The Real Life System

Adrian returned to the menu, eager to check his updated rankings. As soon as he did, a series of system messages appeared before his eyes:

[ Original Appearance ranking: 6,183,836,635 ]

[ Updated Appearance ranking: 6,183,836,511 ]

[ Original Intelligence ranking: 1,236,376,278 ]

[ Updated Intelligence ranking: 1,236,361,193 ]

[ Original Knowledge ranking: 3,076,665,378 ]

[ Updated Knowledge ranking: 3,076,657,389 ]

[ Original Power ranking: 5,066,654,324 ]

[ Updated Power ranking: 5,066,653,370 ]

[ Original Richness ranking: 5,165,352,987 ]

[ Updated Richness ranking: 4,365,352,971 ]

[ Original Fitness ranking: 6,364,734,843 ]

[ Updated Fitness ranking: 6,364,425,823 ]

[ Original General ranking: 5,346,745,839 ]

[ Updated General ranking: 5,001,611,843 ]

His eyes widened in shock.

"No way… I actually moved up in the rankings?"

He had never expected to advance so much, especially not by just completing his first exercise. But here it was, right in front of him. He had passed nearly a billion people in the richness ranking in a single step.

His general ranking had jumped forward massively, making him feel an unfamiliar yet thrilling sense of power.

Adrian clenched his fists, excitement rushing through his veins. His confidence soared as he whispered to himself:

"What if I become number one in every ranking? Wouldn't that mean I could control the world? I could become the ruler of this miserable world..."

The door opened, and the doctor walked in to check on him. The man looked at Adrian with a mixture of surprise and admiration.

"What kind of person is this boy?" he wondered. Despite his skinny body, Adrian had survived extreme conditions and now seemed to be healing at an unbelievable speed.

The doctor approached him, scanning his condition carefully. Then, with a satisfied nod, he said,

"That's good, Adrian. Your fractures are healing fast. The speed of your recovery amazes me. If everything goes well, you can leave tomorrow."

Adrian's face lit up with a grateful smile.

"Thank you, doctor," he said sincerely.

As the doctor left, Adrian leaned back on his bed, feeling excitement build inside him.

"So I can go back soon to my fitness training," he thought.

His hands clenched into determined fists.

"Wait for me, world, I'm coming back!"

As soon as the doctor left, he lay back on the bed, staring at the ceiling. He had once more to enter the training zone this night before he got out. 

He thought carefully.

"What factor should I choose this time?"

He had already tried some factors before, but there were still three left:

Appearance Factor

Intelligence Factor

Power Factor

His first instinct was to avoid the Power Factor, his body was still recovering, and he didn't want to take any risks. The system was too serious, too real. If something went wrong, he could actually die inside the simulation.

"No way. I'm not ready for that yet."

That left him with two options: Appearance or Intelligence.

He didn't hesitate for long.

"I should go with Intelligence."

If he became smarter, he could understand more about how this world worked. Maybe he could even uncover the secrets of the system itself.

Without overthinking, he pressed the Intelligence Factor option. The screen glowed brightly, and a new message appeared :

[ Confirming selection… Intelligence Factor activated. Preparing for training. ]

A strong dizziness hit him instantly. His vision blurred, and before he knew it, everything around him faded into darkness.

Adrian felt like he was floating in an endless void. His body was weightless, and his mind felt strangely sharp, as if every thought was clearer than before. Suddenly, the darkness shattered like broken glass, and he found himself inside a massive library.

The walls stretched endlessly in every direction, filled with ancient books, glowing scrolls, and floating holograms displaying complex equations and mysterious symbols. The air smelled of old paper and something strangely electric, like a storm about to begin.

A deep voice echoed through the space.

[ Welcome to the Intelligence Factor Training Zone. ]

As Adrian stood in the vast, glowing library, the air around him shifted once again. The bookshelves trembled, and the golden letters floating in the air rearranged themselves to form a new message in front of him:

"All begins with memory. He who remembers the most shall be called the smartest."

Then, the system displayed a new prompt:

[ You have a test of memorizing these cards. ]

Adrian's body tensed as a deep, powerful ROAR echoed through the glowing library. His breath caught in his throat. He turned his head sharply, his eyes widened.

A lion.

It stood behind thick metal bars inside a cage, its golden fur illuminated by the strange light of the room. Its massive paws scraped the ground, its sharp fangs visible as it growled lowly.

Adrian swallowed hard.

"A real lion…?"

He had never seen one before, only in pictures. But now, one stood just a few meters away, its intense eyes locked onto him. His heartbeat pounded in his ears.

