'Open.'
At Vio's command, one of the stacked chests before him creaked open. Brilliant light poured from within, and a shimmering card floated toward his outstretched hand.
'Another card.'
The moment his fingers closed around it, a familiar buzzing sensation filled his mind.
[Card 'Teleport to Eye' obtained]
[10,000XP gained.]
'Teleport to Eye...'
Vio's mind raced as he tried to recall similar mechanics from the countless video games he'd played. He'd learned not to bother asking the system directly—it had a peculiar habit of choosing what to answer and what not.
The concept reminded him of fast travel systems in open-world games, designed to save players from tedious backtracking.
'So the Eye must be some kind of location marker I need to unlock first.'
From his gaming experience, "Eye" could refer to anything—a shop, a safe house, or even just a waypoint. But something about the system's specific terminology made him think otherwise.
'Probably something elevated. A watchtower, maybe? I'll figure it out later.'
He stored the card in inventory and moved to the next chest.
'Open.'
The same brilliant light emerged, but what rose from this chest left Vio completely stunned. A featureless humanoid figure stepped out, its blank form somehow both eerie and fascinating.
'What the hell...?'
The figure moved toward him with measured steps. Vio instinctively raised his guard but held his ground, curiosity overriding caution.
[You have obtained: 'Training Session.']
[30,000XP gained.]
'What—'
With each step the figure took, reality seemed to ripple around them. The snowy mountain landscape dissolved, replaced by an endless white void that stretched in every direction. No walls, no ceiling, no boundaries—just pure, empty space.
The figure positioned itself beside him and raised its arm, revealing a perfect black sphere. In the distance, identical spheres floated like dark balloons against the white expanse.
Vio watched in fascination as the figure drew back its arm, lifted one leg like a pitcher winding up for a fastball, and hurled the sphere with tremendous force. The air itself seemed to tear as the projectile streaked toward its target, which exploded in a silent burst of dark fragments.
Though the explosion looked violent, it made no sound whatsoever. Vio's amazement turned to alarm when he noticed his arm beginning to move without permission.
'What's happening? System, what's going on?'
Panic gripped him as his body moved independently of his will. No matter how hard he concentrated, he couldn't regain control. The system remained frustratingly silent, not explaining this terrifying loss of autonomy.
His body perfectly mirrored the figure's movements. A black sphere materialized in his palm, and he threw it at a floating target—direct hit.
The sequence continued relentlessly. A knife appeared in his hand—thrown with perfect accuracy. Then a sword, followed by an arrow. But the training wasn't limited to physical weapons. Lightning bolts crackled from his fingertips, fireballs, and other elemental forces he couldn't even identify flowed through him with practiced ease.
While Vio's mind reeled in confusion and wonder, the bizarre training session ended abruptly as it had begun. The figure vanished, and Vio blinked to find himself back in the familiar place, as if he'd never moved at all.
[A new skill has been unlocked.]
[Skills]
Throwing – Level 5
+5% targeting accuracy when the hero throws an object.
'Ah, so that's what it was.'
A training session—brutal and efficient. Apart from throwing punches, Vio had never seriously practiced projectile combat beyond his electric wave attacks. To not only unlock a skill but immediately advance it to Level 5 was remarkable. He shuddered to think how much energy it would have cost to reach this level through normal practice.
Just raising his Knockout Mastery to Level 3 had drained over 300 EP, and that only required basic punching—a relatively low-energy activity.
Satisfied with his unexpected gains, Vio approached the third chest.
'Open.'
[You have obtained a buff.]
Another card drifted toward him, glowing with a soft blue light.
Laiz's Buff —Temporary boost:
Increases ice resistance and perception by 15% for 6 hours.
[60,000XP gained.]
'A buff? System, can I activate this whenever I want?'
[Correct.]
A sly smile crossed Vio's face, spotting a potential loophole. If the buff lasted six hours, what if he only activated it when necessary and somehow deactivated it when not needed? That way, he wouldn't waste the duration.
[Once activated, the buff cannot be deactivated until its duration expires.]
