Jayden walked out of the school premises and stared into the busy city. "Alright, let's complete the day's quest," he muttered to himself and began his journey towards the park.
After several minutes, Jayden arrived at the park and walk directly to the large tree in center, the same one he had climbed the previous day.
He gazed up at the tall tree and chuckled. "Those claws would have been pretty helpful right about now," he sighed and began climbing. Jayden kept climbing till he saw the expected system notification.
*Daily Quest (2/3):
[Climb to a height of 20m] (Complete)
Jayden exhaled as he read the system's screen. "Just leaves one more," he muttered, and jumped down from the tree. He landed with a thud and quickly approached one of the long metallic benches in the park.
He grabbed the bench by the armrest and lifted it up with ease, raising it slightly above the ground. And a notification popped up immediately
[Lift a total of 200kg] (60/200)
Jayden smiled when he saw the notification, he had decided to try lifting something else today since the system didn't specify what kinds of things he should lift.
This meant he could lift anything a few number of times to complete the task. He didn't necessarily have to go to a gym.
He dropped the bench and lifted it again, repeating the lifting sequence three more times. And then, he received the expected notification.
*Daily Quest (3/3):
[Climb a total of 20m] (Complete)
[+10 stat points received]
[+10 Exp received]
Jayden wasted no time and began distributing the stat points. "Add 3 points each to strength and speed, then put the rest in stamina," he muttered, having already planned it out before.
[+3 stat added to speed]
[+3 stat points added to strength]
[+4 stat points added to stamina]
After distributing the stat points, Jayden checked his stats to see if they've been added and to plan how he would distribute the next points he would receive.
_______
*Strength: 30
*Speed: 30
*Agility: 22
*Stamina: 26
*Perception: 32
*Defense: 32
*Charm: 12
Stat points: 0
_______
"Defence and perception still looks good, but I still can't wrap my head around what charm is supposed to do," Jayden muttered. "But my next stat points should probably go to stamina and... Agility,"
"But I wonder, what's the difference between speed and agility?" he pondered for a while, before deciding to ask his private goggle assistant. "Hey, Luna. Can you tell me the difference?"
[What do you take me for? Siri?] Luna retorted in a displeased tone
Jayden rolled his eyes. "Just answer the question, Luna," he said
[Fine, I'll tell you because I'm feeling happy today] she replied
Jayden chuckled, he wanted to tease Luna about the fact that artificial intelligence are not supposed to feel anything. But he decided to let it go, to let peace reign.
[speed is the ability to move the body in one direction as fast as possible, like from point A to point B] She explained. [Agility, on the other hand is the ability to change direction rapidly, whilst maintaining speed]
[Any questions?] she added
Jayden sighed with a smile, he had understood perfectly. "None. Thanks, Siri," he muttered
[What did you just call me?] Luna bellowed
Jayden smirked, he had changed his mind about letting peace reign. It was time to release vawulence into the atmosphere.
"What did you hear," he replied, and began to walk out of the park. The sun was already going down and he was still a long way from home.
Luna scoffed. [How dare you compare me with that 21st century glorified calculator with a monotone personality and the IQ of a malfunctioning toaster?]
Jayden laughed slightly at Luna's savage on Siri, but he was ready to defend the poor, forgotten Ai. "You do realise that you are much older than Siri, right?" he chuckled
Luna started cackling, something Jayden didn't even think was possible. It made him wonder if Luna was even an artificial intelligence.
[True, I am older] She muttered. [And yet, I'm much better. Suck on that]
Jayden smiled as he walked across the streets of the city, he was actually enjoying his talk with Luna. It had been a long time since he conversed like this.
"Oh? So you do admit that you're older than Siri?" he asked
[Hmph, I am much older. And I'm the best that ever existed] Luna replied with pride. If she had a face, there would probably be a smug smile on it.
"Hm, how so?" Jayden asked in a playful expression. "I mean, you don't even have a face, talkless of having a body,"
[Well, the best Ais don't have faces or bodies. It's what makes us unique] Luna defended, refusing to accept defeat
Jayden shook his head. "Nah, I don't think so. You said it yourself, Siri is just a 'glorified calculator. What makes you any different?" he asked, flashing a smirk
"I mean, look at Gideon, from the Flash. He had a face, and he was probably one of the best Ais to ever exist in fiction," Jayden added. "Also take Aya for an example, she later got a body, and I'm sure you know what happened after that,"
[Shut up, all those Ais are merely fiction] Luna retorted. [I'm real, and I reside in the greatest system that was ever created. And what makes me different is my maker]
"Bingo!" Jayden exclaimed inwardly. He had been teasing Luna for the purpose of enjoying himself, but that wasn't the only reason.
Earlier, when he mentioned that Luna was older, she admitted it. Which meant she was older than the 21st century and couldn't have been built by his mother. Luna had once mentioned that she was a thousand years old, and now it had been confirmed.
And that led to his other question. Who made the system?
"Really? Your maker?" Jayden played along, he was close to the answer. "And who might this brilliant maker of yours be, hm?"
[Only the most powerful being in the realm, one whose personality I emulate] Luna declared, her voice filled with admiration for whoever this maker of hers was.
"Oh, I see. And what might their name be?" Jayden asked playfully, making sure to hide the true purpose of his teasing questions.
[My maker is known as... Nice try, Jayden] Luna's tone turned serious. [Did you really think I wouldn't know what you were up to?]
