"Such a terrible drink," said the young guy, looking at the drink in his hand with a distracted gaze.
It was a new product from the Matrix company, which promised unforgettable sensations while drinking. On the way to school, he saw an advertising banner that depicted this "miracle," promising the taste of apples mixed with your joy, which was supposed to create a "mind-blowing" flavor. But as it turned out, it was just an ordinary cheap fake with the taste of rotten apples.
It didn't even blow his mind.
He sighed and looked at the reflection in the glass bottle. What he saw was a handsome young man with black hair and purple eyes. His face showed no emotion, as if he hadn't felt anything pleasant for a long time.
His name was Lin, and he was an ordinary high school student who didn't interact with anyone, except for the one person with whom he had built a good relationship.
But at the moment, he wasn't at school, so he had no chance to talk to anyone.
But that didn't bother him much.
Lin sighed and looked out the window, seeing the daytime expanse of the city. The city was brightly lit by the sun, and countless cars rushed along the roads. In general, the city lived its natural life, without any oddities.
"Buthow fake this looks," Lin snorted.
For him, the expanses of this bright and beautiful city were fake because he knew that many criminals and underground organizations were present in this city, as well as unpleasant people he didn't want to deal with.
However, he had already interacted with them since childhood, which shaped who he was now.
"After my parents died six years ago, I had to survive on the streets and adapt to the conditions there. Fortunately, my desire for revenge against the Matrix family was so strong that I spared no one who got in my way. In the end, those so-called "criminals" turned out to be just a small gang of big guys who wanted to show off," he shook his head and continued:
"There wasn't even a single Awakened among them! How can they call themselves "influential people" if they don't even have an Awakened in their ranks." Lin coldly snorted and turned away, looking at his own classroom.
The classroom was filled with teenagers aged 15–16, and everyone was doing something. Some were chatting with their friends, others were sitting and drawing what they liked. The class lived its life without any problems.
At that moment, while Lin was scanning the classroom, he noticed the person he was waiting for.
The young guy walking toward him had golden hair and bright green eyes, his face was relatively handsome, and his skin was pale. His most distinctive feature was round glasses in silver frames, which created the impression of a pleasant and intelligent person.
It was Egro, Lin's only friend.
When Egro approached Lin, he waved his hand and said:
"Isn't that our Lin Matrix? Why are you sitting with such a cold expression, as if something bad happened?" He sat opposite Lin and asked with interest.
Without extra words, Lin showed him the glass bottle and said:
"I didn't think that a drink created by my family would turn out to be so terrible. Although what's there to be surprised at — they probably stole the recipe from another company and created this monstrosity that's impossible to drink."
He looked up and continued:
"And stop calling me by my last name. I've renounced it. I don't call you Egro Trix," Lin replied with a sigh.
"Alright, alright." Egro awkwardly smiled and changed the subject:
"By the way, today is supposed to be your sixteenth birthday, right?"
Lin nodded.
"Yes. Today, if I'm lucky, I should awaken and get the long-awaited title. And if not..." He didn't continue but instead asked Egro:
"You were born a week later than me, so your title should awaken soon too."
Egro nodded.
"Exactly. I've thought a lot about it, and honestly, if my title awakened, I'd want it to be Abstract, not Physical or Elemental. After all, Abstract titles are the strangest right now; they can grant abilities that human consciousness doesn't understand!" he replied enthusiastically and continued:
"Although I don't really expect it, it would be good if I became Awakened. It would really help me, and I could finally improve Rana's life..." He looked at his desk and pondered.
Rana, whom he meant, was his younger sister. A few years ago, Egro's parents died due to the suddenly opened Red Gates near their home. Since then, he had to take full care of her, no matter what.
This was one of the traits of Egro that Lin respected. After all, not everyone can lose their parents and remain steadfast, helping their sister. But Egro managed it and showed his determination in matters concerning her.
It involuntarily reminded him of himself.
Although he hadn't talked with his sisters for a long time.
Not dwelling on that too much, he asked Egro:
"How is she now?"
Egro looked up at Lin and smiled brightly:
"Very well! She's about to enter high school!"
Lin smiled.
"Congratulations."
"Thanks! By the way, I've been thinking. What title would you like to get? Or rather, what ability would you prefer? After all, after the Great Distorted Cataclysm — over a hundred years ago — people received special abilities numbering in the hundreds of thousands. With such a huge variety... it's really hard to choose."
Lin thought for a second.
The Great Distorted Cataclysm — which Egro mentioned — happened over a hundred years ago and marked the beginning of a new era — the Era of Titles and Distortions.
During the Great Distorted Cataclysm, millions of teenagers worldwide who reached sixteen years old received a special system — the Title System. In this system, a teenager was given a random Title, divided into three categories: Abstract Titles with incomprehensible and strange abilities; Physical Titles with abilities related to the physical body; and Elemental Titles with abilities allowing control over natural elements.
Naturally, when clueless and excited teenagers who thought they had received their own "golden finger" and became chosen by fate began creating real chaos, bringing despair and pain to ordinary people.
But it didn't last long.
Literally a week later, Gates of various colors began appearing worldwide, causing even more chaos than the teenagers with the main character syndrome. The Gates summoned waves of Distorted creatures around the world, destroying it, nearly annihilating it. Fortunately, rational teenagers appeared who understood that the powers they had received were not given just like that but to oppose this Distortion and its influence.
And that struggle continues to this day, growing stronger every day. That period was called the Great Distorted Cataclysm.
...
Lin pondered.
He had thought about this thousands of times, but among all possible options, he understood that Abstract Titles were the most universal and practical because of their strangeness.
Of course, he considered Physical and Elemental Titles, but realized each had weaknesses in their understandable structure, which every person understood. I think everyone knows how fire works, right?
But not everyone knows how space or time works, and those were the easier options. What if someone got a title related to luck or fate? Then what?
In general, the answer was obvious.
"If I were given the right to choose, I would naturally choose Abstract Titles because of their versatility. And the ability... most likely instant kill," Lin answered simply.
Egro was surprised, then laughed and said:
"Indeed, who wouldn't want instant kill in the ability repository? Then you wouldn't have to worry about developing your body or skills. You could just point at a person with your finger and use your ability to instantly kill them."
He smiled and added:
"Also, you wouldn't have to worry about Distorted creatures and Dead Worlds. You would kill everything with just a thought."
"Are there even abilities that protect you from that?" Egro asked Lin thoughtfully.
Lin nodded.
"Of course. For example, if you controlled time, you could go back to the past before your death."
"That makes sense," Egro nodded.
"In general, instant kill is just a convenient ability, nothing more. Against masters of their craft, instant kill becomes just ordinary."
"So, I'd advise you to develop yourself multifacetedly. Don't underestimate your enemies if they are Physical Awakened and you are Abstract," Lin advised Egro.
"Thanks for the advice!" Egro thanked him.
Lin just smiled and looked at his phone screen to see the time.
The phone showed lunchtime, indicating that Lin's sixteenth birthday was soon!
At that moment, a cold mechanical voice sounded in Lin's head, and a blue screen appeared before his face!
[Success!]
[User: Lin Matrix receives a title...]
[Success! User: Lin Matrix received Abstract Title: Lord of the Time!]
"What?.."