Chapter 14
Sylva walked past him without even slowing down.
"Come on."
Ren blinked. "...Huh? Wait, we're walking?"
She glanced back over her shoulder. City lights caught in her silver eyes, and for a second she looked almost normal. Almost.
"Would you prefer I throw you across the city instead?"
Ren's entire body locked up. "N-no. Walking is good. Walking is amazing. I love walking."
The corner of Sylva's mouth twitched. "Relax. I'm joking."
She tilted her head toward the edge of the skyscraper. Ten stories of empty air and bad decisions.
"Besides… even I know we can't exactly walk down from here."
Ren exhaled so hard his soul nearly left his body.
Phew… thank God…
For one beautiful, blissful second, he thought he was safe.
Then Sylva grabbed him by the collar. Effortless. Like he weighed nothing.
"That's why…" Her voice went weirdly playful. The kind of playful that precedes a hospital visit. "…we're going to jump."
The words hit Ren like a truck labeled 'Divine Judgment.'
"…Eh?"
Cold sweat started immediately. "W-Wait wait wait WAIT HOW IS THAT BETTER THAN WALKING?!"
But Sylva was already smiling. That particular smile. The 'I've decided your fate and you don't get a vote' smile.
"Let's go."
Ren's eyes went wide with the kind of horror usually reserved for final bosses.
"SYLVAAAAAA!"
Then she stepped off the roof.
And took the world with her.
Wind slammed into Ren's face. The city lights turned into messy streaks of color and regret. His stomach stayed on the roof. The rest of him did not.
"I'M GONNA DIEEEE!!"
Ground. Closer. _Closer. _CLOSER.
"..."
BOOOOM!!!
A shockwave rippled across the street. Sylva landed like gravity was a suggestion. One hand in her pocket. Hair perfect. Completely unharmed.
Ren, however, had spiritually died three times on the way down and was still buffering.
His legs were doing their best impression of jelly. "WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU?!" he screamed, pointing at her with fingers that wouldn't stop shaking. "Aren't you supposed to protect me?!"
Sylva looked at him. Then she lost it.
A real laugh. Rare. Loud. Genuine.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry…" she wheezed, waving a hand like she was trying to fan the laughter away. "Your face was just too funny."
Ren however noticed two things at once
1. She wasn't sorry. At all.
2. He was going to remember this betrayal forever.
"Let's go," Sylva said casually, already turning like the near-death experience was a minor inconvenience. "Now we can walk."
Ren's brain was still three seconds behind reality, but his legs followed her anyway. Not like he had a choice.
The city stretched around them. And wow. It was ridiculous. Clean in a way that felt illegal. Towers like blades of glass and light stabbed at the sky. Everything hummed with quiet, controlled power.
Ren couldn't stop staring. "…Wow. It really looks like Tokyo… but, like, Tokyo if it went to heaven and got a firmware update."
Sylva smiled faintly. She didn't look at him. "That's because the Astral Foundation made it their devotion to build this place."
Ren blinked. "Devotion…?"
"As in," she said calmly, "they treated construction like a sacred act. Every structure here is stabilized through astral reinforcement. Nothing decays unless permitted."
Ren made an impressed noise before he could stop himself. "That's amazing…"
For a second, he forgot to be scared.
Then Sylva's tone cooled by about ten degrees. "There are thirty-five known sectors across this country."
Ren glanced over. "Sectors…?"
"In your world you'd call them cities," she said. "Here, they're classified differently."
She paused. "And before you ask no, this isn't Japan."
Ren actually missed a step. "Huh? Seriously?"
Sylva didn't slow. "Of course it isn't. That name no longer exists here."
Something tight and uncomfortable settled in Ren's chest.
"…We're in the country right now," he said slowly, "but it's not called Japan like in my world?"
"Correct."
Silence. Just the low, distant hum of the city and the quiet pulse of light under their feet.
Ren frowned. "Then what is it called?"
Sylva finally looked back at him over her shoulder.
"Nexaris."
Ren's face fell flat. "...That name sounds like something out of a mobile game with bad microtransactions." He narrowed his eyes. "I'm judging it."
