Like all Unrecognized citizens, Kael could not view changes in his rank unless he stood close to the Board.

  Thomas explained this to every villager when they received their insignia at the age of fifteen.

  “The System doesn’t waste oscillators on people like us,” he had once said with a dry smile. “Transmitting constant status updates to every unrecognized insignia holder would cost too much energy.”

  Instead, the Continental Ascendancy Authority built powerful receivers across settlements—devices capable of collecting and displaying local information for low-rank individuals.

  People simply called it “the Board.”

  Very few understood how it actually worked.

  Even fewer cared enough to ask.

  The only thing that mattered was distance.

  You had to stand close enough for your insignia to establish a strong connection with the receiver. Once the signal locked, the Board could pull information from the System and display any updates tied to your insignia.

  You still receive updates such as merit point allocations anywhere in the world regardless of rank, but your full profile and ranking can only be viewed at the Board.

  Everyone knew the CAA possessed the power to transmit information anywhere in the world if it truly wanted to.

  It simply didn’t.

  Most human lives were insignificant—brief flickers inside the vast computing network of the Analytical Core.

  Why spend resources tracking every flicker?

  For the System, most people were little more than statistical noise.

  But for Kael, the Board mattered.

  If he wanted to know whether he could afford to live another day, he had to walk to the center of the village and check his status.

  Because Merit Points were not just numbers on a ranking board.

  They were far more important than that.

  Your points determined how much oscillating energy the System allocated to your insignia. That energy shaped your entire life.

  It was your money.

  Your livelihood.

  Your place in the world.

  The more Merit Points you possessed, the more benefits the System granted you. And with every jump in tier, those benefits increased exponentially.

  Kael didn’t know all the details.

  Very few people in Grayville did.

  But he had heard the rumors.

  They said that after the second tier, people began to change.

  They became faster.

  Stronger.

  Sharper.

  Some even claimed higher tiers gained abilities that defied the limits of ordinary humanity.

  Of course, Kael dismissed those stories whenever he heard them.

  Just tales old villagers told to scare children.

  At least, that was what he kept telling himself.

  Kael walked through the narrow streets of Grayville until the houses opened into the village square.

  The Board stood at its center.

  A tall slab of dark metal and stone rose from the ground like a monument. Thin lines of faint blue light pulsed across its surface as the System processed requests from nearby insignias.

  The same scene played out every morning.

  Villagers approached the Board one by one. Each would stand there for a moment, staring into the glowing surface as their insignia synchronized with the receiver.

  Then they would leave.

  Most walked away with sour expressions.

  Nothing had changed.

  For some, things had gotten worse.

  A man cursed under his breath as he stepped away from the Board.

  “Lost three points overnight…” he muttered.

  A woman shook her head silently before returning to the market street.

  Life in Grayville rarely improved overnight.

  Kael waited patiently for his turn.

  Unlike most of them, he knew something had changed.

  A lot had changed.

  Yesterday he had hunted a boar.

  Yesterday he had helped stop the fire.

  The System had already announced his reward.

  Now he simply wanted to see how much it really mattered.

  Finally, the villager in front of him stepped aside.

  Kael walked forward.

  His insignia warmed slightly against his chest as it came within range of the Board.

  A faint vibration ran through the metal.

  This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

  Connection established.

  Blue light rippled across the surface of the Board as text began forming in the air before him.

  ***

  Subject: Kael Arden

  Age: 16

  Origin: Grayville Village — Frontier Zone 7

  Affiliation: Imperial Citizen

  Occupation: Laborer

  Local Rank: 52 / 762

  Tier: Unrecognized

  Global Rank: Below 200,000,000,000

  Status: Irrelevant

  Merit Points: 86.5 MP

  Previous Total: 79 MP

  Merit Allocation Report

  Event Detected: Firefighter Achievement

  Date: October 12

  Daily Merit Distribution Activated

  Cycle: October 12 – October 13(2 / 30)

  +5.5 Merit Points

  Source: Public performance affecting 11 individuals

  Updating Local Ranking…

  Previous Rank: 52 / 762

  Updating...

