The System Gave Everyone Superpowers

The battle was nearing its end, and the two other teams were completely exhausted. Brock was unconscious in a snowbank, and the remaining members of Team Five and Team One were backing away, completely drained of BP and strength.

The Hydra was heavily damaged, its permafrost armor chipped and cracked, but its five heads were still thrashing wildly.

"Now!" Mai yelled. "Before they recover! Let's end this!"

We charged out from behind the frozen boulders.

I took the lead.

Burn.

The outer permafrost armor shattered, exposing the core inside the neck. But before I could attack it, a black-and-white ink drawing materialized right next to my shoulder.

Koda’s finger had already traced a razor-sharp iron spike in the air. The spike shot forward, shattering the exposed core into pixels.

[Head Defeated. Final blow: Koda]

I moved to the second and third necks, repeating my thermal shock trick. Both times, the moment the permafrost shattered, Koda’s finger-drawings—a giant iron hammer, a molten dagger—shot through the air, claiming the final blows on the cores before Mai could open a portal or I could kick them.

For the final two heads, Mai tried to open a portal directly around the necks. But Koda was too fast. He drew a massive black ink-vortex that swallowed the remaining heads whole, crushing their cores inside his drawings.

The giant Glacial Hydra let out a final shriek, and its body collapsed, dissolving into a mountain of pixels.

[Evaluation Complete. Outpost 7 Cleared.]

[Final Team Standings: Rank 1 - Team 3 (17,400 Points)]

[Team 3 Contribution Breakdown:]

[1. Koda: 45%]

[2. Seasons (Shay Fawn): 35%]

[3. Portal (Mai Golan): 20%]

Mai looked at the screen, and her face turned red with rage. She stomped her foot, her hands flaring with light. "You fucking snake! You let Seasons do all the work with the thermal shock, and you just stood in the back and stole the final blows on the cores!"

Koda wiped his fingers. "A good artist always knows when to apply the final stroke, Portal. I’m the leader, remember? Leaders take the highlight reel."

Koda turned his eyes toward me. "No hard feelings, Seasons? You got second."

I shrugged, letting out a yawn. "I don't give a shit about the rankings, Koda. As long as we got first place, we get the million-dollar bonus. That's all I care about."

Koda let out a soft laugh. "I knew I liked you. You're so pleasantly simple."

An extraction portal opened in the center of the crater. Koda turned and began walking toward it.

As I walked a few steps behind him, my smile disappeared.

I had feigned ignorance to keep him relaxed, but I wasn't stupid. Koda was highly manipulative, incredibly calculated, and knew exactly how the System calculated contribution. He had used my elemental efficiency and Mai's portals to secure first place for the team, while perfectly positioning himself to take the top individual spot on the board.

In this corporate game, Koda was the most dangerous person I had ever met.

I put my hands back in my pockets, keeping my eyes locked on the back of his suit as we walked toward the exit.

I was going to keep my eyes on him permanently.

We were back in Room 4B of the Brand Private Training Facility.

Kevin was standing near the control console, clapping slowly.

"Welcome back, Team Three," Kevin said. "First place. You beat Brock’s team by almost five thousand points. Very clean."

Koda immediately turned on his blinding smile. His posture shifted. "Just doing our duty, Kevin. Brand’s rookies always deliver."

"The million-dollar first-place bonus has been wired to your accounts," Kevin said, tapping his tablet.

Mai let out an exhausted breath.

"You're a lazy bastard, Seasons," she said, her voice quiet. "But... your thermal shock trick was decent. You're not the worst partner."

"Thanks," I said, flashing my corporate smile. "I try to keep my sweating to an absolute minimum."

"I'm going to the showers," Mai said, walking out of the training room.

Koda watched her leave, then turned his gaze back to me. "A successful collaboration, Seasons. We make a wonderful team."

"Sure do," I said. "I'll see you around, leader."

"I'm looking forward to it," Koda said.

I turned and walked out of the training facility, taking a car straight back to my penthouse.

The moment I got inside my apartment, I threw the "Seasons" suit into the back of my closet. I took a long, hot shower, washed the smell of the outpost out of my hair, and put on a clean hoodie and sweatpants.

I sat down on my bed, pulled out my phone, and opened my banking app.

[Account Balance: $1,294,124.00]

I stared at the numbers.

Over a million dollars.

A year ago, I was sweeping frozen soda chunks off a convenience store floor at three in the morning just to pay rent for a molding apartment. Now, I was rich, safe, and comfortable in a luxury penthouse.

I picked up my video game controller and turned on the TV.

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My phone buzzed. I picked it up. It was a text from an unknown number.

Good job today, Seasons. I’m looking forward to our next canvas.

I stared at the screen. It was Koda. He had probably gotten my number from Kevin’s database.

I didn't reply. I just locked the phone and tossed it back onto the table.

If I wanted to keep my comfortable life, I was going to have to keep getting stronger.

I wanted to spend my weeks off playing video games and eating room service, but Koda’s text message had ruined my peace of mind.

Paranoia is a great motivator. I still hated sweating, and I still hated grinding, but I hated the idea of Koda painting a weapon for my neck even more. If I wanted to stay comfortable, I had to stay alive.

So, I practically moved into the Brand Private Training Zone Facility.

