Dawn arrived at precisely five in the morning, announced by a sharp bell that cut through any lingering sleep. Jace was already awake, his body having adapted to early rising during the desperate weeks before trials. He dressed quickly in the standard Academy uniform provided to bronze tier students. The fabric was functional but plain, marked with a small bronze insignia over the left chest. A visible reminder of his classification that every instructor and student would immediately recognize.
Kiri materialized beside him, her golden eyes alert despite the early hour. Her stats had stabilized after the arena fights and subsequent recovery. Power 290, Spirit 295, Constitution 285, Speed 300. All sitting at or near the Rare Tier ceiling. The Royal Stat Floor made her perform like a Low Epic beast, but that advantage remained invisible to surface observation.
The hallway filled with other bronze tier students, all moving toward the stairs with varying degrees of alertness. Some looked eager, determined to prove themselves worthy of advancement. Others appeared resigned, already accepting that bronze tier was likely their permanent status. Marcus emerged from his room, offering Jace a brief nod of acknowledgment before joining the flow toward the exit.
Outside, the training grounds were already crowded despite the early hour. Bronze tier students gathered in designated sections, clearly separated from silver and gold tier groups by both spatial boundaries and unspoken social rules. The division was immediately obvious. Gold tier students occupied the premium facilities near the central towers. Silver tier used the standard equipment in the middle ring. Bronze tier was relegated to the worn, poorly maintained outer fields.
An instructor approached the bronze section. Middle aged with scarred features and the hard eyes of someone who'd survived extensive combat in the Wild Continent. His name tag read Instructor Vex. His contracted beast, a heavily scarred War Hound, stood beside him radiating Low Epic tier power that made most bronze tier students instinctively step back.
Vex's voice carried military precision without warmth. "Bronze tier. Your training schedule is straightforward. Physical conditioning from dawn to mid morning. Beast combat drills until midday. Tactical theory in the afternoon. Controlled missions into Zone 1 twice weekly starting next month."
He gestured to the worn equipment scattered across the bronze section. Damaged practice dummies, rusted weapon racks, cracked training stones. "You have access to basic facilities. If you want better resources, advance to silver tier. If you want premium equipment, reach gold tier. Merit is earned through results, not complaints. Questions?"
Silence. The hierarchy was brutally clear. Earn advancement through performance or remain at the bottom indefinitely.
Vex nodded approval. "Good. Physical conditioning begins now. Twenty laps around the outer training field. Your contracted beasts run with you. Maintain pace or fall behind. Move."
The bronze tier students began running. Jace settled into a steady rhythm, his Constitution of 105 making the exercise manageable but not effortless. His body had improved dramatically since the cultivation breakthrough, but twenty laps was still a significant physical demand this early in the morning.
Kiri ran beside him, her Seraph physiology allowing her to maintain speed without visible effort. Her Speed of 300, amplified by the Royal Stat Floor to effective 390, meant she could have completed the laps in minutes. But Jace kept her pace controlled, matching his own rhythm. No reason to draw attention during basic conditioning.
Around them, other students struggled at varying levels. Those with lower Constitution stats quickly fell behind, their breathing laboured and movements uncoordinated. A few with better physical conditioning pulled ahead, eager to demonstrate superior fitness to the instructors watching from elevated platforms.
Jace maintained his position in the middle of the pack. Not impressive enough to draw attention, but not struggling enough to appear weak. The Prince's tactical mind catalogued every visible student, identifying potential allies, threats, and useful resources. Most were unremarkable. Standard Rare Tier summoners with adequate stats and conventional training. Nothing particularly dangerous.
Three laps in, a commotion erupted near the gold tier section. Jace's awareness expanded immediately, his Insight of the Tactician talent providing enhanced perception without conscious activation. The disturbance carried weight, drawing attention from every section of the training ground.
Aeliana had arrived. Her presence was impossible to ignore, even from across the field. She moved with absolute confidence, her Epic Tier aura visible to anyone with basic spiritual awareness. Her contracted Gryphon walked beside her, its magnificent form radiating power that made Instructor Vex's War Hound look ordinary by comparison.
She wasn't participating in bronze tier conditioning. Gold tier students had different training schedules, private instructors, and access to premium facilities that bronze tier students would never see. But her arrival in the training grounds created an immediate shift in attention. Students stopped running to watch, their focus drawn to her like metal to a magnet.
