[Ash's Apartment – Sector 9 Slums] [Time: 8:00 AM]
I woke up feeling like a million bucks. Or, more accurately, like 4.5 million won and a fake ID.
I sat up, stretched, and looked at the empty cup of instant noodle soup on my nightstand.
"System," I commanded, feeling the lingering thrill of the Chairman's challenge. "Show me the true extent of my ability. No more guessing. What can I actually do?"
The blue window flickered, then expanded into a massive, golden interface that filled the entire room, clipping through my dirty laundry pile.
[Ability: Absolute Control] [Current Status: Awakened] [Concept: Administrator of Reality]
[Progression Tree:]
Tier 1 (Basic Elements): Fire, Water, Wind, Earth.
[Status: UNLOCKED - Low Mana Cost]
Tier 2 (Advanced Matter): Lightning, Ice, Magma, Metal.
[Status: PARTIALLY UNLOCKED - Medium Mana Cost]
Tier 3 (Fundamental Forces): Gravity, Friction, Magnetism.
[Status: UNLOCKED - Variable Cost]
Tier 4 (Abstract Concepts): Light, Darkness, Negative Energy (Entropy).
[Status: LOCKED (Requires Mana Capacity C)]
Tier 5 (Universal Laws): Time, Space, Reality, Antimatter.
[Status: LOCKED (Requires Mana Capacity S+)]
[System Note: You have the 'Software' to edit the universe. However, your 'Hardware' (Body) is a potato running on a hamster wheel. Accessing Tier 4 or 5 currently has a 99% chance of causing death by brain liquidation.]
"I can see them..." I whispered, tracing the greyed-out boxes for Time and Reality. "They're right there."
I looked at the noodle cup.
"Let's test Tier 1."
I didn't need to chant. I just willed it.
Fire.
FWOOSH.
A ball of crimson flame, pure and stable, materialized in my left hand. I felt a small dip in my mana, like losing a teaspoon of water from a bucket. Manageable.
"Easy," I grinned. "Now... let's push it. Let's try to cheat."
I looked at the Tier 5 lock. Time.
"Just a little bit," I muttered. "Just a micro-second."
I focused on the falling dust motes in the sunbeam.
System, Override Safety Protocol. Activate Domain: Time.
[System Warning: Insufficient Mana. Abort?]
"Force it."
[System: ...You asked for it.]
I clenched my teeth and grabbed the concept of 'Now'. I tried to freeze it.
GUUUH.
It felt like someone had inserted a metal whisk into my brain and turned it to 'High'.
The world turned grey. The hum of the fridge stopped. The dust motes froze in mid-air.
I had done it. I had stopped time.
For exactly 0.01 seconds.
SNAP.
Time resumed.
SPLAT.
My nose erupted. Blood poured down my chin. My vision blurred, and I fell off the bed, dry heaving onto the floor.
[System: Mana Depleted. Health Critical. Brain Temperature: 42°C. Congratulations, you stopped time for one-hundredth of a second and nearly gave yourself a stroke. Was it worth it?]
"No," I wheezed, lying in a puddle of my own misery. "Definitely not."
I lay there for ten minutes until the room stopped spinning.
"Okay," I groaned, wiping my face. "Lesson learned. Complex stuff is off-limits until I level up my Mana Capacity. I have to stick to Tier 1 and Tier 3 (Physics)."
I needed a workaround. If I couldn't use high-level magic to kill enemies, I needed a weapon that could abuse the laws of physics I could control.
"System," I stood up, shaky but determined. "Take me to the Shadow Bazaar."
[The Shadow Bazaar – Underground Sector 4] [The Black Market]
I slid down the secret chute (located behind a sketchy PC Bang) and landed in the chaotic, neon-lit underground market.
It smelled of ozone, monster guts, and crime. My favorite.
"Selling Cursed Daggers! 50% off!" "Dragon Scales! 90% fake, 10% real!"
I pulled my hood down low. I walked past the flashy stalls selling laser swords and glowing staffs. Those were toys for Mages with mana to burn. I needed something else.
I found a stall run by a goblin named Griz. He was selling scrap metal and junk.
"Looking for trash?" Griz sneered, picking his nose with a claw.
"I need your heaviest metal," I said. "Something dense. Something indestructible."
Griz kicked a long, black rod under his table. It looked like a piece of rebar that had been dipped in the void. It was ugly, jagged, and dull.
"Dark Ore," Griz grunted. "Found it in a collapsed dungeon. Useless. It weighs 300 kilograms (660 lbs). Nobody can lift it. It's just a really heavy paperweight."
"Let me see."
I reached out.
Tier 3: Gravity Manipulation. Target: Dark Ore Rod. Mass: 0 kg.
I picked up the 300kg rod with two fingers and spun it like a baton.
The Goblin dropped his nose-picking finger. "What the... who are you? Hercules?"
"Sold," I slapped 100,000 won on the table.
[Item Acquired: Unrefined Dark Ore Rod] [Type: Blunt Weapon] [Durability: S (Indestructible)] [Weight: 300kg] [Note: It's a stick. But if you hit someone with it, they turn into paste.]
I strapped the rod to my back (keeping the gravity spell active so I didn't crush my own spine).
"Hey! You!"
I sighed. "Here we go."
I turned around. A massive Orc in a tuxedo—probably a bouncer for a local gang—was pointing a sausage-finger at me.
"That stick," the Orc growled. "I want it. It looks... shiny."
"It's literally matte black," I pointed out. "It absorbs shine."
"Don't get smart with me, hood-rat!" The Orc cracked his knuckles. "Hand it over, or I'll crush you."
He lunged. A fist the size of a microwave aimed for my head.
[System: Combat Initiated. Try using 'Space Distortion'? Oh wait, you can't. You're broke. Use the stick, dummy.]
I wanted to use Tier 4: Darkness to blind him. I checked my mana. [Mana: 15/100] Result: Too expensive.
I wanted to use Tier 2: Lightning. Result: Would cause a nosebleed.
"Physics it is," I muttered.
I drew the Dark Ore rod.
Gravity on Rod: Normal (300kg). Friction on Floor: Maximum.
I swung.
I didn't use any fancy technique. I just swung a 300kg indestructible metal bar at his stomach.
BOOM.
The sound wasn't a thud. It was like a car crash.
The Orc's tuxedo ripped open. His eyes bulged out. The sheer mass of the weapon ignored his natural defense stats.
He was launched backward like a cannonball, smashing through three stalls—a potion shop, a fruit stand, and a display of cursed mirrors.
CRASH. TINKLE. SPLAT.
The Orc landed in a pile of watermelon and glass, groaning.
"My... my ribs..." he whimpered.
Silence descended on the market.
I rested the heavy rod on my shoulder.
"Anyone else?" I asked.
The crowd shook their heads vigorously.
"No sir." "Nice stick, sir."
I walked out of the market, the heavy black rod on my back.
I had my weapon. I had my fake ID. And I knew my limits.
[System: You have acquired the 'Bonk Stick'. Primitive, brutal, and mana-efficient. I approve.]
"Time for the Hunter Exam," I grinned. "Let's see if the Association can measure a God who uses a stick."
[End of chapter 9]