Rebirth Of The Sealed Core: The Rise Of Billy Howell

CHAPTER 2 — THE FIRST SYSTEM TASK

The moment Billy stepped out of the warehouse, he felt strange. Everything around him looked the same—the cracked concrete, the noisy machines, the confused workers gathering outside—but something about the world felt clearer. Sharper. Like someone wiped dust off his eyes.

The air felt lighter.

His body felt stronger.

And deep inside him, a warm energy moved slowly, like a sleeping flame that had just started to wake.

His supervisor rushed over, “Billy! You okay? They said a shelf fell on you!”

Billy nodded slowly. “Yeah… somehow I’m fine.”

The man gave him a puzzled look. “You sure? That thing should’ve crushed half your ribs.”

Billy wasn’t sure how to explain it. The truth sounded insane.

“I guess I got lucky.”

Lucky.

The word felt strange on his tongue. He had never been lucky in his entire life.

After the evacuation ended and everyone returned to work, Billy took a moment to sit alone behind the loading trucks. He needed to breathe, to think, to understand what had just happened.

“System,” he whispered softly, unsure if it would respond.

At once, the voice echoed gently in his head.

[Host has called. System is listening.]

He exhaled in relief. “So you’re real.”

[Confirmed.]

Billy swallowed hard. “Why are you inside me? And why did my energy… explode earlier?”

[Host’s Eternal Origin Core has been sealed since birth. The accident shook the seal, causing partial release of energy.]

Billy stared at his hands. They looked the same, yet he could feel something new—something humming quietly under his skin.

“What exactly is the Origin Core?”

Before the system replied, a soft chime echoed in his mind.

DING!

[New Task Generated]

A glowing blue screen appeared before him.

────────────

TASK: Stabilize Your Awakening

Your Origin Core is unstable.

Failure: Energy backlash (Dangerous)

Success Reward: +10 Energy Points, +1 Beginner Skill

────────────

Billy’s eyes widened.

“Backlash? Dangerous? What does that mean?”

[Host’s body is too weak to handle the awakened energy. A simple breathing exercise will stabilize the core.]

“So I have to complete this task now?”

[Yes. Recommended to begin immediately.]

Billy looked around. The warehouse yard was empty for the moment. Lunch break was almost over, but he had a few minutes to spare. He leaned back against the wall and closed his eyes.

“Alright… tell me what to do.”

[Follow these steps.]

The instructions appeared one by one in front of him.

— Sit up straight

— Relax your muscles

— Breathe in for three seconds

— Hold for two

— Release slowly

— Guide the warm energy in your chest downward toward your stomach

Billy tried to follow it carefully. For a moment, nothing happened… until he felt a gentle warmth move inside him. It was like touching warm water. Soft but powerful.

His heartbeat slowed. His thoughts grew calmer.

He continued breathing as the warmth moved smoothly, spreading through his body in small waves.

Then—

DING!

[Task Completed]

[Reward Granted: +10 Energy Points]

[Reward Granted: Beginner Skill — Energy Sense (Level 1)]

A soft shiver ran down Billy’s spine. A new feeling awakened in him. He could sense… something. It wasn’t sight or sound. It was more like an awareness. Like he could feel tiny movements in the air, the heartbeat of the world around him.

“So this is Energy Sense?” he whispered.

[Correct. Host can now sense energy fluctuations, danger signals, and traces of supernatural abilities nearby.]

Billy got to his feet slowly. The world felt even clearer now, as if someone adjusted the brightness around him.

Suddenly, the warehouse door slammed open.

“Billy! Break is over!” a co-worker called out.

Billy nodded and hurried inside.

As he worked through the rest of the afternoon, he tested the new skill secretly. Every time someone walked behind him, he felt it a second before he turned. When a worker on the upper floor slipped, Billy sensed the sudden shift and managed to yell out—

“Careful!”

The man grabbed the railing just in time. He stared down at Billy, shocked.

“How did you see that?!”

Billy didn’t answer. He just forced a small smile and kept working.

The day ended faster than usual. When he clocked out, he walked home with his hands in his pockets and his mind racing.

I’m not weak… I was sealed.

All these years… I wasn’t the failure everyone thought I was.

By the time he reached the small apartment he rented, the sun was already setting. His phone buzzed with a message from his landlord reminding him that rent was due in three days.

Great. Another problem.

Billy unlocked the door and stepped inside. The room was small, but tonight it didn’t feel as suffocating as usual.

He sat on the bed.

“System… can you tell me who sealed my energy?”

A long pause.

Then—

[Accessing old records…]

[Data corrupted.]

[Restoration possible through Host’s growth.]

Billy clenched his fists. “So someone did this on purpose. Someone didn’t want me to become strong.”

[Correct.]

“Why? Was I dangerous? Important?”

[Unknown. But one thing is clear—]

The voice paused for a moment.

[Removing the seal means your old enemies will eventually sense your awakening.]

Billy froze.

“Old enemies? I don’t have enemies.”

[Host has forgotten many things… including the life before this one.]

The room fell silent.

“My… life before?” Billy whispered.

[You were reborn once before coming into this world.]

Billy felt his heartbeat stop for a second.

Reborn?

Past life?

A world he could not remember?

His fingers trembled slightly. “System… what was my past life like?”

[Classified. The information will unlock as the Host strengthens.]

Billy leaned back slowly, breathing deeply.

He wasn’t just an ordinary guy with bad luck.

He was someone whose true power had been sealed. Someone who had lived before. Someone with enemies from another life.

Just as he tried to calm himself, the system spoke again:

[New Task Available.]

────────────

TASK: First Step to Power

Buy a basic energy manual from the Exchange Store.

Reward: +5 Energy Points

────────────

Billy sat up.

“Exchange System… open.”

A simple shop interface appeared, with items glowing faintly.

— Basic Breathing Manual — 5 Points

— Beginner Strength Boost — 10 Points

— Minor Healing Pill — 8 Points

— Low-level Combat Skill — 15 Points

He already had 10 points from earlier.

“I’ll buy the breathing manual,” he said.

[Purchase confirmed.]

A warm light entered his mind, and suddenly, a set of instructions and movements appeared as if he’d known them his entire life.

Billy smiled for the first time that day.

“I guess… this is my new beginning.”

He clenched his fist.

“No more being useless. No more being ignored.”

The System chimed softly.

[Host is on the path of awakening.]

Billy nodded slowly.

And somewhere far away… something stirred.

Someone had felt the seal break.