THE RISE OF THE SYSTEM OVERLORD

CHAPTER 8

Unlocking Potential

The air in the corridor felt thick, charged with something unnatural. The figure barely made a sound as he moved, but the second he did, it was like reality itself glitched.

One blink—he was standing still.

The next—his hand was around my throat.

I choked; the pressure was immediate and unyielding. His grip was like steel, crushing, unrelenting. I clawed at his wrist, but it didn’t budge. My feet barely touched the ground.

A system alert flared in my vision.

[Obsidian Heitt Operative: Rank ???]

No level. No stats. Just a massive question mark.

Bad news.

He studied me, tilting his head slightly as if examining something beneath my skin. His face was expressionless, but his eyes—dark, deep, calculated—held a quiet amusement.

“You’re not ready for this.” His voice was calm, almost disappointed.

Then he threw me like I was nothing.

The world spun. I barely had time to brace before I slammed into the wall, the impact rattling through my ribs like a hammer striking glass.

Pain. Deep, sharp, immediate.

I hit the ground hard, gasping. My lungs struggled for air, my vision flickering in and out.

“Caden!”

Stella.

She was already moving, raising her gun again, but the man barely spared her a glance. He flicked his wrist—and she flew.

Her body crashed into a stack of crates, knocking them over like dominoes.

I tried to push myself up. My arms shook.

This wasn’t a fight.

It was a demonstration.

The man sighed, brushing invisible dust off his sleeve. “You don’t even know what you are, do you?”

I gritted my teeth. “I know enough to put you on your ass.”

His smirk was instant. “Is that so?”

The system flared again.

[Would you like to activate First Ability? Y/N]

My fingers curled into fists.

The pain, the helplessness, the anger—I channeled it all into a single, burning thought.

Yes.

The moment I confirmed it, the world around me shifted.

Heat erupted in my chest, coiling and expanding, too big for my body to contain. The pain I had felt before was nothing compared to this—it wasn’t just in my muscles or my bones.

It was in my veins.

Something was unlocking.

The air around me crackled, the lights overhead flickering erratically. Static buzzed through my skin, pulsing, growing—until my hands trembled with it.

I gasped, my breath turning white in the cold air.

The man’s smirk faltered.

For the first time, I saw hesitation.

"Interesting," he murmured.

Then he moved again.

I should’ve been too slow to react.

But I wasn’t.

This time, when he reached for me, I dodged.

No—I blurred.

One second, I was in front of him.

The next, I was behind him.

His head snapped toward me, but I was already moving, my instincts sharper than they had ever been. Faster. Stronger. I pivoted, my fist shooting toward him.

And when it connected—

The impact exploded.

The corridor shook. The floor beneath us cracked, the walls groaning under the force. The man skidded back, his polished shoes grinding against the concrete.

For the first time, he looked surprised.

I exhaled. The energy inside me was still building, still hungry. It demanded more.

The system pulsed in my vision.

[First Ability: Acceleration Unlocked]

My heart thundered.

The man straightened, rolling his neck. “Now this is getting fun.”

He lunged again, but this time—I was ready.

We collided, a blur of movement and raw force. My reactions were instinctual, my body moving in ways I never thought possible. Faster than thought. Faster than him.

I twisted, dodging his strikes, feeling the energy pulse in my limbs. Every movement, every weight shift—it felt like I had lived this fight a thousand times already.

My fist shot forward again, but this time, he blocked. Our arms clashed, the force rippling outward in a shockwave.

We locked eyes.

Then he grinned.

"Good," he said. "But not enough."

Before I could react, something slammed into my gut.

Not his fist. A force.

Like gravity itself had been weaponized.

I barely had time to register the pressure before I was launched backward. My back hit the wall so hard it caved inward.

Everything spun.

I gasped, blinking through the pain, my ribs screaming in protest.

The man stepped forward, still composed, still in control.

I forced myself up, gripping the edge of the broken wall. I wasn’t done yet.

But then—

A new presence.

The air shifted.

A voice—low, dangerous—cut through the tension like a blade.

"That’s enough."

The man in the suit froze.

Slowly, he turned his head toward the newcomer.

I followed his gaze.

A woman stood at the far end of the corridor. Tall, poised, and undeniably lethal.

She was dressed in deep, midnight black, a long coat flowing behind her like a shadow. Her eyes—sharp and piercing—locked onto the man.

The air around her hummed.

The system flashed.

[Unknown Entity Detected]

She stepped forward. Controlled. Unrushed.

The man exhaled, running a hand through his hair.

"You're early," he mused, his previous amusement returning.

Her expression didn’t change. "Stand down."

For a moment, the tension was suffocating.

Then, with a slight shrug, the man smiled.

"Very well."

He turned his gaze back to me, eyes flicking over me like I was puzzle pieces that had finally started fitting together.

"This was just a test," he said smoothly. "And I got my answer."

His grin widened.

"See you soon, Caden."

Then—he was gone.

One blink.

The space where he had been was empty.

The only proof he had been there at all was the destruction left behind.

I exhaled, my body aching, my limbs burning.

The woman didn’t move, didn’t react. She simply studied me, her expression unreadable.

Finally, she spoke.

"You have no idea what you've unlocked, do you?"

I swallowed hard.

"Not a clue," I admitted.

She sighed. "Then we have work to do."

I stared at her, still catching my breath, still feeling the remnants of that power buzzing in my blood.

Something told me—this was just the beginning.