By: Reyhan Arsyad Basori
The sky was mercilessly grey, just like the dullness that had long taken over my heart.
This room...my hideout from the world...had become a prison I chose myself.
A cracked phone in my hand, a thin mattress on the floor, and dreams that had almost completely faded.
My name is Rei Hoshikawa.
I'm 19 years old. Unemployed.
Dreams? I'm not even sure when I stopped having them.
From outside, my mother's voice echoed sharply once again.
"Rei! What are you doing with your life?! Wake up! Life isn't just about staring at your phone!"
I stayed quiet.
Not because I didn't care, but because I was tired of explaining.
I've tried.
I've worked hard.
But no one cares about someone who's unemployed.
People only see results, never the effort behind them.
They say I have no future.
And honestly... I was starting to believe them.
That evening, I left the house.
I wandered through narrow alleys, heading to the small park where I often sat alone.
Not because I liked solitude
I just had nowhere else to go.
Then, as I stared at the cracked screen of my phone, something strange happened.
[SYSTEM DETECTED]
Registered Name: Rei Hoshikawa
Status: Unemployed (Level 0)
Self-Improvement System Activated
I frowned at the screen.
"What is this...? A virus?"
But the next message made my heart race.
"Welcome, Rei. You have been selected.
First Mission: Find someone and help them sincerely.
Reward: 10 EXP + 1 Random Skill
Time Limit: 3 hours"
I swallowed hard.
I didn't know if this was real, a prank, or just my brain collapsing under stress.
But for the first time in what felt like forever...
Life gave me direction.
And I chose to follow it
Because honestly, nothing could be worse than the life I was living now.