“Thank you for helping me. Your name is Zeke, right? I’m Amelia from class B.”

“...”

Even after she introduced herself, Zeke was still confused about her slightly odd behavior. He was certain that she did not follow him just to express her gratitude. However, as a defect, he always felt disinclined to socialise with people as that could make life worse, for himself and his friends.

It wasn’t that he preferred solitude, but that his circumstances led him to be alone. He was a Defect, a student incapable of manipulating Aether, therefore, it was better and safer to be alone rather than implicate other people.

When he first enrolled into Erys, Zeke did try to talk to people and make a friend or two, but when his classmates learnt he was inadequate, their receptiveness turned into shunning and whispered belittling. Not everyone liked to demean Defects, however, all kept their distance lest they get picked on next. 

When Zeke went to save Amelia, he did not have any ulterior motives, nor did he plan on befriending her, which was why he departed when the danger had passed. It was more of a fight against himself and his self-doubt, an opportunity to prove to himself that he could make a difference, that he could change his life and get rid of his mediocrity.

Unexpectedly, she went after him and, even now, was showing no signs of leaving.

Amelia was about to speak again only for the youth to glance at her one last time then swiftly leave. With quickened steps, he entered the subway station and refused to pay any attention to the girl behind him.

Eventually, he boarded the subway train as he kept dazedly staring at the ground, seemingly absent-minded. As for Amelia, she followed him with her eyes, her thoughts unknown and expression blank and inscrutable.

…

Excited as he was about successfully executing ‘Fists of Furry’, the lack of any rest rendered Zeke too exhausted to think properly. Once home, he ate something then laid on the bed, his heavy eyelids closing on their own and his consciousness drifting elsewhere.

As he was asleep, he did not notice that the Daily Tasks had been refreshed at exactly 8 PM. 

Feeling energetic, Zeke immediately set out to complete the tasks.

[Daily Tasks: Run 15KM (0/15) | Meditate for 1 hour | Perform 30 successive Push-ups]

They were the same as yesterday, which was something Zeke did not mind. He changed into an appropriate training outfit and filled his starving stomach before beginning with the long-distance ‘jog’.

Overall, the process was physically tiring but doable and rewarding. It took him around two and a half hours to complete everything and see the floating System windows informing him of the stat addition.

[Daily Tasks (3/3) completed: +2 EXP | +1EP]

[You gained 2 Strength]

[You gained 2 Agility]

[You gained 1 Aether]

Unfortunately, the rewards were worse but that did not deter Zeke too much. As he checked his Status Window, he saw that the proficiency of ‘Fists of Furry’ had jumped from 0% to 7%, which could be attributed to the brief battle from yesterday evening.

With nothing to do in particular, Zeke focused on ‘Fists of Furry’ and tried to use it again but to no avail. No matter how much he concentrated, he could not imitate that fiery and exhilarating sensation from before. At first, he speculated that it might have to do with the absence of a ‘real’ target, therefore, he switched to punching a pillow instead of the air.

Again, his attempts were futile and no matter how many times he tried, it never worked, much to his dismay.

As a last and extreme resort, Zeke left the apartment and went to a nearby forest situated at the North of the largest park in the Sunken Metropolis.

The lamps provided ample illumination, but Zeke wanted to be inconspicuous, so he headed to a quiet and dimly lit spot within the forest itself.

At the dead of the night, few people would choose to pass by this area, which made it the perfect place to try something. After ascertaining he was alone, Zeke walked to one of the trees and took a couple of deep breaths.

He wore old and thin black training gloves that belonged to his father and, with tightly clenched fists, punched the wooden trunk with all the strength he could muster.

Expectedly, he felt excruciating pain and almost gave up after that one try. He caressed his aching knuckles and mumbled inaudible words, seemingly curses, directed at the tree itself.

Like any other person, Zeke was not fond of pain, which was partially the reason he never fought back against his bullies, but more than that, he was psychologically strained. From his overly-successful older brother to his talented sister. He was the only inadequate child, thus receiving less attention and care from his parents. After enrolling into Erys, he developed an Inferiority Complex, especially after he saw and heard how strong his sister was. In fact, barely any of the students knew that he was related to her. Unwilling to rely on anyone, including his family, Zeke opted for a solitary life rather than seek aid. He did not want to be seen as weak and helpless, instead, he wanted to prove to his parents, and to himself, that even without talent, one could always find success.

