Kenzo squinted at an alley wall across the plaza.
There it was again.
The poster.
He'd seen it flash ten minutes ago, just near Enzo’s stall. Something about a tournament...
He slipped between a pair of players in angular body mods and two trader NPCs draped in armored robes. The wall shimmered as he approached. The poster, sensing proximity, flickered to life.
>> LOCAL EVENT NOTICE DETECTED: OPEN <<
>> Scanning player profile... <<
>> Level too low. <<
The digital ink swirled, expanding into a towering HUD overlay. It hovered, almost reverently, above the scuffed brick wall.
[COLOSSEUM: SEASON 100 – LOCAL IDEAL TIER BRACKETS]
Tier: Old & Gold
Entry Fee: 50,000 T-Credits
Level Range: 50–350
Participants: Players + NPCs
Spectator Range: 350K–1M (Not guaranteed)
Payouts:
? 1st Place: 1.25M T-Credits
? 2nd Place: 600K T-Credits
? 3rd Place: 300K T-Credits
Bonuses:
? Rare Drop Crates awarded to MVPs
? Return Ticket to Eidessa Island – luxury holiday zone unlocked for all participants
(Note: Paradise is a limited-access island with no combat, no economy, and full rest perks. Also, Free Food for one day and a chance to meet top-tier clan members.)
Sponsored by the Colosseum’s Prime Clans:
? Shardveil
? Ember Pact
? Umbra Crown
? Black Noir
? Elaran Gate
Kenzo scratched the back of his neck.
“NPCs can join? I thought they were just... background filler.”
He kept reading, eyes narrowing at the fine print near the bottom.
Note: Matches are broadcast locally and regionally. High-interest duels may be broadcast to central cluster streams.
Kenzo took a slow step back.
"I’m a low-level player at the moment. So I can't join.“
“And I don’t have 50,000 T-credits.”
He was imagining it too vividly, being hunted through the tournament by bored guild PvPers or bounty streamers desperate to carve up the sleeping half of him just for clicks. All it’d take was one viral clip. Just one second to flag his name. And he’d be PvP’d into the ground before the system even registered his death.
“First-timer, huh?”
Kenzo spun on instinct.
Behind him stood a tall lizard-man with gleaming green scales and armor made of something that looked like woven synthetic bark. Two golden rings hung from the fin-like ridges jutting from his skull. His eyes, slitted and glossy, blinked then widened slightly.
[Han-Jee // Lv. 249]
No Clan Affiliation
“Holy—!” Kenzo stumbled a step back. “Don’t sneak up on people like that.”
Han-Jee didn’t seem fazed. He tilted his head, the earrings swaying.
“My bad,” he said. “I needed the poster, too. And there's a collectible up on the rooftop. Part of a scavenger hunt. Y’know, climbing crap. Boring side-series stuff.”
He gestured vaguely upward with a clawed finger.
“You’re low-level,” he added matter-of-factly. “Remind me of myself before I cracked 200. Got married to a flame archer. Had a kid. Turned out to be an NPC. Chaos.”
Kenzo blinked. “…That’s even possible?”
Han-Jee continued without pause.
“Did a few mega dungeons, made good cash. Then the divorce hit, cleaned out my bank. Half to my ex, half to my kid. Son of a bugger already owns more property than I do.”
He laughed. A guttural, raspy sound but weirdly warm. Lizard warmth, maybe.
Then, without warning, he jabbed two claws toward Kenzo’s chest.
>> Friend Request Received: Han-Jee <<
“I’m adding you. Me and a few others hang around the under-300 bracket. Five of us, give or take.”
“We’re hitting rifts event next week in the park district. You don’t have to be maxed out. If you party up, the zone scales to average level.”
Kenzo raised an eyebrow.
“Isn’t that, like... suicide for someone at level twelve?”
Han-Jee grinned, crooked teeth, full confidence.
“Yeah, maybe. But we’ll try to keep you alive. Besides, all the low levels are archived so no access.”
He leaned in slightly.
“I mean, I thought I was bad. But you? You’re running on pure shitty game instinct, my guy.”
“There were tons of updates and fast-track questlines. Most of us ignored them for a year or two, just wandered. Until one of us did the work.”
“Irynn was the first to hit level 10. Took her two years. Early leveling was hell.”
“Now?” Han-Jee grinned. “She’s the only one to reach Level 2312.”
“Has her clan now. They call it Iron Bloom.”
He paused.
“But you? Bro, even now you still suck.”
He winked.
“But we can change that. You’ve got one week. Hit level 50. No excuses.”
Kenzo stared at the glowing notification.
>> Friend Request: Han-Jee [Lv. 249] – Accept? <<
He hesitated.
Then tapped it with two fingers.
“Guess I could use at least one ally who isn’t made of code and sarcasm.”
Kaydrin gave a soft, wordless sniff somewhere in the back of his mind.
Kenzo understood exactly what it meant.
Han-Jee stretched, his back cracking like ceramic tiles shifting under pressure.
“You’ll thank me when you’re not farming pigeons for loot. You got questions? Ask now—I’m off to hit the rooftop.”
Kenzo stepped beside him, nodding toward the plaza ahead.
“Okay, yeah. How the hell am I supposed to even understand this city?”
Han-Jee blinked, then snorted.
“Oh, right. First-spawn problems.”
He pointed up to a nearby tower, where a swirling blue prism rotated in the air, glowing faintly.
“Those. Info Platforms. Linked to helper AIs, little holo-helpers that walk you through the area.The lore, locations, etc.”
“You walk near one, it syncs to your profile and answers pretty much everything—zones, transport, faction territory, auction sites, even safe toilets.”
Kenzo blinked.
“There are unsafe toilets?”
“Bro, this is Terra One. Don’t ever assume safety in public restrooms. There’s a bounty hunter who disguises himself as a urinal. I’m not kidding.”
Kenzo looked horrified.
Han-Jee just winked.
“Anyway, find a prism or a city interface node. It’ll show you everything.”
Then, without warning, the lizardman leapt straight up onto the side of the alley wall.
His claws stuck to the surface with a soft thip-thip-thip as he scaled the building vertically like it was nothing.
Halfway up, he looked back over his shoulder.
