Rye, now in his late twenties, was cleaning and gathering things from his room. He was moving out of his parents' house at last.
"Ma!" he shouted. "I'll gather all the things here now!"
"Don't take all day, we still got places to go…" A faint female voice called from downstairs.
"Alright…" he sighed, preparing the boxes.
He exhaled again, heavily, and thought to himself.
How come my life turned out like this? His school life didn't go well, and now he was here packing his things, still feeling guilty that his parents were taking care of him at this age. He was moving out near the Tower, hoping he could join an expedition and earn some money.
Life sucks… he muttered.
Then he heard a faint clink.
Clink!
"Huh…? What's that noise?" He looked toward the top of a bookshelf just as another sound echoed.
Clink!
"What the…" Rye grabbed a chair and climbed to inspect the source of the noise.
There, on the top of a bookshelf, lay an old leather-bound book.
"What's this…" he murmured, brushing off the thick cobwebs and dust.
"Hm… looks antique. Maybe I could sell this an—"
Before he could finish, the book suddenly snapped open with tremendous force.
"WOAHH!!" Rye shouted, losing his balance and falling from the chair.
He hit his head hard and blacked out.
---
The pages of the book were flipping rapidly like a fan. Glowing, strange light poured from it, illuminating the room with an eerie shimmer.
"I've been waiting…" the book spoke, its voice echoing as if from a cavern.
Then it began chanting a string of incomprehensible words.
"Ampur… heikom… Grattre… ISTREA!"
Objects in the room began levitating before crashing back to the floor seconds later.
Finally, the book spoke a single word:
"Transfer."
The book collapsed to the ground.
---
A few minutes later, Rye woke up, clutching his throbbing head.
"Goddamnit…!" he groaned.
"The hell was that…?" He rubbed his eyes and crawled toward the book on the floor.
He noticed strange words etched across the cover, symbols he had never seen before. One word, however, stood out.
System…? he whispered.
Suddenly, a screen appeared in front of him, glowing with an intense light. Rye yelped, falling backward onto his ass.
"What the fuck!?" he shouted.
Ding!
{Registered}
[Name: Rye] !
[Class: Necromancer] !
[Skill: Summonundead Lv.1, Aura detection Lv.1, Commander Lv.1] !
[Traits: Coward] !
[Magic power : 10] !
[Strength : 1] !
"What the hell?!" Rye shouted again, staring in disbelief at the floating system window.
"Is this real?" Rye asked, holding his hand in front of the hologram. His fingers passed right through it.
He slapped himself on the cheek.
"Ow ow ow!!" he groaned, rubbing the pain away.
So it is real! he thought, eyes wide. The screen hovered in front of him, glowing softly, displaying his information.
But… how come I have this? Isn't this exclusive for Climbers?
---
These systems had only existed for a few years. They were the result of magic and technological advancement, designed to display one's status and skills. Normally, only licensed Climbers could access them, and even then, they required a trinket that projected the system into their vision, a costly device that only the wealthy or those lucky enough to gain sponsorship could afford.
Rye, however, was an exception. He had received the system directly from the book.
---
"Wow… so this is what the screen looks like," he murmured, reaching out toward the floating display.
I always see Climbers gesturing at something invisible, swiping or tapping… but I never saw it personally before.
And... isn't this crazy expensive..? he thought.
I knew it… the book was special… but it ended up in the hands of a useless guy like me! he screamed internally.
He leaned closer, staring at the screen.
Why do I have skills like these? Did they come from the book too?
"Summon und—" he muttered, cut off by a loud shout from downstairs.
"Are you done yet!?"
"O-oh yeah! Coming!" Rye shouted, hastily gathering his things and heading downstairs.
"What took you so long…" his mother sighed, arms crossed.
"Sorry, Ma. I kinda looked around the room one last time," he said, smiling.
"Hah… you're still such a kid, even in your twenties," she teased.
"Haha," Rye chuckled softly.
He paused by the window, looking out at the world beyond. The Tower loomed in the distance, its black silhouette cutting into the skyline. Floating vehicles zipped by. People moved with magic and technology alike, a world transformed by the Towers and the systems that governed them.
Could I maybe turn my life around using this? he thought, eyes lingering on the glowing system hovering in front of him.