[Chapter 4: The Art of the Getaway & The S-Tier Surprise]
Adam's life in the concrete jungle had settled into a rhythm. He was a ghost, a myth, a blip on the radar that no one could quite explain. He'd used the Locket of Whispers to eavesdrop on conversations, to catch snippets of intelligence from his abandoned subway station lair. He was like the world's most proactive private investigator, except he was investigating things that hadn't happened yet. He'd successfully avoided all of the smaller, canon events that would have drawn attention, using his meta-knowledge to stay one step ahead.
The System, meanwhile, had been surprisingly quiet. He was in a kind of holding pattern, a moment of calm before the cosmic storm. He spent his days in his lair, studying the artifacts he had, using his Locket of Whispers to try and pick up on any new information, and honing his skills. He could make a cup of coffee float with the Crown of Gravity. He could change his appearance to an almost microscopic degree with the Glass of Illusions, making his facial structure subtly different to avoid detection. He was becoming a master of his craft, a quiet force of nature.
One night, as he was poring over a dusty old map he'd "found" in a forgotten corner of the city, the System chimed again, a sound he had grown to both dread and anticipate.
[System Event: Artifact Discovery Mission Activated.] [Mission: Locate and activate the Null Ring.] [Description: An S-tier artifact that nullifies any magic or advanced technology in a wide area. Located in a forgotten temple deep within the Peruvian rainforest. Warning: The temple is protected by a series of magical traps and a guardian.] [Reward: Null Ring (A).]
Adam's breath hitched. An S-tier artifact. That was a game changer. The Crown of Gravity, the Reflective Stone, and the Glass of Illusions were all S-tier and above, but he had received them as a kind of starter pack. This was his first real S-tier mission. A mission that was meant for a full-blown superhero, not a guy who had just mastered levitating a coffee mug.
"Okay, Adam," he thought, his new unflappable persona holding strong. "This is where things get real. I'm going from a stealthy urban forager to a full-on Indiana Jones. I need a plan, a machete, and probably a really good soundtrack."
The plan was simple enough. He would use his existing artifacts to get to Peru, using the Crown of Gravity to glide across oceans and the Glass of Illusions to bypass customs. He would use the Locket of Whispers to listen for anything that could give him an edge, and he would use his Reflective Stone as a last line of defense. The Crown of Gravity would be his offensive weapon, his way of disarming the traps and fighting the guardian. He was going in alone, without a team, without a backup plan. This was a test, a trial by fire. He was going to have to be the hero he was pretending to be.
The journey was a blur of seamless travel and flawless execution. He moved like a shadow, a phantom in the wind, a man without a country, a man without a past. He was the future, a harbinger of a new era. An era of heroes, of villains, of cosmic threats, and of one man who was going to make sure the good guys won. He was on his way to Peru, on his way to an S-tier artifact, on his way to proving that he was more than just a guy who got hit by a can of soup. He was the Artifact Architect, and this was his first real blueprint.