The golden light faded gradually, like waking from a dream filled with warm sunlight. Raven blinked rapidly, his vision slowly clearing as the overwhelming radiance subsided. His body felt different, not painful, but transformed, as if every cell had been reconstructed from the ground up. There was a strange energy humming beneath his skin, a sensation he'd never experienced before, like electricity coursing through his veins.
As his sight returned fully, a translucent blue screen materialized in front of him, hovering in the air like something out of a video game. The text was crisp and clear, impossible to ignore.
[AWAKENING COMPLETE]
[PLEASE CHOOSE YOUR ID]
[WARNING: THIS CHOICE IS PERMANENT]
Raven stared at the screen, his mind racing. An ID, a name that would represent him in this new world. He glanced around and saw that Ava and Axel were also staring intently at empty air in front of them, their faces showing the same mixture of wonder and uncertainty he felt. Their screens were invisible to him, a private interface between each person and the system.
This was it. This was the moment everything changed.
He thought about his life up until now, the poverty, the struggle, watching opportunities slip away from people like him while others seemed to have everything handed to them. He'd seen the good, the bad, and the ugly of what people would do when they had power, and what they'd do when they didn't. The rich getting richer while the poor scraped by on leftovers.
Not anymore.
This new world, these powers, this beta realm, it was his chance to take control. To never be helpless again. To devour every opportunity this system offered and rise above the circumstances that had defined his life. He would consume every advantage, claim every treasure, master every skill available to him.
His fingers moved as if guided by instinct, selecting letters in the air to spell out his chosen name: AVARICE.
[ID CONFIRMED: AVARICE]
[PROCESSING AWAKENING DATA...]
[CALCULATING JOBCLASS COMPATIBILITY...]
[DETERMINING RANK...]
The screen flickered for several long moments, and Raven found himself holding his breath. Around him, he could hear similar sounds from his friends, soft gasps, the faint chiming of notifications, the rustle of movement as they interacted with their own invisible displays.
Then his screen changed, and Raven's world stopped.
[AWAKENING COMPLETE]
ID: Avarice
Name: Raven Hayes
Jobclass: Sword Saint (EX)
Level: 1
Title: N/A
Attributes:
Strength: 10
Agility: 10
Stamina: 10
Charm: 10
Class Abilities:
- Sword Mastery (F Rank)
- Saint's Endurance (F Rank)
Skills:
- Inventory
EX Rank. The highest possible tier according to the Administrator. The peak of power that perhaps only a handful of people in the entire world would achieve. Raven read and reread the information, certain he was misunderstanding something, but the letters remained unchanged.
He was an EX Rank Sword Saint.
The weight of it hit him like a physical blow. While others would struggle to achieve even D or C rank classes, he had been granted something that transcended the normal system entirely. The implications were staggering, and terrifying.
"OH MY GOD!" Ava's voice exploded across the playground, filled with pure joy and excitement. "I got it! I actually got a jobclass!"
Raven looked up to see her jumping up and down, her hands pressed to her cheeks in disbelief. She was staring at something only she could see, but her excitement was infectious.
"What did you get?" Axel called out, his own voice tight with anticipation.
"Flame Inquisitor!" Ava practically shouted. "And it says... oh wow, it says S Rank! S RANK!" She spun around, her face radiant with happiness. "I can't believe it! This is incredible!"
"Holy shit," Axel breathed, and then his face lit up with his own realization. "Mine too! I got Mountain King, and it's... it's A Rank! Mate, do you know how rare this is?"
Ava rushed over to Axel, and they began excitedly describing their classes to each other. Raven listened as Ava explained her proficiency with spears and whips, her fire-based abilities that could burn through almost anything. Axel described his mastery with axes and earth manipulation, how he could feel the weight and strength building in his body already.
Both of them had achieved ranks that would put them in the elite tier of awakened humans. S Rank and A Rank were the stuff of legends, the kind of power that corporations would kill to recruit, that governments would go to war over.
And yet, they were celebrating what Raven now understood were consolation prizes.
"What about you, Raven?" Ava asked, turning toward him with bright, expectant eyes. "What did you get? Please tell me you got something good too!"
Raven felt his throat go dry. How could he explain this? How could he tell his best friends that while they'd achieved incredible ranks that most people could only dream of, he'd somehow been granted something that made their accomplishments look ordinary by comparison?
He looked at their eager faces, saw the pure happiness there, the excitement of sharing this momentous experience together. They deserved to have this moment. They deserved to feel special, accomplished, powerful.
If he revealed the truth now, how would it change things? Would they still see him as their friend, or would everything shift? Would they look at him with envy, fear, or worst of all, expectation? Would he become responsible for their safety in a way that would destroy their friendship?
His mind raced through the possibilities. The gap between EX Rank and even S Rank was probably enormous. His base attributes were already at 10 while theirs likely started at 1. He had class abilities while they probably had none yet. The disparity would only grow wider with time.
"I, uh..." Raven minimized his screen with a thought, his chest tight with the weight of his deception. "I got Sword Master. A Rank."
