To The City

Lanz was a blanket burrito. Face half-smushed into the pillow, hair going in directions not even gravity could explain, his whole body ached like he'd lost a wrestling match to a vending machine.

His phone buzzed, then buzzed again.

Then again, followed by a chime that meant the group chat was in full meltdown mode.

He cracked one eye open. Screen brightness: a war crime, but he still peeked.

Kenji: "yo let's hit the inner district. city plaza's got a new milk tea or some shit and i want free samples."

Leo: "as long as i don't have to walk."

Hiro: "i heard that milk tea place has a level system. if u order enough, u get boss-tier."

Leo: "that's just bullsh*t."

Hiro: "but i still wanna try."

Kenji: "lanz u alive?"

Lanz groaned into the pillow like a man betrayed by sunlight. He stretched one arm out from the covers and typed with the elegance of a corpse.

Lanz: "varely but om in."

Leo: "the f*ck are you saying?"

Hiro: "he said he's in."

Kenji: "niceeeeee. let's meet at the bus stop."

"Erghhhhhhhhhhhhh," he groaned.

His legs still hated him, and his back felt like someone had swapped his spine with a brick. But lying around was just going to make him think about the System again.

And the goblins, the boar, and that one goblin who teared up through his leg.

"Yup," Lanz muttered to himself, rolling out of bed. "City sounds great."

He stood up, groaned, then immediately sat back down on the edge of the bed like an old man reconsidering his life decisions.

His shoulder popped when he rolled it. "That's fine. I didn't need full range of motion anyway."

He dragged himself to the mirror, stared at his hair for a solid ten seconds, then gave up and slapped a cap on. Shirt, jeans, and the least wrecked pair of sneakers he owned. He dug through his drawer for loose coins and found a crushed granola bar instead.

"Breakfast of champions."

As he stepped out of his room, he called out, "I'm going out with friends!"

From the kitchen, his mom replied, "Take money from the blue jar!"

Miko yelled from the couch, "Don't die again!"

He flipped her off with his ring finger on the way out.

By the time Lanz made it to the bus stop, Kenji was already halfway through a bag of chips.

"You look like sh*t," Kenji said with the warm sincerity of a best friend.

Lanz gave him a deadpan thumbs-up. "Appreciate the support."

Leo showed up next, sipping something green through a straw. "Did you roll here? Your shirt's giving 'lost a fight with concrete' vibes."

Hiro arrived last, wearing sunglasses despite the overcast sky. He gave Lanz a once-over. "Dude. Are you limping?"

"No," Lanz said, then immediately winced as he stepped off the curb. "Okay, yes. But stylishly."

They started walking the long sidewalk stretch toward the lower district, pace lazy, conversation dumb.

It was the kind of path they'd all walked a hundred times before — cracked cement, tiny weed forests pushing through every gap, and the occasional busted lamp post leaning like it was too tired to stand upright.

At one point, they even spotted a random capsule toy.

A bus roared by, kicking up a cloud of dust and fryer grease. Its side panel played a muted ad loop for some DDD-rank hunter agency offering "Affordable Escort Missions for Your Tier 1 Needs." The graphic was half-glitched, the DDD-ranker smiling like a man one paperwork error away from unemployment.

Farther down the block, a giant screen above a convenience store flashed silent clips of today's top hunter rankings. Mostly filler highlights, an EEE-rank team clearing a Tier 1 sewer-type gate, some C-rank solo showing off a flashy finisher move, and a poster of an AA-rank smiling with abs and no f*cking shirt.

Hiro gave it a thumbs-up. "Respect," he said.

Lanz didn't comment, he was too busy watching the people who were watching the screen, there were wide-eyed teens and tired parents. Some of them looked like they were taking notes.

"Man," Kenji muttered beside him, "people really eat that system grind up."

Lanz nodded, quietly.

And for a split second, he almost asked himself again — where did his version of the system even come from?

But Leo suddenly pointed at a food stall down the street and yelled, "MILK TEA BOSS TIER, LET'S GO," and the moment passed.

***

After their milk tea obsession subsidized. They decided to go at gear store.

The inside of ArcBlade Supply looked less like a gear store and more like a cosplay convention with a budget problem.

Brightly lit shelves stretched from wall to wall, stocked with flashy armor, ridiculous cloaks that shimmered under the LEDs, and swords with names like "Soulpiercer Replica" and "Obsidian Fang Ultra-Lite."

The moment they stepped in, Kenji let out a low whistle and immediately pointed to a glass display case showcasing a dagger with gold trimming and what appeared to be a gemstone shaped like a screaming skull.

"This thing costs more than my entire future," he said.

Leo leaned in. "That's not a dagger. That's more like a decorative regret."

"Still says 'functional,'" Hiro added, reading from the tag. "For ceremonial stabbing."

All three of them turned to look at him. Hiro simply shrugged. "Hey, I read things now."