Still, they kept walking. And eventually, they arrived.
Sylva's home.
It was… normal. Shockingly normal. Tucked on a quiet street, the kind of house you'd walk past in a Japanese neighborhood and not think twice about.
Ren stopped at the entrance. Something in his chest loosened. "…Wow. It really feels like home."
Sylva unlocked the door in one smooth motion. "That's because I chose it that way."
She stepped inside. "After everything… I decided I preferred a simple life."
The air inside was calm. Quiet. Ren dropped onto the sofa like his body had been waiting for permission. He melted into it.
"…So what's the plan now?" His eyes sharpened, even as he slouched. "If I can really level up, doesn't that mean I have to fight monsters to get stronger?"
Sylva sank into a chair across from him and stretched, slow and lazy. Like someone finally taking armor off after a war.
"…Ahh. Home at last."
Then her expression shifted. "Yes. That's pretty much it."
Her voice dropped. "But there's a problem."
Ren's gaze snapped to her. "…Problem?"
Sylva exhaled. "To clear dimensional Gates… you need to be an Awakener. Or at the very least, hold a registered rank."
A pause.
"But right now…" She looked straight at him. "You have no rank at all."
Silence. Heavy.
Then Sylva's eyes flickered. Like a lightbulb went off.
"…No rank," she repeated quietly.
"Ahh." She sat up. "I totally forgot."
She lifted her palm. The air changed. A slow, unnatural spiral of energy coiled above her hand. Darkness folded in on itself, over and over, condensing until it hardened into shape.
A key. Another black key.
Ren's body moved before his brain did. He scrambled back.
"No… no no no no..."
His voice cracked. Bad memories tried to claw their way forward. "I'm not going through that pain again."
Sylva didn't even blink. If anything, she looked entertained.
"Relax," she said calmly. "Your uncle gave me this key."
Her fingers tightened slightly around the darkness. "I was told to only use it after the first key had already been activated."
For one second, the world went silent.
Then
DING.
A system window tore into Ren's vision.
*SYSTEM NOTICE*
Would Player like to upgrade System?
[ YES ] [ NO ]
Ren froze. His breath hitched. "…Upgrade…?" he whispered.
Something lit up in his chest. Confusion turned to anticipation. Anticipation turned to something way more dangerous.
Excitement.
His imagination went into overdrive.
His eyes widened, fear evaporating. "Wait… does that mean…"
His lips curled. Slowly.
"I'll get stronger?"
The idea hit deeper than anything else had.
He lifted his head, and something in him woke up. Hungry.
"I wonder what level I'll reach…"
His voice dropped to a whisper.
Ren didn't hesitate. His mind was made up. The choice was obvious.
"YES."
The key in Sylva's palm vanished. Just… gone.
Ding…
*[ Player System Upgrade In Progress. ]*
Ren's eyes lit up like a kid who just got handed unlimited arcade tokens.
"Oho…"
A grin stretched across his face, slow and dramatic. "Finally."
He clenched his fist like he was posing for a poster. "My time has come."
Wind blew past him. For no reason. Dramatic anime wind.
"I can already feel it…" he whispered. "The evolution of my power… The ascension of my stats… Perhaps even…"
He gasped.
"…an overpowered legendary class?!"
Ding…
*[ Player System Successfully Upgraded ]*
Ren froze. Pupils shaking. This was it. The moment.
Then…
Ding…
*Reward: Side Quests*
"...."
Silence.
The dramatic wind stopped.
Somewhere, a bird noped out of existence.
Ren blinked. Once. Twice.
"…Huh?"
His grin cracked. Then shattered.
"…Side quests?"
He stared into the middle distance like a man who just found out his destiny was filing paperwork.
"That's it?" he said weakly.
Sylva glanced at him, casual as ever. "What were you expecting?"
Ren pointed at himself, betrayed. "I don't know! Maybe divine powers?! Cosmic authority?! A cool transformation scene?!"
He threw his hands up.
"WHO GETS EXCITED OVER SIDE QUESTS?!"
Ding…
*[New Side Quest Available:]*
Touch grass.
Ren's eye twitched.
"…My system is mocking me."