The sky split open at 3:17 p.m.
Kael Ardent remembered the exact time because that was when the screaming started.
Not from civilians.
From hunters.
From the so-called prodigies of the Demon Hunter Academy.
The air above the capital twisted like torn fabric. A black fracture spread across the sky, jagged and endless, as if something massive was clawing its way through reality.
Then the Gate opened.
It wasn't the first Gate humanity had seen.
But it was the last.
A pressure descended upon the city—thick, suffocating, ancient. Buildings trembled. Windows exploded. The ground cracked as something vast shifted beyond the tear in space.
Kael stood on the ruined academy plaza, blood running down his forehead, uniform torn, lungs burning.
Around him, bodies.
Students.
Professors.
Elites who had once stood at the top of the ranking board.
Rank A. Rank S. Rank SSS.
All kneeling.
All bleeding.
All afraid.
He was still standing.
Not because he was strong.
Because no one had bothered to kill the weakest first.
A bitter laugh almost escaped him.
F-Class.
Lowest compatibility. Lowest mana capacity. Lowest combat score in academy history.
Mocked for three years.
Ignored in strategy meetings.
Used as bait during practical evaluations.
And yet here he was.
Still breathing.
Above them, something moved within the Gate.
A silhouette the size of a mountain.
Eyes like twin eclipses opening in the void.
The Demon Sovereign had finally descended.
One of the S-Rank prodigies screamed and launched forward, sword blazing with condensed mana.
He didn't even reach the Gate.
A ripple pulsed through the air—
And he disintegrated.
Not cut.
Not crushed.
Erased.
Kael watched silently as the strongest of his generation charged one after another.
Each one fell.
Some burned.
Some imploded.
Some simply vanished.
This was the truth no one had understood.
They were never meant to win.
A professor staggered to Kael's side, coughing blood.
"You… why are you still standing…?" the man whispered.
Kael didn't answer.
Because he knew.
In three minutes, the plaza would collapse.
In five minutes, the Gate would expand.
In seven minutes, the Sovereign would descend fully.
He had memorized the sequence.
He had watched it happen once already.
Because this wasn't the first time.
No—
It was the only time.
The memory struck him like lightning.
Training grounds.
Mockery.
Rank announcements.
The crystal glowing dull gray.
F-Class.
Always F-Class.
He had spent three years observing. Listening. Surviving.
He knew which hidden dungeon beneath the academy held a mana core no one discovered in time.
He knew which professor secretly studied forbidden techniques.
He knew which classmate would betray humanity for power.
He knew—
Too late.
The ground beneath him cracked.
The professor beside him was swallowed by darkness.
The Sovereign's presence descended fully.
Kael's knees buckled.
Not from fear.
From gravity.
From a force that crushed everything equally—genius or failure.
The world dimmed.
Flames devoured the academy tower.
The ranking monument shattered.
The sky became black.
So this is the end, he thought.
Not with anger.
Not with regret.
Only with clarity.
If I had known sooner…
If I had prepared differently…
If someone weaker had been given knowledge instead of talent…
His vision faded.
The Sovereign's gaze fell upon him at last.
For a brief, impossible moment—
It smiled.
Darkness swallowed everything.
—
Kael inhaled sharply.
Cold air filled his lungs.
Not smoke.
Not ash.
Air.
He stumbled forward, nearly collapsing—
And froze.
The academy courtyard.
Pristine.
Undamaged.
Students gathered in neat rows.
Sunlight overhead.
No screams.
No blood.
At the center of the plaza stood the Ranking Crystal.
Untouched.
Whole.
A voice echoed across the courtyard.
"Welcome to the Demon Hunter Academy."
Kael's heart stopped.
No.
No, that was—
"Today, your ranks will be determined."
His hands trembled.
Three years ago.
Entrance ceremony.
The beginning.
Students lined up ahead of him.
Laughing.
Confident.
Alive.
Kael slowly looked down at his hands.
No scars.
No dried blood.
No fractures.
He turned toward the ranking board.
Blank.
Waiting.
His pulse pounded in his ears.
This isn't possible.
But he remembered.
The Gate.
The Sovereign.
The deaths.
He remembered everything.
His gaze sharpened.
If this was real…
If this was truly three years ago…
Then the first hidden dungeon would appear in forty-seven days.
The first professor would die in ninety-two.
And the betrayal would begin in one year.
He stepped forward as his name was called.
"Kael Ardent."
Murmurs spread immediately.
Some already recognized him.
Low mana capacity.
Poor physical score.
Unremarkable background.
He placed his hand against the crystal.
It glowed.
Dim.
Gray.
Cold.
A number formed above his head.
F-Class.
Silence.
Then laughter.
Exactly as before.
Nothing has changed.
Except me.
Kael slowly lifted his gaze.
This time…
I won't stand at the bottom.
Even if the world itself tries to stop me.
And somewhere—deep, faint, almost imperceptible—
A crack echoed.
As if something beyond the sky had noticed.