Lucian stepped into his temporary dorm room, the door clicking shut behind him with a soft thud.
The space was small—clean, bare, impersonal. Just a bed, a desk, and a shelf. Mana lights humd quietly in the corners, casting a dull glow across the walls. Outside, he could hear muffled laughter from other students settling in.
He didn’t care.
He dropped his bag to the floor, kicked off his boots, and collapsed onto the bed with a tired grunt.
In his hand, still crumpled from the walk, was the invitation from Evelyn.
The rrin Estate. The party. The high society.
He held it up, staring at the golden trim, at the way the wax seal caught the light.
Then he scoffed—quiet and bitter.
"When she awakened Petal Steps... they ignored her," he muttered. "So even mocked her. Said it was soft. Weak."
His fingers tightened around the envelope.
"But now... now that she’s shown sothing rare. Sothing they’ve never seen before... suddenly she’s the family’s pride. The future. A sensation."
He tossed the invitation onto the nightstand.
"Hypocrites."
Lucian sat up slowly, eyes burning—not with anger, but with sothing colder. Sharper.
Resolve.
"This world doesn’t care about potential. Doesn’t care about heart. All it sees is power. And those without it..."
He clenched his fist.
"...get buried."
He stood up, walking to the center of the room. His shadow stretched behind him under the pale mana light.
"I’ll do everything in my power to beco the strongest Hunter. No shortcuts. No second deaths. If I’m going to walk this path again, I’ll burn through it with my own hands."
Then he spoke louder—clearer.
"System."
The familiar screen blinked into existence.
[Yes, Lucian?]
"I’m ready. Trial of Ascension—initiate it."
A short pause. Then—
[Confirmation received.]
[Trial of Ascension – Rank F → Rank E now initializing.]
The room pulsed faintly, mana lights dimming, replaced by a silvery glow spilling from the interface.
But Lucian paused.
"Wait. Before we do this..."
The system halted.
"Yes?"
"...Do you have a na?"
Another pause.
[No. I was never given one.]
Lucian tilted his head, thinking for a mont. The glow of the screen washed over his face as he smiled just a little.
"Can’t keep calling you ’system’ all the ti."
He crossed his arms, then said quietly,
"...Your voice sounds like clarity. Like precision. You showed up the second I needed sothing to hold onto."
He nodded to himself.
"How about... Cael?"
A brief silence.
Then the screen pulsed gently. Almost warmly.
[Designation accepted.]
[From this mont onward, I shall respond to the na: Cael.]
Lucian smiled faintly.
"Nice to et you properly, Cael."
[The feeling is mutual, Lucian.]
Then the interface brightened again.
[Trial Environnt now forming.]
[Prepare yourself.]
Lucian stepped forward as the mana circle beneath his feet ignited.
His shadow lengthened—distorted by the radiant light rising from the ground.
And as the world around him began to shift, the faintest grin tugged at the corner of his lips.
This was it.
His next step.
His rebirth wasn’t just survival.
It was conquest.
And the na Lucian Black would echo far beyond these dorm walls.
The light around Lucian exploded—soundless and blinding.
And just like that, the room vanished.
When it all settled, he was sowhere else entirely.
His boots touched stone. Cold. Slick. Ancient.
The glow of the mana circle beneath his feet faded out, leaving only the flicker of torches nailed unevenly to the dungeon walls. They hissed with blue fla—cold fire, humming faintly like it wasn’t ant to be touched. Shadows danced across the hallway, long and crooked, like they didn’t belong to anything alive.
Lucian took one step forward.
The ground echoed. Not once—but twice. Like sothing else had just stepped too.
He froze. Waited.
But nothing ca.
He looked around slowly.
The place was massive—carved straight into the bones of a forgotten world. Moss grew in the cracks of the ceiling above. Rusted chains hung from archways overhead, swaying slightly with no wind. In the distance, faint groaning sounds echoed through the stone like old voices trapped in walls.
A whisper of a screen appeared before him.
[Welco to the Trial of Ascension – Lucian Black]
Environnt: Hollow Dungeon – Tier One Test Site
Objective:
Survive and clear three floors of the Hollow Dungeon.
Slay the Guardian of Floor Three.
Ranking Range of Hostile Entities:
E-Class to D-Class.
Warning:
Death within this space results in forced ejection and a 72-hour lockout before next trial attempt.
You will retain knowledge.
You will retain pain.
Rewards upon Success:
– Ascension to Rank E
– Stat Cap Increase
Lucian slowly exhaled as the rest of the text rolled in.
Environntal Conditions:
— Mana density: High
— Creature hostility: Active
— Light source: Unstable
— Psychological interference: Minimal
— System monitoring: Ongoing
A final line appeared:
This trial adapts to your existence. It is not a test of strength. It is a test of readiness.
Lucian stepped forward again, slower this ti. The corridor before him stretched into a dark spiral, descending deep underground.
The walls weren’t clean.
Claw marks.
Gouges in the stone, so still damp.
Bloodstains—dry, old, and blackened.
He crouched for a mont, pressing two fingers to the floor. It wasn’t just mana here—it was old battle essence. The type that lingered from real fights. People had died here.
A lot of them.
"Cael," he muttered. "Any hints?"
The screen flickered.
[No. You are on your own here]
"Just as I expected."
Lucian stood again.
Then took his first real step into the dungeon.
No fanfare. No music. Just the sound of boots scraping against the hollow floor, and the distant rumble of sothing waking up far, far ahead.
The Trial of Ascension had begun.
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