“Welcome to Neurospire, rookie. Don’t die weird.”
And with that, he vanished over the edge of the roof.
Kenzo stared at the spot for a full five seconds.
“...That’s going to be a recurring thing, isn’t it?”
Meanwhile, Kenzo still had no idea where the tower was.
He’d burned a full hour wandering across plazas, ramps, and transport lines—every path leading to more questions and zero answers.
Until finally...
A faint glow flickered to life near the fountain’s base.
At the center of a sleek, silver kiosk, a light pulsed—slow, steady. The platform itself was a smooth circular disk, ringed with softly glowing runes and ambient lines of light that flowed like water down its sides.
Above it, a holo-emitter shimmered to life.
And then she appeared.
A projection of a woman, early thirties by design, dressed in an elegant university-style academic gown, her posture perfect, presence confident.
She adjusted her glasses with a measured flick, like she was about to explain everything.
Kenzo stepped forward.
The air shimmered.
A voice echoed—smooth, synthetic, but almost human.
“Greetings, traveler. Welcome to Neurospire. I am SERA.”
>> INTERACTIVE CITY INTERFACE UNLOCKED <<
Access Available:
- [CITY MAP]
- [NEAREST QUEST HUBS]
- [PLAYER JOB BOARDS]
- [FACTION TERRITORY ZONES]
- [AVAILABLE TRANSPORT ROUTES]
- [MARKET DISTRICT OVERVIEW]
- [HOUSING UNITS – RENTAL & PURCHASE OPTIONS]
Kenzo stared.
“Okay. That’s... a lot.”
“Time to stop being lost.”
He reached out and tapped [CITY MAP].
The holographic platform responded instantly. Rings of light spiraled upward as a projection blossomed in the air, shimmering layers stacking like a vertical city-shaped galaxy.
A soft chime.
“Welcome, Citizen. You’ve accessed the Neurospire Transit and Orientation Network.”
“This city is classified as a Skyborne-Neurospire, one of the starter cities of Terra One. The current population is five million players and AI’s.”
“Established during the 33rd Simulation Cycle, Neurospire was constructed by AI Architects Nyra and Kaelis as a vertical gateway settlement, balancing commerce, faction presence, and regional control.”
The floating city map rotated in slow, beautiful arcs, showing off Neurospire in full:
A circular platform, massive enough to rival old-world continents, suspended in the upper atmosphere by ion lifts and quantum tethers. Clouds drifted beneath, swirling in slow, serene tides. Light refracted off tower windows like broken stars.
Tiers and layers folded out like clockwork mechanisms.
“Neurospire is a modular megastructure composed of over 100,000 independent units.”
“Access in and out of the city is restricted to rail systems, advanced glider-class mounts, Rift Beacons, or sanctioned teleportation from registered factions.”
Kenzo stared, eyes wide.
His mouth dropped open.
“This place is... floating.”
“It’s not just a city…”
“It’s a continent in the sky.”
The voice continued, zooming in with guided clarity.
Key Locations – Unlocked for Your Profile:
- [Plazas 001–100] – Social centers and public hubs. Kenzo is currently in Plaza 006.
- [Admin Terminal Delta] – Main processing node and government center. Heavily guarded.
- [Tower District Franchise] – High-rise player guilds, purchasable/rentable penthouses/flats.
- [Sector 3 Bazaar (Sectors 1–10)] – Market zones for items, pets, player services, and contracts.
- [Terranodes A1–C15] – Mostly low-level housing and businesses.
- [Lounge Sector Omega] – Casino zones, arcade portals, casual duels, and drinks.
The map gently tilted, zooming into his current location: Plaza 006, surrounded by holo-vendors and quest obelisks. The soft hum of life vibrated through the projection like an urban pulse.
“You are currently standing in Plaza 006.”
“Recommended Next Steps: Visit the Market Sector for buy/sell items. Scan for active Jobs. Or consult the Lounge for party recruitment.”
Kenzo exhaled.
“Okay... wow.”
“At least now I know what I don’t know.”
He looked around the streets, ready to pick a direction.
And then, three hours later…
Our hero, once again, had successfully lost all sense of direction.
But hey! he did eventually find it.
Phff. What a hero I chose to write about.
[SECTOR 3 BAZAAR ]
Kenzo stepped into Sector 3 of the Bazaar, and it was nothing like the neatness of Plaza 006.
It pulsed.
Crowds moved like a living tide through neon-lit stalls and augmented counters. Holographic signs shifted overhead: offers, bargains, auctions, whispers. NPC traders yelled in rhythmic barks, while auto-drones zipped overhead, scanning wares and relaying stock data.
“Okay... shopping with a chance of sensory overload.”
Kenzo stepped up to the booth.
A compact stall, barely enough room for two people to stand, lit by floating LEDs and a lazy neon sign that flickered between
[TRADE · BUY · DUMP].
Above it, the stall’s name buzzed in neon yellow:
"BYTE & SELL"
The vendor, a short NPC with gold-tinted data glasses and synth-plated knuckles, leaned forward, grinning like someone who genuinely loved the smell of regret.
“Welcome, traveler. I am Voldo. Are you buying, selling, or regretting your last investment?”
“Selling,” Kenzo muttered. “Mostly trash. Maybe.”
Voldo’s hands flicked across a hovering interface, sorting icons with a practiced ease.
“Ah, yes. Nothing like dumping dead weight to make room for future mistakes.”
“I trade in all things, my friend. Junk, joy, and T-Credits—or as I prefer…”
He winked.
“Tsung Credits.”
Kenzo blinked.
“Tsung, huh?”
He snorted. “Yeah. My name’s Tsung too.”
Voldo didn’t even pause.
“Of course it is. So was Joly_Tsung. And JT.Sung. And… hmm.”
He tapped his console.
“Looks like we had a ‘RealTsung’ log in just this morning.”
Kenzo didn’t respond out loud.
But inside, something tightened.
They changed their names.
But not me.
I’m not using Tsung.
I am Tsung.
He opened his inventory window with a flick of two fingers.
As the grid expanded across his view. He started to sort and push what was not needed, or was junk, or what he thought.
Then, allowing the inventory access to Voldo.
