolted for emergency exits.
Dust filled the air.
Concrete rained down.
Through it all, Darius walked toward the exit at an unhurried pace, coat barely disturbed.
Above ground, Shen stood beside a sleek aircraft hovering in place. The wind from its engines whipped his coat behind him as debris thundered below.
The building collapsed completely into a heap of rubble.
Ironshade vanished into smoke.
Darius stepped out just as the final section fell. He looked up.
Their eyes met.
No words.
Just a silent promise of future conflict.
The aircraft ascended into the sky, disappearing into the clouds.
One of the shaken scientists stared at the destroyed structure. "How did that thing tear through clinor steel? That material is reinforced against high-grade beasts…"
Darius dusted off his sleeve.
"That's Shen Voss," he said with a faint smile. "Now stop staring. Retrieve the backup equipment from Section Three. I still want eyes on those students."
The scientists scrambled to obey.
Far above, unseen by them all, the game had already begun.