The academy cafeteria was louder than a monster den at dawn. Plates clattered, students gossiped, and dozens of conversations overlapped into an overwhelming drone. Normally, Leon ignored all of it. Today was no different.
He entered with Damian trailing behind him like a paranoid shadow, constantly checking corners as if assassins lurked behind the oatmeal pot.
"Leon, I'm serious," Damian whispered. "Those nobles yesterday? They weren't just staring. They were plotting. Planning. They're going to kidnap you and make you marry into their houses."
Leon picked up a tray. "I'm sixteen."
"Even worse!" Damian whispered louder. "They'll raise you like a prized golden goose!"
Leon didn't reply.
They sat at a corner table—far enough from the main crowd, but still in view of everyone. The whispers started immediately.
"That's Leon Gray…"
"EX rank."
"He completed his mana loop in one morning."
"His training partner is Damian Crest—he awakened S-rank too."
"That dorm room must be insane…"
"What if he awakens more talents later?"
"Is he going to join the Royal Academy?"
Damian puffed up. "Ignore them. They're just jealous."
Leon cut a piece of bread. "You're eating more than me."
Damian froze. His plate was piled with meat, eggs, bread, and something unidentifiable. "Stress eating," he muttered. "I deserve this."
Leon didn't disagree.
Halfway through their meal, a sharp chiming sound echoed through the hall.
Every student stiffened.
That sound was only used for one thing:
Academy-wide announcements.
Instructor Hale's voice boomed from the enchanted crystal embedded in the wall.
"All first-year awakenees—report to the assembly courtyard immediately."
Damian dropped his fork. "Oh no. What now? Are they going to measure brainwaves? Blood samples? Do we have to fight each other?!"
Leon stood. "Let's go."
Damian groaned and followed.
The courtyard was already packed when they arrived. Students whispered anxiously as Hale stepped onto the raised platform. Other instructors gathered behind him, all looking more serious than usual.
Hale cleared his throat. "Yesterday's awakening produced… unexpected results."
Dozens of eyes darted toward Leon.
Damian covered Leon's face with his hands. "Don't look at him! Look at me!"
Leon pushed his hands away.
Hale continued, "Because of this, the academy will accelerate the training schedule. You will undergo your first dungeon assignment earlier than planned."
The courtyard erupted in noise.
"Dungeon? Already?!"
"We just awakened!"
"I barely know how to use mana!"
"I don't even have a weapon!"
Hale raised his voice. "Silence."
Everyone obeyed.
Hale continued, "This will not be a combat mission. It is a Dungeon Assessment Run. Your objective is to enter a low-level dungeon, survive the first layer, and return. This tests mana endurance, teamwork, and adaptability. You will not fight anything too dangerous, but expect real monsters."
Damian gulped audibly. "Monsters? Real ones?"
"Yes," Hale said dryly. "Dungeon creatures don't stop for loudmouths."
Damian shrunk into his boots.
Hale continued, "You will be placed into teams of five. Each team must include at least one ranged attacker, one melee fighter, one defensive type, and one support. The fifth slot varies based on talent and profession."
Students nodded nervously.
Leon waited calmly.
His Luck talent pulsed faintly—an invisible rhythm aligning the moment.
Hale began calling out teams.
"Team 1… Team 2… Team 3…"
Students grouped up anxiously. Some cheered; others groaned when placed with rivals.
Then—
"Team 7: Selwyn Ridge, Kain Alder, Ruth Vail, Lara Thorne, and…" Hale paused slightly, eyes flicking to Leon, "…Leon Gray."
Silence followed.
As expected.
Damian choked. "They put you with ALL the top new awakeners?! That's not a team, that's a trap!"
Leon didn't look surprised. Hale was intentionally assembling a balanced, reliable team around him to avoid disaster—or to ensure success depending on how the Council viewed his awakening.
Selwyn Ridge approached first. Her silver hair swayed in the sunlight. She nodded respectfully. "Leon. I look forward to your cooperation."
"Same," Leon replied.
Kain Alder thumped his chest. "I'll handle the frontline. Ironbear Warriors don't back down."
Ruth Vail smiled shyly. "I'll support with my tamer abilities… even if I can't summon strong beasts yet."
Lara Thorne bowed. "I will keep everyone healed."
Damian looked ready to cry. "Leon… don't die without me…"
Leon blinked. "I'm not dying."
"You SAY that," Damian wailed, "but dungeons are scary! What if a monster sneezes on you?!"
"It won't," Leon said.
Hale clapped his hands to recapture attention. "You will depart tomorrow morning. Today, you must learn the dungeon briefing and practice formation movement."
The groups dispersed into their teams.
Team 7 walked to a corner to discuss their plan.
Selwyn spread out a parchment map depicting the dungeon layout. "This is the Mosswood Cavern. A Rank-F dungeon. The monsters inside are mostly Moss Creepers—weak but annoying."
Kain grinned. "Weak is good. Let me crush the first one."
Ruth scratched her cheek. "Please don't rush. Creepers attack in groups…"
Lara added, "And their poison is hard to cleanse."
Leon nodded. "We'll clear the first layer."
Selwyn hesitated. "Leon… with your unusual awakening, the instructors will expect perfection."
Leon responded simply. "I know."
Selwyn exhaled, relieved by his confidence.
By the time training ended, Leon had memorized routes, enemy patterns, and every potential hazard. His memory felt slightly sharper than yesterday—not because of high Spirit alone, but because Luck was smoothing the edges. Subtle improvements. Tiny optimizations.
Damian sulked while watching from afar. "They're stealing you…"
Leon approached him. "You're not in my team."
"I KNOW!" Damian cried. "How will I protect you?!"
"You won't," Leon said.
Damian stared at him. "You say that, but it hurts every time."
Leon walked away.
Damian sniffled dramatically behind him.
Evening came swiftly.
Leon returned to his room and sat on his bed, adjusting the straps on the leather bracers the academy issued for dungeon safety. The scent of polished wood and iron filled the small space. He opened his status panel.
Name: Leon Gray
Profession: Battlemage — EX Rank
Talent: Luck (EX Rank)
Level: 1
Stats remained unchanged, but the pulsing rhythm of Luck felt clearer now. It was subtle, but the more he acknowledged it, the more he could sense it moving—the way his breathing aligned, the way his thoughts settled, the way tomorrow's path seemed slightly easier to visualize.
He would enter his first dungeon tomorrow.
It wouldn't be difficult.
It wouldn't be dangerous.
Not compared to the future he knew was coming.
But it was the first true step toward the power he needed.
Strength wasn't a goal.
It was a requirement.
For the life he intended to build.
For the dangers he sensed beyond this small world.
For what was coming.
He closed the panel.
Tomorrow would be interesting.