New Me
For the first time, I went outside without being stared at for the wrong reason. It felt good. Everyone that was looking at me was either my face or my rank. Without any distractions, I arrived at the bakery. Checking out the cake stand, there were various kinds that I was interested in taking. "Could I take the chocolate cake?" It was rare for me to eat anything that had chocolate in it. I had a sweet tooth, but it was a shame that I fulfilled my needs. "That would be 55 dollars." The cashier, who was female in her near twenties, smiled at me. I couldn't tell if she was interested in me or valued me as a customer. It was rare for someone to smile at me. My heart started to hurt, seeing that the cake was expensive. But today was my day. And I'm going to do my best to celebrate it. Taking out my money, I handed it over to her. I had six thousand dollars in my bank. For someone who was working for three years, that was pitiful. "You must be strong for someone your age." The female cashier initiated a conversation. I couldn't help but sigh inwardly, seeing how the girl started that as a conversation starter. Checking the female worker ranking, she was ranked 9B someone who was higher ranked than average. "I'm not that strong. I don't know how to fight." What I said was the truth, and besides. With ranking out, it was genuinely hard for people to fall in love. Since this society was now talent based, everyone's goal was to earn the attraction of a higher ranked person, regardless of gender. "Is that so? Who are you buying your cake for?" "I'm buying one for my girlfriend." What? I'm not going to tell someone I'm buying a cake for myself. And I would rather slap myself in the face than give my parents anything good. "She must be one lucky person." I could hear the disappointment coming from her voice. "Sorry, but I must go." Getting the cake, I left. Honestly, if the female worker wanted to throw herself at me, I wouldn't mind. But considering my circumstances, I needed to chill out. First things first, I need to disown my parents. Now that I have the power to do so, I might as well do it. I can't have them leech off of me. Next is financial. Now that I have quit my job, I need some way to earn money. I could use my ability, but it would be hard for someone to hire me because of it. But the chances of someone trying to meet me were high. After all, the ranking in abilities has changed. If they were smart enough, they would immediately rope me in. Thinking about what I would do, I arrived at my apartment on the way to my door. There were three people outside my door. Just like what I had expected. They were here to recruit me. I couldn't help but grin, seeing how my resources flew to me. I quickly changed my face before they noticed what I was thinking. "Could I ask what you three are doing waiting around at the door?" "Are you Kyle Palmer?" "Yes?" The three of them were dumbfounded. It was understandable, considering the significant change in my body and face. The body enhancer was stacked. "Ahem. I'm Karl, a representative from the International Defense Agency. I want to offer you a deal." Karl, an old man in his fifties here, quickly introduced himself. His hair was neatly trimmed and was black with a shade of gray. He was aging, but his body was still as good as an adult male's. He looked like an excellent grandpa typed character. "I'm Jasmine, a representative from the Interdimensional Union Committee." Jasmine, unlike Karl, was someone who looked like she was in her twenties. Nevertheless, her long black hair and brown eyes were attractive. Coupled with the fact that she was developed nicely, her black suit perfectly defined her features. "I'm Katie, representative of the Specialized Ranker's Agency." Katie, like Jasmine, was somewhere in her twenties. Her blond hair and blue eyes made it easy to look at. While she wasn't as stacked as Jasmine, she still had a nice body. "Why don't you three come in? It would make it easier than to stand here." The three of them agreed that we would talk for a while. For times like these, I wished I had more chairs. Luckily I had a clean carpet, and my apartment was cleaned three days ago. Sitting down on a carpet, everyone here already knew that I was poor. After all, they should have some information about me since they're here to recruit me. "I will be honest with you all. I will be taking the deal that will give me the most benefit." It was better for them to know what I wanted. I don't want any grudges coming off of them just because I rejected them. They could fight each other for all I care. Karl, the old man, had frowned upon hearing that. Did he not like what I said? "Is that so? I don't think you are fit for our organization if you're filled with greed." "You should know how my life has been." Karl didn't seem like someone who wanted to negotiate with me. He let out a grunt and left the house. That was fine. To tell the truth, I didn't think I will work in a place like the International Defense Agency. I wasn't someone who would help people for the good of it. The Interdimensional Union Committee and the Specialized Ranker's Agency were the ideal organizations for me to join. "Kyle, we from the Specialized Ranker's Agency would like to offer you 500M Yearly, with full on training expenses, and a aide within the top 1000 in combat power." Katie, who broke my thought, had offered me a large sum. I couldn't help but mentally drool at the price I was being offered.Latest Chapter
Chapter 15