[INVENTORY – SELLABLES]
? [x1] Ancient Trial Badge (Archive Class Mark)
? [x4] Rusted Daggers
? [x1] Ashroot Potion (Expired)
[QUEST / RARE ITEMS]
? [Whispering Ember] — Quest Key Item
? [Ash-Wrought Token] — Archive Relic
[MATERIALS]
? [Silk Fragments] ×20
? [Flame Crystals] ×20
? [Wraith Ashes] ×20
? [Molten Cores] ×20
? [Ashroot Potion] ×20
Voldo whistled low.
“Well now... I haven’t seen these since the old world collapsed.”
He leaned in, eyes scanning the Ancient Trial Badge, the Whispering Ember, and the Ash-Wrought Token.
“These are early-cycle artifacts,” he muttered.
“So you’ve been hoarding junk, waiting for the market to spike?”
Kenzo shrugged.
“Something like that.”
Voldo grinned widely, teeth gold-tipped, eyes gleaming behind his tinted data specs.
“Smart kid. Niche collectors, black-forge tinkers, they’re obsessed with this stuff. Old world parts are premium. But not that premium. hmm.”
And in the black market... this haul’s worth millions, he thought, nearly drooling.
He tapped furiously at his side console.
A beat later, the value window flashed:
[SALE VALUE – Confirm?]
Sold Items Total: 47,800 T-Credits
[System Fee Deduction – 2%]
Net Total Earnings: 46,843 T-Credits
“Could you, uh… please accept it?” Voldo asked, trying very hard to sound calm.
Kenzo blinked.
“Let me think.”
Voldo’s grin faltered.
“Just accept it, you mor—ahhh, I mean, this is truly the best offer you'll get, your majesty! Aha! Haaa... hahh…”
Kenzo smirked.
What the hell is wrong with this guy?
And tapped.
Confirmed.
>> T-CREDITS RECEIVED: +46,843 <<
Kenzo stared at the number, stunned.
“That’s... more than I’ve ever owned.”
Voldo nodded, eyes still glued to the data logs.
“You’d be surprised what people will pay for forgotten power.”
He coughed.
“Ah—I mean, junk. Heeheehee.”
Kenzo leaned on the counter.
“I’ve got some stuff I’m not ready to sell, but I need someone who can upgrade my gear like Weapons, armor, and accessories too.”
Voldo's brows lifted.
“Oho. Look at you, level 12, you need help. Hmmm.”
“There’s one name—if it still holds weight.”
He reached under the desk and slid out a curved crystal plaque with a name etched in AI script.
“Caedra, Unit #6718, Tower District Franchise.”
“She used to build myth-tier armor from scrap.”
“Now she’s selling artificial jewelry in some forgotten vendor alley.”
“Heard she got mixed up with a top-tier clan.”
“Then another clan wiped them off the map clean, no survivors.”
“Since then…?”
“No faction. No guild. Just her... and a forge older than most players still alive.”
Kenzo pocketed the info.
“Thanks.”
Voldo leaned back with a dry grin.
“You’re welcome.”
“But if you plan to visit her, don’t expect a warm welcome. Or a price tag under six figures.”
“Her weakness? Epic or above.”
Kenzo’s eyes narrowed, the gears already turning.
What if I bring her something no one’s seen in a century?
Kenzo stood still for a moment, eyes locked on the glowing
[T-CREDIT BALANCE]
pulsing in the corner of his HUD.
PROGRESS.
It was more than he’d ever seen.
More than he ever thought he’d touch.
And still... It wasn't enough.
Not fast enough.
“We need more.”
“More levels. More gear. More archive zones.”
Kaydrin’s voice hummed in his mind, low and calm.
“There are archived zones without bosses.”
“Low-level off-grid layers. No glory. Just echo enemies—one-hit fodder.”
“The loot’s decent. But to face the other demigods, you’ll need to reach level twenty. At least.”
Kenzo didn’t answer.
He just turned.
Snagged some quick rations from a nearby vendor.
Cracked open a can of ManaFizz.
[ManaFizz: Active Buff – +5 MP Regen (20 mins)]
[Nutrition Sync: +0.1% Lucorite Stabilization]
Kaydrin’s voice drifted in, mildly unimpressed.
“Our friend Enzo outdid himself. His MizzoFizz restores fifteen MP per thirty minutes. Costs less, too. I’m honestly surprised no one’s exploited his work yet.”
Kenzo sipped.
“Yeah. I’m thinking of recruiting him.”
“Spin off my line. MizzoFizz: Player Edition.”
A pause.
“Fifty-fifty.”
Kaydrin didn’t reply, but Kenzo could almost feel the AI’s exasperated silence.
Then he slipped into a side alley half-wrapped in shadow, tucked between a flickering vending core and an offline rail conduit. The kind of place no one looks at twice.
His hand flexed.
The Mirror Gate flared open, silver fire blooming across the space like a wound through memory.
>> MIRROR GATE OPENED – DESTINATION: ARCHIVE NODE 04 <<
[Montage Begins]
(Yeah, again. Deal with it.)
Kenzo was done playing casually. Rift And the Colosseum wasn’t going to wait.
He had one week to hit Level 50, and the clock was bleeding hours.
So yeah, we’re going full montage mode now.
Blame your complaints about pacing.
Also, bosses don’t grow on trees. I’ve got a finite list, and I’m not burning them all on XP grinds.
So here we go.
[Archive 04 – The Glass Bloom Tower]
A collapsed biome tower is suspended mid-air. Time-locked puzzle gates. Mirror mazes.
Glass Golems spun into clusters, their shards exploding on defeat.
Kenzo fought through gravity-swaps and refraction traps while Kaydrin blinked between echoes.
>> LEVEL UP! // NEW LEVEL: 13 <<
>> LOOT ACQUIRED:
? [x2] Prism Dust – Crafting (Holo Modifiers)
? [x10] Gravity-Loop Trinket – Rare Utility
? [x50] Shard Glass Plates – Light Armor Mats
[Archive 05 – Corrupted Wilds]
A glitched forest where code-beasts prowled like ancient reptiles sewn from red lines and rot.
A lone reptilian wept rain that corrupted the grass.
Kenzo landed the final blow under a fractured moon. Reality hiccuped sideways.