..

 Even though he knew that one could not become stronger without suffering, he still felt hesitant about punching the trees and hoping that the skill would activate. 

Eventually, after a long musing and clear hesitation, he punched again and again. He only stopped when the pain became unbearable and the cold sensation of leaking blood could be felt from the gloves.

Within the Dead Widow Park, West of the Sunken Metropolis, a youth was stubbornly and continuously punching a normal-sized tree. It was an odd sight as the seemingly crazy Zeke would stop and groan then repeat the same actions over and over again.

At last, after ten minutes, his hands were burning from the pain and his breathing was heavy. 

It was then, when frustration was getting the better of him, that he saw an orange spark emanate from his raised fists.

The same hot sensation swelled inside of him, signalling the activation of ‘Fists of Furry’. 

Unlike any of his previous tries, Zeke performed ‘real’ straightforward punches at the tree trunk. 

The pain disappeared for a couple of breaths and four successive and rapid punches struck the wooden trunk, leaving barely visible imprints: The tree itself slightly shook, followed thereafter by a System Notification informing him that the proficiency had increased.

“So it needs a trigger?” He muttered under his breath. 

Basically, the trick wasn’t simply willing the skill to activate, instead, it required the determination to attack one’s target. 

The emotional agitation was the trigger, the anger and willingness to hurt whatever was in front of him, for better or worse. Admittedly, performing such a feat was easier said than done, especially for Zeke, who would always keep himself calm regardless of the situation. Then again, he rarely had the opportunity to showcase his rage or anger, preferring to be rational rather than emotional.

Now that he knew how to properly make use of his one and only skill, Zeke purged any thoughts of stopping this ‘training’. Tumultuous days laid ahead of him and the Paths of Extinction System was the only way to protect himself and get rid of the unwanted Defect title. He finally had the opportunity to prove himself and put an end to his monotonous and insufferably boring life.

It took Zeke a few more tries to grasp the whole procedure and familiarize himself with ‘Fists of Furry’ as well as the required ‘negative’ emotions.

Of course, this self-implemented training session was accompanied by pain and exhaustion, two things Zeke wasn’t used to. However, he did not stop and only when his hands could no longer be clenched did he sit down and, while letting out soft painful groans, remove the gloves.

His knuckles and fingers were soaking with blood and moving them was extremely difficult. After a brief rest, he returned home and applied gauze and bandages around the fresh and bleeding wounds.

The day hadn't started, yet the urge to sleep and rest his body was almost overwhelming. The only thing that kept him awake was the Status Window, which he kept looking at everytime he had the chance. When he saw how his stats were rising, the effort from earlier seemed totally worth it.

[User: Zeke Orland]

[Race: Human]

[Level 1 (5/15 Exp)]

[Strength: 13]

[Agility: 14]

[Aether: 2]

[Paths: Martial Arts (1/12)]

[Skills: Fists of Fury(Proficiency 28%)]

[Available PE: 1]

To fully complete the Martial Arts Path, he needed 11 PE, which was relatively a lot considering he was earning only 1 PE every day. 

However, Zeke was interested in the Aether Voltage Path too, and wanted to unlock it. If he could further increase his Aether Stats, perhaps he would be able to manipulate it and slowly improve himself, like the rest of the ‘gifted’ students in Erys.

Not unlike the day before, Zeke went to Erys feeling fatigued, and to make matters worse, the pain from his bandaged hands was blistering.

He expected Azmer and Rodrick to stop him at the campus, as was their wont, but that did not happen. He reached the classroom and sat down without getting bothered by a single soul, which was surprising.

After Julia’s warning, the two bullies did not get close to him and were nowhere to be seen. 

Soon, the teacher arrived and the students grew silent. 

“I expect that all of you did the essay.” He sternly said as he swept his chilling eyes across every one.

Since he was a Defect, Zeke focused on the theoretical lessons and, in terms of grades, he was the second in the whole class, which was why Julia always ‘asked’ for his help.

