The room was cold. Still and quiet. A faint breeze moved through the half-open window, brushing against the curtains. Outside, the streetlights cast long shadows across the floor, stretching over worn tiles and bare walls painting pale gold lines across the cracked walls and secondhand furniture.
Jayden shot up in bed, chest heaving, eyes darting. His heart thumped like a bass drum in his ears. And then it came.
Ringing.
Not from outside, but inside his skull—sharp, clean, and metallic like the start of some holy announcement.
[Ding! Welcome to the Ultimate Copy and Paste System, Host!]
A glowing interface unfolded before him, floating midair in glitchy blue light. His breath caught as the voice echoed again, cool and commanding, as if reading straight from a god's instruction manual.
[After betrayal and public humiliation, the host qualifies as a viable candidate for system bonding.]
[Synchronization complete. Base Host Status: Registered.]
*
> Name: Jayden Cross
Condition: Broke. Ghosted. Not even Friend-zoned.
Status: Average high school male. No assets. No influence. No skills and no achievements.
Reputation: Pathetic.
Known for: Holding blue roses, crying, and getting dumped in front of the cafeteria. Legendary SIMP.
System Evaluation: Dead last below average.
Potential: Now Unlocked!
"..."
Jayden stared at the screen. His room—small, dusty, and painfully ordinary—suddenly felt like a different universe. His cracked phone sat face-down on the desk. His backpack leaned half-open on the chair, still filled with yesterday's untouched homework. The cheap teddy bear he'd bought? Still in the trash.
And now... a system?
He didn't know what to feel. Confused? Angry at the evaluation? Grateful for how accurate the system was or getting it?
There was no excitement in his eyes, only the stillness of someone too used to being disappointed. The room hadn't changed. The world hadn't changed. He sat there for a moment longer, silent—until the smallest smirk tugged at the corner of his lips.
A second chime echoed, sharper than the first.
This confirmed he wasn't seeing things. Color returned to his eyes.
The chime wasn't loud, but it rang through his head with a strange finality—like something ancient had just turned its gaze on him.
[Ding! You have acquired the Beginner Pack.]
[Open? YES / NO]
"..."
Jayden stared at the message, his chest rising and falling.
There was no shock. No denial. Not even confusion. Not anymore now!
Only certainty.
He didn't care if this was real, a dream, or some kind of cosmic joke. The shame of that cafeteria moment still clung to his chest like ice—blue roses crushed underfoot, whispers rising around him, laughter that never seemed to fade no matter how many times he told himself to forget.
He had nothing. No money. No name. No future anyone respected.
But now… now he had this.
A system.
A chance.
His lips didn't move. His body didn't twitch. But deep in his mind—without hesitation, without fear—he clicked YES.
The screen pulsed.
[Ding! Beginner Pack Opened!
You have received: Status Interface, Physical Stat Goal Mission Unlocked, Limitless Card, System Function Card, Start-Up Mystery Box!]
Jayden's eyes narrowed. His hands tightened over the blanket. Something inside him shifted. This was the first step. And he would not look back.
The light from the screen illuminated his face—calm, focused, unblinking. There was no smile. No excitement. Just a slow, steady build inside his chest. A fire that had been waiting years to burn.
Jayden exhaled, low and controlled.
He didn't want to impress anyone. He didn't want to be liked. Now all he wanted was to rise. Quietly. Relentlessly. He wanted to reach a level so far above the people who mocked him that they'd never even dare speak his name again.
This was no longer about heartbreak.
It was about becoming more.
Becoming the apex.
The system continued as the blue light of the interface flickered against the dark walls of his room.
[Status Interface: Allows the Host to view all essential information including physical stats, conquest progress, ongoing missions, current assets, skill progression, reputation metrics, and more.]
Jayden's eyes scanned the floating text, absorbing every word. It was everything he never had—structure, goals, visibility. A way to measure himself not by how others saw him, but by actual results. This was control.
No more guessing where he stood. No more wondering if he was improving or just fooling himself.
He leaned forward slightly, attention sharpened.
The next line appeared.
[Physical Stat Goal Mission: Host is miserably weak. This mission is a personalized sequence of physical challenges designed to improve the Host's body and capabilities. Completing missions grants stat increases, skills, and system currency. Current Evaluation: Physique— Down bottom poor.]
Jayden's jaw clenched.
He didn't need the system to tell him that.
He remembered the tryouts. How the coach glanced at him once and told him he wasn't built for the team. He remembered Amara—soft voice, sharp smile—laughing about it later. How she said "Even Tyler lifts, Jay."
And meanwhile what does he do? Write poems?
He remembered how her words cut deeper than they should have.
He knew exactly how outclassed he'd been—by Tyler, by every guy who looked the part, moved like a winner, stood like they belonged in front of a crowd. He knew how much further he'd have to go to even stand on the same ground as the men he'd meet on this path.
That wouldn't stop him.
It only made the mission feel necessary. Inevitable.
He'd complete every one of them.
The interface shifted again.
[Limitless Card: A system-bound, untraceable financial card with no limit. Automatically binds to system-generated assets and funds. All purchases are off-record, hidden from financial systems, agencies, or digital tracing tools. Spend freely. Invest silently. Build without interference.]
Jayden's eyes sharpened.
This—this could change everything.
No banks. No restrictions. No flags from the fed. No questions asked when he moved large amounts of cash or made strange purchases. He could buy companies. Tools. Properties. Silence. He didn't grin, but the tension in his body shifted. His hands steadied.
It wasn't excitement. It was preparation.
This would be useful. As long as the system gave him the right opportunities, he would squeeze this card for everything it was worth—and then some.
The screen pulsed again.
[System Function Card: Upon activation, this card scans the Host's soul, current mindset, past decisions, and core desires. It then generates personalized functions tailored to the Host's growth path. One-time use. Irreversible. Highly sensitive.]
Jayden paused.
This was different. Deeper.
It wasn't some random stat boost or mission prompt. This was personal—designed for him. Built from the very essence of what he wanted, what he craved, what he wouldn't admit out loud.
And what he craved... wasn't small.
This card could become the most powerful piece of the system yet.
Finally, he looked at the last item.
[Start-Up Mystery Box.]
It hovered silently, a glowing black cube surrounded by faint golden energy. He didn't reach for it, didn't rush. He already knew what the system would say.
[Note: The Start-Up Mystery Box will yield better results once the System Function Card has been activated. Recommend opening after synchronization is complete.]
Jayden stared at it a moment longer, then nodded once to himself.
No shortcuts. He'd do it right.
And when that box opened… it would be worth the wait.