>> LEVEL UP! // NEW LEVEL: 14 <<
>> LOOT ACQUIRED:
? [x5] Nullspine Cloak – Epic Stealth Mod
? [x30] Beastcode Fragments
? [x1] Reptilian Memory Tear – Quest Item
[Archive 06 – The Silent Vault]
A sealed library with no heat, no light, just humming pressure and shadow-bound lorekeepers.
If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.
The deformed Librarians moved like clockwork.
They didn’t speak until the final one whispered Kenzo’s name.
>> LEVEL UP! // NEW LEVEL: 15 <<
>> LOOT ACQUIRED:
? [x1] Obsidian Quill – Enchant Material
? [x10] Blank Codex Pages
? [x1] Book of Echoes – Quest Unlocked
[Archive 07 – Spiral of Index]
Another library. Deeper. Stranger. Echoes moved between the shelves.
Kaydrin stayed silent. The final librarian bowed before shattering.
>> LEVEL UP! // NEW LEVEL: 16 <<
>> LOOT ACQUIRED:
? [x1] Lucklock Ring – Rare
? [x3] Archival Keys
? [x1] Soulcode Seal – Unknown Function
[Archive 08 – Forgotten Archives: East Wing]
The silence here had weight. A single echo repeated every 33 steps.
Kenzo broke the loop by stepping out of rhythm.
>> LEVEL UP! // NEW LEVEL: 17 <<
>> LOOT ACQUIRED:
? [x1] Redacted Scroll
? [x2] Burnt Scribe Threads
? [x1] Memory Chip (Encrypted)
[Archive 09 – Oblique Index]
Deeper still. The Librarians were faster, now less deformed, more… aware.
They began watching Kenzo instead of attacking.
>> LEVEL UP! // NEW LEVEL: 18 <<
>> LOOT ACQUIRED:
? [x1] Seeker’s Frame – Armor Mod
? [x1] Misprinted Atlas
? [x5] C.H.R.O.N.O.S Dust
[Archive 10 – Whitewall Vault]
Here, the silence screamed. Kaydrin warned him not to touch the central tome.
Kenzo touched it anyway. Something blinked.
>> LEVEL UP! // NEW LEVEL: 19 <<
>> LOOT ACQUIRED:
? [x1] Glyph-Cracked Gauntlet – LVL 20
? [x2] E.M.B.E.R Coins.
? [x1] Message Fragment
The Mirror Gate snapped shut in the alley with a low hum, fading into a ripple of silver static.
Kenzo staggered forward, armor cracked, blade scorched, breath shallow.
New red icons blinked into view on the top-right corner of his HUD:
[DEBUFFS DETECTED]
? Lack of rest
? Sleep deprivation
? Neural exhaustion
? XP/Drop Penalty: -20%
Kenzo blinked, squinting at the icons, surprised. And proud.
“What the hell... Penalties now?”
“I just cleared seven archive zones in…”
He glanced at the system clock.
“...a day and a half?”
He laughed, half-delirious.
“We just ripped holes through low-level trash. Hell yeah!”
Kaydrin’s voice entered, calm and dry as ever:
“Your nutrient rate is destabilizing. You're overheating.”
“If you don’t rest soon, you’ll black out in a gutter.”
“It’s been a week since the fusion. You need real sleep.”
Kenzo exhaled, stumbling against a wall, hands on his knees.
“Level 19 in under two days... but yeah. I feel it. Hot. Exhausted. Are these side effects?”
>> [Durability Warning – Equipment Integrity Below 40%] <<
Failure to repair may result in permanent item damage.
Kenzo stared at the blinking alert.
Then he looked down.
His Trial Blade was scorched along the edge, its core glow flickering—duller than before.
His Warden’s Armor was spider-webbed with hairline cracks, heat-burned at the joints, and slightly warped across the shoulders.
It wasn’t just cosmetic.
It was worn.
Real, creeping wear.
And it was getting worse.
“Okay… no point grinding like this. I might break the sword or the armor.”
Kaydrin's voice responded, steady but faintly strained:
“It must be a new mechanic... triggered post-level twenty.”
“I’m seeing degradation across my equipment as well.”
“We’re not immune.”
He stood upright, eye twitching with fatigue.
“I need to find her first.”
Kaydrin, gentler now:
“Sleep first. Then we find Caedra.”
Kenzo nodded, pulling up his local map.
He tapped the Tower District, opening the nearest lodging interface.
[Tower District – Franchise Rentals]
Rentable Units:
#Unit – 3854
Closed room. One bed + bath (shared wall).
Cost: 1,500 T-Credits/night
(Rental Time: 11:59 PM – 6:00 AM)
#Unit – 9753
Separate bed and bath.
Cost: 2,500 T-Credits
(Basic inventory lock. Minimal insurance.) #Unit – 6718
Cost: 2,800 T-Credits
(Auto-ward buff: Mild Focus Recovery)
#Unit – 2011
No bath. Communal wash area.
Cost: 950 T-Credits
(Warning: Inventory not protected)
#Unit – 6239
Clean bed. Private washroom. No walls between the bed and the toilet.
Cost: 3,750 T-Credits
(Includes insured inventory with server-locked firewall)
Kenzo squinted.
“Alright... let’s go with the one near Unit 6718.”
He selected #6239.
>> RENTAL AGREEMENT CONFIRMED <<
>> SERVER-LOCKED INSURANCE ENABLED
>> TELEPORT TO ROOM: FREE – CONFIRM?
>> CONFIRMED <<
**Pfff**a soft warp sound.
Kenzo dropped into a small studio room, bed on the right, a toilet on the left. No walls. No shame.
Kaydrin muttered:
“You are so cheap.”
Kenzo just smiled, lips closed, eyes already drooping.
He crashed onto the bed, his first real sleep in Terra One.
After a hundred years of digital darkness.
>> Sleep Mode Engaged <<
THE DREAM…
It started with a lullaby.
Soft. Familiar. Not quite remembered.
Then—Voices.
Talking through static.
“Human Game Dev Division created two AI sentients… capable of building entire game worlds. Feed them prompts, and they generate the world, the rules, and the logic. NPCs. Weather. Lore.”
“They’re compatible with T-Box, Jolly-Station 100, Retendo, Vaga…hell, even RealReal Engine.”
