A World That Listens
The city felt different.
Even as Liam walked through the bustling streets, the usual hum of life—vendors shouting, horses trotting, bcksmiths hammering—felt… off.
It wasn’t silence. It was something deeper.
A watchful stillness.
Evelyn hadn’t spoken much since that night. Though she promised to keep his secret, Liam could feel her gaze on him more than ever. Calcuting. Questioning.
And she wasn’t the only one.
As he passed through the market, Liam noticed the small things. A merchant who stole one too many gnces. A beggar who wasn’t really begging. A nobleman’s eyes lingering for just a moment too long.
"Someone is watching me."
[SYSTEM NOTICE: PASSIVE DETECTION ACTIVATED.]
[UNKNOWN ENTITIES OBSERVING USER: 4]
Liam stiffened.
Four people.
---
Seraphis and Nyx: Conflicting Advice
"Liam, you should leave. Now." Seraphis’s voice was tense, urgent.
Nyx, however, was amused.
"Leave? No, no. This is a perfect opportunity." A dark chuckle. "Let’s see who dares spy on you."
Liam gnced around, keeping his expression neutral. He couldn’t run—not yet. He needed to find out who they were.
Slowly, he veered into a narrow alleyway, pretending to examine a fruit stand.
Footsteps.
Light. Careful. Following.
Liam exhaled slowly.
"Fine. Let’s see who’s hunting me."
---
The First Encounter
The moment he turned a corner, Liam moved.
A burst of speed. He spun—faster than any normal person should—and smmed his arm against the nearest pursuer’s throat, pinning them against the wall.
The hooded figure gasped.
Liam’s grip tightened. "Who are you?"
The figure shuddered, but before he could speak, three others appeared.
All dressed in dark cloaks.
All with piercing silver eyes.
One stepped forward—a woman with raven-bck hair and an unreadable expression.
"We mean you no harm, System Holder."
Liam froze.
"What did you just call me?"
---
The Myth of the System Holder
The woman’s lips curled into a small smile.
"You think you are the first? That the power you wield has never existed before?"
Liam’s mind raced.
No one was supposed to know. The system had been a mystery even to him.
Seraphis and Nyx were silent.
"There is an old myth," the woman continued, her voice almost reverent. "A tale whispered in forgotten tongues. About a being who held the power to shape the world. A power granted by something beyond our understanding."
Liam’s pulse quickened.
"And what does this myth say?"
The woman’s silver eyes bored into his.
"That the world will end by your hands."
---
The Order of the Silent Watchers
Liam kept his face impassive. But inside? Panic.
"How do they know?"
The woman gestured to the others, and they lowered their hoods.
Marks.
Each of them bore an intricate sigil etched into their skin—not inked, but burned.
A sigil that looked eerily simir to the system’s interface.
"We are the Silent Watchers," the woman said. "Our duty is to observe… and decide."
Liam’s grip tightened. "Decide what?"
"Whether you are worthy of your power… or if we must end you before you become a threat."
---
A Test of Power
Liam barely had time to process before the first attack came.
The woman moved like a ghost. One second she was in front of him, the next—behind.
Liam barely dodged the bde that sliced through the air where his neck had been.
Nyx growled.
"Ah, finally. Someone interesting."
Seraphis was sharp.
"You cannot let them control the battle, Liam! Fight back!"
Liam spun, catching the second attacker’s wrist just as a dagger plunged toward his chest.
Without thinking, he twisted—hard. A sickening snap echoed through the alleyway as the attacker crumpled.
The woman’s eyes gleamed.
"Good. You learn quickly."
She lunged again, this time faster.
Liam blocked, countered, dodged— but she was strong. Too strong.
And worst of all?
She wasn’t fighting to kill.
She was testing him.
---
Unleashing the System’s Might
Liam gritted his teeth. He couldn’t keep pying defense.
[SYSTEM COMMAND: FORCE BOOST – 50% ACTIVATED]
His speed doubled.
In an instant, he was no longer just reacting.
He was attacking.
The woman barely had time to block before Liam’s fist collided with her abdomen.
She staggered.
Liam followed up with a sharp kick, sending her crashing into the alley wall.
Dust settled.
For a moment, there was only silence.
Then, she ughed.
Not in pain. Not in fear.
But in satisfaction.
"You are not what I expected."
Liam stepped forward, fists clenched. "And what did you expect?"
The woman’s smile widened.
"A monster."
---
An Uncertain Alliance
The other Watchers helped their fallen companion as the woman straightened.
"For now," she said, "we will not interfere."
Liam narrowed his eyes.
"And why is that?"
She tilted her head.
"Because you have not chosen yet."
The system’s familiar words echoed in Liam’s mind.
[1] Save the world and become its greatest hero?
[2] Destroy the world and rule over its ashes?
"We will be watching, System Holder."
Then, in the blink of an eye, they vanished.
Liam stood alone in the alleyway, his heart pounding.
He wasn’t just fighting unknown enemies anymore.
He was fighting fate itself.
And the world?
It was starting to remember him.
---
End of Chapter 7
