"It really works."
The mechanical voice still echoed in Cole Shaw's head, cold and clear. Satisfaction flickered through him — the system hadn't been a hallucination.
Kim's eyes searched his. "Cole, please… save Maggie."
He nodded slightly. "I'll find a way."
He accepted the bank card. To any professional, a hundred thousand dollars was nothing, but he could at least make the attempt.
"Thank you, Cole."
He saw the hope mixed with fear on her face — she understood the odds.
After a moment of silence she stepped closer, hugged him tightly, and whispered, "Be careful."
Two hours later, freshly showered and composed, she handed him an invitation embossed in gold. "Next month's my birthday. Promise you'll come?"
He smiled faintly. "I'll be there."
When the door closed behind her, the apartment fell still. The system's tone returned like a pulse in his mind.
Ding — Novice task accepted.
Ding — Rewards will be distributed upon completion.
Ding — Because the host has accepted the novice mission, the God-Level Novice Gift Pack has been issued.
Ding — Open now?
Cole straightened. "Open."
[System Reward Breakdown]
1. Invisibility Cloak – G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra
Advanced stealth fabric capable of bending light and rendering the wearer visually undetectable under most lighting conditions.
2. Diluted Super Soldier Serum – Captain America (1943 Hydra Prototype)
Enhances physical attributes five-fold: strength, speed, endurance, reflexes, and regenerative rate.
3. Gun Master Program – John Wick Ballistics Training Suite
Instant integration of marksmanship, firearms handling, recoil control, and tactical transitions across all modern platforms.
4. Cubic System Storage Warehouse – Stark Industries Quantum Storage Model V2
A personal sub-dimensional inventory capable of storing and retrieving physical items via neural command.
5. Task Protocol:
Mission – Rescue the girl kidnapped by pirates.
Duration – Three days.
Completion Reward – USD $500,000 + Beginner Driving Proficiency (Fast & Furious franchise standard).
Ding — All rewards permanently bound to host.
He opened the system warehouse. A camouflage jacket, a vial of translucent blue liquid, and a small black manual materialized on the glass table.
The vial shimmered faintly. Diluted Super Soldier Serum.
Cole uncapped it and swallowed the dose in one motion.
Heat ignited through his veins, expanding outward. Bones creaked; muscles tightened; skin prickled. He gritted his teeth as the transformation burned through every cell.
Ten minutes later, the pain receded.
He exhaled, staring at his reflection in the mirror — still himself, but more. Taller by a few centimetres, shoulders broader, lines sharper, eyes brighter. Strength vibrated beneath his skin.
He reached for the jacket. The weave rippled, swallowing the light around it: the Invisibility Cloak. Perfect.
Next, the black manual marked Gun Master. The moment his hand touched it, data flooded his mind — stances, trigger discipline, angles, shot-break timing, transitions, reload drills. Years of training compressed into seconds.
He flicked his wrist. His sidearm came up from its holster smoothly, sight picture crisp. Muscle memory rewritten.
Finally, he tested the Cubic Storage Warehouse. The empty vial vanished from his palm, then reappeared at a thought. Seamless.
Cole smiled once, brief and quiet. The system wasn't a trick; it was evolution.
Tomorrow he would need information.
Morning brought him to Tool's Tattoo Parlour, tucked in a back street of New York City. Inside, the retired mercenary—former demolitions expert of The Expendables—sat behind the counter with an unlit cigar and a newspaper.
"Looking for intel?" Tool asked, eyeing the newcomer.
"Masori pirates," Cole said evenly.
Tool studied him for a beat, then tapped ash from the dead cigar. "Ten thousand, cash. I'll send what you need. Word of advice—if you don't have the ability, don't try. Those bastards aren't amateurs."
Cole counted the money without hesitation. "I'll take my chances."
Tool accepted the bills, then watched as Cole turned to leave. "Kid," he muttered under his breath, "you've got the same look Ross used to have before every suicide run."
He reached for the phone once Cole disappeared out the door.
"Barney," he said quietly when the line clicked, "you might want to keep an eye on this one."