The lie tasted bitter in his mouth, but he couldn't bring himself to shatter this perfect moment. Not when he didn't even understand what his power meant yet.
"That's perfect!" Ava exclaimed, clapping her hands together with genuine delight. "Oh, Raven, this is amazing! We're like a proper adventuring party now. Fire, earth, and sword. We complement each other perfectly!"
Axel nodded enthusiastically, his grin stretching from ear to ear. "Yeah, and all high ranks too. Do you realize what this means? We're probably in the top five percent of awakened people in all of Queen's! Maybe in the whole country!"
If only you knew, Raven thought, but he forced what he hoped was a convincing smile. "Yeah, we make a good team."
"We're going to be incredible together," Ava continued, her eyes shining with dreams of adventure. "I can picture it now, me burning through enemy lines, you cutting down whatever gets past, and Axel holding the fortress. We're unstoppable!"
The enthusiasm was infectious despite Raven's inner turmoil. These were his best friends, the people who had stood by him through everything. Whatever power he possessed, whatever secrets he was keeping, his first priority had to be protecting them, and sometimes that meant protecting them from uncomfortable truths.
They spent several minutes examining their new abilities and marveling at the reality of their situation. The chaos around them continued, sirens wailing, people shouting, emergency services trying to maintain order in a world that had suddenly stopped making sense. But in their little bubble under the oak tree, the three friends were focused entirely on their transformation.
"So," Axel said eventually, his practical nature reasserting itself as the initial euphoria faded, "what do we do now? I mean, everything's changed, hasn't it? Our jobs, our plans, everything."
It was a good question. The world had been turned upside down around them, their employers were probably dealing with their own crises, and normal life seemed to be on indefinite hold. They had power now, but power without direction was useless, and potentially dangerous.
"Well," Ava said thoughtfully, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, "that Administrator mentioned the beta realm. Maybe we should consider, "
"Absolutely not," Raven interrupted, perhaps a bit too quickly. The idea of entering an unknown world filled with monsters and dangers made his stomach churn with anxiety. "We don't know what's out there. It could be crawling with things that could kill us before we even understand what we're dealing with."
"But think about it," Ava pressed, her eyes lighting up with the same enthusiasm she brought to everything in life. "He mentioned treasures, weapons, skills that can't be found anywhere else. And currency that works the same as here. What if there are cities there? People to trade with? Opportunities we can't even imagine?"
Axel's interest was clearly piqued at the mention of money, his expression shifting to the calculating look Raven knew meant he was running numbers in his head. "She's got a point, mate. If there's a whole economy over there, and we're among the first to access it with high-rank classes..."
"The early bird gets the worm," Ava added with a grin that was equal parts excitement and determination. "While everyone else is panicking about the end of the world, we could be getting ahead of the game. Building power, gathering resources, making connections."
Raven wanted to argue, but he could see the logic in their reasoning. They were young, they were strong, and they had abilities now that put them far above ordinary humans. If the beta realm really did offer opportunities for advancement, waiting could mean letting others claim the best resources first.
Still, the unknown terrified him in ways his friends couldn't understand. What if they encountered something they couldn't handle? What if the monsters there were calibrated for higher-level players? What if they got separated, or lost, or worse? His EX Rank status meant nothing if he didn't know how to use it, and dead friends couldn't benefit from any power he might possess.
"Come on, Raven," Axel said gently, sensing his hesitation. "We've always faced things together, haven't we? Remember when we thought we'd get expelled for that prank on Mr. Henderson? Or when Ava's dad threatened to ship her off to boarding school? We got through all of that as a team. This isn't any different."
"Besides," Ava added, her tone becoming more serious as she studied Raven's face, "the Administrator said the weak would die first when the real apocalypse comes. If we don't get stronger now, when will we? When it's too late?"
That argument hit home harder than she knew. Raven thought about his EX Rank status, about the power he supposedly possessed. If he was really as strong as the system claimed, didn't he have a responsibility to protect his friends? And how could he do that if he remained ignorant of what they were all facing?
Maybe his deception was actually selfish. Maybe by hiding his true strength, he was denying them the protection they deserved. But revealing it now would change everything, and he wasn't ready for that conversation.
After several more minutes of discussion and gentle pressure from both friends, Raven finally felt his resolve cracking. "Alright," he said with a heavy sigh. "But we stick together. No matter what happens, we don't get separated. And if things get too dangerous, we come back immediately."
"Deal," Ava said immediately, extending her hand.
"Agreed," Axel nodded, placing his hand on top of hers.
Raven looked at their joined hands for a moment, then placed his own on top. "Together, then."
They stood up from the bench, forming a small circle in the shade of the oak tree. Around them, the chaos of Queen's continued, but for this moment, it felt like they were the only three people in the world who mattered.
"So how do we do this?" Raven asked, surprised by how steady his voice sounded.
"The Administrator said to speak the word 'Gate,'" Ava reminded them, her own voice betraying a hint of nervousness now that the moment had arrived. "I assume we just... say it?"
