[Target bound: Authority unlocked]
[Converting authority into [System] abilities]
[Gain ability to create skills/items with Desolation attribute]
[Gain ability to create skills/items with Creation attribute]
—
"Where is this…? It seems to be a system space," he said as he observed his surroundings.
As he read the text before him, the entire space was filled with a grayish color, faintly tinted with green.
Even though he had some knowledge, it was mostly basic.
It seemed he needed to pass this performance first to qualify for more.
"Also… that girl. Mei, was it?" he said as he recalled her—the one he had bound to.
122 cm. Strong arms. Tanned skin. Upright posture—practical. Solid build.
Brimming with life and future.
Her hands were small but rough, with dry skin and short, uneven nails.
They bore light scratches, used rather than delicate.
Her clothes were rough and uneven, a dull gray-brown from wear and repeated washing.
A lighter patch was sewn on with uneven, visible stitches that pulled the fabric slightly—
marked with traces of life.
…
"What am I doing? …Ah, that's right."
He spoke in a monotone voice—one that, once heard, would be ignored, as if it carried no presence at all.
"Open."
He thought the word, and lines of text appeared before him.
[Alias: System]
[Title: [In creation] [Empty]]
Current performance patron: Invincible Dao Heart Immortal-Seeker
Performance: Intern Level 1
Viewer: 1
Quota: 99/100 [+10 per day]
— Ability —
[Prop Creation] [Manifestation: Desolation/Creation]
— Passive —
[Lead Actor] [Director]
—
"Passives… relate to my ability to define my role. As for my ability…"
He paused briefly—
A cup of dark roast drip Folgers coffee appeared in his hand again.
-1 Quota
"Quota… everything I create consumes it. Recovery depends on the number of viewers… and their rank."
"As for [Manifestation], it seems related to my alias [System]—the ability to create skills or items."
"They can be created using either Quota or the Points she gains, which relate to the nature of my alias, [System]."
He spoke to no one in particular.
Perhaps it was simply a leftover habit.
"That girl… I can modify how she perceives her system."
"She is not my target. I will guide her."
—
"Eh~~ what is this?" Mei said as unfamiliar lines of text appeared before her eyes while she carried a water basket back from the eastern river.
[———— System]
[Martial Invincible Path]
[Mei]
[Race: Mortal]
[Age: 8]
Points: 0
— Physical —
[STR]: 0.4
[AGI]: 0.5
[VIT]: 0.6
[INT]: 0.7
[PER]: 1.2
[Status]: Minor Desolation Affliction ↑ (3 Days)
— Ability —
[None]
—
[Shop]
—
"Huh…? Wasn't it something else…?" Mei frowned slightly.
For a brief moment, she thought she had seen a different name—
But the thought slipped away just as quickly.
Like it had never existed.
"And what is this… Phi—si—cal… Po—ints…?" Mei tried to pronounce the strange words.
"And this… S—ta—tus… it's empty?"
She could kind of understand what it meant… maybe.
But the words themselves—
She couldn't read them at all.
"I'm home!!" she shouted as she ran inside.
"Today was weird… people kept bumping into me… like they couldn't see me or something…"
At night—
After a full day of work, it was finally time to sleep. In the small bedroom where the twins slept together—
"Hey, sister… you were kinda hard to see today. Even Dad got scared when he noticed you while smithing," Shi Da said jokingly as he lay down on the hay bed.
"…" Mei didn't respond. She was still thinking about what had appeared before her earlier.
The lines of text had never left her sight.
"Brother… did you see any lines of words appear before your eyes?" Mei asked, even though she already knew the answer. Still, she felt she had to ask.
"What are you talking about? Are you still sleepy because you didn't get enough rest at noon?" Shi Da replied.
Moments later, he was already asleep.
Not long after, Mei also fell asleep.
But in her mind…
something began to guide her elsewhere.
—
Back in the system space—
Though he possessed knowledge, it remained unorganized.
He needed time to sort through it.
At the very least… he understood his situation better now.
A title is the embodiment of who—or what—you are.
Any name can be given, but a title given by others always contains a trace of truth.
An unoccupied title represents uncertainty, but also possibility. If compared to human terms, it is like one's job.
Once employed, you become something bound to it. Once assumed, you can only act within its limits.
"The concept of [System] is eroding my being."
An alias within the world can be considered half a title…
and even that has already affected me this much.
From what he understands, one would normally be guided by the world—
led to choose what it wants.
But his second title remains empty.
Because of that, he can still think independently.
As for his first title—it is still in creation.
Not yet fixed. Not yet defined.
Then what is the purpose of this?
A trap?
Or assimilation?
It does not resemble a normal test.
Even before this, something had been guiding him—subtly shaping his choices.
Even when selecting his alias.
Yet he had not been affected.
And now… that guidance seems distant.
Or perhaps—it no longer has any influence.
When the [System] extracts his nature and personality—
no, his [Desolation], something that has always been with him since birth—
When it's part of a person, it's just personality. A way of living.
But once it is separated…
and given authority—
It is no longer the same.
It becomes something else.
An entity.
…
"I am no longer human—at least, not for now.
I have already been affected by the concepts of [Desolation] and the alias [System]."
"And here she came"
—
In front of her, there seemed to be a building—an unfamiliar one.It was full of people, vivid and alive.
As she walked inside, the feeling it gave was nothing like what it should have been—not cozy, not relaxing.
Instead… it felt normal, like she should not feel out of place in this unfamiliar place.
No—too normal.
As if everything would appear and disappear in the next moment. Everything moved according to a routine, a sense of elegance in its order—but something in her body, or her soul, was screaming otherwise.
The room was enclosed, yet filled with a strange, bitter smell unlike tea. The liquid people drank was dark—almost like ink—giving off both heat and scent at once. It did not resemble any known herbal brew.
The cups were uniform and smooth. The tables were evenly shaped. Light filled the room without flame or oil.
And there was a man—
One who, once seen, could only be described like this:
Cheap suit. Poorly fitted. Unbranded jeans. Black necktie, slightly crooked. Nothing memorable.
It was just a routine. A repeat of the same old thing.
A cup of dark roast drip Folgers coffee in one hand, a magazine in the other.
She didn't know what those things were—
Yet the moment she saw them… she understood.
Nothing wrong with it.
She felt like she had seen him before—but how could that be? He looked like an ordinary person.
His face was shrouded in a faint black mist—yet it seemed natural, as if it belonged there.
As if he existed for only one purpose.
As HE turned to look at her—
In her mind, only one sentence appeared before everything faded.
It could only be described as—
As it should be.