To any other person, it was garbage. To an F-Rank Gatherer, it was the only thing he was "qualified" to touch.
"Harvest," Kai whispered. His voice was a dry rasp, barely audible over the sound of the downpour.
As soon as the word left his lips, a green circle appeared around the can.
[Skill Activated: Basic Harvest (F-Rank)]
[Processing... 1... 2... 3...]
[Harvest Successful!]
[Item Obtained: Rusted Scrap Metal (Trash Grade)]
Normally, that would be the end of it. Kai would have a piece of useless metal in his inventory, and he would still be a bleeding boy in a dark alley. But then, the golden screen of the Limitless Evolution System flickered violently.
[Ding! 10x Multiplier Detected!]
[Evolving Item: Rusted Scrap Metal—> Refined Iron Ore!]
[Evolving Quantity: 1 Unit —> 10 Units!]
In Kai's hand, the heavy weight of the metal shifted. The orange rust vanished, replaced by the dull, heavy sheen of high-quality iron. The single can had transformed into ten palm-sized ingots of pure, refined ore. On the market, these were worth more than a common worker's weekly salary.
But the System wasn't done.
[First Harvest Bonus Triggered!]
[Applying 10x Multiplier to User Stats...]
[Calculating Base Endurance... Calculating Base Strength...]
A surge of electricity bolted through Kai's spine. He let out a choked gasp as his bones began to pop and realign. The cracked rib that had been stabbing into his lung suddenly snapped back into place. The deep bruises on his stomach faded from purple to a faint yellow, then vanished entirely.
His muscles didn't grow huge, but they became dense, like coiled springs. His vision, which had been blurry from the beating, became terrifyingly sharp. He could see every individual drop of rain suspended in the air. He could hear the distant footsteps of Ben and his cronies at the end of the alley.
[Evolution Complete.]
[Current Level: 1 »» 5]
[Strength: 5 »» 50]
[Agility: 4 »» 40]
[Endurance: 8 »» 80]
Kai stood up. He didn't stumble this time. He felt light—dangerously light. He looked at the ten iron ingots in his hand. If he could do this with trash, what could he do with real loot?
"Hey! I think I heard something!"
The voice belonged to Ben. The bullies hadn't gone far. They were standing under the eaves of a nearby building, laughing about Kai's "big backpack" talent.
"Maybe the loser finally started crying," another voice mocked. "Let's go back and record it. Lucius would pay for a video of that."
Kai didn't run. He didn't hide. He stood in the center of the alley, his shadow stretching long against the bricks. He felt a strange calmness. For years, he had been the one to lower his head. For years, he had let them scream at him while he stayed silent.
The silence was still there, but now, it felt like a weapon.
Ben and his two friends rounded the corner. They stopped dead when they saw Kai standing upright.
"Whoa, look at that," Ben said, a cruel smirk returning to his face. "The mule has some kick in him after all. I thought we told you to stay down, trash."
Kai didn't answer. He just watched them. His eyes were different now—no longer filled with the shy flickering of a victim, but the steady gaze of a hunter.
"What's that in your hand?" Ben's eyes narrowed, spotting the refined iron ingots. "Where did a Gatherer get refined ore? Did you steal that from the school labs?"
"He definitely stole it," the second bully, a tall boy named Rick, said. He stepped forward, reaching out his hand. "Give it here. A trash-tier Gatherer doesn't deserve to hold something that valuable. Consider it a tax for letting you breathe."
In the past, Kai would have handed it over. He would have apologized for even having it.
But as Rick's hand closed in on his shirt, Kai moved.
He didn't punch. He didn't kick. He simply stepped to the side. With his Agility now at 40—four times the human average—Rick looked like he was moving through thick syrup.
Kai reached out and grabbed Rick's wrist.
Crunch.
"AHHHH!" Rick screamed, dropping to his knees. "My hand! He broke my hand!"
Ben and the third boy froze. They couldn't believe what they had just seen. The shy, silent Kai had just moved faster than they could track.
"You... you rat!" Ben roared, his face turning red with rage. "You're dead! I'm going to kill you!"
Ben was an E-Rank Brawler. His fists began to glow with a faint red aura as he lunged at Kai. It was a clumsy, telegraphed punch.
Kai felt a cold thrill. Is this it? he thought. The power of an E-Rank? It's so... slow.
Kai ducked the punch easily. He felt the wind of the fist whistle past his ear. As Ben overextended, Kai placed a hand on Ben's leather chest-piece—the expensive armor Lucius had gifted him.
"Harvest," Kai whispered.
[Target: E-Rank Leather Armor (Damaged)]
[10x Multiplier Applied!]
[Result: You have 'Harvested' the durability of the item!]
The leather armor didn't just break; it turned into grey dust and blew away in the wind. Ben stumbled, suddenly unprotected and off-balance.
Kai didn't give him a second to breathe. He drove his palm into Ben's chest. It wasn't a professional strike, but with 50 Strength, it hit like a sledgehammer. Ben was lifted off his feet, flying backward until he slammed into a dumpster with a deafening clang.
The third boy, who hadn't moved yet, turned and ran. He didn't even look back.
Kai stood over Ben, who was wheezing and clutching his chest. The bully looked up at Kai with pure terror.
"Wait... Kai... stop," Ben coughed. "We were just joking... Lucius made us do it! Please!"
Kai looked down at him. He could have finished it. He could have crushed Ben's throat. But Kai was still the boy who didn't talk back. He didn't need to scream his revenge.
He reached down and grabbed Ben's wallet and a small mana-pendant around his neck.
"Harvest," Kai said again.
[Ding! 10x Multiplier Triggered!]
[Obtained: 500 Credits »» 5,000 Credits!]
[Obtained: Low-Grade Mana Pendant »» Mid-Grade Heart of Spirit!]
Kai turned and walked away into the rain, leaving the bullies groaning in the mud. He looked at his hand, which was no longer shaking.
"Sarah said we live in different worlds," Kai murmured to himself. He looked toward the bright lights of the inner city where the "Geniuses" lived. "She was right. But it's not the world she thinks."
[System Notification: Daily Quest Complete.]
[Reward: Hidden Map of the Forbidden Zone "Shadow Woods" unlocked.]
Kai's journey had only just begun.