The rooftop was cracked and sagging, littered with broken tiles and blood. The Rust Viper captain lay unconscious in the street below, his blade glinting uselessly where it had fallen. The remaining Vipers dragged themselves away, limping, faces pale. Pike had vanished into the alleys, curses echoing faintly, too far to matter.
Hook Street roared.
Merchants who had watched in silence now cheered until their throats cracked. Coins clinked against counters as if the sound itself was a celebration. A baker waved her ladle in the air like a weapon. Children who had been too afraid to whisper his name now shouted it at the top of their lungs.
"Evan! Evan Sharp!""Fastest man alive!""Hook Street's ghost!"
Evan stood on the ruined rooftop, chest heaving, blood running down his arm, and raised one fist. The cheer doubled, rolling through the market like thunder. His system pulsed in answer.
[DING] Hook Street Domain Bond deepened.Effect upgraded: Moderate.• Stamina recovery increased.• Hostile influence suppressed.• Environmental familiarity: Enemy speed perception -5%.
The bond was no longer a thin thread—it was a rope anchoring him to this place. He could feel it in the ground, in the shouts of the people, in the air that carried their cheers. This street was his, and now it would fight for him.
He leapt lightly down from the rooftop, landing without sound. The crowd parted instantly, not out of fear, but in awe. Hands reached out, brushing his shoulder, his arm, as though touching him might make them faster too.
"Hook Street is yours," an old man said, voice cracking. "Don't let the Dogs come back."
"They won't," Evan said simply.
The system hummed.
Quest: Consolidate Your Domain.Objective: Eliminate all rival claims within Hook Street.Reward: +20 Speed, Skill: Domain Pulse.
He clenched his fists. The Dogs weren't finished. Pike wasn't done. The Registry wouldn't leave him alone. If he wanted to run free, he had to keep moving forward.
The baker pressed another loaf into his hands, still warm from the oven. "Fast boys eat double," she muttered, cheeks flushed.
Evan took it with a nod. Gratitude was still strange, but he was learning.
Far across the city, Registry wardens sat in their office, faces grim. The report from Hook Street lay open on the desk, written in neat, official lines that struggled to capture chaos.
"Rust Viper squad—defeated.""Captain—hospitalized.""Casualties—minimal among civilians.""Responsible party—unregistered system-user, codename: Sharp."
The younger warden slammed his fist into the desk. "He humiliated a Bronze captain. He's unregistered. He's feeding chaos. And still the slate won't pin him down."
The older rubbed his temple. "Titles. He must have them. Something suppressing Registry recognition. That makes him even more dangerous."
"So what do we do?"
"We escalate," the older said softly. "We send another Bronze. Not a test this time. An execution."
He stamped the bottom of the report. A message scrolled across a different slate, carried upward through the Registry chain. Far above, in a hall lined with banners, a Silver-ranked officer lifted her head from a mountain of papers and frowned.
"Evan Sharp," she murmured. "You're running too fast for comfort."
Evan crouched on the edge of the market, watching the crowd settle back into rhythm. Merchants swept broken glass. Children chased each other, mimicking his moves, leaving each other behind in bursts of laughter. Hook Street was alive again.
But peace was never free. His system pulsed, numbers and quests reminding him that every moment was only a step toward the next danger.
Status — Evan SharpLevel: 7Speed: 243Skills: Quickstep (F), Burst Step (F), Momentum Shift (F), Echo Step (F), Velocity Veil (E)Titles: [Uncatchable I], [Swift Claimant]Path: Velocity — Tier 1 (Acceleration Passive)Overflow: 8%
Speed 243. His body felt alive, too alive, every heartbeat a drum. When he walked, the world seemed slower, as if waiting for him to decide what to do with it.
But his arm ached where the captain's blade had cut him. The pain was a reminder—speed didn't make him invincible. Not yet.
The system chimed again.
Micro-Objective: Run 10 kilometers without pause.Reward: +5 Speed, Daily Streak extended.
He looked up at the rooftops. Ten kilometers wasn't survival. It wasn't a fight. It was training. His lips curved into a grin.
"Fine," he muttered. "Let's see how far Hook Street can carry me."
He leaned forward and ran.
The rooftops blurred, the wind howled in his ears, the bond thrummed under his feet. Every step pulled him further from the boy who had been left to bleed in an alley. Every stride carried him closer to something the Registry couldn't control.
Behind him, Hook Street cheered. Ahead of him, the city bristled with threats. And Evan Sharp, fastest man alive-in-the-making, wasn't planning to stop for anyone.