Con Artist?

I eagerly pulled up my status screen, filled with a mix of anticipation and dread.

You might wonder how I even knew I had a chip.

While examining myself in the mirror earlier, I had noticed a faint scar running down my neck—evidence of the surgery that implanted the chip. That, and the fact that entry into the academy was impossible without one, confirmed it.

But now, the real question loomed: what kind of trait did I have? Please, let it be something powerful. Something game-breaking.

"Status."

A grey screen materialized in my vision.

Name: Desmond Slick

Chip Trait: The Phantom Charm

Category: Con Artist

Grade: F------????

Rank: F-

Strength: F-

Dexterity: E

Intelligence: D

Charisma: SS

Endurance: F-

Error. User cannot completely utilize chip features.

"Error? Why can't I access my chip trait?"

And what even was a Con Artist trait? Phantom Charm sounded intriguing, but without knowing its effects, I was left in the dark. The only clear thing was my ridiculously high Charisma stat—an SS rank. It had to be connected to Phantom Charm somehow.

The downside? My Strength and Endurance were abysmal.

"So, Desmond—no, I—am definitely not the physical type."

That much was obvious. I needed to get my bearings.

The Academy Ceremony was tomorrow, an event meant to introduce students to each other before the ranking assessments began. This was also the moment when the protagonist, Edward Locati, met the rest of the main cast and faced their judgments.

It was also where the academy assigned student rankings.

Edward would be placed at the very bottom due to his lack of formal training and the fact that he hadn't had a chip during the entrance exam.

But looking at my stats… I might take the bottom place from him.

My body trembled involuntarily, and a lump formed in my throat as I whispered, "Mom? Dad? Will I ever see you again?"

Tears blurred my vision before I could stop them.

That damn author. What kind of psycho murders someone in their own home over a comment? How did he even know what I was about to say?!

And my family… my heart ached at the thought of them grieving, of what will await them when they arrive home. Would they ever believe what had happened? The idea of them in pain made my stomach churn.

I could only pray that bastard had the decency to leave them out of this mess.

But there was no going back now.

I had to move forward.

"At least I told Mom I love her." The words slipped out as a whisper, a painful consolation that felt too late.

I wanted to make them proud. To be someone they could have been happy to call their son—something I hadn't quite managed back on Earth.

Okay.

Breathe.

If I was here before the first major arc started, then I still had time to prepare. "Ascend Through Darkness" had six academy arcs, and the first involved a serial killer targeting noble students. After that came the midterm exams, which tested the students' ability to utilize their chip traits.

That was when everything escalated.

During the exams, an extremist group known as The Harrowed Creed would attack—a secretive faction that saw chips as unnatural abominations, claiming they corrupted reality and would eventually ruin humanity. Their ultimate goal? To shatter the Veil—the very source of all chip abilities—even if it meant destroying the world in the process.

Of course, their plan was thwarted. The protagonist, Edward, would discover the impending attack and warn the academy staff just in time.

But none of that mattered if I didn't survive long enough to get there.

I needed a way to power up. Fast.

My Phantom Charm trait didn't seem particularly useful in combat. It might help me manipulate people or talk my way out of bad situations, but if I ended up in a fight? I was screwed.

That meant only one thing—I needed a second chip.

Most people could only handle one chip at a time. Implanting another could lead to system failure, causing their bodies to shut down.

But that was only true until Edward and his allies discovered a way to bypass that limitation.

And if they could do it… then so could I.

Time to check the Chip Net.

A chip wasn't just a power system—it was a full-fledged digital interface.

With a thought, I accessed the Chip Net, a vast social platform that connected all chip users. It functioned like a high-tech smartphone, allowing people to browse the web, communicate with others, and even check the time.

My first objective? Find a way out of the city.

I quickly searched for the earliest train departures.

Zenith Prime.

This was where I was now—the beating heart of Atalia. It was the city closest to the Veil, a place dominated by the most powerful chip users. Floating districts shimmered high above the skyline, reserved for the elite whose abilities defied logic. Meanwhile, far below, the Undercroft stretched endlessly—a lawless underbelly where the powerless and forgotten struggled to survive.

I had to leave.

Not permanently, but there was something I needed.

Just outside Zenith, in the mining city of Valtos, an abandoned cave held a secret.

A forgotten chip. One not registered to any system.

If I could find it, I might have a chance.