On their drive to the Academy, Awner did not speak much. He looked at the sights of the city flying past the window of Jet's personal transport vehicle. It looks so futuristic, he thought.
"Okay, System, show my reward."
A blue panel emerged:
[1000 System Points]
[Attribute Evolution Memory]
[Awakened-Rank Memory]
Additional reward for obtaining Divine-Rank Aspect:
• 1500 System Points
• One Ascended-Rank Memory of any type
The System was also upgraded when the host became a Sleeper.
New Function: Allows the user to view the status of other users.
"System, how many System Points do I have?"
2810 System Points were available in the System Shop.
After browsing through the items in the shop, I was shocked. You could literally buy anything — even powers from other fictional worlds — but the cost was extremely high. It would take centuries to afford an overpowered ability from another universe.
After that, I spent 500 points on my Void Core. I received one Void Fragment for every five System Points since my core was still dormant.
Void Fragments: 100/1000
It felt incredible to become stronger. My body and dormant ability were receiving a noticeable boost in power.
I still had many points left, but I decided to use them later.
Awner was standing in front of the massive, seemingly indestructible red gates of the Awakened Academy. The Academy was practically a city within the city. It was built like a fortress, with high alloy walls, a deep moat, and numerous heavy turrets positioned to create a deadly air-suppression dome. No Nightmare Creature — not even colossal titans — was supposed to be able to break through its defenses.
It was a legendary place. Many of the most popular webtoons, youth dramas, and novels took place behind that wall. Adventures, rivalries, and romantic entanglements of young Awakened heroes were the mainstream theme of modern entertainment. Never in his wildest dreams had Awner imagined becoming one of those heroes.
A bit farther away, Nephis — descendant of the Immortal Flame Clan — was standing with headphones on. She was a tall, slender girl around our age, with clear grey eyes and a cool, detached expression. Her silver-white hair, short and neatly parted, gave her this sharp, elegant vibe. She was slightly shorter than me, but carried herself like someone born important.
She glanced at us, confident and distant, clearly not planning to start a conversation. I gave her a small wave and a smile — the kind of smile a smooth talker uses when trying to sell something, just for fun. She stepped forward when the gates opened, moving like she owned the path. Honestly, she just seemed socially aloof… but I wasn't any better. My social skills were basically zero, so Sunny and I followed behind her.
Inside, the building was bright and spacious. Sunny and the silver-haired girl were taken into a large hall filled with around a hundred new Awakeners — all adults, all dragged into this life at the same chaotic moment. Most looked tense, excited, it was chaos.
The Academy staff always had it rough. The Spell infected people unpredictably, so there was no clean way to organize classes. Some Awakeners got a year to prepare for the Dream Realm, some months, some days.
That's why induction ceremonies happened every month at first, and then every week once winter solstice got close. Some people waited days before being inducted — but I got lucky and arrived just a few hours before this one started.
I already knew what Sunny was going to do, so I wasn't paying him much attention. Neph was trying to aura farming and make an impression, but it wasn't working — nobody cared. Meanwhile, I had already decided on my own goal: Cassie.
According to the System, I could teleport into a Nightmare close to 1 individual or complete random . Cassie would be the smartest choice. She couldn't see my runes anyway, and at this point I only had three attributes, so there wasn't much for anyone to notice.
My appearance — almost Gojo-like, even in a police tracksuit — drew attention from plenty of people. They tried to talk, tried to brag, tried to share their Nightmare stories. I ignored them and kept moving.
Then I saw Cassie.
The quiet girl had a delicate, soft presence — demure, composed, and effortlessly pretty. Her clothes were simple but well-chosen, tidy and elegant in a way that showed taste, not wealth. Pale blonde hair framed her features, and her blue eyes held a calm depth that made people look twice without knowing why. There was something refined about her, something polished, like a porcelain figure crafted with care.
But beneath that gentle exterior was a different kind of allure — subtle, but undeniable. The kind of beauty that didn't shout, but lingered in the mind. A grace that hinted at what she would become in her full bloom: poised, captivating, and breathtaking in a way that would silence rooms and make hearts stumble.
She wasn't just pretty now — she carried the promise of a woman who would one day turn admiration into awe.
Here we go again.
" .. "