The academy felt different after our meeting with Drayke.Not louder or more crowded just watched. Security drones hovered at the edges of corridors now, and even the air seemed to hum with surveillance.I tried to pretend I was just another student again, but the system had other plans.Zero progress. The kind of reminder that never stopped blinking in the corner of my vision.Kira joined me in the library that morning, pretending to study a stack of tactical manuals. She spoke without looking up. “Any new signals?”“Nothing concrete,” I said, flipping a page I hadn’t read. “But there’s static in the ranking database profiles flickering in and out. It’s like the system can’t decide if certain students exist.”“That sounds like a good place to start.” She leaned closer. “Names?”I hesitated, lowering my voice. “Three, so far: Rylan Korr, Aria Vale, and Mira.”Kira frowned. “Your healer friend?”“She’s not my friend,” I said automatically. “Just… connected.”“You think the fragments ar
Chapter 14
Morning light filtered through the dorm window, too calm for what was sitting under my skin. The hum from the fragment still pulsed faintly through my mark, a heartbeat that wasn’t mine.Kira hadn’t said much since we escaped the tunnels. She sat at my desk now, replaying the corrupted video over and over again. Every frame showed the same thing Halden, the flash, the empty pod.“We can’t go to Drayke,” she said finally. “He’ll twist it, erase it, or worse.”“I know.” I rubbed my temples. “But the system wants a report. If we ignore it, we’ll trigger a compliance flag.”“Eight hours.” I sighed. “Enough time to find proof before we hand him a version he can’t rewrite.”Kira raised an eyebrow. “You plan to out hack the Headmaster?”“Not hack,” I said. “Borrow.”We started in the data wing, where the academy stored all mission logs. The room was a maze of crystal servers and silent drones gliding along the ceiling. Access required triple clearance; luckily, my new Unranked Division sta
Chapter 14
Sleep didn’t come easily that night.Every time I closed my eyes, I saw the blue light of those containment pods and heard the hum of the fragments steady, patient, alive.By morning, the academy’s corridors felt too bright. Too quiet. Every student I passed seemed normal, but after what I’d seen underground, “normal” didn’t mean much.“Yeah, I’ll add that to my to do list,” I muttered.At the cafeteria, Leo waved me over. He’d already devoured half his breakfast. “You look like you wrestled a golem.”“Close,” I said, sitting. “Ever hear of the Unranked being sent into restricted zones?”He blinked. “Restricted zones? Those are off limits even for B class. Why?”“Just curious.”Leo frowned. “Curious gets people expelled or worse.”I didn’t answer. My wrist band pinged again.> “You’re not the only one who’s been below. Meet in the E 13 training room after curfew.”I looked up, scanning the room. No one was watching. The message vanished after three seconds.Curfew hit at twe
Chapter 12
The morning after my meeting with Drayke, the academy’s bells sounded different.Slower. Heavier. Like the building itself was thinking.I woke to the faint hum of the wrist band and a new message blinking across the display.“Unranked?” I said aloud. “That’s not even on the course list.”Leo, half asleep on the other bed, groaned. “You get reassigned again? What did you do this time?”“Apparently I impressed the wrong people,” I muttered, already pulling on my jacket.Block E 13 sat on the edge of the campus half buried in the cliffside where maintenance tunnels and old laboratories connected. The air grew colder the farther I walked. When I finally reached the door, it didn’t even have the academy crest just a rusted plate that read Authorized Personnel Only.I swiped my ID. The lock clicked, the door slid open, and a blast of recycled air hit me.Inside were about a dozen students. No uniforms matched; ranks either didn’t display or flickered with broken signals. They all l
Chapter 11
The following morning, I’d barely made it halfway through breakfast before my wrist band lit up.So the Headmaster wanted a chat. Never a good sign when the most powerful man in the academy calls you before class.Leo nearly choked on his food. “The Headmaster? What did you do this time?”“Apparently I existed,” I said, finishing my coffee. “Wish me luck or don’t.”He gave me a look halfway between awe and sympathy. “Just don’t make him angry. People who do usually disappear.”“Encouraging,” I muttered, grabbing my jacket.The elevator up the Central Spire was glass on all sides. The city stretched below like a model: training grounds, dorm blocks, defensive turrets disguised as statues. From up here, the academy looked peaceful like a lie carved out of steel.The doors opened into a wide corridor of black marble. Two sentries in ceremonial armor stood guard outside Drayke’s office. Their ranks flashed in the hundreds. Top tier.One of them scanned my ID band, then nodded. “Enter. T
Chapter 10
The next morning the academy looked different.Maybe it was the way the sunlight caught the tower windows, or maybe it was me. People stepped aside when I walked through the courtyard. Some nodded with forced politeness; others stared like they’d seen a ghost.Word travelled faster than the drones.“Figures,” I muttered. “Barely one day and I’m already a conspiracy theory.”At breakfast, Leo waved me over to an empty table. He looked both impressed and terrified.“Half the school thinks you destroyed the evaluation drones by looking at them,” he whispered.“They’re exaggerating,” I said, stabbing a piece of toast. “I only looked at one.”He blinked. “You’re joking, right?”“Probably.”Across the hall, groups of students whispered. I caught fragments: ‘Linsey’s new weapon’ ‘he cursed the Council’ ‘that’s how he got promoted.’Let them talk. Fear was useful.A shadow fell across our table. I glanced up. Three upper division students stood there, badges gleaming gold. The one in front,
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