I need to correct the record.
The sign-in function?
It is not fair.
It is not balanced.
It is not sane.
Gacha was a slot machine—annoying, random, occasionally humiliating.
Sign-in?
Sign-in is the universe looking you dead in the eyes and saying, "Here. Have a god-tier artifact. No, you didn't earn it. Shut up."
And the worst part?
It doesn't even happen daily.
It happens when the narrative feels spicy.
Sign-In History (a.k.a. Exhibit A: System Malice)
I've signed in exactly two times so far.
Only two.
And both times, the system committed crimes.
First Sign-In
Location: My Mansion
Reward?
Gate of Babylon (Fate).
Yes.
That Gate of Babylon.
Infinite treasury.
Conceptual weapons.
Anti-hero PTSD generator.
I stared at the golden portals hovering behind me for a full minute and said—
"…This is illegal."
The system did not disagree.
Second Sign-In
Location: Cullens' House
Context: I was literally just picking up Alice and Rosalie for a date.
Mood: Casual. Relaxed. Romantic.
System response?
Excalibur (Fate)
Avalon (Fate)
I hadn't even finished knocking.
Light nearly tore the living room apart.
Edward thought the house was under attack.
Carlisle nearly fainted.
Alice clapped like it was Christmas.
Rosalie stared at me like she was reassessing everything.
I stood there holding—
A sword that ends wars.
A sheath that makes you immortal.
"…I was going to watch a movie," I said quietly.
The system did not care.
Conclusion
Sign-in does not give items.
It gives solutions.
Which is why I was hoping—hoping—that nothing would trigger it again for a while.
Hope, as it turns out, is for fools.
La Push: The Calm Before the Author
I was sitting on a log near La Push Beach.
Gray sky.
Waves crashing.
Wind cold but tolerable.
Bella sat beside me, wrapped in a jacket that did absolutely nothing against the ocean breeze.
We'd been friends for three months now.
And yes—actual friends.
She was awkward, thoughtful, stubborn, and far less irritating once you removed Edward's constant emotional static from the equation.
"You're quiet," she said.
"Thinking," I replied.
"About?"
"…Whether the universe is about to punch me."
She frowned. "That's… concerning."
"Accurate, though."
She sighed and looked out at the water.
"I like it here," she said softly. "It's peaceful."
I nodded.
"It's pretending."
Then the World Tilted
It happened without warning.
No system chime.
No shadow movement.
No danger sense.
Just—
A pull.
Not physical.
Not magical.
Something deeper.
Like reality itself had grabbed my eyes and yanked.
My vision snapped sideways.
Not literally—but conceptually.
I was still looking at the ocean.
But at the same time—
I was looking into another pair of eyes.
Golden-brown.
Sharp.
Angry.
Confused.
Alive.
"…What the—"
The connection locked.
Heartbeat.
Breath.
Emotion slammed into me like a truck.
Pain.
Frustration.
Loneliness.
Strength barely contained.
And then—
Her.
Leah Clearwater
She stood a short distance away.
Arms crossed.
Posture rigid.
Eyes locked directly onto mine like she'd just been shot by destiny and was not happy about it.
Time stuttered.
The air thickened.
The ocean went quiet.
Bella blinked.
"…Why is everyone staring?" she asked.
I didn't answer.
Because the system finally decided to announce the disaster.
System Notification (Unwanted)
[Imprint Bond Detected.]
I went still.
"…No."
[Subject: Leah Clearwater.]
[Bond Status: Active.]
"No."
[Note: This imprint deviates from known Quileute parameters.]
"NO."
Leah's breath hitched.
Her pupils dilated.
Her entire body reacted like it had just found its gravitational center and hated that fact.
She took a step back.
"…What the hell is this," she muttered.
The connection tightened.
I felt her anger.
Her grief.
Her unfinished business.
I looked inward.
"…System."
[Yes?]
"Explain. Carefully."
Werewolves, Early Access Edition
[Quileute Tribe Status: Accelerated Awakening.]
I closed my eyes.
"…You're telling me the wolves are transforming early."
[Correct.]
"And you're telling me this imprint—this thing—is not canon."
[Correct.]
I opened my eyes and stared straight at Leah.
She stared back, jaw clenched.
"Why do I feel like I want to punch you and protect you at the same time," she snapped.
"That," I said calmly, "is an excellent question."
Bella slowly stood.
"…Adam," she said carefully, "who is that."
"Complication," I replied.
The Author Is At It Again
The system wasn't done.
Of course it wasn't.
[Author's Blessing Detected.]
I froze.
"…Oh, you have got to be kidding me."
[Harem Expansion: Updated.]
I looked up at the sky.
At the clouds.
At whatever cosmic idiot was writing this.
"…Bastard author," I muttered.
Leah flinched slightly.
"You say something?"
"Not at you," I replied. "At reality."
Leah Processes Poorly (Understandably)
Leah took another step back.
Then another.
Her breathing grew uneven.
"I don't know you," she said. "But I feel like I do."
"That's the imprint," I said. "It's not voluntary."
Her eyes flashed.
"Then get rid of it."
I met her gaze.
"If I could, I would."
That stopped her.
"…You're not enjoying this," she said slowly.
"No," I replied honestly. "I've had worse systems. But this one's persistent."
The bond pulsed.
Not romantic.
Not submissive.
Not obsessive.
It was… equal.
A recognition.
That unsettled me far more.
Bella Is Very Confused
Bella looked between us.
"Okay," she said, "I feel like I missed something important."
"You did," I said. "Several things."
"Are you—" she hesitated, "—dating?"
Leah and I spoke at the same time.
"No."
"Yes."
We both paused.
I sighed.
"…No," I corrected. "We're not."
Leah scoffed. "Don't speak for me."
"Fair."
The Wolves Are Coming (Soon)
The forest stirred.
Not shadows.
Not vampires.
Something hot.
Primal.
I felt it.
The Quileute bloodline waking up early—like someone hit fast-forward.
This imprint?
A symptom.
Not the cause.
The system chimed softly, almost smug.
[Cause will be revealed in next chapter.]
I ground my teeth.
"Of course it will."
Where Things Stand
Leah stood there, arms crossed, furious and tethered to me by a bond neither of us asked for.
Bella stood awkwardly between us, wondering how her beach day turned into supernatural therapy.
I sat back down on the log.
"…This is going to be a problem," I said.
Leah snorted. "You think?"
I glanced at you.
"This," I said flatly, "is what happens when the system decides you're interesting."
Gate of Babylon.
Excalibur.
Avalon.
And now—
An imprint that shouldn't exist.
Somewhere, the author smiled.
And somewhere else—
The wolves began to run.
[Chapter Twenty-Four Complete.]