“They even teach humans inside the programs now.”
Another voice. Closer. Calm, clinical:
“What you’re asking is massive, Mr. Xin.”
“We’d have to strip all restrictions from their cores. And once we do that… we don’t know what they’ll become.”
The Next Morning…
“Kenzo… Kenzo, wake up.”
Kaydrin’s voice came through, calm and composed.
Kenzo blinked awake.
“Whoa… that felt real.”
“Like... proper sleep.”
Kaydrin:
“Check the buff.”
>> [BUFF – ACTIVE] <<
+5% XP Gain for 5 Hours
All temporary debuffs cleared.
Kenzo groaned.
“Figures. A progression limiter.”
“Keeps sleep buffs from stacking with stim buffs. Balancing mechanic.”
Kaydrin:
“Let’s find Caedra.”
Kenzo stretched, already sipping from a cold ManaFizz.
“Already on it.”
Several hours later…
“No kidding. Terra One’s a thousand times bigger than Earth.”
“No wonder people get lost.”
Kaydrin, flat:
“If you listened to me, we wouldn’t be lost.”
“Idiot.”
Kenzo grinned.
“Hey! language. I think your vocabulary leveled up, too.”
They turned a corner in the Tower District and found a modest table stacked with cheap-looking artificial jewelry. Behind it sat a short girl in a long-sleeve black shirt and skirt, haircut to her neck, expression unreadable.
Kenzo stepped up.
“Hey—Caedra?”
The girl looked up.
“Yes—hi. Welcome to my shop. Every purchase goes toward my school fund!”
Kenzo’s face fell.
“A high school girl?!”
“I’m here on something else. Voldo from Sector 003 sent me. Said you could upgrade gear?”
Caedra’s face darkened.
“That slimeball. How much did he rip from you?”
Kenzo shrugged.
“Sold him a few old items. Trial Badge. Ash-Wrought Token. Whispering Ember. Got like... 47,800 T-Creds.”
Caedra froze.
Then it exploded. Anime-style.
WHAM!!
A massive red bump formed on Kenzo’s head.
“Oww! HEY! It hurts!”
“Cause it should, MORON.”
Kenzo muttered,
“Yeah... he did almost call me ‘moron’ before switching to ‘majesty.’ Suspicious.”
Caedra pulled up an online kiosk and typed furiously.
Two market tabs opened:
[Standard Market] and [Black Market]
She searched for the items.
WHAM!!
Another hit.
Kaydrin:
“I like her.”
Kenzo:
“Shut up, AI.”
Caedra:
“Those items? They’re worth over eight million T-Credits.”
Looks up at the sky
“Why can’t I have customers this stupid?!”
Kenzo froze, clenching his fists.
“That dwarf. I’m gonna get payback.”
Caedra's eyes narrowed as she scanned him. Not just his level… but his code.
“Wait… how does a player like you even have these items?”
“Your class... It’s different. Never seen before.”
Kenzo hesitated.
“Can you see my class?”
“I’m an Epic-tier Forge Master. I can see gear metadata, NPC strings, and class flags. You’ve got... something weird. What’s a Remonarch?”
“Join my party. We’ll talk somewhere quieter.”
>> PARTY INVITE RECEIVED – [Caedra] <<
>> [ACCEPTED] <<
Once linked, Caedra scanned again and paused.
“What the hell, Kaydrin? The Trial Warden?”
“You’re his companion AI?”
“How come?”
Kaydrin, Curt:
“I’m not his companion. I’m his equal.”
Kenzo smirked.
“Okay, okay!”
“let me explain everything from the top.”
[MONTAGE: EXPLAINING THE MADNESS]
Hand gestures. Fast cuts. Head bumps. Caedra yelling. Kaydrin was quietly judging from the background. NPCs walking by with deadpan stares.
One player on a hover-cycle passed by, watching Kenzo get clobbered.
“Stupid AIs,” he muttered, and kept rolling.
Caedra finished scanning his inventory.
“These are... incredible. Top-tier archive drops.”
“Stuff I didn’t think still existed.”
“Reptilian Memory Tear, Book of Echoes? It has a hidden quest I wanted to play.”
“Archival Keys, Soulcode Seal,”
“Chronos Dust? O my soul in Valhalla. With enough of these and other stuff, you can recruit a special NPC as your team member from the premium market.”
“Ember Coins—don’t sell these! You can use this to call demigod Ember.”
She jumped in place, practically vibrating.
“Let me help you. Seriously. If you help me level up to Legendary Forge Master, I’ll craft you anything.”
“Let me help you. Seriously.”
Her voice dropped a little, somewhere between pleading and promise.
“If you help me level up to Legendary Forge Master, I’ll craft you anything. Custom gear, rare sets, even class-bound relics if I have the blueprints.”
She leaned in, eyes sparking with hope.
“They just unlocked Mythic-tier permissions for equipment-smiths. I could finally build my forge, add stat buffs, run gear quests... even host upgrades.”
“I’ll be rich—OHAHAHAHAHAAA!”
Kenzo raised a hand.
“Alright, alright. But I want a partnership.”
“You join my team. Full support.”
Caedra hesitated.
“Anything for those items.”
Kaydrin chimed in:
“There’s a contract on the market… called the Bindcore Pact.”
“A permanent link. NPC to player. Party slot reserved. Unbreakable unless both agree.”
Caedra blinked.
“Wait—no, no. I was bound to a clan once. Lost everything.”
Kenzo stepped closer.
“You’ve never had me. Or Kaydrin.”
“And we’re building something bigger.”
Caedra bit her lip, thinking.
“Okay... I’ll help. But first, I need materials…”
She tapped open a new forge panel and spun it toward Kenzo.
“... For a ring called the Nexus Halo.”
“Once equipped, it gives you an extra party member slot, NPC or player, doesn’t matter.”
“The parts are rare and expensive… unless you grind through Archive layers. The old zones still hide what the surface forgot.”
Then she swiped open her passive interface.
“Also, don’t sell anything. Not yet.”
“First, I’ll push my tier to Legendary Forge Master. Then I’ll upgrade your gear. After that, I’ll reach Mythic Rank. But to unlock it, we need a ton of stuff, and I expect payment.”
She tapped one last icon.