"Together?" Axel suggested, glancing between his friends.
They looked at each other, sharing a moment of nervous anticipation that felt both terrifying and exhilarating. This was it, the point of no return. Once they stepped through to the beta realm, they would truly be committed to this new reality, and to whatever consequences that might bring.
"On three?" Ava suggested, echoing their earlier awakening ritual.
"One," Raven said, his heart beginning to race as adrenaline flooded his system.
"Two," Axel added, tension creeping into his voice despite his attempt to sound confident.
"Three," Ava whispered, her hand finding Raven's and squeezing tight.
"Gate," they said in unison.
---
The response was immediate and overwhelming. Golden light erupted around each of them, not painful but so intense it seemed to burn through his eyelids even when squeezed shut. Raven felt a strange tugging sensation, as if reality itself was pulling him in a direction that didn't exist in any physics textbook. The playground, the oak tree, the sounds of chaos from Queen's, all of it began to fade away like a television being turned off.
One by one, they vanished in flashes of brilliant radiance, leaving behind only empty space where three teenagers had stood moments before.
---
Raven's feet touched solid ground, and the golden light dissipated like morning mist. He blinked rapidly, trying to adjust to his new surroundings, and felt his breath catch in his throat.
They were standing in a forest clearing, but it was unlike any forest that could exist on Earth. The trees towered overhead like living cathedrals, their trunks easily wide enough for a dozen people to hold hands around. The bark had an almost crystalline quality, reflecting and refracting the gentle light that filtered down through leaves that seemed to shimmer with their own inner luminescence.
The grass beneath their feet was impossibly green and soft, dotted with flowers that pulsed with gentle bioluminescence in shades of blue, purple, and silver. In the distance, mountains pierced the sky like jagged teeth wreathed in clouds that sparkled with colors that had no names in any human language. The very air felt different, thicker somehow, charged with energy that made his skin tingle and his lungs feel more alive with each breath.
It was like stepping into the most elaborate fantasy game ever created, or falling through the pages of a fairy tale written by someone with access to impossible wonders. Everything had a slightly surreal quality, as if the laws of physics here were merely suggestions rather than absolute rules.
[WELCOME TO THE BETA REALM]
The notification appeared simultaneously in front of all three of them, causing them to jump in surprise even as they continued to stare in awe at their surroundings.
[CONGRATULATIONS! YOU ARE NOW AMONG THE 1,522,887 BETA TESTERS]
[YOU HAVE RECEIVED A BASIC STARTER PACK]
[CHECK YOUR INVENTORY FOR SUPPLIES]
[IMPORTANT: YOU ARE NOW IN A SAFE ZONE]
[MONSTERS CANNOT ENTER THIS AREA]
[DEATH IS DISABLED IN SAFE ZONES]
[PVP IS DISABLED IN SAFE ZONES]
Raven felt a wave of relief wash over him at those last notifications. At least they were protected for now, giving them time to figure out what they were dealing with before facing any real dangers.
"Wow!," Axel breathed, turning in a slow circle to take in their surroundings. "This is... this is actually real. We're actually here."
Ava was already kneeling beside the glowing flowers, her face filled with childlike wonder as she watched their gentle pulse. "Look at these! They're actually alive, responding to my presence. And the trees... Oh my!, Raven, have you ever seen anything like this?"
Raven shook his head slowly, still processing the sheer impossibility of where they were. This wasn't just another world, it was a world designed by someone with an imagination far beyond human limitations. Every detail, from the way the light played through the crystal bark to the soft harmony that seemed to emanate from the very air itself, spoke of deliberate creation by an intelligence that understood beauty in ways humans were only beginning to grasp.
"The air tastes different," Axel observed, taking a deep breath. "Cleaner, somehow. Like it's charged with electricity, but good electricity."
"Everything feels more... real," Ava added, standing and brushing dirt from her knees. "More vivid. Like someone turned up the saturation on reality itself."
Raven knew exactly what she meant. Colors were more vibrant, sounds were clearer, even the sensation of grass beneath their feet seemed more substantial than it should be. It was as if Earth had been a pale imitation of what the world could truly be.
They had truly entered a realm of magic and wonder, a place where the mundane limitations of their old world no longer applied. The three friends stood there in the clearing, eyes wide with amazement and possibility, knowing that their lives would never be the same.
But even as wonder filled his heart, Raven couldn't shake the weight of his secret. His friends were celebrating their entry into this new world as equals, but he knew the truth was far more complicated. Whatever challenges and opportunities awaited them in this beta realm, he would face them while carrying the burden of power they couldn't imagine, and the responsibility that came with it.
The adventure was just beginning, but already the lies were piling up. How long could he maintain this deception? And what would happen when the truth finally came to light?
For now, though, he pushed those thoughts aside and allowed himself to share in his friends' wonder. Whatever came next, whatever complications arose from his choices, this moment of pure discovery was worth protecting.
The beta realm stretched out before them, infinite in its possibilities and beautiful beyond imagination. Together, they would explore its wonders, even if together meant something different for Raven than it did for them.