Runes

In the history of planet Earth, many discoveries have brought great progress to humanity.

The fire discovered by our ancestors, electricity and industrial development.

But if I were to choose the most important moment in human life.

The only choice would be the emergence of the Grey World.

Another dimensional plane in which monsters that only existed in the imagination were real.

This led humanity to take another step in its evolution.

Many people awakened new powers through the powerful runes that appeared in our world, and those who explored the Grey World were called "Initiates"

*************

"Damn... Without a rune I'll never change my life"

Edgar said as he hid behind a ruin of an ancient temple.

Many humans gained powers, but others remained normal.

Edgar was a normal person who, in order to survive in this new reality, worked as a porter for the Initiates.

He was responsible for collecting the runes dropped by the monsters that inhabited the Grey World.

Many years have passed since the discovery of the Grey World.

And now a group of Initiates from one of England's only S Rank Guilds was attacking a newly discovered portal.

There was a lot of constant shouting from the Initiates involved in the battle ahead.

Taking part in the raid were many S-rank Initiates, as well as one SS-rank.

Even so, they were facing a colossal creature.

However, they were losing the battle.

Edgar could see the number of bodies on the ground getting higher and higher.

In front of them was an SSS-rank monster.

The highest monster rank seen so far. And the S-rank or SS-rank were useless in the face of the creature's power.

That's why Edgar was hiding for the moment, trembling and afraid of meeting his death,

'Damn runes'. he cursed himself for having no power

"Edgar... Edgar... you useless weakling with no power," he said to himself, trying to feed what little courage he had.

When he was born he was diagnosed as not having a runic root.

Which gives humans the ability to utilise the power of runes.

It was the saddest moment for his parents, because as a child he always said he would be an Initiate to help his family have a better life.

Nowadays, even a B-rank Initiate lives a life of luxury.

As a result.

Edgar's parents continued to struggle through their difficult daily life until they died a few years ago

Edgar, who had just graduated from school at the time of his parents' death, moved in with his aunt, his mother's sister, and after graduation got a job as a porter.

Believing that by being inside the Grey World a miracle could happen.

But so far nothing has happened.

When he looked at the battle again, he saw a sea of bodies piled up.

No-one was alive apart from him.

[Only you remain]

A voice was heard inside his head.

He heard a voice inside his head.

Without realising it, the SSS-ranked creature located him and swooped in to attack.

The energy concentrated and moved towards Edgar.

Almost meeting death.

"Fuck"

It was too late to pray.

A few centimetres from death, Edgar felt the world stop.

Maybe it was God or something.

But a miracle really did happen at that moment.

Time stood still.

A status window stood before him.

[Name: Edgar Tyler] [Age: 22] [Rank: ?] [Primary Rune: Unique Rebirth]

"Haha... hahaha," he laughed.

It was the moment he'd longed for.

His runic ability was to avoid death once.

The world thawed and the creature's energy hit him.

It was the end, death.

And now his new beginning.

*************

After a few moments of drifting through the darkness.

"Where am I?" Edgar regained consciousness.

A land above the clouds with beautiful golden buildings.

That's when he noticed a mountain in the distance.

But widening his vision, it seemed that the mountain had fangs and wings.

[Welcome to the Realm of Rebirth of the First Dragon] the voice he had heard before sounded again in his head.

[Will you be reborn?] the voice asked.

Edgar had no other request.

He was going to change his life, this time he was going to be someone with the power to change destiny.

"Yes," he said.

[Receiving the Primordial Rune - EX-rank Predation] the voice announced.

"Oh my God. EX-rank... what is that?" he was in a state of shock.

Because in the world the highest rank a human had ever awakened was SS-rank.

[Change your destiny] The voice sounded.

Time stopped again and Edgar's mind was once again in darkness.

No great Dragon that looked like a mountain.

No creature that killed the Initiates.

Just light floating in the darkness.

Until he was interrupted by something

*************

Knock... knock... knock...

He was dazed and sleepy.

"Edgar, you're going to be late for your first day at work," he heard his aunt's voice as she knocked on the door.

He snapped back to reality.

"Status," he called into his system.

[Name: Edgar Tyler] [Age: 18] [Rank: EX] [Primary Rune: Predation]

He was back four years earlier, when he started living with his aunt after his parents died.

"Too bad I didn't come back for longer," he sighed, remembering his parents.

But now he would have power, he had a rune.

"Edgar... Edgar?" his aunt opened the door and saw him still in bed.

Coming out of his thoughts.

"Huum? Auntie? Yes, I'm awake, I'll get ready," he said as he got out of bed.

'It's not a dream,' he thought as he clenched his fists.

"All right, darling," she said as she left the room.

My rune, he thought.

[EX-rank predation - Ability to acquire other runes for the host]

"Man, that's a steal," he laughed now with his new power.

There have been humans with the ability to absorb more than one rune, in addition to the one awakened at birth.

But at most only two more runes.

Edgar seemed to have no limits.

The runes brought from the Grey World were used to make tools, weapons, armour and inventions in the human world.

The big companies had a monopoly on the material.

"Forget the porter's job, I'll go to the guild to improve my rank," he said to himself about what to do today.

His phone rang, bringing him out of dreamland.

<Crimson Sword Guild>

It was one of the strongest Guilds in England and where he had signed up for the job of porter.

"Hey you little shit, you're late," a voice shouted into the phone when he answered.

It was the supervisor who had given him the job. A very unfriendly and arrogant guy because of his small position.

"I don't want the job any more," Edgar said bluntly.

"Huum? You don't want it? You think it's a joke, you're not going to work anywhere anymore," he said in a threatening tone.

Edgar simply hung up the phone.

He got ready again, but now his destination was the country's Initiate Centre.

It regulates the laws of the Initiates and manages the guilds.

"See you auntie," he said as he kissed his aunt and left for his new destination.

After 50 minutes he was standing in front of a huge corporate building with large letters at the entrance:

{England Initiates Centre}

Edgar walked over to the reception desk where a pretty woman was working.

"Hello," he said to get her attention.

"Hello, what is your business today?" she asked.

"I'd like to do a rank assessment," Edgar informed her.

The attendant looked at him as if she was analysing him.

"Of course, take this badge, the assessment will take place in the room at the end of this corridor.". She signalled to him as she handed over the badge. "Just follow this blue line on the floor," she showed him the line that helped him move around the building.

Edgar was only moments away from really changing his fate.