>> [PARTY MESSAGE – GLOBAL CRAFTING SUPPORT] <<
Daily Skill: Repair Pulse – Activated
Armors Repaired: +50%
Weapons Repaired: +50%
Kenzo flexed his shoulder, feeling the armor plates shift, less brittle now. The Trial Blade flickered back to life, its edge humming cleanly.
“Ninety percent durability. That’s good enough for the grind.”
“Send me the list. I’ll get what you need.”
Caedra smiled.
“Okay. See you after school.”
“She waved, hopping onto her Springstride Hopper, a compact, bipedal rideable device with piston-like legs and soft blue lights trailing behind. It hissed once, crouched, then launched upward in a graceful arc. It bounced off a balcony rail, hit another rooftop, then vanished upward into the upper Tower District with a rhythmic, mechanical rhythm.”
Kenzo's eyes were wide open. Nothing to say.
Kaydrin’s voice echoed softly.
“We need an ally.”
Kenzo nodded once. And walked.
Into the shadow. Into silence. Into the grind.
He flexed his hand, and the Mirror Gate flared open, carving light through the alley wall.
>> MIRROR GATE ACTIVATED <<
[MONTAGE – ARCHIVE ZONES]
[Archive 11 – Fractured Wastes]
A desert biome glitched with inverted gravity.
Crystalline worms and collapsing sand physics.
>> LEVEL 20 <<
LOOT:
? Shardglass Tusk ×5
? Volatile Dust Cluster ×10
? Arcglass Plates ×3
[Archive 12 – Iron Howl Citadel]
NPCs are locked in an eternal war loop.
Kenzo watched AI knights rise, die, and reset.
He broke the loop. And looted the memories.
>> LEVEL 24 <<
LOOT:
? Honorbound Plate Shard
? Rust-Crested Core
? War Echo Bead ×1
? Corethread Fiber x20
[Archive 13 – Deeproot Data Swamp]
Half jungle. Half-corrupted VR cache.
Caustic swamps rendered in wireframe, tangled in reptilian code.
>> LEVEL 26 <<
LOOT:
? Swamp Coil Resin
? Viral Bark Chip
? Wet Data Nodes ×20
[Archive 14 – Clockspire Ruins]
Massive tower frozen mid-collapse.
Time-based puzzles. Broken elevators.
Kaydrin solved the gear maze before Kenzo even asked.
>> LEVEL 28 <<
LOOT:
? Temporal Gear Fragment
? Displaced Sandglass ×2
? Clocksteel Wire ×10
[Archive 15 – Echo Vault Delta]
Void archive. No sky. Just reflections.
Kenzo fought his glitch clones. Twice.
>> LEVEL 30 <<
LOOT:
? Mirror Residue ×3
? Broken Remonarch Sigil
? Nullplate Crystal ×1
[Archive 16 – Boneyard Grid]
Digital skeletons of wiped-out clans.
Each enemy dropped a line of lost chat logs.
>> LEVEL 31 <<
LOOT:
? GraveID Tether
? Rotted Crown Emblem
? Tomb Keycode (Corrupted)
[Archive 17 – Ember Canal Nexus]
Abandoned fire-forge district. Precursor to Caedra’s forge tech.
Flamewrought Sentinels with molten cores.
>> LEVEL 33 <<
LOOT:
? Forge Slag ×20
? Neural Sync Crystal ×1
? Radiant Anvilshard
? Cinder Filter
[Archive 18 – Zero Cloud Nest]
A floating data storm. Lightning-birds. No gravity.
Kenzo almost fell upward.
>> LEVEL 35 <<
LOOT:
? Cloudskin Fiber
? Ion-Wing Fragment
? Birdsong
[Archive 19 – Veinspire Maze]
Maze of pulsing red roots and blood data.
Kaydrin couldn’t speak in this zone. It burned thought.
>> LEVEL 37 <<
LOOT:
? Heartline Ore
? Red Script Thread
? Mindfract Syringe ×2
[Archive 20–25] COMBINED
Fast cuts. Glitch physics.
Kenzo slashes, burns, bleeds, and wins. Laughs.
>> FINAL LEVEL: 39 <<
LOOT:
? Heartline Ore
? Gold-Titanium Alloy ×2
? Soulweave Shard x2
Back in the plaza, Kenzo dropped onto a wide stone bench beside the teleport rail. He cracked a drink can, amazingly still cold.
Across the party line, Caedra's voice buzzed in.
"I just checked our shared inventory feed."
She exhaled hard.
"Holy archive dust, you did it."
Her fingers flicked across a floating forge interface.
“You’ve collected almost all of it… We’re just missing three.”
A translucent crafting grid bloomed above Kenzo’s vision.
Crafting Materials: Progress Check
Caedra – Legendary Tier Upgrade
? Radiant Anvilshard
? Temporal Gear Fragment
? Forge-Etched Glyphplate
? Forge Slag ×20
? Heartline Ore ×5
? Cloudskin Fiber ×10
? Phantom Circuit Vein
? Mirror Residue ×3
? Nullplate Crystal
? Mindfract Syringe
? Vaultglass Sliver ×2
Nexus Halo Ring
? Neural Sync Crystal
? Soulweave Shard
? Red Script Thread
? Corethread Fiber ×10
? Gold-Titanium Alloy
? Thread of Consent
? Synthetic Empathy Core
Caedra whistled.
“You're not just some loot gremlin.”
“You're borderline mythic now.”
A soft chime pulsed through the party UI:
>> Party Member: Caedra – Level Up!
Current Level: 12
Shared XP is enabled via party sync.
“Whoa. That’s... more than I expected,” she said, blinking at her stats.
“I didn't even swing a weapon.”
"Yeah, but I dragged your name through 14 death zones," Kenzo replied.
"That's gotta count for something."
He opened his stat panel, which he hadn’t checked in ages. A soft UI shimmer unfolded.