In fact, the lessons weren’t particularly difficult to comprehend or study, however, the majority of the students leaned more towards practical lessons. After all, most of the highly-sought after careers weren’t locked behind good grades in theoretical exams. 

All the students liked to battle each other and prove their worth through their strength rather than intelligence, so, apart from a handful of likewise hard-working classmates, Zeke did not have much of a competition.

It only required a little bit of studying as well as paying attention in class to get good grades, but the students were wholly disinterested in History lessons or Theoretical Aether Manipulation, which could prove helpful if properly understood. Then again, teenagers deemed training better and more efficient than paragraphs written in a book.

Apart from the usual suspects, all of Zeke’s classmates took out their essays and waited for the teacher to make the tour. 

Christopher Balrand was a strict and brutally harsh teacher, though his notoriety mainly originated from the severe punishment he would subject the lazy and unruly students. 

He taught History, Mathematics, and Aether Manipulation, which were all secondary subjects generally regarded as unimportant for success. However, Zeke liked Christopher’s lessons the best, not only because all the students were scared of him and never caused any mischief, but also because he was devoted to his craft and provided informative lessons, though many would describe them as boring.

“Great work as always, Zeke.”

While fixing his rectangular spectacles, the teacher picked Zeke’s essay and skimmed through it. 

“It’s truly a shame you cannot use Aether. You would have easily become one of the top students.”

The man muttered with a barely audible voice. He looked at Zeke and sighed, disappointment written all over his face.

As one of Christopher’s favourites, Zeke never actually experienced mockery, but the constant comparison to his siblings was insufferable and more frustrating. 

As he was gathering the essay papers, Christopher was interrupted by Azmer and Rodrick. The two of them barged into the classroom, gasping for breath and hoping they weren’t late.

Alas, when they saw the teacher give them a frighteningly chilling glare, they stood there, rooted to the ground. 

“What happened?”

Instead of berating them, Christopher looked at the bruises on their bodies, a deep frown plastering on his face.

“I-it’s nothing… Sir.”

Azmer lowered his head, vainly trying to hide the blue bruise on his neck. Rodrick fidgeted around but did not have the courage to speak the truth lest they get into more trouble.

“What are you standing there for? To your seats!”

As his loud and clarion voice echoed in the classroom, they hastily walked to their seats.

“This is the third time already. You two will be getting a black star.”

“S-sir!”

Before he could even breathe a sigh of relief, Azmer heard Christopher’s words and wanted to protest only to stop at the last second. Christopher was warning them with crossed arms, his boots impatiently tapping on the ground.

Erys adapted an effective system for hard-working and problematic kids. The former, if they accomplish something impressive, would be rewarded with Golden Stars. In contrast, the latter would be given Black Stars, and when they receive nine, they would be expelled regardless of their social status or talent.

In Zeke’s case, despite being a Defect, he was once rewarded with a Golden Star after getting the highest score in Theoretical Aether Manipulation amongst all first year students. Undoubtedly, it was quite an accomplishment, but a single Golden Star literally changed nothing. 

In the end, Azmer and Rodrick sat down and kept their silence as they kept glaring at Christopher.

“Page 233. We will begin by reviewing the Stellar War. Rodrick.”

The youth, startled, jumped to his feet and stuttered as he could not offer any reply.

“Minus 20 evaluation points. Sit down.”

The teacher then turned his head and stared at Julia. The girl was in a daze and did not notice the tense mood or that everyone was looking at her.

“Julia.”

“A-ah… yes?”

“The Stellar War. Tell me what it is.”

Although she was caught off-guard, she quickly collected her thoughts and responded.

“It’s the war between us, the Zyth, and the earthlings around… 40 years ago? No… it was 50 years or something.”

“Minus 5 evaluation points. Sit down. Zeke, can you explain?”

With his name called, Zeke stood up and, with total ease, provided an elaborate and satisfactory answer.

