Kael sat in the back of a broken-down taxi, the type that only ran in the parts of Granis City people tried to forget. He kept his hoodie up and eyes low, fingers clenching the edge of the seat as his mind replayed the rooftop mission over and over.
Life Seeds… final phase… they know I exist.
Everything felt like it was tightening around him, like the city itself was slowly closing its grip.
The Life System pulsed faintly in his peripheral vision.
[Skill Upgrade Token – Reflex Boost Lv1: Passive upgrade applied]
[Reflexes slightly enhanced – Response time reduced by 20%]
He flexed his fingers. They responded quicker—faster than before. He could feel the difference. A small boost, but in a city like Granis, small advantages kept you breathing.
The taxi stopped near the underground train station. Kael hopped out and moved through the crowd. People bustled around him, oblivious to the dark digital storm building beneath their city.
His phone buzzed.
It wasn't from the Life System.
It was from Lexi.
> Lexi: "Check Channel 8 News. You're gonna want to see this."
He found a TV shop with screens in the window. All the TVs were showing the same feed: live footage of the Zephyr Arcade rooftop engulfed in flames. Firefighters struggled to contain it.
They torched the place.
To cover their tracks. Or send a message.
Kael's jaw tightened.
Then the screen cut to the anchor.
"A series of unexplained rooftop fires and data outages have struck Sector 14 over the past few hours. City officials suspect gang involvement, but no official statement has been released."
Kael walked away before they could show more.
As he turned down a side street, the Life System pulsed again.
[New Feature Unlocked: Network Tap]
Description: You may now access nearby public and unsecured private network feeds for hidden data streams.]
A digital map appeared, dots blinking across Granis City.
So many secrets.
Kael walked into a quiet internet café. He rented a booth, sat, and placed his hand on the desk. The Life System connected with the terminal.
Within seconds, the screen flooded with fragments of intercepted messages:
> "Phase Alpha: Watchtower unit compromised. Engage secondary sweep."
> "Target profile: Male, early 20s, subject shows unpredictable system behavior."
> "Initiate purge protocol if threat level increases."
They were definitely talking about him now.
But it wasn't just the organization anymore.
Another message flashed.
> "User 02 sighted. Sync irregularities noted. Possible divergence."
User 02?
So Kael wasn't the only one.
He leaned forward, whispering under his breath, "How many of us are there?"
The café door jingled. A man in a leather coat and glasses entered, scanning the room. His eyes settled on Kael's booth.
Kael froze.
The man smiled faintly, pulled out his phone, and typed.
Kael's Life System pinged again.
[Incoming Encrypted Transmission – Unknown Sender]
> "If you want answers, follow the red bird in Old Town. Midnight. Come alone."
Kael looked up.
The man was already gone