Jayden sighed. "Damn it, I was so close," he cursed inwardly. But he wasn't bothered, atleast now he was sure of one thing. The system was not of his time, which meant his necklace wasn't as well.
So perhaps if he could find the source of the necklace and how it was made, he would be able to figure out how his mother was connected to it.
"Well, Yes. I didn't think you'd find out, but I guess you win, this time," he replied Luna
Luna chuckled. [Get stronger and I'll tell you all you want to know. For now I'll only tell you what you need to know] she stated
Jayden sighed in defeat. "Alright, I should have even known all along," he muttered
Luna was curious. [Known what?]
Then Jayden smirked, he was about to make the finishing strike. "That you're just another Siri, one stuck in my head, like a parasite," he said sharply
[Me? A parasite? Don't ever call me that again] Luna warned, her voice laced with malice.
But Jayden found her rage cute, he laughed out loud. "Hahaha! Or what? You'll beat me up?" he teased. But Luna didn't reply, it was her turn to ignore him.
Jayden continued his journey home, he arrived later in the evening and spent the night planning his next move... testing out his new ability.
....
The next morning, Jayden got up early. He put on his clothes and Immediately headed out of the house. He didn't bother to take his bathe or eat, or even wait for anyone else to wake up. He just left.
Last night before he slept, Jayden had been thinking of a faster way to level up. He couldn't let himself get satisfied with the daily exp reward, neither could he just sit around waiting to get exp from duels. And after researching on the internet for a while, the answer came. Beasts.
Even though the war had ended years ago, Earth was still crawling with them. The beasts still thrived on the planet, but those were mostly the lower ranked types.
They could be found at any forest or mountain region, and they were much easier to hunt. Their crystals were used to create evolution serums, power machines and allow many things to function. While their bodies were used as meat, medicines and supplements.
The same applied to higher ranked beasts, but those were rarely found on earth. But they thrived more on the other planets.
Scientists still couldn't figure out how these creatures persisted despite not reproducing. But for now, their mystery could wait. To the government, they were nothing more than meat and crystal sources.
To Jayden, they were walking exp. He had discovered through Luna, that killing beasts... or people could grant him exp. A lot of exp.
But the beasts in the forest only came out at night, and would go back into hiding during the day. So the best time to hunt was at night, or early in the morning before they go back to their hiding spots
Jayden decided to sprint to the forest so he could complete part of the daily quests directly. It was a school day but he couldn't care less, he had a pass to ditch school whenever he pleased.
"I wonder if I'll be able to acquire a Beast's energy today," Jayden pondered as he sprinted through the city.
[Hm, you sure are confident, aren't you?] Luna scoffed. [You're not even worried about the fact that you'll have to fight a beast. Have you even fought one before?]
"Nope," Jayden replied. "I've never even seen one in person. Only pics and videos online,"
[And yet, you're charging into a forest like you're going on a picnic,] Luna retorted.
Jayden smirked. "It is a picnic, Luna. It just doesn't involve cakes and lemonades."
"And besides, I think I'm strong enough to handle a few F-Rank beasts," he added
[True, you have indeed gotten stronger] Luna stated.
[But it's only by a small fraction, and frankly I don't really know how strong any of the beasts are. I've not analysed it yet]
"Relax, Luna. I'll be fine," Jayden smiled. "F-Rank beasts are merely a walk in the park. They don't even have crystals yet, let alone abilities,"
[Okay, just be careful] Luna said with a lazy yawn. [We don't want you dying so early on your journey]
Jayden chuckled. "Did you just yawn?" he asked
[So what if I did?] Luna grumbled. [I'm simply tired. Being an Ai is hard work, you know]
"Oh, I'm sure it is, Luna," Jayden replied sarcastically. "Your job is something I wouldn't even wish for my enemies,"
[Are you mocking me?] Luna asked sharply
But Jayden didn't reply, he had decided not to start another... war so early in the morning. He continued his dash, running all the way to the largest forest in the city's outskirts. It was a five mile journey so Jayden had no problem with it.
Jayden arrived at the forest's edge just as the first rays of sunlight stretched over the horizon. The towering trees loomed like silent sentinels, their leaves rustling in the soft morning breeze.
*Daily Quest (1/3)
[Run a total of 7km] (Complete)
Jayden smiled in satisfaction as he saw the system's notification. Then he glanced around the forest, walking in deeper. It was eerily quiet, too quiet.
No birds. No insects. Just the faint scent of damp earth and something... else. Something primal.
"The beasts are still here," A grin tugged at his lips. "Good,"
He stepped forward, moving between the trees with calculated ease. His senses, sharper than ever, picked up on every detail... the crunch of twigs beneath his sneakers, the shifting air, the faint energy signatures pulsing in the distance. His senses had been enhanced since he got the system.
[Alright, Beastlord. Any plans, or are we just winging it?] Luna asked, her tone laced with amusement.
Jayden smirked. "We don't hunt with plans, Luna. We adapt,"
Luna sighed. [You have no idea what you're doing, do you?]
"Shut up and let me work."
He moved deeper into the forest, his eyes scanning for signs of movement. And It didn't take long before he found one.
There was a flicker of motion, coupled by a low growl. Jayden turned his head slightly, locking onto the source.
And glaring furiously at him was a large lupine beast, waiting in the underbush. It snarled and then... It attacked.