Chương 13: Testing

Ch 13 - Testing Despite Reid telling him he could take several days off, Evan still insisted on going to school the following day. It would be best not to spend too much time around Reid lest the man notice something was off. As the person closest to the other Evan, he was the most likely to realize that his little brother had been replaced. Besides, dealing with Yuyan and Marcus at school seemed far easier.

"Yo, Evan! I thought you were going to take a week off!" Marcus said, waving when he saw Evan entering the classroom.

"I'm not that lazy," Evan said.

"No, but we know how your brother is," Yuyan said.

"I saw his interview, by the way. He looks cool." Evan narrowed his eyes at Yuyan.

"You're not developing a crush on my brother, are you? Let me tell you, you don't have a chance at all."

"Don't be stupid! My heart only belongs to Junhao, okay?" Yuyan protested.

"But I'm not blind. Anyone can see how cool and handsome your brother is. It's honestly a wonder why you look so plain when your brother is like that. Did your parents' genes just give up on you?" Marcus snickered.

"Thanks for the compliment," Evan said dryly. Class began soon afterward, and Evan forced himself to focus, taking notes and paying attention as best he could. He hadn't been lazing around at home at all yesterday. Aside from reading up on monsters, Awakeners, and countless other topics, he had also tried to absorb as much class material as possible. Maybe it was because he was inhabiting the other Evan's body, which had already learned these subjects, but he found it relatively easy to recall and understand them.

The hours ticked by, and soon a familiar ringing noise echoed through the school, signaling the start of lunch break. Marcus and Yuyan half sprinted toward the cafeteria, with Evan following behind at a more leisurely pace. The spacious dining hall was filled with rows of long tables and attached benches.

Along one side stretched a serving counter where students lined up to collect their meals, while groups of classmates filled most of the seats, chatting with friends or staring down at their phones between bites of food. Evan picked a corner that wasn't surrounded by teens and sat down away from the busy serving counter. Not long after, Yuyan was the first to arrive with her lunch. Setting down her tray, Yuyan glanced at the open bento in front of Evan.

It was neatly packed with fluffy white rice, glazed teriyaki chicken, rolled tamagoyaki, vegetables, shrimp tempura, and meatballs, with strawberries and mandarin slices tucked into the corner for dessert.

"It never ceases to surprise me how much your brother spoils you rotten," Yuyan said.

"When did he get the time to make all this?"

"He's suspended, so he has plenty of free time now," Evan said. He was admittedly a little shocked when Reid handed him the bento that morning. He knew his brother had been busy in the kitchen the previous night preparing food, but he hadn't expected any of it to be for his lunch. Evan almost wanted to squirm in embarrassment as he opened the box. Unlike the cafeteria meals everyone else was eating, his homemade bento stood out quite a bit.

"I'm so jealous," Yuyan said, glancing between her meal and Evan's.

"Your brother really will make a fine husband. He'll definitely treat his wife right."

"I told you that you don't have a chance at all," Evan said, biting into his teriyaki chicken.

"Geez, calm down. Didn't I already tell you that I'm not interested in your brother that way?" Yuyan rolled her eyes. Then she pulled something from her pocket and tossed it at Evan, who caught it at the last moment. Looking at it, he discovered it was a keychain charm featuring a chibi version of Junhao with his signature grin.

"What's this?" Evan asked.

"A gift. What else?" Yuyan said, picking up a piece of stir-fried beef with her chopsticks.

"Didn't I say I was planning to give you something for saving me?"

"You said you changed your mind," Evan said.

"And I..." He recalled the moment he ran away after Yuyan and Marcus were captured by the Awakened Thornwood Tree's vines.

"I don't blame you," Yuyan said.

"Honestly, I probably would've done the same in your shoes. Besides, you got caught not long after, and your brother ended up saving all of us anyway. No point holding a grudge." Evan pursed his lips.

"Hey, guys! What's with the gloomy mood?" Marcus chattered as soon as he arrived and sat down beside Evan. His eyes landed on the bento box.

"Whoa, are you really not going to share a bit with me?" Evan frowned but didn't stop Marcus from stealing one of his meatballs.

"Let me have some too then!" Yuyan said, using her chopsticks to snatch a piece of teriyaki chicken. He let her have one but swatted away their thieving hands when they tried to go for seconds.

"You have your own meals. Don't steal mine."

