Oscar could not believe his eyes. Was the universe playing a massive joke on him?
He had died because of hacking in an online game, transmigrated into a whole new world, and now he was getting a System built specifically around hacking once again.
The coincidence felt far too absurd to be real.
"Well, it is definitely better than nothing," Oscar muttered, shaking his head with a small smirk.
He leaned against the alley wall and tried to remember how Systems worked in this world based on the original Oscar’s memories.
Anyone who successfully awakened a System would unlock a single starting trait right at the beginning.
To unlock more traits or upgrade existing traits, a Host had to complete quests given out by their System.
What will be my first trait? Oscar wondered, fixing his eyes on the dot floating in the corner of his vision.
As if answering his thought, a dark golden system interface flashed and displayed a clean layout right in front of him.
Name: Oscar
System: Divine Hack System
Level: 0 (0/100)
Traits: Aimbot | Invisibility (Locked - 10,000 EP to unlock) | Locked | Locked...
STR: 2
CONST: 1
AGI: 3
INT: 2
Mana: 20 (INT*10)
HP: 10
Below the main panel, a secondary window opened up to give a clear description of his very first unlocked trait.
[Aimbot: No shot fired by the Host can ever miss its target.]
[Range: 10 Meters (INT * 2.5)
The moment he read the text on the translucent gold window, a wave of knowledge settled directly into his brain.
He did not need to guess how any of this worked. The system automatically infused him with the exact understanding of every stat, term, and mechanic on the interface.
How convenient.
Hosts gained experience points to level up their rank by killing monsters inside dungeons or out in the wild.
Leveling up gave free stat points to distribute into Strength, Constitution, Agility, and Intelligence. Mana was calculated directly from Intelligence, while Health Points depended entirely on Constitution.
However, unlocking locked traits required special Evolution Points, or EP, which could only be earned through System Quests.
Systems gave quests based on their specific archetype.
A Fire Mage System would order its Host to cast fire spells, while a Swordmaster System would order its Host to swing a blade thousands of times.
That made Oscar wonder what kind of insane quests the Divine Hack System was going to generate for him.
Would he have to rage bait monsters? Or would he have to break the laws of physics in front of real people?
"I can figure that out later," Oscar said aloud, patting his dirty uniform down. "First, I need to make my status official."
In this society, having a System was useless if you were not registered. Unregistered Hosts could not legally buy weapons, sell monster loot, enter public dungeons, or join raid parties.
Everything was tightly managed by the global authority known as the Host Association.
Oscar walked out of the narrow alleyway and stepped onto the paved sidewalk of the city. High-rise glass skyscrapers reached up into the sky, connected by glowing blue transit lanes for flying vehicles.
Giant holograms projected news about high-ranking Hosts and dungeon raid clear times across the sides of buildings.
It was a strange mix of futuristic technology and raw mana-based fantasy.
Following the memories of his original body, Oscar walked toward the nearest transit terminal and boarded a public automated tram headed for the Central District.
Twenty minutes later, he stood before a massive marble and glass skyscraper with a golden crest above the entrance: The Host Association Regional Branch.
The ground floor hall was packed with people. Hundreds of hopeful young men and women stood in line, waiting for their turn at the registration counters.
Automated scanner arches monitored every person who walked through the front doors, detecting the presence of fresh System integrations.
Oscar took a number from a ticket kiosk and sat down in the waiting area. After waiting for nearly forty minutes, his number was called over the loudspeaker.
"Number 412, please proceed to Counter 7."
Oscar stood up and walked over to Counter 7, where a young woman in a sharp professional uniform sat behind a glass partition.
She looked exhausted, barely raising her eyes from her desktop computer screen as he approached.
"Name and Identification Number," she said in a flat tone.
"Oscar. ID number 994-012-A," he answered smoothly.
The receptionist typed his details into her computer. "Age sixteen. Civilian status: Student at District 4 Academy. You are here for initial Host Verification and Registration, correct?"
"Yes."
She pulled out a flat silver plate from a drawer and placed it on the counter.
"Place your hand flat on the reader. It will scan your soul interface to verify that you have successfully integrated a System. It does not read your private System traits, stats, or specific System name, only your Host status and energy signature."
Oscar placed his right palm onto the cool metal plate. A soft green light ran up and down his hand for three seconds before a crisp chime sounded from the machine.
Scan Complete: Active Host Signature Detected.
The receptionist finally looked up with a small nod of approval.
"You awakened a system without killing a monster?"
Oscar’s smile froze on his face. Fuck. Would that be a problem? Now thinking about it, the memory of the dead Oscar stated one had to kill a monster to awaken a system.
’I messed up big time.’
Apparently seeing the change in his expression, the receptionist hurriedly flailed her arms.
"Worry not, it’s not a bad thing. Only the descendants of powerful Hosts ever awaken a system naturally. Systems awakened in a natural way will be more potent than otherwise." She smiled.
"Since you are one of the Naturals, you will be qualified to run solo dungeons. Not only that, you will get direct entry to the Greymore Academy!" she beamed.
Oscar breathed a sigh of relief after hearing her words. Greymore or whatever, he didn’t care. But the qualification to run solo dungeons sounded good.
He nodded in satisfaction.
"Verification successful," she said, her voice becoming much more polite. She reached into a small machine next to her and pulled out a solid black card with a metallic silver chip embedded in the center.
"This is your Official Host ID Card. It is linked directly to your biological signature. With this, you can enter any public IRD dungeons, purchase regulated combat gear, sell monster materials at official markets, and join registered raid teams. Do not lose it. The replacement fee is five thousand credits."
"Got it. Thank you," Oscar said, taking the card and sliding it safely into his pocket.
With his official ID secured, Oscar left the Host Association building and took the tram back toward the District 4 Academy housing sector.
Night had fallen by the time he reached the school grounds.
The academy was a massive complex surrounded by tall security fences and guard posts. Since the original Oscar was an orphan with no family home, he lived in the academy’s free student dormitories on the edge of the campus.
It was a rundown four-story brick building that smelled faintly of old rust and damp concrete, a sharp contrast to the high-tech buildings in the main district.
Oscar climbed the creaky outdoor staircase to the third floor and walked down the dimly lit hallway toward Room 304.
His body was still aching slightly from the beating the original owner had taken earlier that day, but his mind was focused entirely on his new status and his new System.
He pulled out his room key and reached for the door handle.
Before he could insert the key into the lock, a sharp voice echoed from the end of the dark corridor behind him.
"Well, look at that. You are still alive!"