Then, the system displayed another message:

[ There are 4 sessions in this test. ]

[ Session 1: Memorize the 4 cards and match them correctly. ]

[ Each card has a "sister", find the correct pairs. ]

[ If you make a mistake… the animal in the cage will be set free. ]

Adrian's eyes darted around. He hadn't noticed before, but now he saw them, 32 cages surrounding him, each one holding a different animal.

A cold shiver ran down his spine.

The system continued:

[ Session 1 : 4 cards. ]

[ The challenge will grow harder with each session. ]

Adrian clenched his fists. He had no choice. If he failed, he would have to face whatever lurked inside those cages.

A platform rose before him. Four glowing cards hovered in the air. Each one had a picture:

[You have 10 seconds]

Adrian focused on the four glowing cards in front of him.

1️⃣ Cat

2️⃣ Lion

3️⃣ Lion

4️⃣ Cat

He thought carefully, then quickly matched them:

Cat with Cat, Lion with Lion.

[ Success! ]

The system flashed green, and he let out a relieved breath. No cages opened.

Then, eight cards appeared. The difficulty had increased.

[You have 15 seconds ]

1️⃣ Snake

2️⃣ Lion

3️⃣ Horse

4️⃣ Dog

5️⃣ Dog

6️⃣ Horse

7️⃣ Lion

8️⃣ Snake

Adrian's hands trembled slightly, but he kept his mind sharp. He paired them correctly, one by one.

[ Success! ]

But this time, he felt different. The challenge was getting harder. His heart pounded.

Then, an idea hit him. A strategy to survive.

"If I make a mistake, the animal will be released," he thought.

"I should focus on matching wild animals first. If I mess up with weak ones, like a cat or a dog, their attacks won't be as dangerous."

He took a deep breath.

[ Session 3: 16 cards. ]

[You have 30 seconds ]

More glowing cards appeared before him, filling the space. The pressure increased. He had to stay calm, think fast, and survive.

Adrian took a deep breath as 16 glowing cards hovered before him. The challenge had doubled in difficulty. The system's cold voice echoed:

[ Session 3: Match the cards correctly. A single mistake will release the animals. ]

He scanned the cards quickly. The images were more varied and confusing this time.

1️⃣ Tiger

2️⃣ Eagle

3️⃣ Wolf

4️⃣ Hamster

5️⃣ Bear

6️⃣ Cat

7️⃣ Eagle

8️⃣ Lion

9️⃣ Tiger

🔟 Wolf

1️⃣1️⃣ Cat

1️⃣2️⃣ Rabbit

1️3️⃣ Hamster

1️⃣4️⃣ Bear

1️⃣5️⃣ Lion

1️⃣6️⃣ Rabbit

Adrian forced himself to stay calm. His plan was clear: Match the dangerous animals first.

He focused on the Tiger, Eagle, Lion, Wolf, and Bear, if any of these got out, he was dead.

Tiger with Tiger – Matched

 Eagle with Eagle – Matched

 Wolf with Wolf – Matched

 Snake with Snake – Matched

 Bear with Bear – Matched

 Cat with Cat – Non matched

 Rabit with Rabit – Non matched

 Humster with Humster – Non matched

[ 3 Errors! ]

Adrian's heart raced as the sound of metal clanking filled the air. Three cages had opened.

A cat, a rabbit, and a hamster leaped toward him. They weren't deadly like the lions or tigers, but they were fast and unpredictable.

The cat hissed and jumped toward his face. The rabbit dashed around his legs, trying to trip him. The hamster... well, it just ran in circles, but still!

Then, the system displayed a new prompt:

[ SURVIVE FOR 2 MINUTES ]

Adrian jumped back to avoid the cat's claws.

"Damn, this is harder than I thought!"

He quickly analyzed the situation:

The cat was agile but small. He had to dodge its attacks. The rabbit was fast, so he needed to stay balanced. The hamster... well, he could ignore it for now.

Adrian moved carefully, making sure not to trip.

The cat lunged at him again, but he ducked in time. The rabbit bumped into his foot, almost making him fall. The hamster... was still running in circles.

[ TIME UP! ]

A blue light flashed, and the animals disappeared. Adrian fell to his knees, breathing hard.

"That was too close… and that was just small animals!" he thought.

The system's voice returned:

[ Session 4: Final Test – 32 Cards ]

[You have 60 seconds ]

Adrian stood up slowly, his body still tense. This was it. One last test. If he failed now… he didn't even want to imagine what would be released.

To be continued …