The first thing I noticed when I woke up was the ceiling.
Which was concerning.
Because it wasn't my ceiling.
I stared upward for several seconds.
White stone.
Mana-reinforced support beams.
A floating healing crystal suspended directly above my bed.
Right.
The healing ward.
That explained the medicinal smell.
And the fact that my entire body felt like it had been trampled by a mountain.
I slowly turned my head.
And immediately regretted it.
Lucien was sitting beside my bed.
Using one of his fingers to pick his teeth.
Classy.
"You awake?"
"I was considering going back to sleep."
"Fair."
His answer came immediately.
Then something caught my eye.
Rings.
Ten silver rings.
One on each finger.
Small.
Simple.
Harmless-looking.
Star Devourers.
Of course.
The moment I saw them, irritation immediately surfaced.
Lucien noticed.
His grin widened.
"Oh,You're not going to ask."
"I know exactly what they are."
That grin somehow became larger.
"annoyed?"
"Yes."
The answer left my mouth instantly.
Because those rings meant one thing.
During our fight—
Lucien had been suppressed.
Each Star Devourer consumed one star of power.
Ten rings.
Ten stars.
Meaning the monster I fought in the arena had willingly reduced himself from seventeen stars to seven.
I nearly died fighting a restrained Lucien.
A realization that remained deeply offensive.
Lucien leaned back in his chair.
"For the record, Father makes me wear them."
"did he now."
"yes i did."
The voice came from the doorway.
Father entered.
Immediately followed by Ceal.
Unlike Lucien, Ceal actually looked productive.
Which was normal.
He probably designed three new artifacts before breakfast.
Father stopped beside my bed.
"You survived."
I stared at him.
That was apparently all the praise I would be receiving.
"...Thank you."
Father nodded once.
Satisfied.
Then left.
Just like that.
Lucien laughed.
"He likes you."
"I refuse to believe that."
After Father departed, Ceal took over the conversation.
He placed several documents beside my bed.
"Since you're awake, I figured now would be a good time."
"For what?"
"Education."
I immediately disliked where this was heading.
Ceal adjusted his glasses.
"The star system."
Right.
That.
While I already understood it, the explanation still deserved consideration.
Because the world I had written was no longer merely words.
It was reality.
And reality had a habit of becoming more complicated than intended.
"Every awakened individual begins at one White Star."
Ceal spoke calmly.
"White Stars represent awakening progression."
I nodded.
He continued.
"Upon reaching ten White Stars, an individual reaches the peak of the Awakener Realm."
"Afterward comes Ascension."
"Each successful ascension converts a White Star into a Red Star."
Ten White Stars.
Ten Red Stars.
Twenty stars total.
The absolute peak achievable by mortals.
Gold Stars existed beyond that.
But Gold Stars belonged to throne holders.
Individuals who had inherited or seized divine authority itself. Lesser gods i would call them, formal mortals who at the peak of their ranks could halt the flow of time and make stars vanish.
Thankfully, those monsters remained far outside my current concerns.
Ceal looked toward Lucien.
"Current example, Lucien."
"Ten White Stars."
"Seven Red Stars."
Seventeen.
An absurd number.
Even after creating this system, hearing it spoken aloud felt ridiculous.
"And you're still wearing all ten rings."
"Correct."
I felt another headache coming.
Three days later, I was released from the healing ward.
And immediately began training again.
The following month passed faster than expected.
Most mornings began before sunrise.
The forests beyond Elarion became my primary hunting grounds.
Mana wolves.
Ironhide boars.
Stonefang bears.
Anything dangerous enough to fight back.
Anything strong enough to teach me something.
The Dragon Bloodline continued adapting.
Every battle sharpened my instincts.
Every hunt improved my control.
Dragon Aura reached Level 2.
Dragon Scale reached Level 2.
Pulse Breaker became significantly more efficient.
The technique no longer consumed absurd amounts of stamina.
Which was important.
Considering I nearly collapsed every time I used it.
The dungeons proved even more useful.
Several times each week, I descended beneath Elarion alongside veteran knights.
The lower floors contained creatures that couldn't be found naturally.
Mutated goblins.
Crystal spiders.
Shadow beasts.
Monsters born from concentrated mana.
At first they nearly killed me.
Eventually—
they only occasionally nearly killed me.
Progress.
The city's warriors proved equally useful.
After my duel with Lucien, word had spread throughout Elarion.
Not the details.
Only the result.
The Young Master of House Ashford had fought Lucien.
And survived.
Apparently that was enough.
Many knights requested sparring matches.
Most lost.
Some won.
All taught me something.
For perhaps the first time since arriving in this world—
I felt myself genuinely growing stronger.
Not because of the System.
Not because of the Bloodline.
But because I was learning.
The most dangerous place remained Ceal's workshop.
I entered it exactly four times.
All four occasions nearly resulted in injury.
The man treated safety regulations as suggestions.
"Stand still."
"No."
"It will only hurt temporarily."
"Absolutely not."
Eventually, I lost the argument.
Naturally.
Several days later, Ceal presented the results.
A custom combat coat.
Black.
Lightweight.
Mana conductive.
Self-repairing.
Fire resistant.
Designed specifically for my class.
Alongside it came upgraded gauntlets.
Far superior to my previous pair.
The moment I equipped them, I could feel the difference.
Ceal looked pleased.
Which was rare enough to be alarming.
"They should survive your techniques now."
"That's reassuring."
"They survived testing."
"Testing on what?"
Ceal chose not to answer.
That was never a good sign.
Not all of the month involved training.
Unfortunately.
Selene eventually discovered I was free.
Which meant my fate was sealed.
Shopping.
Entire days disappeared.
How?
I still don't know.
One moment we would enter a store.
The next, six hours had passed.
Somehow I always ended up carrying everything.
"Why did we buy twelve bags?"
"Because they were cute."
That was apparently a valid answer.
By the end of the month, several merchants recognized us on sight.
A development I considered deeply unfortunate.
Selene seemed proud of it.
The final week arrived quietly.
The training continued.
The hunts continued.
The city continued.
And for a brief moment—
life felt almost normal.
Then reality remembered who I was.
A servant arrived one afternoon carrying an official imperial document.
The seal alone was enough.
I recognized it instantly.
The Imperial Military Academy.
The most prestigious military institution within Peroza.
The birthplace of generals.
Champions.
And future rulers.
Attendance was mandatory for noble heirs possessing combat classes.
Which meant there had never been any question regarding my enrollment.
The servant bowed.
"The academy carriage arrives tomorrow, Young Master."
Tomorrow.
Four years.
Then three years of imperial service.
Seven years total.
In the original novel—
the true story began there.
I stared toward the distant horizon beyond Ashford territory.
The academy.
The place where countless future legends would gather.
The place where the world would begin moving faster than ever before.
Slowly, I folded the document.
Then smiled.
"Well."
The words left my mouth naturally.
"It seems the tutorial is finally over."