“The Stellar War, also referred to as the War of the Century, occurred 76 years ago. We, the natives of the Aether Planet, objected to the colonisation launched by the Humans of Earth, so we sided with the Zyth race and engaged in war that lasted 7 years, ending in the year 2097. With the Zyth supporting us, we signed a non-interference diplomatic treaty with the earthlings and, later on, established an amicable relationship in which both sides engaged in regular exchanges of materials and equipment.”

“Excellent. 15 Evaluation Points. Can you tell me about the Zyth Race?”

“Yes, sir. The Zyth Race is an alien species discovered in the year 2070 by the Earthlings, however, due to the necessary technology, the humans were unable to make contact. Later on, when humans started living here, the Zyth Race visited us and, from then on, a collaborative relationship was built and solidified after the Stellar War.

The Zyth Race is biologically different from humans and are all extremely proficient in wielding Aether. They are equipped with heightened perception and generally considered a Race superior to humans in terms of Intelligence. However, as a consequence of fleeing from their galaxy, their bodies were permanently altered, rendering them more fragile than humans.”

“Correct, but you forgot to mention that the Zyth have a low reproductive rate and cannot survive in an environment that lacks Aether, such as planet Earth. 5 Evaluation Points. Sit down.”

“Tsk tsk! What a nerd.” Rodrick clicked his tongue as he looked at the indifferent Zeke, who did not look pleased to receive Evaluation Points.

The rest of the lesson proceeded as usual and since he knew most of the stuff that was reviewed, Zeke spent more time using the System and reading the available information about the Paths and Skills.

[You can use PE to level up unlocked paths, subsequently obtaining more Skills and Stats.]

[Paths of Extinction are two types: Main Paths and Sub-Paths.]

[The Martial Arts Path is a Main Path, which can unlock Sub-Paths if certain requirements are met. The user can use skills from Sub-Paths if the Main path is activated.]

[Certain Skills, labelled as Survival Skills, are not locked behind any restrictions and can be used regardless of the currently activated path.]

[PE can be used to directly increase a specific stat: Conversion rate is: 1:2 for Strength | 1:2 for Agility | 1:1 for Aether | 1:3 for EXP]

…

As Zeke was lost in his musing while eating his lunch in the cafeteria, someone pulled the chair across him and sat down.

His blank eyes focused on the black-haired girl, who looked much better than yesterday. The traces of violence she was subjected to were still visible on her cheek, but, apparently, she applied a bit of make-up to cover it up.

Amelia, with a soft smile and slightly cheerful expression, coyly waved her hand and said,

“I saw you eating alone so I came. You don’t mind, right?”

“No.”

“Great. As Defects, we should stick together.” She looked around and saw no signs of her assailants nor any potentially obnoxious people. 

Defects were either bullied or treated as non-existent, and for Zeke’s case, it was mostly the latter.

“You don’t look too pleased to talk to me. Am I bothering you?”

“...”

He removed the floating system windows and resumed eating as he shrugged his shoulders in response.

“I don’t have any friends either. Also, even though you’re a Defect, you helped me yesterday. Your punches were cool.”

“...”

“Why are you silent? Do you really don’t want to talk to me? I can leave if you want.”

She picked her still untouched plate and was about to leave.

“I’m not a talkative person.”

While still smiling, she sat down again and beamed at him, happy that he finally spoke.

“Really? You strike me as a social person. From what I’ve heard, you’re the luckiest of us Defects. I haven’t heard of anyone actually attacking you.”

“I’m being bullied too, though.”

“Yeah, I am too. It’s honestly annoying, right? Just because they are a bit talented they look down on us. We did not choose to be like this.”

“That’s how life is. Either deal with it or quit.”

“Quit? Hah!” She snorted in retort, “Don’t you know the ludicrous amount needed to get enrolled in the first place? If I bear through the bullying, I can get a good job after graduation. A teacher, maybe…”

“Would you still say that if I hadn’t interfered yesterday?”

“No.” She resolutely shook her head, her voice a bit more serious. “If that happened, I would’ve probably killed myself. Which is why I’m grateful for your help. Speaking of which…” She paused for a couple of breaths and scrutinised Zeke as if trying to see behind his never-changing expression.

“Are you hiding your strength? I definitely saw your hands glow.”

“...”