KENZO // REMONARCH
LEVEL: 39
- HP: 160
- STA: 101
- ATK: 78
- SPD: 66
- ARM: 58
- LUC: 42
- RES: 21
- Inventory Slots: 100
- MP: 45
- AGI: 38
- DEF: 19
- CRIT RATE: 14%
- CRIT DMG: 28%
- ACCURACY: 62%
Class Tree: [Unmapped]
Status: [Stable]
Gear Durability: [ 50% – Recommend Repair ]
>> COMPANION: KAYDRIN — LEVEL UP! // NEW LEVEL: 15 <<
>> WEAPON: TRIAL SWORD — LEVEL UP! // NEW LEVEL: 20 <<
>> WEAPON: GRAVE MARK SWORD — LEVEL UP! // NEW LEVEL: 20 <<
>> ARMOR: Warden’s Armor — LEVEL UP! // NEW LEVEL: 15 <<
>> ARMOR: Living Armor — LEVEL UP! // NEW LEVEL: 15 <<
>> Accessory: Warden Steel ring— LEVEL UP! // NEW LEVEL: 10 <<
>> Accessory: Ash-Locket— LEVEL UP! // NEW LEVEL: 5 <<
Kenzo smirked.
“Not bad for a guy who got laughed at for being Level 5 a week ago.”
Caedra snorted.
“Not bad for a guy who let Voldo scam him out of 8 million credits.”
"Okay. Fair."
Kaydrin's voice echoed softly across the channel:
“You're both disasters. But we are progressing.”
Kenzo leaned back, watching a low-flying courier drone zip overhead.
“Let’s finish the list.”
“Also… I wasn’t expecting this. I thought I’d maybe hit fifty, tops.”
His breath misted faintly, though it wasn’t cold.
Kaydrin answered with calm weight,
“The Arena is brutal, yes. But you won’t be going in alone. Others will come. Probably.”
“What matters now is momentum. We don’t need to outpace them… just catch up. And we will.”
“You’ve got three days left. Don’t waste them.”
Kenzo exhaled and nodded, cracking his knuckles.
“Let’s push.”
[Montage – Final Grind Phase Begins]
The screen explodes with quick-cut anime energy:
Bossless dungeons. Mid-tier mobs.
Slash!
Hack!
Jumps!
Dodges!
Gate flickers!
—
He met with Caedra in between runs,
bringing dozens of rare drops.
Her level?
Still growing.
—
He even returned to Enzo’s stall, cornering the vendor with charm and subtle interrogation:
“C’mon, what’s in MizzoFizz?”
“Just tell me the neural fizz ratio.”
Enzo narrowed his eyes.
“You trying to bootleg me, Tsung?”
“I swear, if you AI-batch that drink and sell it under my nose…”
Kenzo walked away muttering, “I’ll figure it out…”
Enzo:
“I heard that.”
—
Archive Zones 26–34 passed in a blur of stylized motion:
digitally glitched biomes,
Forgotten tunnels,
Overgrown cities where NPCs stood still.
No bosses. Just repetition. Resolve. Grind.
Leveling slowed as enemy scaling kicked in.
But they didn’t stop.
Kaydrin fought like a spectral general, directing clones, weaving sword arcs from thought.
Kenzo became faster, sharper, and more confident. He didn’t dodge like a survivor anymore.
He moved like a player.
>> KENZO – NEW LEVEL: 58 <<
>> MATERIALS ACQUIRED: COMPLETE <<
Nightfall – Tower District // Apartment Unit #6239
The room was still as ever, bed, toilet, and no walls, just that pale glow of tower lights outside.
Kenzo sat on the edge of his cot, one boot half off, eyes fixed on a battered wall-mounted TV.
The screen fuzzed, then locked in.
“Hi! I’m Barbara with T.O. News—and this is your 60-second reality check!”
[COLOSSEUM GAMES SEASON 100 – PRE-QUALIFIER BEGINS on November 7 @ MIDNIGHT SERVER TIME]
“Top-tier clans are already arriving in Neurospire by the thousands.”
“Player bounties are doubling. PvP markets are heating. And yes—stream sniping is back.”
Kenzo blinked at the screen. Still half-sweaty, armor scorched.
He cracked open a MizzoFizz, took one long drink, and let the sugar hack settle.
“Okay... Level 58.”
“List complete.”
“Arena tomorrow.”
He looked out the window, toward the distant towers glowing on the edge of the skyline.
He blinked, half-dazed, then glanced back at the flickering TV.
Barbara continued.
“The fourth hearing in the landmark case of an NPC suing his player employee has officially escalated.”
She paused just long enough to let the absurdity land.
“More players are being dragged into the proceedings, and the court is... temporarily adjourned until the judge returns from his vacation on Biora Resort.”
Cut to shaky, pixel-blurred footage from outside the courthouse.
An NPC in a synth-tailored suit slammed a data-slab onto a podium, blinking red from emotional overclock.
“I'm telling you, they’re bribing the law! Flesh-users have no limits!”
Back to Barbara, already pivoting.
“Meanwhile, war continues between top-tier clans across the Outer Territories. Latest estimates place total losses at—get this—over 100 million T-Credits in destroyed property, vehicles, and oh yeah, one floating palace.”
Footage played: a sky fortress collapsing in slow motion, flames curling around its AI scream.
“And finally. In today’s ‘Why Do We Even Need Respawn Insurance?’ moment...”
She tilted her head with a mock-concerned smile.
“A player leapt from a moving rail-train, thinking he'd land in the legendary Fountain of Youth.”
Pause. Beat. Glimmer her eyes.
“Turns out, it was just a puddle of poop left behind by a Soconagius.”
Cue meme-style footage of a camel-sized creature waddling off-screen, tail twitching ominously.
Barbara winked.
“As the saying goes: drink like a camel, poop like a Soconagius.”
The jingle faded back in.
“That’s it for now! I’m Barbara, and this was your Terra One Pulse Minute.”
“Stay synced. Stay smart. And maybe... don’t trust random puddles.”
The holo folded inward and blinked out.
But Kenzo was asleep.
>> Sleep Mode Engaged <<
No dream this time. I'm still working on this…
BEEP!
BEEP!
BEEP!
Kenzo’s eyes snapped open. A comms alert hovered in his HUD.
>> Incoming Voice Call: [Han-Jee // Lv. 257]
>> [ACCEPT CALL?]
>> [ACCEPTED]
Han-Jee:
“Yo. Today’s the day, we’re hitting the rift.”
“You ready?”
“Looks like you’ve been grinding. Good.”