"Aw, how about a trade then?" Marcus said, offering a piece of his stir-fried beef. Evan simply turned his head away. When they finished lunch, Evan attached the Junhao keychain charm to his phone. Frankly, he found it garish and completely unsuited to his tastes, but it was the first gift he had received from someone. As a result, even Junhao's annoyingly smug grin didn't seem quite so bad. The next few days passed peacefully, and, to Evan's relief, the annoying System notifications never appeared again.

He spent the time learning more about the world while refining his act. Meanwhile, Reid continued making boxed lunches for him during the remaining days before his departure for District 1. It didn't take long for Marcus and Yuyan to grow jealous after seeing the lunches. They pestered Evan so relentlessly that he eventually caved and asked Reid if he could make two more. Reid simply smiled and happily added them to his morning routine.

Evan had every intention of making them listen to a lecture about their complete lack of shame before handing over the lunch boxes. Unfortunately, the moment he started talking, they simply took the boxes from his hands anyway. By the time he finished, they had already eaten half their lunches and were busy debating what Reid should cook for them next. The routine continued for the rest of the week.

Every morning, Reid prepared lunch boxes while Marcus and Yuyan shamelessly accepted them without the slightest hint of guilt. Before long, the day of his departure arrived. As Reid boarded the Express Rail bound for District 1, Hye-Jin accompanied Evan to see him off. The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. The District 20 Rail Station was one of the largest structures in the area, rising several stories above the surrounding buildings.

Large digital displays above the entrances showed departure times and service updates. Inside, the spacious main concourse bustled with activity as commuters streamed through the security gates and hurried toward the boarding platforms. Reid stood near the entrance to the boarding area with a large suitcase, a carry-on, and a duffel bag neatly arranged beside him. A backpack hung from one shoulder, completing the modest amount of luggage he had brought for the move.

"Are you sure you're going to be okay?" Reid asked.

"You've already asked that a dozen times," Evan said, not even bothering to reassure him, knowing it was pointless.

"If you keep asking, I might actually burn the apartment down."

"Calm down, Mama Bear. I'll make sure your brother doesn't get into any trouble at all," Hye-jin said.

"Please don't forget to visit him at home," Reid said.

"I know," she replied with an exasperated sigh. Like Evan, she had also been told that repeatedly by Reid.

"Express Rail service to District 1 will depart in five minutes." The announcement spread throughout the station.

"See? Off you go or you'll miss your train," Hye-jin said, shooing Reid away. Reid could only reluctantly gather his belongings and head toward his train car. Soon, the train pulled away from the platform. Reid, seated by the window, waved at Evan and Hye-Jin until they disappeared from view. They stood there waving back until the last carriage vanished into the distance. Afterward, Hye-Jin escorted Evan home. The apartment felt strangely empty when he stepped inside.

It had never been particularly large, yet without Reid around, the place felt almost too spacious, its silence pressing down on him in a way he had never noticed before. Evan shook his head, reminding himself that he had lived alone after being kicked out of the orphanage, and went to make dinner. There were still plenty of ingredients left from their last grocery run, so he prepared a simple meal for himself: rice with scrambled eggs and tomatoes. It was a far cry from the dishes Reid made.

The man was practically perfect, even in the kitchen. Evan had been cooking for himself for years, but after getting used to Reid's meals, his own suddenly tasted disappointingly bland. His phone vibrated. A message from Reid appeared on the screen. [Have you eaten yet?] [Yeah.] Evan replied and sent a picture of his half-eaten dinner. [Looks good, but you should add chicken next time.] [Okay.] Evan smiled at Reid's endless fussing and finished his meal.

He washed the dishes afterward and finally stood in the middle of the living room. Now, with Reid out of the picture for a while and the apartment entirely to himself, Evan could finally do what he had been waiting for. He opened his skill window and looked at his abilities. [Main Character Who?] [The main character? Who's that? You're nobody. No one. Nobody will pay attention to you! Amazing! Maybe you can try tugging on a tiger's whiskers, but I wouldn't recommend it!] From what he had read, Awakeners eventually used their abilities instinctively, but newly awakened ones still had to activate skills manually through the System window. Since this was his first time, Evan pressed the skill icon and held his breath. Whoosh! Darkness spread from his shadow and enveloped his entire body. It lasted only a fraction of a second before fading. When Evan looked down, he found that his body had become translucent. Curious, he pulled out his phone and switched on the camera.