He did not deign to offer an answer, but that only made Amelia more curious. Her persistence pushed him to change the subject and ask,

“What happened to those four? Are they your classmates?”

“They’re from class C. They found me by accident and started harassing me. Don’t worry, I’ll be taking another route home.”

“That’s good. Don’t you have that prodigy Thomas in your class? I doubt they’ll target you again, at least not within the premises of the school.”

“Yeah. They may come after you, though. Be careful.”

“I always am.”

The two conversed until the bell rang, though the discussed topics were mostly banal. Still, Zeke got to learn about Amelia and vice-versa. Her introverted look notwithstanding, she was quite the talkative and cheerful person, which contrasted her behavior of yesterday, but that could be attributed to the shock and fear she was experiencing.

Just like that, Zeke unwittingly made a friend, his first friend in Erys. He welcomed the change of atmosphere and the freedom to talk to someone instead of eating in solitude. 

…

Fortunately for Zeke, the rest of the day was utterly devoid of trouble. Moreover, he finished earlier than all of his classmates as he was not required to attend the practical lessons. 

Thus, eager to continue training ‘Fists of Furry’, he swiftly returned home, changed clothes, and went to his new favourite spot in the park. Even at daytime, the place was frequented by almost none, so, energised and determined to fully complete the proficiency of the skill, he began the arduous and painstaking procedure.

It would take significantly less time if he could activate the skill successively, but it did not seem to be possible, at least in his current state. 

For two hours with some rests in-between, the youth punched again and again until all strength had left him and there was nothing left but overwhelming fatigue.

The bandages and gauze were dyed with blood and his fingers were twitching from the pain.

“It feels good!”

He had a bright smile as he saw the unexpected System notification. His Strength had increased by 1 point just from his ‘training’, which meant that exerting physical force beyond one’s limits would eventually regard the user with bonus stats. Additionally, he obtained 1 EP, further boosting the urge to break through his physical limitations and subject himself to more hellish exercise.

As much as he wanted to continue, Zeke had a slim body that lacked tough muscles, so it would be detrimental rather than beneficial to push himself without any rest.

Like an alarm clock, his body woke up late at night, his hungry stomach growling and his limbs aching and stiff. 

[Allocate 2 PE into the Aether Voltage Path: Y/N?]

‘Yes’

[Aether Voltage Path unlocked!]

[You obtained the skill ‘Aether Control’]

[You obtained the skill ‘Voltage Zap’]

[You gained 1 Strength]

[You gained 1 Agility]

[You gained 3 Aether]

[You gained 2 Exp]

While Zeke was eating, he used the earned PE to unlock the Aether Voltage Path, which had a strange name that did not provide any basic information apart from being directly to Aether.

Still, he was planning on unlocking both paths from the beginning, and since the cost wasn’t ridiculously high, it did not hurt to sacrifice that much EP.

However, upon obtaining the two new skills, he felt something akin to electricity invade his body and make him tremble for a couple of seconds. 

Unconsciously, the skill ‘Aether Control’ was activated, resulting in dozens of tiny green particles to fill his view. He had difficulty breathing and his body became incredibly stiff, rendering him unable to move an inch.

It lasted for ten seconds before everything returned to normal and Zeke was able to breath again, his forehead sweating profusely.

“That was… Aether.”

It was common knowledge that, in its pure and natural state, ambient Aether took a light green color, but only those proficient in its manipulation could ‘see’ it and make it their own.

Although his body refused to obey and he only got a glimpse, Zeke’s surprise turned into elation as he knew he had taken the first step. 

While containing his excitement, Zeke checked the second newly-acquired skill: Voltage Zap.

He did not know what it did, nor did the System provide anything useful about it. Therefore, while imagining something in relation to the skill’s name, he raised his hand and concentrated.

Expecting a failure, like what happened with ‘Fists of Furry’, Zeke was shocked to see blue electric currents form around his hand then, a bolt of lightning as thin as two fingers, shot from his hand.

The lightning bolt travelled at a high-velocity and hit the wall across from him, forming a small hole. Before he had time to worry about the mess he had just made, Zeke felt something draining from his body and a strong dizziness that almost made him fall unconscious.