Lucas walked back toward the slums with a storm of thoughts swirling in his mind.
Aegis Norwood's scrutiny.
Elara Valenford's intervention.
The system's chilling new notification.
Suspicion Level: 1.
A value that shouldn't exist—not at G– rank, not for a slum orphan who was supposed to be invisible. Every strong person who noticed him this early meant the plot was becoming more unstable.
And Eldorin was not kind to those who attracted the wrong kind of attention.
"Stay calm," Lucas muttered under his breath. "Focus on what you can control."
But the truth was—
Aegis could have exposed him.
Elara could have seen through him.
And if either of them sensed even a hint of his hidden elements or his bloodline…
He wouldn't survive five months.
By the time he reached the training ground, Kael stood waiting with crossed arms and a scowl.
"Took you long enough," Kael grumbled. "Who the hell was that guy? I couldn't chase after you without making things worse."
Lucas exhaled. "An Academy examiner."
Kael's eyes widened. "The Academy… sent someone for YOU?"
Lucas shook his head. "Not exactly. He was… curious."
Kael frowned. "That doesn't sound good."
"It wasn't." Lucas stretched his arms slowly, trying to ignore the sting of exertion. "But someone arrived at the right moment."
Kael snorted. "Who? A god?"
Lucas didn't answer.
Kael narrowed his eyes. "…You're hiding something."
Lucas didn't deny it.
But Kael didn't press further. He wasn't the type to pry into secrets—unless those secrets threatened someone he cared about.
Instead, he pointed at the ground. "Since you're alive, get to training."
Lucas gave a tired smile. "Bossy."
"You bet."
Lucas forced himself to move.
Today, the pain was worse than yesterday.
But so was his resolve.
Stretches.
Breathing drills.
Running laps.
After the first lap, Lucas felt his legs turn to jelly.
By the fifth, darkness edged at the corners of his vision.
Kael noticed.
"Stop," he said. "You're about to collapse."
Lucas shook his head, wiping sweat.
"I can... still run."
"No, you can't."
"Yes, I can."
Kael stepped in front of him, blocking the path. "You want to die training? That's stupid."
Lucas didn't back down.
"I don't have the luxury of resting."
Kael's jaw tightened.
They stared at each other.
Then Kael exhaled sharply.
"Fine. But do it SMART, not suicidal."
He moved aside. "Run short bursts. Walk. Run again. Build stamina, not break bones."
Lucas blinked.
"…You know a lot for someone our age."
Kael snorted. "I fight. A lot."
That… explained it.
Lucas resumed training—this time with Kael shouting corrections every few seconds:
"Posture!"
"Breathe!"
"Stop dragging your feet!"
"Eyes up! Don't act like the ground's about to eat you!"
Lucas followed each instruction, one after another.
The system rewarded his endurance.
[Stamina Training Detected]
Stamina +1
Vitality +0.1
By noon, Lucas was trembling from exhaustion, but his breathing wasn't as ragged as before.
Progress.
Slow, painful progress.
By evening, after sword practice and meditation, Lucas finally allowed himself to collapse under the broken archway.
His entire body felt like it was stitched together with needles.
Kael sat beside him, chewing a piece of dried fruit.
"You look like you're about to ascend to heaven," Kael said.
Lucas groaned. "If heaven looks like a bed, I'll go."
Kael burst out laughing.
"Fair enough."
Then something happened.
Lucas felt… something.
A chill.
A pulse.
A faint vibration under his skin—like a whisper of mana calling to him.
His vision momentarily blurred.
"…What was that?" he muttered.
"You good?" Kael asked.
Lucas straightened, scanning the area subtly.
Nothing moved.
No monsters.
No gang members.
No suspicious mana traces.
Just—
A faint silver shimmer in the far alley, a flicker at the edge of his senses.
Lucas's blood ran cold.
"That…"
It was the same feeling he sensed in the ruin.
Old.
Familiar.
Connected to the emblem he saw.
A whisper.
A call.
A bloodline resonance.
Lucas stood abruptly.
Kael stood too. "What? What the hell is it?"
