Elias sat by the window of a silent café, the city sprawled before him like a living, breathing chessboard. Every building, every street, every pedestrian — he saw it all differently now. His mind, sharpened to an impossible edge, absorbed everything in terrifying clarity.
Across from him, his coffee steamed gently. He hadn't touched it. His focus was on the golden watch around his wrist, humming with quiet power.
It displayed a new message:
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"Phase Two Initiated: External Forces Activated."
Incoming Challenges:
Rival Watch Bearers Detected.
Secret Organizations Mobilized.
Unknown Threat Level: Catastrophic.
Prepare Yourself.
---
Elias leaned back, exhaling slowly.
He was no longer the only one.
Somewhere out there, others had watches like his — or perhaps worse. Competitors. Predators. Monsters. He realized then that the gift he had been given wasn't just about building himself up... it was about surviving an unseen war.
And he had already been marked as a target.
---
The first sign came that night.
While walking back to his apartment through the neon-lit streets, Elias noticed them:
Two men in black coats, moving far too smoothly through the crowds. Their steps in perfect rhythm. Their gazes unblinking, following him with mechanical precision.
Assassins.
Without hesitation, Elias turned a corner and disappeared into a dark alley.
Within seconds, they followed.
But Elias was not the boy they thought they could ambush.
He had supreme physical prowess now.
As one lunged at him, a glinting dagger in hand, Elias caught his wrist midair, twisting with brutal efficiency. A crack echoed, followed by a sharp cry. The second attacker drew a pistol — but Elias was faster. He grabbed a trash lid from the ground, hurling it with pinpoint accuracy.
It smashed into the man's hand, sending the gun skidding into the gutter.
In less than fifteen seconds, both were on the ground — gasping, defeated.
Elias knelt beside one of them, yanking down the man's collar.
Tattooed just above his heart was a symbol: a black serpent coiled around a clock.
The symbol burned into Elias's mind like fire.
---
The Watchers.
A secret organization devoted to hunting and collecting artifacts like his golden watch.
He hadn't stumbled into power by accident.
He had been chosen.
And now, he was a marked piece on a board far bigger than he imagined.
---
The watch on his wrist pulsed again.
New Side Quest Available:
Unlock Medicine Mastery.
Unlock Elite Driving Ability.
Unlock Psychological Manipulation.
Each came with new tasks — tests designed to push him even further beyond human limits.
Elias's lips curled into a slow, dangerous smile.
If they wanted a war... he would give them one.
But he would play by his own rules.
And this time — he would make sure he was the one pulling the strings.
---
Far above the city, inside a penthouse shrouded in glass and gold, a man in a white suit watched a monitor displaying Elias's fight in the alley.
He sipped from a crystal glass and turned to a figure lurking in the shadows behind him.
"Send the next candidate," he said coolly. "Let's see if Elias is truly ready... or if he's just another pawn destined to break."
---