Somewhere on a quiet beach…
"Where are you guys?"
A sigh came from behind a massive rock.
"Oh, come on, Ray. How many times do we have to tell you? We're right behind the huge rock."
Ray walked around it and stopped.
Three boys were sitting casually on the sand, dressed simply, their backs against the stone.
They were Lucas, Leo, and Jack his childhood friends.
They weren't just friends. They were family.
All four of them had grown up in the same orphanage, bound by bloodless bonds stronger than most real families.
Life, however, had taken them down different paths.
Jack and Leo were both married now, busy building their own families. They even worked at the same company.
Lucas, like Ray, was still single - but unlike Ray, Lucas was already a successful businessman.
Ray, on the other hand, was just a nerd scraping by with part-time jobs.
As Ray sat down, the four of them fell into easy conversation, talking about daily life, work, and small frustrations. It felt nostalgic, like old times.
After a while, Leo spoke up.
"There's a vacancy at our company. The pay's good too. Why don't you come work with us, Ray?"
Ray went silent.
Then he clicked his tongue.
"Nah. You know I don't like working my ass off."
He leaned back on his hands.
"I'm fine doing part-time jobs. I earn enough to survive. I've even saved up some money for emergencies."
He glanced at Leo.
"You should worry about yourself instead. I heard from Lucas that my sister-in-law is pregnant."
The moment he said that, Leo shot Lucas an angry glare.
Before Leo could say anything, something happened.
The world shook.
The ground trembled violently. Waves rose unnaturally high, rushing toward the shore like towering walls of water.
Jack's face went pale.
"R..Run!"
As they turned to flee, something bizzare happened again, time stopped.
The waves froze in midair.
Chunks of rock suspended themselves where they had been falling.
Even the wind stood still.
Silence.
After a few stunned seconds, Ray slowly turned toward his friends. They were staring at one another, eyes wide, trying to understand what had just happened.
Ray snapped out of it first.
"Check on your wives!" he barked. "What are you standing around for?!"
Leo and Jack immediately pulled out their phones.
Lucas turned to Ray.
"Do you know what's happening?"
Ray stared at him.
"Shouldn't you be the one who knows? You're part of the elite of society. Even if it's a small elite, elite is elite."
Lucas snorted.
"What do you mean 'small'? I'm not small. And I don't know anything."
Once Leo and Jack confirmed their wives were safe, they regrouped.
Then suddenly, a translucent blue screen appeared before their eyes.
Leo yelped and fell backward onto the sand.
The others stared at him with wicked grins, but before anyone could laugh, Leo shouted,
"Are you guys seeing what I'm seeing?!"
Jack smirked faintly.
"If you mean the blue screen floating in the air, then yes. If you mean something else, then I am not sure."
"Come on, man, this isn't the time to mock me " Leo snapped. "There's something written on it, read it."
The blue screen flickered, and text appeared.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
[ Congratulations to the Lifeforms of Xyron ]
As Planet Xyron has completed its evolution without becoming completely uninhabitable, all living beings of the dominant race will participate in Ascension to Divinity.
All non - dominant lifeforms will be transported to another habitable planet.
Members of the dominant race will be transported to Floating Island Territories.
Individuals lacking sufficient intelligence and self-awareness will return to their families after a set period of time.
Each island is composed of blocks.
• One block = 2 meters × 2 meters, extending 100 meters downward.
Each participant will receive a floating island of random size.With minimum allocation of 2 blocks.
Participants may move their floating islands freely.
Exploration of new islands is highly encouraged to acquire resources.
Danger and opportunity coexist on all islands.
Greater territory yields greater resources.
May your journey be blessed by Void.
[ Teleportation begins in 5 minutes ]
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
When the screen faded, Ray looked at his friends.
Each of them wore a different expression fear, excitement, disbelief.
Lucas suddenly stepped forward and pulled them all into a tight hug.
Jack laughed weakly.
"Are we… cooked?"
All three answered together.
"Thoroughly."
With only a minute left before being transported, Leo spoke anxiously.
"Let's find each other after we're transported, if that's even possible."
Lucas nodded.
"This feels like a game system. There has to be a way to communicate."
He looked at each of them seriously.
"Just survive."
The blue screen flashed again.
Initializing teleportation…
5… 4… 3… 2… 1…
Darkness swallowed whole world.
As Ray opened his eyes there was nothing but darkness, only glowing blue text remained.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
[ Distributing Participant Talents ]
Talent Acquired: Gift of Creation (SSS Rank)
Description:
Blessed by ancient forces of craftsmanship, the wielder possesses an innate talent for creation. Items crafted under this gift are formed with exceptional harmony and care, greatly enhancing quality, effectiveness, and durability. The act of creation itself may inspire subtle enchantments, occasionally granting unique traits.
Ray's expression turned complicated.
Then another message appeared.
[ Select Your Profession ]
— Mage
— Warrior
— Priest
— Archer
— Assassin
— Magic Engineer
— Blacksmith (Highly Compatible with Talent)
— Thief
— Berserker
…
The list continued endlessly.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Ray stared at it for a long moment.
After comparing his talent with the given profession, Ray's face fell.
"…Isn't this just telling me to become a Blacksmith?"
He sighed.
"Then what was the point of showing all the other options?"
After contemplating for a while, he reluctantly chose Blacksmith.
[ Congratulations on becoming a Blacksmith.]
[Profession tools have been added to your inventory.]
[Teleporting to your territory.]
[You can check your stats at any time.]
As Ray finished reading the messages, he suddenly found himself standing on a rectangular patch of land.
The ground was covered in short grass, with a single red flower blooming at the edge.
As he looked around, a sense of relief washed over him.
He had been given a six-block island, which could be considered a decent start.