Support me and be 30 chapters ahead of webnovel:
patreon.com/Draco_
For every 5 Patreon memberships I receive, I'll release 15 chapters all at once. Your support means a lot to me.
*****
USA, New York, York College High School for the Sciences.
In this American megacity spanning approximately 1,214.4 square kilometers, this school wasn't particularly famous, nor did it boast a list of celebrities too long to count.
The only reason Fini chose to attend school here was simply because it was closest to home and offered the best facilities.
"Sigh, looks like there's only one year left..."
Fini muttered under his breath, a hint of worry lingering between his brows. Stepping onto the soft green lawn, he prepared to take a shortcut toward the school gates.
"Sigh!"
Looking at the ceaseless flow of people at the school entrance, Fini couldn't help but heave another long sigh. In one year's time, the world would begin to undergo earth-shattering changes on the surface—changes beyond the imagination of the vast majority of people.
"I'm saying this for the last time: I don't want to go out for a drink with you. Please stop bothering me here, alright?"
Just then, a familiar voice suppressed with anger reached Fini's ears. Turning his head, he saw a tall, burly man leading a group of people at a spot not far from the school gate, pestering a beautiful girl.
The girl had long, flaxen hair, delicate features, a high bridge to her nose, and a pair of amber eyes currently filled with impatience.
Seeing the girl, Fini's expression changed. He walked over with quick strides, shoved the tall man aside, and stood in front of the girl, asking in a low voice, "Bryan, what do you think you're doing?"
Carson Bryan, the captain of the school basketball team. He had decent looks and skills, making him quite the popular figure on campus. While Fini wasn't close to him, he at least knew who he was.
"Fini Halsey!?"
The tall man stumbled but regained his footing. Seeing Fini, he froze for a moment before putting on a smirk. "Hey, Halsey, this is none of your business. I just wanted to get to know the lady behind you."
"Fini!"
Behind Fini, the beautiful girl called out in surprise and relief, making Carson realize that the two must know each other.
"She's my sister. You tell me if it's my business!?"
Fini replied coldly. Although Carson was much burlier than him in terms of both height and muscle, Fini showed no trace of fear.
"Your sister!?"
Carson was stunned, seemingly not expecting this situation. His expression turned slightly awkward, and his teammates were equally surprised. By now, a crowd of curious students had gathered around them.
Feeling Fini's icy gaze, Carson couldn't help but take a step back. Noticing the surprised looks from his companions, he felt a sudden pang of embarrassment and stepped forward again, blustering, "I didn't know she was your sister. Besides, I just wanted to invite her out for a drink."
"Are you deaf? Didn't you hear her say no?"
Fini stared directly at Carson without flinching. Although he usually preferred not to cause trouble, he wasn't the type to stay silent when someone was bullying his family right in front of him.
"Fini, forget it. Let's go."
The girl tugged at Fini's sleeve. Seeing more and more people gathering, she clearly didn't want to make a scene.
"Watch your step. I have a feeling you're definitely going to fall if you walk like that."
Looking at the crowd, Fini didn't want to cause a ruckus in public either. He stared intently at Carson, spoke in a flat, toneless voice, then turned around and led the girl out of the crowd.
Behind them, Carson stared blankly at Fini's words. He turned around, intending to walk toward his teammates, and asked, "What did he mean by—"
Before he could finish his sentence, his left foot tripped over his right. He slammed heavily into the ground, cutting his lip. Blood flowed instantly. Though the injury wasn't serious, it looked quite pitiful.
The surrounding crowd was startled; a few girls even screamed. Still being led away by Fini, the girl turned her head at the sound and witnessed the accident.
The two reached a car. In the driver's seat, the girl's large amber eyes were full of curiosity. She stared straight at Fini and asked, "What happened with that guy just now?"
"Murphy's Law. Anything that can go wrong will go wrong. If you're worried about something happening, it becomes more likely to happen."
Fini shrugged, talking nonsense with a straight face.
"Bullshit!" The girl looked disdainful. "Fini, I might not have gone to college and I might not have grades as good as yours, but that doesn't mean I'm a fool you can trick."
"Tch." Fini curled his lip and said nothing. This clearly annoyed the girl further; she reached out and pinched Fini's ear, threatening, "Are you going to tell me or not? Careful, or I'll tell Mom and Dad about you drinking."
"Okay, okay! Let go first."
Fini pleaded helplessly, then muttered under his breath, "You always use that to threaten me. If you hadn't insisted on drinking that stuff and forced me to join you, would I have even touched it!?"
Fini was truly at his wit's end with this older sister. If he had known it would be like this, he should have chosen a younger sister instead.
Carson's fall just now was, of course, not caused by Murphy's Law. It was one of the abilities he had obtained after coming to this world.
Fini wasn't originally from this world. As for how he got here, he wasn't sure. He only knew that when he woke up, he had become a baby who could only wail and couldn't even speak.
Fortunately, he hadn't crossed over empty-handed. Upon arrival, he discovered he carried a seemingly powerful system that allowed him to draw various skills from different anime.
'Ars Magna'—this was the first skill Fini had drawn from the system. It could be described as very, very, very powerful. Powerful enough that it deserved to be said three times. Unfortunately, even now, he couldn't unleash its full power.
[Ars Magna]
Source: A Certain Magical Index
Description: Magic that alters reality according to one's thoughts.
"Thoughts becoming reality" was the simplest summary of this ability. When Fini first drew it, his excitement was beyond words. He wailed and howled for an entire night, fantasizing about all sorts of glorious futures, which resulted in his parents having massive dark circles under their eyes the next day.
However, once Fini calmed down, he realized things weren't that simple. He found the ability didn't work. He imagined himself growing up instantly, but after thinking about it for an hour, not a single hair grew. Well, maybe some did, but he didn't notice.
It was then that he hurriedly studied the system again. He realized the system was only responsible for drawing the skills; the actual usage depended on the individual's condition.
Therefore, the reason the skill didn't work was because of him.
The feeling of falling from heaven to the mortal realm was exactly what Fini felt when he discovered this. The reason it wasn't a fall into hell was because he knew that while he couldn't use it now, there would surely be a way in the future. The beautiful future he wanted was still achievable.
After discovering the skill was currently useless, Fini set 'Ars Magna' aside for a while and began researching the so-called "Gacha System"—a name he gave it based on its function.
After all, the entire system was very simple. Besides a "Draw" button, there was only an empty-looking experience bar. Before his first draw, it had been full.
Obviously, he had to wait for it to refill before the next draw. Subsequently, he researched many methods, but aside from the tiny bit of experience that grew naturally over time, there seemed to be no way to increase it.
Until that one accident.
Newbie on the road, hoping for lots of support! Please remember, a Big Shot never uses a smurf account, so please show some love to this struggling newbie!
(End of Chapter)