  Current Rank: 48 / 762

  Total Available Merit:

  62.5 / 86.5 MP

  Merit Recovery Rate:

  0.725% per day

  Estimated Time to Full Merit Recovery:

  34 days

  ***

  Kael blinked.

  Forty-eighth.

  Two hundred and four. That was how much it had really changed.

  Kael had already checked the system once yesterday, so he knew the real increase wasn’t just 7.5 merit points. The true change was a staggering 45.5 points in a single day.

  The most important day of his life.

  And to think that only yesterday he had barely been able to use twenty merit points. Most of his supply had always been spent simply staying alive—food, clothes, medicine. Survival.

  Now he had over sixty available.

  He ran the numbers again in his head as he walked.

  If I can get a blade for under five points… buy some medical supplies for the road for another one… food and a new pair of pants for two…

  He paused.

  I would still have fifty-four points left.

  Kael had never experienced this feeling before—the strange calm of knowing that tomorrow he would not wake up afraid of going negative.

  In Grayville, going negative meant desperation.

  Sometimes it meant death.

  A grin crept across his face as he jogged toward the smithy.

  He knew Melery started early every morning. It was always better to catch her before she disappeared into the back of the shop and sealed herself off for hours of work.

  The run was short—barely five minutes.

  Soon the familiar building came into view.

  Blade and Plate Smithy

  The only forge in the entire village.

  Melery was already outside, working.

  The tall, muscular woman stood beside the forge, sweat glistening on her arms as flames roared behind her. To most villagers she seemed rough, even intimidating.

  But to Kael, she was one of the closest friends he had.

  “You rascal,” she called the moment he stepped into view. “I knew you’d come see me sooner or later.”

  Kael grinned.

  “You know me, Melery. I can’t help admiring your work every now and then.”

  He added a playful wink.

  She rolled her eyes.

  “Alright, alright. Come inside. I’ll show you something I’ve been working on.”

  Kael nodded and stepped through the doorway.

  The temperature hit him immediately.

  Inside the forge the air was thick with heat, and the roar of the furnace made the room feel like the inside of a volcano.

  “You certainly make it hot in here,” Kael muttered.

  Melery snorted.

  “Most metals won’t melt if I lower the temperature.”

  She wiped sweat from her brow and added,

  “Besides, I’ve been experimenting with oscillating crystals to enhance some of my crafts.”

  Kael let out a low whistle.

  “Most people around here can’t afford those. Any luck?”

  Melery’s grin stretched from ear to ear.

  “After thirteen attempts… I enhanced one blade.”

  She folded her arms proudly.

  “I believe it’s a huge success.”

  Curiosity bubbled inside Kael.

  He had heard about oscillating crystals before, but very few craftsmen in frontier villages had the skill—or the money—to use them.

  He wanted to see what such a crystal could do to a weapon.

  “Show me,” he said firmly.

  Melery blinked, slightly surprised by the determination in his voice. It almost sounded as if he had already decided he would obtain the blade—no matter the price.

  “Well… alright,” she said slowly. “But I don’t know if you’ll be able to afford it.”

  Kael simply nodded.

  Let me see it anyway.

  Melery didn’t need much encouragement to show off her work. She walked over to her workbench and carefully lifted a polished wooden case.

  Opening it, she revealed the weapon inside.

  “Here it is.”

  Kael leaned forward.

  A small metal tag rested beside the blade.

  Enhanced Short-Bladed Sword

  “What does it do?” Kael asked.

  Melery smiled with unmistakable pride.

  “It stays sharp ten times longer than a regular blade.”

  Kael stared at the weapon for a moment.

  Then a quiet word escaped his lips.

  “Wow.”

  She had to punch his shoulder to snap him out of his stupor.

  “You good?” Melery asked, squinting at him suspiciously. “Or are you drunk or something? I’m not giving a blade to a drunk man ever again. Remember what happened to Teddy?”

  Kael blinked.

  “He cut off two of his fingers in the first minute of holding a blade,” Melery continued, shaking her head. “No, I’m not making that mistake again. Do you know how much blood I had to scrub off my tools after he left?”

  She kept rambling.

