The Orc charged, its heavy footsteps vibrating through the reinforced floor of the training hall. Noen scrambled, diving to the side just in time, but he ended up flat on his face. The beast didn't hesitate. It raised its massive iron club, casting a shadow of death over Noen. High above, the dim fluorescent lights flickered, struggling against the dust kicked up by the struggle. But just as the blow was about to fall, a blur of motion streaked from the observation stands.
Joris Gantz landed silently, a silver flash in his hand. With a single, effortless motion, he sliced through the Orc's thick neck. The beast's head rolled away before the body even hit the ground with a heavy thud. Joris twirled a small dagger in his hand for a moment before tucking it into a hidden pocket.
From his other pocket, he pulled out a notepad and began scribbling. "So, Noen... against the Orc, you lasted 8 seconds. Zero hits landed." He tapped his pen against his lips thoughtfully. "But I suppose you did manage one dodge."
Noen was still on the floor, gasping for air, his chest heaving. Joris looked down at him coldly. "Okay, so we can officially rule out a display error. I suspected as much."
Noen pushed himself up, trembling. "Why does that... why does that prove anything?"
"FFF-Ranks usually last about five minutes in here," Joris said flatly. "Mostly by running, but that's not the point." He looked down at his notes. "Anyway, thanks for participating. I need to go grab some documents. I'll be right back."
As Joris walked away, Ms. Halden hurried down from the stands, her heels clicking rapidly on the training floor. The sound echoed off the high, metallic walls, mingling with the distant hum of the building's ventilation system. "Noen! Are you okay?"
Noen was on his knees, his head hanging low as silent tears began to fall. Ms. Halden reached him, her face full of concern. "Noen, what is it?"
"I'm... I'm useless, aren't I?" he sobbed.
Ms. Halden was taken aback. "Noen, that's not true! Why would you say that?"
He wiped his eyes with the back of his hand, his voice breaking. "With a system like this, I'll never find work. Getting into a higher school is going to be impossible. I have nothing."
Ms. Halden reached out to comfort him, but before she could speak, Joris returned. He was flipping through a thick folder and held out three documents and a pen to Noen.
"So, Noen..." Joris said, his voice strangely smooth. "Please sign these two sheets to confirm you were here today, that everything went according to procedure, and so on." He paused for a split second. "And this third one is just so we can... well, so your system is officially accepted by the registry. Something like that."
Noen unscrewed the pen without a second thought. To him, his life already felt worthless. No friends, no respect, no future—this was just another formality in a life that was falling apart. He signed the papers quickly.
Ms. Halden frowned, watching the exchange. —Three pages?— she thought. —I could have sworn it was always two for the other students I've accompanied.— She shook her head slightly. —Well, i guess Noen is a special case. It's probably just extra paperwork for his rank.—
"Oh, and one more thing," Joris said, looking up from the signed papers. "Open your system one more time for me please."
Noen raised his hand.
[System-Class: Noen]
[Role: 0]
[STR: -50 / 0]
[AGI: -50 / 0]
[END: -50 / 0]
[VIT: -50 / 0]
[FOC: -50 / 0]
[AFF: -50 / 0]
[Available LP: 0.5]
"Just as I thought," Joris murmured.
Noen looked up, a tiny spark of hope in his eyes. "Available LP? I earned points?"
"You earned your first LP through the "fight". Joris said, but his voice was devoid of encouragement. "But because your Affinity is at negative 50, you receive... almost nothing."
The spark in Noen's eyes vanished faster than it had appeared.
"That's all. I thank you both, especially you, Noen. Have a safe trip home," Joris said, already turning toward a side door. "Noen will likely have to come back regarding the official entry later."
"Thank you," Ms. Halden said as the man disappeared into the shadows of the hallway.
The two of them walked back to the elevator in silence. They rode to the ground floor and stepped out of the Town Hall into the afternoon sun. The streets were crowded with commuters, and the smell of exhaust and street food filled the warm air. Back at home in his room that evening, Noen sat on his bed with his system open. The old wooden floorboards creaked beneath him as he shifted his weight. He mused aloud, "Mhmmmm, what should I improve?"
He stared at every single stat. "Agility would be cool; I'd become faster and more mobile." He looked one row down. "But Endurance would be really strong, too. Then I could at least run away a little longer."
He looked all the way to the bottom. "But with Affinity, I'll get more LP in the future." He pressed his hand against his forehead. Outside, a stray cat screeched in the alleyway, the sound piercing the quiet of the residential block. "But what difference are 0.5 LP going to make? It won't be noticeable anyway, so I guess imma just dump it all into Strength."
[0.5 LP Points taken away from your available LP.]
[0.5 STR added to your STR Stat]
Noen fell back and grabbed his pillow, pressing it against his face. "Maaaaan!" he screamed into the pillow before throwing it across the room. "Why? Why do I have to be the one who gets something like this? Wtf I swear."
He punched himself in the head a few times. "But Ms. Halden was right after we left. I should at least try to get all my stats up to the limit of 0. Maybe then, with some luck, I'll be able to manage against... I don't know... giant rats? The weakest magical beasts in the world? Its all so messed up"
He took his blanket, turned over, and got to sleeping.
[NEW TITLE ADDED!]
Noen scrambled back up. "W-What is this?"