The screen showed nothing where he was standing. His eyes brightened. He wondered what the limits of this ability were. Keeping the skill active, he stepped outside, locked the door behind him, and began walking through the neighborhood. Several people passed by on their way home, yet none of them paid him any attention. That alone wasn't enough proof. They could simply have been too focused on getting home to notice him. He was about to test it further when the invisibility suddenly vanished. Evan blinked.

The sudden deactivation gave him an idea. Finding a discreet corner, he pulled out his wristwatch and started measuring exactly how long the skill lasted. Standing still allowed him to remain hidden for roughly fifteen minutes. The moment he began walking, however, that limit dropped to around ten minutes. Running reduced it even further, leaving him with barely five minutes of invisibility. The cooldown appeared to be about a minute. Overall, it wasn't bad.

Moving on to his next test, Evan entered a nearby convenience store and approached a woman browsing the shelves. With his skill active, he tapped her on the shoulder. The woman turned around and looked directly at him. Yet her eyes slid past him as though he wasn't there. She frowned and glanced around in confusion.

"Neat," Evan said. The sudden voice made the woman jump. She spun around frantically, searching for the source. Apparently spooked enough, she hurried to the cashier and paid for her items as quickly as possible. Watching her flee, Evan rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

"My bad," he muttered. He hadn't expected to end up playing the role of a ghost. Awkward incident aside, excitement bubbled inside him. This ability was far more useful than he'd imagined. It didn't just make him invisible. It erased his presence entirely. As long as he remained silent, people simply wouldn't notice him. He would still need to test it on Awakeners and monsters. There was a chance they possessed abilities that could detect him despite the skill. Even so, this was an excellent ability.

"Thanks, System!" Evan said. [(¬_¬)] Despite the System's usual cold and dismissive attitude, the smile on Evan's face didn't fade. Over the following days, he spent much of his free time testing his abilities while living alone without Reid. Sometimes he wandered through crowded public areas with the skill active, though he always made sure to retreat to a secluded corner before the timer expired. It wouldn't do to get caught as an unregistered Awakener.

During this time, he also tested his other ability, You're Not Supposed To See This. This one was far more straightforward, allowing him to view people's System windows. And he meant people, not just Awakeners. He could even see the System windows of Marcus and Yuyan despite neither of them being Awakeners. So far, he seemed limited to viewing only their names, ages, titles, and statuses. Still, if he could upgrade the skill, he would likely be able to see more.

Evolving or upgrading a skill was extremely difficult. Hard work alone often wasn't enough, and sometimes it came down to sheer luck. Luck, unfortunately, wasn't something Evan had much of. His gaze drifted toward The Curse of ■■■■■■ on his system window. He had recently discovered another interesting detail about the curse, if it could even be called interesting. [Status Effect: The Curse of ■■■■■■] [You've been cursed. By who? Who knows? But don't expect luck to be on your side. If one had to put it into stat numbers, you'd probably be somewhere between -999 and -1.] It seemed his luck was permanently stuck in the negatives, and whenever The Curse of ■■■■■■ activated, things somehow became even worse. Amazing. Even now, he still wasn't sure who this censored person was. He was half convinced it was the creator of the System, but who knew? Maybe they were just friends who enjoyed trolling him.

Evan shook his head, stopping himself before he could fall into another one of his usual tirades against the System. There was no point dwelling on it. This was still good news. While his luck remained terrible, the curse hadn't activated for quite some time, and he could now confidently say that he knew his way around Nova Terra. At the very least, he wouldn't be caught off guard the way he had been on his first day here.

If there was one thing Evan was still unsure about, it was how long he could keep convincing Reid that he was his little brother. So far, there hadn't been any problems. His personality wasn't all that different from this world's Evan, but the missing memories remained a major obstacle. His Memory Synchronization Progress had been stuck at ten percent for days, leaving him with little knowledge of Evan's personal history. With a sigh, Evan rolled over on his bed.

He had already finished his homework and was now simply lazing around, thinking about the various things he needed to do and the things he needed to watch out for. Ring! Suddenly, his phone buzzed, pulling him from his thoughts. He picked it up and saw that Marcus was calling.

"Marcus?" Evan asked.

"What? Do you need help with the homework or—""Evan…" Marcus's voice shook.

"I… my cousin was kidnapped."