  Kael finally groaned.

  “I’m good, Melery. Stop rambling like a madwoman. You know I don’t drink.”

  He punched her shoulder back in the same playful way she had hit him.

  “How much for the blade?”

  Melery’s expression tightened slightly.

  “Kael… it took me seven Merit Points just to buy the oscillating crystals. Then there were the other materials… and my time.” She crossed her arms. “I’m sorry, but I can’t sell it for less than fifteen Merit Points. I would give it to you cheaper, but I’m already low on MP as it is.”

  Kael stared at the blade again.

  His face showed a strange mixture of disbelief and relief.

  He had expected something far worse.

  He had planned to buy a regular blade that morning.

  But there was no way he could pass up Melery’s best craft so far.

  “I’ll take it,” he said.

  He touched the insignia on his chest.

  Melery blinked in surprise as a notification appeared before her.

  Alert: 22 Merit Points Received

  Source: Kael Arden

  Her eyes widened.

  “But… how? And why twenty-two?”

  Kael shrugged.

  “I want you to buy more oscillating crystals and keep experimenting,” he said. “Imagine how awesome it would be if Grayville had more equipment like this.”

  He chuckled quietly.

  Melery just stared at him.

  “I… I… thank you.”

  It was the most emotion Kael had ever seen on her face.

  Carefully, he lifted the blade from its wooden box and secured it at his side. The weapon settled naturally against his hip, as if it had always belonged there.

  After saying goodbye, Kael left the smithy and made a few quick stops around the village to gather the rest of his supplies.

  Some dried food.

  A small pack of medical bandages.

  And a pair of new trousers.

  By the time the sun climbed toward noon, he was fully prepared for the journey.

  Kael sat down on a wooden bench near the center of the village square and waited for Mara and the two guards who would accompany them.

  Out of habit, he checked his status.

  Available Merit: 37 / 86.5

  Still more than I had two days ago, he thought.

  Waiting for Mara to sober up took longer than expected.

  An hour passed.

  During that time, Kael simply sat on the bench, absentmindedly drawing shapes in the dirt with a small stick.

  Eventually, Mara arrived.

  You would never have guessed she had been drinking the night before.

  Her posture was straight.

  Her hair was tied neatly behind her head.

  Her expression was calm, and her face showed not the slightest sign of exhaustion.

  Kael smirked.

  Mara had spent almost as much time in the forest as he had growing up. Because of that, he often thought of her as a sister.

  “You’re late,” Kael said with a snicker.

  “As always.”

  “Stop complaining,” Mara said, crossing her arms. “We have a long road ahead of us, and we’re already wasting time listening to you ramble.”

  Her confident tone made it sound as if Kael himself were the reason they were late.

  Kael grunted.

  “Anyway… let’s go.”

  Near the village gate, two men were already waiting with their packs strapped tight across their shoulders.

  George Bell and Joseph Corald.

  Ranked number eight and nine in the village.

  Kael greeted them with a nod.

  George, the older of the two, gave Kael a warm smile.

  “Heard about what you did during the fire,” he said. “That took courage, boy. Not many would run toward flames like that.”

  Kael scratched the back of his head awkwardly.

  “It wasn’t that impressive.”

  Joseph Corald stood beside George, arms folded across his chest. His eyes briefly scanned Kael from head to toe before he spoke.

  “We should head out,” he said flatly. “If we want to reach the caravan in time.”

  It was clear Joseph wasn’t impressed.

  Not by Kael.

  Not by the stories.

  Without another word, the four of them turned and walked through the wooden gates of Grayville.

  The road ahead stretched toward the dark wall of forest beyond the village fields.

  Soon the last rooftops disappeared behind them.

  The trees closed in.

  Tall trunks rose like pillars on every side, their branches weaving together high above the path and swallowing much of the morning sunlight. The deeper they walked, the quieter the world became.

  Only the soft crunch of leaves beneath their boots broke the silence.

  The forest of Frontier Zone Seven was ancient.

  And it was unforgiving.

  And as the group disappeared deeper beneath its shadowed canopy, none of them yet understood what kind of horror waited ahead.