Aidan woke up earlier than usual. The first rays of sunlight filtered through the half-closed blinds of his bedroom, casting sharp shadows across the walls. For a brief moment, he forgot everything—the crash, the new identity, the system. But as his eyes focused on the blinking interface hovering near the ceiling, reality returned like a slap.
[Good Morning, Aidan. Today's Priority Simulation is Ready.]
He sat up slowly, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "Let's see."
[Simulation: School – Morning Interaction Scenario]
Estimated Impact: Medium
Objective: Build social familiarity, gather data
Option A: Sit quietly, observe
→ Limited information gathered
→ Seen as introverted
→ Risk of isolation increases over time
Option B: Introduce yourself to the girl from yesterday
→ Opens social loop
→ She mentions someone who's 'different' lately
→ +3 Suspicion Clue
Option C: Confront the boy who talked about 'getting stronger'
→ Conversation turns awkward
→ He becomes defensive
→ +1 Suspicion Clue
→ Minor hostility risk
He studied the choices. Option B stood out—it was safe, informative, and might help him understand if others really had systems too.
Aidan nodded. "I'll go with B."
[Simulation Locked: Tracking Real Outcome]
After a quick breakfast, which included another round of casual banter with his family, he headed to school. The streets were quiet, students moving in clumps toward their destinations. The building looked ordinary, but Aidan saw it differently now. Every face, every word, could be a data point. A clue.
He found her in the second row—short hair, glasses, focused. Her name tag read "Emily Chen." Aidan hesitated only for a second before sitting beside her.
"Hey, I'm Aidan. Thanks for the notes yesterday," he said, offering a small smile.
Emily looked up, surprised. "Oh, no problem. I figured you were new."
"Yeah, getting used to the place," he replied, pretending to fumble with his bag. "This school always this… intense?"
Emily chuckled. "Some classes, yeah. As if thought of something,she said lately, a few people have been acting weird. Like... obsessively competitive."
"Competitive?" Aidan asked.
"Like they're trying to level up or something. Sounds stupid, right?"
He paused. "No. Makes sense."
She gave him a curious look, but the teacher walked in before she could ask anything else.
During class, Aidan noticed the boy from the simulation—tall, athletic, and unusually focused on math. His pen scratched equations like he was solving puzzles in a game.
[Observation Detected: Student X – Pattern: Unusual Motivation Spike]
[Tag: Possible System Holder – Confidence Level: 48%]
[Recommendation: Engage Within 72 Hours]
The system was beginning to categorize people. It wasn't just a decision tool—it was becoming a full-fledged analytical AI.
Lunchtime arrived quickly. Aidan grabbed a tray and sat in the corner of the cafeteria, watching. People were too distracted to notice him, which worked in his favor.
Then he saw it—Student X fist-bumping another boy, whispering something. Aidan activated a new system feature: audio pickup.
[Whisper Captured: "...Level 3 after gym. You?" "Still 2. Gotta finish my quest tonight."]
He froze. That wasn't normal talk. That was game terminology.
Were they roleplaying? Or… were they like him?
The system pinged.
[Update: 3 System Signatures Detected Within 50m Radius]
[Classification: Minor Systems – Limited Evolution Potential]
[Note: Only one unknown system displays adaptive traits. Confidence: 71%]
Only one system could evolve—his. But that meant there were others. Five in total in his surrounding if the earlier predictions were accurate(last night prediction where 3clue points and 1 from Lily's schoo). And at least two were already here.
Later, in the bathroom, Aidan stared at himself in the mirror. Same young face. Same body. But his eyes were sharper now. Calculating.
He wasn't the smartest person in this world—not yet. But the system was feeding him faster than he could process. He just needed time. And data.
As he dried his hands, the system gave one final ping.
[Daily Simulation Summary Available. Would You Like to Review Today's Decision Tree?]
"Yes," he whispered.
Branches unfolded in front of him—every action, every ripple effect, every missed opportunity. It looked like a spiderweb, but it wasn't chaos. It was choice. He was at the center.
And this was just Day 2.