The Upgrade System,Rise of an Ordinary King

The Hidden Blade

Chapter 2

Kiny stood behind Valen, heart pounding, blood drying on his lips. The wooden sword was gone. His ribs screamed with pain. But the power surging through his veins drowned everything out.

[Shadow Step: Basic — Activated]

Valen turned, his sword sweeping through the air.

Too late.

Kiny vanished again—just a blur of motion—and reappeared three feet to the left. Gasps erupted from the crowd above.

“What sorcery is this?” Valen growled.

Kiny didn’t answer. He was still processing it himself. The voice, the interface… the System. It was real. And it had just given him a second chance.

[System Alert]

• First Skill Activated

• Shadow Step (Basic) – [Cooldown: 10 seconds]

• Movement speed: +60% during dash

• Upgrade Available after 5 successful uses

Kiny’s breathing grew ragged, but his stance sharpened. He didn’t know how long this skill would last—or when this insane dream would end. But he was no longer fighting just to survive.

He was fighting to win.

Valen gritted his teeth. “I don’t know what you are, but you’ve humiliated me enough.”

The obsidian-armored noble lunged forward, slicing horizontally. This time Kiny anticipated it.

Shadow Step was still on cooldown. He couldn’t vanish yet.

So he ducked low and drove his shoulder into Valen’s gut.

CRACK!

Valen stumbled, losing his balance—but not for long. He twisted around with a powerful backhand slash.

Kiny twisted sideways—

Too slow.

Steel cut across his shoulder. Blood spurted. Pain exploded down his arm.

But Kiny didn’t scream.

He endured.

[HP: 1/10]

[Warning: Critical Condition. Death imminent if struck again.]

Kiny staggered back, clutching his wound. Valen approached like a lion sensing the kill.

“You’re fast, rat. I’ll give you that,” he sneered. “But speed means nothing against power.”

Valen raised his sword.

Kiny looked up, eyes burning.

Then he smirked.

[Shadow Step: Ready]

He vanished mid-swing.

Reappeared behind Valen.

Grabbed a broken torchshaft from the dirt.

And rammed it into the weak spot beneath Valen’s shoulder plate.

CRUNCH!

Valen screamed and dropped his sword.

The arena went dead silent.

From the stands, the King's advisor stood up. "That servant... just outmaneuvered a Drayden?"

Mistress Berla shrieked. “Impossible! He’s just a nobody!”

Valen fell to one knee, clutching his arm.

Kiny stood over him, bloodied, barely breathing. His vision blurred. But he didn’t fall.

He looked up at the shocked nobles, his voice hoarse.

“I may be ordinary,” he said. “But I will never kneel again.”

[SYSTEM UPDATE COMPLETE]

• Combat milestone reached

• Bonus Ability Unlocked: Adaptation

Every battle pushes you beyond your limits.

Survive — and evolve.

[Level Up: 2]

• Strength: +2

• Speed: +1

• HP increased

• Bonus Trait: "Battle Hardened" acquired

Kiny collapsed to one knee. The adrenaline began to wear off. His shoulder bled freely, and his hands trembled.

Guards rushed into the arena.

“Seize him!” one barked. “How dare a servant harm nobility?!”

“No!” the advisor shouted. “Stop!”

The soldiers froze.

“This boy... has awakened something. No mere servant can do what he just did.”

He looked down at Kiny, eyes narrowed with curiosity—and something else. Caution. Maybe even fear.

“Take him to the infirmary. But keep him under watch.”

As the crowd murmured and scattered, Kiny was dragged away.

Half-conscious, he felt the world tilt.

But the system’s voice whispered in his mind, cool and calm.

[Host Status: Stabilizing…]

[Next Upgrade in 200 XP]

[Path: Unlocked] → ‘King of the Unworthy’

You were born with nothing.

Now rise above all.

Somewhere deep inside the fortress, in a hidden chamber beneath stone and shadow…

An ancient statue’s eyes began to glow.

A whisper stirred in the dark:

"The Chosen has awakened. The world shall shift."