Aeliana walked directly to the gold tier section, her gaze sweeping across the assembled students with casual assessment. Her eyes passed over the bronze section briefly, dismissing them as beneath notice. Just another group of failures struggling through basic conditioning exercises.
Then her gaze caught on Jace. Recognition flickered across her refined features. The three time failure who'd somehow passed trials with a wingless Seraph. Her expression shifted to something between mild curiosity and obvious disdain.
Jace maintained his running pace, refusing to stop or acknowledge her stare. Through his bond with Kiri, he felt the Seraph's awareness sharpen, recognizing the Epic Tier threat and the social danger it represented.
Aeliana's lips curved into a small, condescending smile. She turned to one of her gold tier companions, a wealthy looking young man with an expensive Storm Hawk perched on his shoulder, and said something. Her voice carried clearly across the training ground despite the distance, the words deliberately projected to be heard.
"Is that the failure everyone was talking about last week? The one who pulled a Mythic Lion only to be rejected by it?"
Her companion responded with matching condescension. "Same one. Heard he contracted some defective Seraph afterward. No wings. Probably won't survive past bronze tier."
Aeliana's smile widened, her tone carrying amusement rather than genuine malice. Like discussing a mildly entertaining curiosity rather than a person. "Probably not. But it's interesting that he thinks he belongs here. The Academy needs tuition revenue from failures like him. They'll extract every available credit before reality forces him out."
The words were clearly calculated to be overheard. A deliberate insult establishing dominance and reminding Jace of his place in the hierarchy. She was Epic Tier, backed by the wealthy Silverpeak Nation, daughter of power and privilege. He was bronze tier, a three time failure who'd gotten lucky once and would inevitably fail again.
Instructor Vex noticed the disruption and moved to intervene. "Gold tier students, if you're not actively training, clear the grounds. Bronze tier, maintain pace. Conditioning doesn't stop for spectators."
Aeliana ignored the instruction. Her status as Epic Tier gave her privileges that transcended normal rules. She walked closer to the bronze section, her Gryphon following with predatory grace. The other gold tier students watched with interest, sensing potential entertainment.
She stopped directly beside the path where bronze tier students were completing their laps, her timing deliberate. The positioning forced students to run past her elevated status, a physical manifestation of hierarchy.
Jace approached on his current lap. Aeliana's gaze locked onto him with focused intensity. Her expression shifted from casual amusement to active mockery.
"Jace, wasn't it?" Her voice carried false sweetness. "The three time failure who finally succeeded. I'm genuinely impressed you made it through trials. Academy standards must be more flexible than I remember."
Jace continued running, refusing to stop or respond. Engaging would only give her more ammunition. The Prince's discipline transformed the insult into cold fuel, stoking the fire of future revenge rather than immediate reaction.
Aeliana stepped directly into his path, forcing him to stop or collide with an Epic Tier summoner. The threat was implicit but absolute. Disrespect her and face consequences that bronze tier status couldn't protect against.
Jace stopped, maintaining neutral expression and respectful posture. "Lady Aeliana." His tone was courteous but not subservient.
She studied him with the same clinical assessment she might give a curious insect specimen. Interesting enough to examine briefly, but ultimately disposable. "Your Seraph. The wingless one. I'd like to see her more closely."
It wasn't a request. It was a command phrased as polite interest. Refusing would be seen as disrespect to a gold tier student with significant political backing. Complying meant allowing her to publicly evaluate and criticize Kiri, reinforcing the hierarchy in front of every watching student.
Jace gestured to Kiri, who stepped forward without hesitation. The Seraph's golden eyes met Aeliana's gaze without flinching, her bearing showing pride despite her obvious physical defect. The scars where wings should have been were clearly visible, smooth and deliberate rather than accidental injury.
Aeliana circled Kiri slowly, her assessment clinical and thorough. Her Gryphon watched with similar interest, its Epic Tier aura making Kiri's Rare Tier presence seem insignificant by comparison. The power differential was obvious to everyone watching.
"Interesting," Aeliana said finally, her tone professionally analytical. "Rare Tier, stat capped based on the energy signature I'm sensing. Good base stats for the tier. But the wingless condition severely limits combat effectiveness. Seraphs are valued specifically for aerial superiority and divine judgment strikes from above. Without wings, she's reduced to a fast ground fighter. Adequate for bronze tier training exercises, I suppose, but she'll never compete at higher operational levels."
