Lacosta

In a world where time is a weapon and the System governs all, Lin Wei is just another name on a list—until the day he awakens an ability that shouldn't exist. With enforcers hunting him and the city’s underbelly teeming with secrets, his only chance at survival is mastering his newfound power: Time Manipulation.  

But bending time comes at a cost. Each use brings him closer to unraveling not just the System’s grip on reality, but his own past—one erased, rewritten, and buried beneath layers of deception. As he pieces together the truth, Lin Wei is thrust into a war between those who seek to control time and those who dare to break free from it.  

With every second stolen, the lines between fate and free will blur. The deeper he dives, the more dangerous the choices become. Will he dismantle the System, reshape history, or lose himself in the fractures of time itself?  

Because not all timelines are meant to be saved—and some should never exist at all.

Fractured Eternity

Lin Wei's breath came in uneven gasps as he steadied himself against the wreckage of the drone. His hands trembled from the raw energy he had just channeled. His body was still intact, but the sensation of catching a pulse blast and redirecting it had left his nerves burning.

Above them, the mechanical hum of approaching drones grew louder. The enforcer that had retreated stood motionless, its visor flickering with streams of encrypted data. It was waiting.

Calling for reinforcements.

Ren reloaded his pistol with quick, practiced movements. "We need to move—now."

Lin Wei's mind raced. They were outnumbered. Outgunned. His system had only just recovered from the suppression lock, and he had no idea how much longer it would hold before another disruption.

A pulse at the edge of his awareness.

Like the flow of time itself had shifted, wrapping around him differently than before. It wasn't just manipulation anymore. It was instinctive.

The System had evolved.

But there was no time to figure out how.

The first drone dropped from the sky, its targeting laser locking onto them. The enforcer lunged forward at the same time, its speed nearly inhuman.

Ren fired first. A precise shot at the drone's sensor. It jerked midair, recalibrating.

Lin Wei's body moved before his mind could catch up. He sidestepped the enforcer's strike, twisting at an angle just outside of time's normal flow. The motion felt fluid, effortless.

His fist connected with the enforcer's chest, and for a split second— time fragmented.

A shockwave rippled outward, distorting the air. The enforcer froze mid-motion, then snapped backward, crashing into a wall with enough force to dent the steel.

Lin Wei barely had time to process it. The drone had recalibrated. It fired.

Lin Wei raised a hand, willing himself to catch the energy again—

Lin Wei reacted the only way he could. He grabbed Ren's shoulder and—

The world around them blurred.

One second, they were in the drone's sights. The next—they were ten meters away, behind cover.

Ren stumbled. "What the—Wei, did we just teleport?!"

Lin Wei's pulse pounded in his ears. That wasn't teleportation. It was—compression.

Time had bent, dragging them forward in its flow.

His head throbbed. He didn't know how many times he could do this before the backlash hit, but there wasn't time to hesitate.

The enforcer was already getting back up.

And in the distance—more were coming.

If they didn't escape now, they wouldn't get another chance.

Against the Clock