For the next couple of weeks, my routine was brutal. Wake up. Go to the training room. Fight. Sleep. Repeat. I turned off the auto-heal and dragged the pain feedback slider all the way back to one hundred percent. It was a complete pain in the ass, but it was the only way to make sure my reflexes were sharp enough for the real world.

I set the System to spawn Level 110 agile constructs—mostly panthers and giants. I practiced combining my Spells and Skills. I flew at high speeds with Wings, superheated their armor with Burn, and flash-frozen them with Freeze.

I spent so much time freezing things that my Freeze skill went all the way up to Level 15. Now, it was just as fast and lethal as my Burn.

During this training montage, my birthday passed. I officially turned twenty years old. There was no cake, candles, or party. Just a notification floating in the training room.

But while my body was aching, my bank account was thriving.

Over those weeks, my phone kept buzzing with massive direct deposits. Brand’s first-month salary contract went through. The signing bonuses from Elevation and Mountain Yard cleared. The first wave of pre-order royalties for the Seasons Y sneakers hit.

By the end of the month, my bank app showed a staggering thirty-seven million dollars. I was officially too rich to ever care about money again. But I was still too paranoid to stop training.

On the last day of the month, I finally walked out of the Private Zone. I took a shower in the locker room, washed the sweat and grime off my body, and put on a clean outfit.

I sat down on the bench, closed my eyes, and opened my Status Screen to check my final numbers. I allocated my newly earned attribute points.

Name: Shay Fawn

Age: 20

Level: 60

Title: [Opportunist]

Blessing: Master of the Elements (S-Tier)

HP (Health Points): 1,300

BP (Blessing Points): 430

Attributes:

Specializations: None (Unlocked at Level 100)

Skills: Burn (LVL 15), Freeze (LVL 15)

Spells: Wings (LVL 15)

Bank Account: $37,294,124.00

Rank: 991

Items:

I stared at the screen and smiled.

My body felt like steel. My mind was incredibly sharp, and my BP pool had jumped to a massive four hundred and thirty points. I could fly for hours and freeze an entire city block without even feeling a headache.

I was strong, fast, rich, and protected by the best mental resistance gear money could buy.

I closed the Status Screen and stood up, ready to head back to my penthouse.

A knock on my penthouse door interrupted my gaming session. I paused the screen, walked over, and opened it.

Liza was standing in the hallway.

"Hey, Shay," she said, giving me a shy wave.

"Liza. Come in," I said, gesturing for her to enter.

She walked into the living room, her eyes widening slightly. "This place is incredible. Brand treatment is no joke."

"It has good room service," I shrugged, sitting back down on the couch. "How’s your mom?"

"She's doing amazing," Liza said, a smile breaking across her face. "The Core treatments are working. The doctors say she’ll be discharged next month. I can't thank you enough, Shay."

"Don't thank me," I said, leaning back. "It was a business deal. Tell me about the Church."

Liza sat down on the armchair across from me. "It worked perfectly. I talked to the lower-level priests and some of the wealthy donors. I told them that 'Seasons' is a deeply spiritual, humble warrior who prays three hours a day and secretly donates half his paycheck to poor parishes in the outer districts."

"And they bought it?"

"They swallowed it whole," Liza chuckled. "The High Priest actually mentioned you in his sermon yesterday. He called you a 'shining beacon of the Divine.' You’re so highly regarded now that if you actually showed up to a service, it would ruin the mystery. You don't have to go to another church event for the rest of the year."

I grinned. "Best fifty thousand dollars I ever spent. I get to stay the fuck home and look like a saint."

I picked up the room service menu and ordered us some steak, pasta, and garlic bread. It arrived ten minutes later on a rolling silver cart. We ate at the dining table, talking casually. Liza told me about her childhood in the outer districts and how hard it was to get by as a B-Rank. She briefed me on how Aegis reacted to my transfer. Captain May’s disappointment, Graves' anger, and Geneieves jealousy.

As she talked, I realized something. Liza didn't really have any friends. In the competitive world of mid-tier heroes, everyone was constantly fighting for bounties and treating each other like rivals. She was completely isolated.

And honestly, so was I. Liza was the only person in this city who actually knew the real me and didn't expect me to be a perfect hero. I needed someone I could actually trust.

"You have any plans for the rest of the night?" I asked, putting my fork down.

"Not really," she said. "I was just going to go to the hospital to visit my mom later."

"Want to watch a movie?" I offered.

Liza blinked, looking surprised. "A movie? With me?"

"Yeah," I said, standing up. "I've been staring at a video game screen for weeks. I need to get out of the apartment."

We left the building and walked a few blocks downtown to the Brand Theaters. It was an ultra-luxurious cinema owned entirely by Brand Defense. Inside, the seats were made of plush leather, and they even served gourmet food.

We watched a high-budget action movie produced entirely by Brand’s media division. It was terrible—full of cheesy dialogue, bad CGI, and obvious product placement for Brand products. But we spent the entire two hours whispering to each other, making fun of the main character, and laughing quietly in the dark. It was the most relaxed I had felt since leaving Aegis.

After the movie, Liza thanked me again and took a cab back to the hospital. I walked back to my penthouse.

I threw myself onto my bed, ready to go to sleep.

My phone buzzed on the nightstand. I picked it up and saw a text from Kevin.

Work starts tomorrow. Don't be late to class.

I stared at the screen, my brow furrowing.

Class?

I let out a long sigh and threw my head back against the pillow.

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