I Got a Godly Rank Skill

Jack sat across from Mr. Grayson, the dim lanterns in the old man's cottage casting flickering shadows on the walls. The air was thick with the scent of herbs and burning wood, but Jack barely noticed. His hands gripped the chair's edges as he leaned forward, eyes locked onto the elderly man who seemed far too calm given the situation.

"You knew," Jack finally said, his voice edged with both awe and frustration. "You knew something like this would happen to me."

Mr. Grayson took a slow sip of his tea before setting the cup down with a soft clink. "I suspected. But knowing for sure? No. Not until now."

Jack exhaled sharply. "That voice. The power. What am I?"

The old man's piercing blue eyes studied him for a moment before he spoke. "Not what, Jack. Who. And the answer to that is something even you don't fully understand yet."

Jack's fingers curled into fists. "Then help me understand."

Before Mr. Grayson could respond, a sharp knock at the door made Jack jump. The old man's eyes narrowed, his demeanor shifting from wise mentor to wary sentinel.

"Stay here," he ordered, standing up. Jack, of course, ignored that and followed anyway.

The door creaked open, revealing a woman and a man standing outside, both clad in dark, travel-worn cloaks. The woman, tall with sharp, dark eyes and auburn hair tied in a braid, stepped forward. "We need to talk," she said, glancing past Mr. Grayson to Jack. "Now."

Mr. Grayson sighed. "So, you've come sooner than expected, Aelira."

Jack frowned. "Who—?"

The man beside her, broad-shouldered with a rough beard and a jagged scar running across his chin, grunted. "He doesn't know yet, does he?"

Aelira ignored him and focused on Jack. "My name is Aelira. This is Dane. We came because we felt the surge of power from here. It's not something you can just hide."

Jack took a step back, suddenly feeling the weight of their gazes. "So what, you're some kind of secret ability police?"

Dane let out a short laugh. "Hardly."

Aelira shot him a look before turning back to Jack. "We're part of an order that's existed long before Dunswell or even the ranking system you've been raised to believe in." She stepped forward, her voice low but urgent. "You are not an F-rank. You are something far more dangerous."

Jack swallowed hard. "Dangerous?"

"Power like yours doesn't go unnoticed," Mr. Grayson said gravely, stepping aside to let them in. "And certainly not by the wrong people."

Jack felt a chill crawl up his spine. He had spent his whole life convinced he was insignificant. But now, within the span of a single day, he was being told he was something worth hunting?

Aelira studied him carefully. "Has anything… spoken to you?"

Jack hesitated before nodding. "A voice. It told me I wasn't what I seemed. That I was meant for something more."

Dane exchanged a glance with Aelira. "Yeah. That tracks."

Jack frowned. "What does that mean?"

Aelira folded her arms. "It means you're awakening into something ancient—something buried so deep in your bloodline that not even your parents knew about it. And now that you've tapped into it, others will come looking."

Jack clenched his jaw. "Who?"

Before anyone could answer, the windows rattled. A deep, guttural boom echoed through the air, shaking the very foundations of the house.

Dane was the first to react. "Damn it. They're already here."

Jack's heart pounded. "Who's here?"

Mr. Grayson's face darkened. "The Seekers."

Aelira turned to Jack. "No more time for explanations. You need to move. Now."

Another boom—this time accompanied by the crack of splintering wood. Shadows flickered outside the window, moving unnaturally fast.

Jack's pulse raced. He had just begun to understand what was happening to him, and now he was being hunted?

Mr. Grayson grabbed his cane, though the way he held it suggested it was more than just a walking stick. "They're not going to take him."

Dane rolled his shoulders, a pair of curved daggers appearing in his hands. "Then let's make this quick."

Aelira turned back to Jack. "Can you control it yet?"

Jack felt the energy pulsing inside him, raw and unstable. "Not really."

Aelira's jaw tightened. "Then do not hold back."

The door burst open, and three figures stormed inside. They were cloaked in darkness, their faces obscured by masks that shimmered like obsidian. The first lunged forward, a blade forming from thin air in their hands, aiming straight for Jack.

Without thinking, Jack raised his arm—and the world exploded.

A shockwave of energy blasted outward, sending the attackers flying. Mr. Grayson's furniture shattered, the lanterns flickered wildly, and even Aelira and Dane had to brace themselves.

Jack stood at the center of it all, his breath ragged. His hands trembled, glowing with golden energy.

One of the attackers groaned, trying to rise, but Aelira was faster. She struck them down with a precise blow, then turned to Jack with something between astonishment and approval.

"You really don't know what you are, do you?" she muttered.

Jack, shaking with adrenaline, could barely find his voice. "I—I didn't mean to—"

Dane stepped over one of the unconscious figures. "We need to move. There will be more."

Mr. Grayson exhaled slowly. "Jack, you have to go with them."

Jack's head snapped up. "What? But—"

"They won't stop coming," Mr. Grayson said firmly. "You're not safe here anymore."

Aelira grabbed Jack's arm. "We can protect you. But only if you trust us."

Jack looked at the destruction he had caused, at the masked figures sprawled across the room, and then back at the people offering him a way out. His whole life had changed in a single day. There was no going back now.

Taking a deep breath, he met Aelira's gaze. "Okay," he said. "I'm in."

And with that, his old life in Dunswell was left behind, as he stepped into the unknown.