Lanz trailed behind them, less interested in the overpriced cosplay knives and more focused on the simulation booths set up in the far corner.

There were sleek terminals lined with padded visors and countdown timers. A bold sign above them read: 'Tier 1 Sim Runs – 200 credits/hr – EEE+ Only.' He frowned at the small print: non-lethal, capped experience gains, loot disabled. Even this dumbass didn't need a calculator to know it was a bad deal.

While the others debated whether or not they could afford a limited-edition Starter Slayer Kit (which came with a foam-padded training blade and a belt pouch shaped like a mana core), Lanz just skimmed the walls.

One poster listed dungeon requirements by rank, starting from EEE-tier and up.

Another offered discounts for beginner guild enrollees.

There were even mock ranking boards showing fictional characters placed at S-rank, clearly meant to fuel some teenage boy's fantasy.

Eventually, they left with a couple of free stickers and a promotional flyer from the bored-looking cashier. Lanz pocketed the flyer without reading it, more out of habit than interest.

They were halfway through the plaza when a small commotion near one of the side kiosks caught their attention.

A tall guy in a pressed gray uniform, sunglasses indoors and all, was handing out glossy brochures while gesturing to a digital banner behind him. The screen flashed: "Join Valiant Claw Guild – Accepting New Recruits! Perks, Pay, and Protection!"

A younger hunter — maybe early twenties, nervous posture, hair too neat — was nodding rapidly as the recruiter spoke to him. His jacket had the faint shimmer of a certified EEE-rank.

"Damn," Hiro said, slowing just a bit. "That guy's getting scooped up already?"

Leo tilted his head. "Must've scored well during his gate evals. Or knows someone, I don't f*cking know."

Kenji squinted at the poster and let out a dramatic sigh. "Big guilds don't even look at you unless you're B-rank minimum. The rest of us get ignored or offered assistant roles like we're NPCs."

"Or worse," Hiro added. "They let you carry supplies so you can 'observe the pros' while being unpaid muscle."

Leo snorted. "That's why most AAA-ranks go solo. They get offers from everyone, endorsements, contracts, government deals."

"Yeah," Kenji said. "Imagine walking into a convenience store and seeing your own face on a protein bar."

"I'd buy it," Hiro said. "I'm just good looking like that."

They all laughed.

Lanz's gaze shifted, and drifted between the recruiter and the screen flickering behind him. The screen showed success stories, sponsored hunters posing in front of guild halls, clips of flashy dungeon kills, a BB-rank celebrating their promotion with confetti.

It all looked so polished, so obviously rehearsed.

Kenji nudged him. "You good?"

"Yeah," Lanz said, offering a small smile. "Just thinking."

He let them walk ahead a little, still watching the screen.

The System was supposed to be fair. That's how they sold it — stats, levels, growth based on merit.

But here, in the real world, it looked locked behind paperwork and power gaps. Progress was slow, rank-ups were rare, and everything — from dungeons to skill access — had hoops you needed to jump through.

Unless you were born lucky, rich, or perfectly compatible, the road forward was paved in bureaucracy.

'Then there's me.'

Lanz had gone from FFF-rank reject to Level 10 in under a short amount of time. The system he used wasn't connected to handlers, registration, waiting periods, recruiters, paperwork, or any kind of safety net. It was just danger, perseverance, and raw growth.

This was clearly something different.

And for the first time… he genuinely wasn't sure if that was a blessing or a red flag.

But before he could dwell on it too long, Hiro turned around and shouted, "You guys wanna grab food at the food court or f*cking die?"

Kenji answered, "Both!" and Leo added, "But not in that order."

End of Chapter 14.

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ALT SYSTEM — USER PROFILE: ZERO

Level: 10

EXP: 2 / 100

Next Unlock: Skill — Crimson Slash

Global System Tracking: DISABLED

World Rank Association: UNLINKED

Stats:

STR: 8 | AGI: 8 (Affinity) | VIT: 3 | DEX: 1 | INT: 7 | WIS: 0

[Available Stat Points: 0]

[Derived Stat — MANA: 35 / 35]

Skills:

[Basic Footwork Lv.2]

[Blade Control Lv.1]

[Parry Timing Lv.1]

[Feint Step Lv.1] (Active Skill)

[Reflex Sync Lv.1] (Passive Skill)

[Combat Awareness Lv.2] (Passive Skill)

[Skill Slot Available — Unassigned]

[Skill Fusion Menu: Active]

[Dev Tree: Tier 0 Access Granted]

Equipment:

Aged Blade Fragment (??? Rarity) (Bound)

Goblin Dagger (Looted – Rusted, Jagged, Minor Bonus to DEX when equipped)

Spiked Boar Tusk Shard (Trophy Item – No bonus, kept as memento)

Lightweight Chest Padding

Boots of Basic Mobility

Fingerless Gloves (Basic)

Starter Cloak: Faded Black

Training Ring (+1 VIT)