The blue glow of the system interface hovered faintly in front of Will Ravencliff as he sat in his dimly lit apartment.
---
Main Quest: First Cheat
Target: Garret and Associates
Description:
The individuals who most recently cheated the host must now experience the consequences.
Objective:
Successfully cheat the targets.
Time Limit: 7 Days
---
Will leaned back against the wall, resting his fingers lightly against his chin.
The system wanted deception not violence so this wasn't an impossible task. He was physically weak but not entirely stupid so all he had to do was come up with a plan...
A plan to manipulate...
Will stared at the interface for another moment before dismissing it with a small flick of his hand.
"Alright then…"
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"…for once, let's be the cheater."
---
Will Ravencliff might not have been naturally shrewd since he had spent most of his life trusting people who didn't deserve it.
However, that didn't mean he lacked intelligence.
On the contrary, his mind was the one thing the slums had always respected about him.
If you wanted a problem solved, you went to the Whizkid... and right now, his problem was simple.
Garret had the complete Awakening Trio of rare minerals required to become an Ascender.
Which meant Garret could attempt his awakening at any time.
That was the real problem.
If Garret awakened successfully, Will would lose his chance because a newly awakened Ascender would be far harder to cheat.
Will tapped the table thoughtfully.
"So I just need him to… wait."
His eyes lit up slightly.
"Delay his awakening."
If Garret delayed the ritual even a few days then Will could control the situation.
And the best way to delay someone chasing power… was to offer them even greater power.
---
Two days later, the first rumor began.
It started small as most dangerous rumors did.
Will sat casually at a street noodle stall in the slums, speaking quietly with a pair of scavengers.
He spoke just loud enough to be overheard.
"…I'm telling you, it's real."
One of the men leaned forward.
"You serious?"
Will shrugged slightly.
"That's just what I heard."
"What did you hear?"
Will lowered his voice.
"There's apparently a way to influence your Ascender awakening."
The two men immediately froze.
"What?"
"Influence it how?"
Will pretended to hesitate.
"Apparently… if you know the right method, you can awaken as a Rare-Type Ascender."
The two scavengers stared at him like he had just said something insane.
Rare-Type Ascender.
Those words alone carried enormous weight.
In the current era of humanity, Ascenders were the most powerful individuals alive.
But not all Ascenders were the same.
Most belonged to the three common types.
Those were the ones that made up the majority of awakened individuals.
Enhancement-Type Ascenders — individuals whose bodies gained immense physical strength, speed, and endurance.
Element-Type Ascenders — those capable of manipulating elemental forces like fire, electricity, wind, or ice.
Sense-Type Ascenders — rare but valuable specialists who possessed heightened perception, detection abilities, enhanced vision and battlefield awareness.
These three types formed the backbone of Ascender society but beyond them…
There were two rare types.
Types so powerful and uncommon that even the government treated them as strategic assets.
Mutation-Type Ascenders — individuals whose bodies evolved into powerful hybrid forms, gaining monstrous abilities beyond human limits.
And
Mind Ascenders (Psionic Type)
These Ascenders possess mental powers.
Abilities can include:
• Telekinesis
• Mind reading
• Mental attacks
• Illusions
• Memory manipulation
They are extremely dangerous because they can defeat enemies without physical combat.
Most governments closely monitor Mind Ascenders because they are difficult to control.
These Ascenders were incredibly rare but then…
There was the legendary type.
A classification so uncommon that many believed it was just a myth.
This is the rarest and most mysterious category.
No one fully understands how these abilities work.
Reality Ascenders can alter the rules of the world in strange ways.
Possible powers:
• Probability manipulation
• Time distortion
• Spatial control
• Concept manipulation
• Reality bending abilities
These abilities often appear broken or impossible to counter.
Only one person has ever awakened this category and that person eventually became one of the most powerful figures in humanity.
For the average person in the slums even becoming a Common-Type Ascender would change their life forever.
Which was why the rumor Will had just planted was explosive.
"How do you do it?" one of the scavengers whispered.
Will shrugged again.
"No idea."
"But apparently there's a guy who knows."
"Who?"
Will casually slurped his noodles.
"Someone wearing a leopard mask."
The two men blinked.
"…A leopard mask?"
Will stood up.
"That's just what I heard."
Then he walked away, leaving the rumor behind.
---
Rumors spread like wildfire in the slums.
Within two days, everyone was talking about it.
A mysterious man wearing a leopard mask who possessed knowledge of a secret method to awaken as a Rare-Type Ascender.
Some people claimed he was a wandering Ascender... others said he was an information broker from the upper districts.
A few even whispered that he was an outcast researcher who had discovered hidden secrets about the awakening ritual.
No one knew the truth.
And the more mysterious the story became, the faster it spread.
Within four days, the entire slum district buzzed with the rumor.
People began asking questions and the few who already possessed the trio of awakening materials or just one were looking for the masked man.
They searched alleyways and abandoned buildings but no one could find him.
Because whenever someone thought they had spotted the leopard mask... he vanished.
One scavenger claimed he saw him standing on a rooftop but by the time he climbed up there, the masked man was gone.
Another swore he saw him walking through the market but when people rushed over, there was no one there.
He was like a ghost... a myth.
Of course, this was exactly what Will wanted because the harder someone was to find, the more valuable they seemed.
---
The rumor had naturally spread to Garret as well.
Inside the abandoned warehouse where his group usually gathered, one of the men burst through the door.
"You guys heard about this leopard mask guy?"
Garret looked up from the table.
"What about him?"
"They say he knows a way to awaken as a Rare-Type Ascender."
Garret froze while he others looked at each other in disbelief.
"That's bullshit."
"Probably."
"But people say he's been seen all over the slums."
Garret leaned back slowly recalling he was already about to crush the Awakening Trio of minerals into dust in order to process it into becoming what will be needed in order to ascend.
Which meant he could attempt his Ascension immediately... but if there really was a way to influence the outcome…
If he could awaken as a Rare-Type Ascender instead of a common one, the quality of his future would improve.
Garret stood up.
"Find him."
---