'You sneaky bastard! Now you decide to be helpful without me even asking?'
The system offered no response as Vio turned attention to the final chest.
'Open.'
[The blueprint 'Energy Shield' obtained.]
[10,000XP gained.]
Glowing blueprints materialized in his hands, their surface covered with intricate technical diagrams.
[Energy Shield]
A transparent barrier that envelops the hero's entire body.
Durability: 2000
Requirements: Pure Energy Knowledge
Crafting Materials: 5 Plastic, 11 Metal, 1 Steel
Curious about the value, Vio opened the store to check similar items. His jaw dropped at the price.
'One million system coins? That's highway robbery!'
His shock only deepened when he searched for Pure Energy Knowledge.
'Twenty million? Are you insane?'
However, the real kicker was that the Pure Energy CyborgHeart required such knowledge to be utilized. The price nearly gave him a heart attack.
'Fifty million? Whoever set these prices must be laughing all the way to the bank!'
He was about to close the store in disgust when he noticed something interesting. Every type of CyborgHeart blueprint was available—fire energy, electric energy (which he already possessed), wind energy, nuclear energy, and dozens more.
The strange thing was that none of these specialized variants required additional knowledge to operate—except for the Pure Energy model. To use pure energy, you needed Pure Energy Knowledge. To convert other energy types to pure energy, you needed separate conversion knowledge for each type.
The cumulative cost was astronomical.
He slammed the store interface closed before his circuits overheated from frustration.
'Something's not right here.'
Why offer so many CyborgHeart variants when pure energy seemed theoretically superior, despite its ridiculous cost?
'System, what's the catch with all this?'
[The hero must discover this independently.]
Of course. But Vio wasn't ready to give up yet.
'System, hypothetically, if I had a Pure Energy CyborgHeart and faced enemies using electric attacks, I could absorb and convert their energy, right?'
[Correct.]
Vio's eyes narrowed.
'But I can already do that with my current setup. So what's the real advantage?'
[Pure energy conversion is more efficient: 1 EP of electric energy yields 2 EP of pure energy.]
'No, that's actually a problem. CyborgHeart storage is limited, so higher efficiency sometimes means hitting capacity faster. The more I think about it, pure energy seems pointless.'
[Pure energy is more effective for offensive and utility applications.]
The system sounded almost defensive, like it was promoting a product.
'I can perform the same attacks just fine without bankrupting myself. Electric energy works perfectly.'
[Pure energy converts easily to any other energy type.]
'Gotcha!' Vio's eyes lit up with understanding. 'That means conversion takes time, doesn't it? I can't instantly switch from electric to pure energy mid-combat, which would leave me vulnerable during energy absorption. Am I right?'
[...]
'Thought so. You're just like that old man—cryptic and unhelpful.'
Through his interaction with the system, Vio recognized a familiar pattern—the same mix of mystery and frustration he'd experienced with his enigmatic mentor.
'Don't bother responding. I'll figure it all out eventually.'
Without hesitation, he converted the blueprint into system coins.
[1,000,000 system coins gained.]
'At least you didn't lowball me on the exchange rate.'
With the chests exhausted, Vio made his descent down the snowy mountain path, checking his status as he moved through the winter landscape.
Name: Vio Kian
Age: 24 years (biological), 2 years (mechanical)
Level: 6 | XP: [129,317/400,000]
Rank: Proto-Cyborg
Titles: Skull Crusher
HP: 5,000/5,000 (100%)
EP: 61/100 (61%)
SP: 0/0 (Locked)
[Stats]
Strength: 30
Stamina: 25
Agility: 30
Intelligence: 25
Perception: 34
Endurance: 56
(Available points to distribute: 0)
As he descended the mountain path, the crunch of snow beneath his feet muffled by his careful steps, a strange presence prickled at his enhanced senses long before any sounds reached his ears.
"Surround him! Surround him!" A soldier shouted from a distance.
Vio's instincts flared to life. He leaped silently onto the branch of a snow-laden evergreen, using its dense, frost-covered needles as cover while he focused intently on the scene unfolding ahead.