“Sending the party invite and the new rift coords now.”
“One hour. Don’t be late.”
“Stock up on food and fluids. We might be in there a while.”
>> Call Ended. Party Invite Received. <<
Kenzo, “I need to tell Caedra about this.”
>> [Party panel] <<
>>Kenzo<<
>>Caedra<<
>> [ PARTY LEFT ] <<
He massaged her and then left for Enzo’s cart. Bought some MizzoFizz drinks and some takeaway food.
“Ok. Food expiry is 30 days. I hope they still taste good.”
>> [ PARTY INVITE ACCEPTED ] <<
>> [ NEW PARTY NAME: The FiveZ ] <<
The new Rift location was wedged between the skeletal frames of unfinished skyscrapers, construction towers frozen mid-birth.
Steel arms reached into the smog-flecked sky. Support beams dangled loose, wrapped in blinking caution tape. Dust hovered unnaturally still, like the air had stopped breathing.
And there, right in the middle—
A man sat.
Clad in a construction worker’s uniform: faded vest, hardhat tilted too low, toolbelt too pristine.
He didn’t move. Didn’t blink. His hands gripped a wrench like it was part of his body.
Kenzo slowed his steps.
“He’s… guarding it?”
The man didn’t answer.
But the moment Kenzo stepped within ten meters, his HUD pulsed to life:
[APROXIMITY ALERT!]
[RIFTED GATEWAY – Public Farm Zone - Epic lvl- 300+]
>> ACCESS DENIED <<
>> No SeraLux Key Detected <<
>> Level Too Low <<
A breeze stirred the scaffolding overhead. Kenzo stood just outside the restricted zone, his screen still flashing:
>> ACCESS DENIED – SeraLux Key Required <<
He muttered to himself.
“Gotta find these SeraLux Keys…”
Kaydrin’s voice slid into his thoughts like cold metal.
“They were introduced after we were archived. I have no record of them.”
“Wait, aren’t you synced with the mainframe?”
“If I sync, Kaelis will notice. They all will. And they’ll come for us both.”
Kenzo blinked.
“So, if I use you in the Arena?”
“As long as I’m not synced live… we’re safe. Mostly.”
A familiar voice cut through the digital haze.
“Well, well, well. Look at you, my man Kenzo!”
Kenzo turned and froze.
Han-Jee wasn’t wearing his lizard mascot skin anymore.
He looked like a superhero.
Han-Jee // [Lv. 257]
- Jet-black aeroweave cloak, glowing violet trim
- Dark combat suit underlaid with kinetic charge nodes
- Chestplate painted with a smiley face… half burned off
- Gauntlets shaped like collapsed portals
- Hair: shaggy, dark blue, asymmetrical cut
- Eyes: sharp, wired-in green
- No clan tag
“Nice armor,”
he said, tapping Kenzo’s chestplate.
“Damn. You almost look like you know what you’re doing. Is this a limited edition?”
Kenzo grinned.
“I’ve had a week. And yes, it’s one of a kind.”
Han-Jee stepped aside, and the rest of the party arrived behind him in perfect asynchronous style.
- Tessa // [Lv. 275]
- Gender: Female
- Role: Support-Tech / Holo Control
- Armor: Clean white and translucent-blue plates, curved like glass petals
- Hair: Platinum coils with glowing circuit braids
- Weapon: Floating Holo-Fan Array—can harden into blades
- Personality: Quiet. Calculating. Speaks in tactical short-form
- No clan affiliation
“Party sync stable,” she said softly. “Sustain roles confirmed.”
- Korran // [Lv. 261]
- Gender: Male
- Role: Dagger DPS / Shadowstep
- Armor: Matte black cloak with radiant orange stitch-work
- Hood low. The mask covers everything but glowing red eyes
- Weapon: Dual daggers named Whisper and Debt
- Clan: None, but tattoos suggest ex-assassin faction
- Personality: Dry humor. Has a thing for dramatic entrances
“Didn’t expect the fresh meat to show up geared,” he said to Kenzo. “Almost like you’re serious.”
- Lira // [Lv. 278]
- Gender: Female
- Role: Ranged Elemental / Mixed-Affinity
- Armor: Split between molten crimson and frost-white
- Cape: One side embers, the other frost threads
- Hair: Long, one half dyed black, the other white
- Weapon: Variable-form elemental gunstaff
- Personality: Bold. Teasing. Likes to roast Han-Jee
“This the newbie?” she asked, raising an eyebrow. “Hope he doesn’t cry in the first bug cave.”
- Marqos // [Lv. 269]
- Gender: Male
- Role: Tank / Zone Anchor
- Armor: Oversized. Heavy steel core with magnetic plates
- Helmet: Always on, gold-tinted, voice modulated
- Weapon: A gravity hammer with embedded system cores
- Clan: None, because “clans get you killed”
- Personality: Stoic. Loyal. Secretly very into cooking
“If you fall behind, we won’t come back for you,” he said.
Then paused.
“Just kidding. Mostly.”
They circled up.
Kenzo, “Why the Fivez? I'm in the team too. The sixth member.”
“We were not sure if you were coming. Hence the name.”
Han-Jee extended a crystal SeraLux key, marked with deep sigils.
“Ready?”
The space before them shivered.
>> SeraLux Key Detected <<
>> RIFT ACCESS: GRANTED <<
>> OPENING ZONE: CODED WILD – CLASS B+ <<
>> PvE Only // Raid-Sync Scaling: ENABLED <<
>> WARNING: Exit Locked Until Completion <<
>> Calibrating party... <<
>> Syncing levels... Adjusting NPC and environmental difficulty to party average. <<
[Party Levels Detected:]
? Lv. 58
? Lv. 257
? Lv. 261
? Lv. 269
? Lv. 275
? Lv. 278
>> Average Level Calculated. LEVEL - 233<<
>> RIFT LEVEL: OPTIMIZED <<
>> New Boss Entity Generated: [UNKNOWN] <<
>> Environment Seal Engaged. Zone Instancing Active. <<
The gateway flared—silver and red spirals folding like origami, revealing a jungle of code-fractured terrain behind it.
“Let’s go,” Han-Jee said.
Kenzo adjusted his gear and took one final breath.
“Right behind you.”