Lucas didn't answer.
He walked toward the alley.
The silver flicker vanished.
Kael grabbed his arm. "Stop. Something's wrong, isn't it?"
Lucas breathed slowly.
"It felt like… something calling to me."
Kael blinked. "Calling to you? Who?"
Lucas didn't know.
But he felt it.
Like someone was watching him.
Like someone wanted him to follow.
He took a step forward—
And a sound echoed behind them.
A cough.
Dry.
Pained.
Weak.
Both boys turned sharply.
An old man sat leaning against the broken wall of a house, breathing heavily. His skin was pale, his arms thin, his chest rising with difficulty.
A slum elder.
People usually died young here. Someone reaching old age… meant they were strong once.
Kael lowered his guard slightly. "You scared the hell out of us, old man."
The elder gave a raspy laugh.
"Sorry, boy… not my intention."
Lucas watched him carefully.
The old man's eyes were cloudy but sharp—too sharp for someone so frail.
"You boys train well," the old man croaked. "Especially you… Lucas Starlight."
Lucas stiffened immediately.
Kael stepped forward defensively. "How do you know his name?"
The old man smiled softly, exposing cracked teeth.
"…Because I knew his parents."
Lucas felt his heart stop.
"What did you just say?"
The old man coughed again, harsher this time.
"I knew your father… the man who walked like a blade. And your mother… the woman whose mana shone like the night."
Lucas's breath hitched.
"You're lying," he whispered.
The man chuckled.
"If only I were…"
Lucas's hands trembled.
Nobody in the slums knew anything about his parents.
Nobody in the novel had spoken about them before they died.
Nobody should know their identities.
The man lifted a shaking finger and pointed at Lucas's chest.
"At the heart… you carry their legacy."
Lucas stepped back involuntarily.
The old man coughed blood onto the ground.
Kael grabbed his arm. "Lucas, get away—something's wrong with him."
The old man smiled weakly.
"Your parents… they fought to protect Eldorin. They—"
He coughed violently again.
His breathing turned shallow.
"Time is short… demons stir… and the shadows remember your blood…"
His hand trembled.
"Find the sealed ruin… north of the district… before they do…"
Lucas's pulse pounded.
"Who?! Who's looking for me?!"
The old man's eyes meet his.
"Those… who killed your parents."
Lucas froze.
Kael's face hardened.
"Lucas—"
The old man grabbed Lucas's hand, gripping surprisingly tight.
"Starlight child… survive."
Then—
His hand went limp.
His chest stopped rising.
The old man… died.
Just like that.
Lucas stood frozen, blood pounding in his ears.
Kael shook his shoulder urgently. "Lucas! Hey! Snap out of it!"
Lucas inhaled sharply, eyes wide.
He felt cold.
Numb.
Shaken to the core.
He knew nothing about his parents.
Nothing about their death.
Nothing about their enemies.
The novel never revealed any of this.
Why now?
Why him?
Why this old man?
Kael looked around urgently.
"We need to leave. Someone might've seen this."
Lucas's voice trembled.
"He… he knew them."
Kael shook him.
"Lucas! Listen! Whoever he talked about might come here. We move. NOW."
Lucas nodded numbly.
They dragged the old man's body into a shaded area, covered him with cloth, and left silently.
As they walked, Lucas felt the system stir.
A soft, ominous notification appeared.
[Bloodline Recognition Detected]
Starlight Lineage — Stage 0.1 Awakened
A hidden memory fragment stirs within your heritage.
New Quest Available:
"Find the Sealed Ruin"
Lucas's heart pounded.
Elara's suspicion.
Aegis's probing.
The old man's message.
The silver flicker.
Everything was connected.
And the sealed ruin…
It wasn't the one he cleaned yesterday.
Something else was waiting.
Kael grabbed Lucas's arm.
"Whoever your parents were… things just got dangerous, didn't they?"
Lucas swallowed hard.
"…Yeah."
And as night settled over the slums, one truth became clear:
His reincarnation wasn't a coincidence.
His parents weren't ordinary.
And the world wasn't going to wait for him to grow.
Not anymore.