The dismissal was complete. Not deliberately cruel, but stated as objective professional assessment delivered with the absolute confidence of someone who'd never faced real challenge or uncertainty. Aeliana was evaluating Kiri the same way she might assess training equipment. Functional for basic purposes but fundamentally limited.
Jace maintained his neutral expression, but internally the Prince's rage burned cold and absolute. She saw only surface appearance, completely missing the Royal Stat Floor advantage, the tactical training, the hidden performance boost that made Kiri fight like a Low Epic beast despite her Rare Tier classification. That ignorance was his weapon.
Let her underestimate them. Let everyone assume the wingless Seraph was inadequate. When the time came to demonstrate true capability, the shock would shatter her confidence and damage her reputation far more effectively than any argument could achieve now.
Aeliana stepped back, her evaluation complete. "Work hard, Jace. Bronze tier is where most students realize they don't actually belong at the Academy. The system is efficient at identifying and removing inadequate summoners. But who knows, maybe you'll surprise everyone and advance to silver tier eventually."
The false encouragement was worse than direct insult. It positioned her as magnanimous, offering hope to someone beneath her while simultaneously reinforcing that bronze tier was likely his permanent ceiling. The implied hierarchy was absolute and publicly displayed.
She turned and walked away, her gold tier companions following like courtiers attending royalty. The bronze tier students resumed their laps, the interruption adding extra burden to already taxed bodies and bruised egos.
Jace continued running, his mind processing the encounter with analytical precision. Aeliana had just made her first significant tactical error. She'd publicly dismissed him, establishing herself as the superior standard and making her contempt visible to everyone present. That public declaration created opportunity.
When Jace eventually demonstrated his true capabilities, when Kiri proved herself far more dangerous than surface appearance suggested, Aeliana's earlier mockery would be remembered by every witness. The contrast between her confident assessment and actual reality would damage her reputation and tactical credibility. More importantly, it would establish Jace as someone who exceeded expectations through hidden capability rather than obvious power.
The rivalry had officially begun. Not because Jace sought conflict, but because Aeliana had designated him as her personal example of inadequacy. That casual dismissal, delivered with absolute confidence in front of dozens of witnesses, had transformed him from random bronze tier student into her symbolic representation of failure.
Through his bond with Kiri, Jace felt the Seraph's quiet fury. She'd been evaluated, dismissed, and insulted based purely on physical appearance. The wingless defect, judged worthless by someone who'd never faced real struggle or understood what true power actually meant.
"Patience," Jace transmitted through their bond, his mental voice carrying the cold discipline of three thousand years of royal tactical doctrine. "Let her believe we're inadequate. Her ignorance is our greatest tactical advantage. When we demonstrate capability, the impact will be maximized by the contrast with her current assessment."
Kiri's golden eyes burned with controlled fire, but she understood. The Seraph princess, once exiled and marked for destruction, would prove her worth through undeniable results rather than arguments or explanations.
Jace finished his remaining laps and moved with the group toward the next training exercise. Beast combat drills would follow conditioning, providing the first real opportunity to demonstrate capabilities without revealing hidden advantages. He needed to impress Instructor Vex enough to avoid being dismissed as hopeless, but not so dramatically that questions were raised about his methods or knowledge sources.
The balance required precision. Show competence without brilliance. Demonstrate potential without mastery. Create the impression of a bronze tier student who might advance through dedicated effort, not a tactical genius operating with royal knowledge and hidden bloodline advantages.
Aeliana had ignited their rivalry with absolute confidence in her superiority. But she had no idea what she'd actually challenged. The debt ridden failure she'd just publicly mocked possessed knowledge she couldn't comprehend, advantages she couldn't detect, and determination forged through losing everything and clawing back from absolute bottom.
The climb continued, now with an audience watching specifically for him to fail. And when he succeeded instead, the reversal would be devastating to everyone who'd underestimated him.
The Prince's cold smile never reached Jace's face, but it burned in his mind. Let them mock now. Let them assume bronze tier was his ceiling. Soon enough, they'd learn exactly what a reincarnated Prince with three thousand years of forgotten knowledge could achieve when properly motivated by public humiliation.