The hum had grown constant. It threaded through the roar of hovercars, wrapped around the chatter of street vendors, and lingered in the soft click of passing footsteps. To everyone else, the city was just neon lights flickering over crowded streets, hover-drones darting between skyscrapers, people rushing in a blur of color. To Eiden, it was layered—grids and numbers, vitals and percentages, invisible threads connecting every motion, every microexpression.
Kairo laughed, tossing the holographic drone into the air and catching it effortlessly. "One more round, Eiden? Bet you can't beat my score."
Eiden forced a smile. "I'm just… observing," he said casually. The hum thrummed in his mind like a living pulse. Nobody else could see what he could see.
His eyes scanned the street. Each passerby glowed with translucent outlines. Windows of stats shifted with every heartbeat. A woman adjusted her bag—reflexes rising imperceptibly. A man pushed a crate, a brief red flare flickering across his vitals—an anomaly. The system noted it, calculated potential, then moved on.
The small rusted cube on a vendor's cart caught his eye. Instinct made his fingers twitch. The system responded immediately:
[System]
Name: Eiden | Title: The Unknown | Level: 1 | Rank: Initiate
Class: Unknown | Abilities: Unknown | Unique Trait: Can use skills of any class (changes weekly)
Nearby Participants: 112 | Anomalies Detected: 1 | Environmental Awareness: High
Observation Mode: Active | Scanning: SELF… 51% | Vitals: Normal
Skill Slots: 1/5 – Basic Telekinesis
[Action Detected: Object Manipulation]
[Ability Unlocked: Basic Telekinesis (Temporary)]
The cube lifted slowly, spinning lazily. Kairo's head snapped toward him, confusion written across his face.
"Eiden… what the—?"
"Nothing," he muttered, lowering it. The hum warned him to stay cautious. No one else could see this.
The red shimmer appeared again, hovering above a man farther down the street. Not a person—or at least not one the system could classify. Eiden felt pressure in his chest, the hum intensifying. Something moved in the crowd, outside ordinary calculations, outside human vitals.
Kairo nudged him. "Hey, you've been spacing out all afternoon. What's going on in that brain of yours?"
Eiden smiled faintly. "Just… noticing patterns. You know me, can't help it."
Kairo grinned, shaking his head. "You're ridiculous. One day I'm gonna figure out what you're always staring at."
Eiden ignored him. There was something more important—the anomaly.
The cube vibrated slightly as he guided it. Percentages, vitals, reflexes, potential… Eiden memorized patterns, calculated risks, noted anomalies. Most people were ordinary. A few held hidden capabilities. One… impossible. The red flicker moved against the flow of the system, deliberate, aware.
[System Update]
Scanning: SELF… 63% | Vitals: Normal | Reflexes: Above Average
Potential Abilities: Unknown | Skill Slots: 1/5 – Basic Telekinesis
Nearby Participants: 112 | Anomalies Detected: 1 | Observation Mode: Active
Kairo frowned at him. "You keep doing that. Are you kidding me?"
"Just practicing," Eiden said. "Watch the grids."
"Grids?" Kairo raised an eyebrow. "You're insane, you know that?"
Eiden flexed his hand. The cube hovered steadily. The hum thrummed stronger. The red shimmer pulsed again, twitching toward the edge of the street. Testing him.
He scanned the surrounding crowd in more detail. Every subtle twitch, every microexpression, every deviation from baseline vitals was highlighted in soft colors. Percentages jumped, windows updated in real-time, and the anomaly's red shimmer seemed to pulse in counterpoint to the system's calculations.
[System Update]
Scanning: SELF… 72% | Vitals: Normal
Reflexes: Above Average | Environmental Awareness: High
Skill Slots: 1/5 – Basic Telekinesis | Nearby Participants: 112
Anomalies Detected: 1 | Observation Mode: Active
The street vendor's cart rattled as a hovercar buzzed past. Kairo laughed, tossing the drone again, and Eiden felt a pang of something almost like relief. Kairo didn't see the anomaly. Didn't see the grids. Didn't know what was coming.
Eiden lowered the cube. "You okay, Kairo?" he asked casually.
Kairo smirked. "Yeah. Just worried you're gonna drop that thing on someone." He gestured at the hovering cube. "Or me."
Eiden chuckled softly. "Not today." His gaze drifted back to the crowd. The red shimmer pulsed again, deliberate, almost sentient.
He let the system analyze every nearby person again, refreshing vitals and reflexes. Percentages fluctuated as he calculated potential, anticipation, and risk. Most people were predictable. Some had latent potential that the system flagged in muted yellow. The anomaly remained isolated, glowing bright red, untraceable, unclassified.
[System Status: ACTIVE]
Observation: Complete | Tutorial: Pending | Condition: Observation & Preparedness Required
Kairo laughed again, tossing the drone. "Come on, Eiden! Bet you can't spot me before I catch it!"
Eiden let the cube hover above his palm. He smiled faintly. "I see everything," he said softly.
Kairo rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah… creepy as ever."
The red flicker pulsed again. Waiting. Watching. Eiden didn't move. He didn't need to. Observation first. Preparation second. The street looked normal, everyone moving like always. But only he knew the truth: grids, stats, anomalies, hidden potential.
The unknown had arrived, and the tutorial hadn't even started yet.
And the red shimmer pulsed once more in the crowd. It wasn't part of the system. It was something else. Waiting.
Eiden waited too.