Adam stepped out of the portal and found a magnificent structure towering before him.

  She sent me straight to the dorm. How considerate.

  Soft giggles drew his attention. Several students pointed and laughed as they passed. He glanced at his reflection in the glass wall—disheveled hair, torn uniform, dirt and soot across his face. He looked more like a survivor of a mauling than a new student.

  [Three Potential Sources of Danger Detected]

  Adam’s brows rose. Seems they’re not done with me yet.

  He ignored the warning and entered the building. Moments later, he reached his room.

  “Hendrix, you’re not going to believe—” He froze, then swiftly shut the door.

  A second later, it swung open again. Two girls wrapped in bedsheets bolted past him, uniforms clutched to their chests.

  “Hi!” they chimed, giggling as they sprinted for the elevator.

  Adam watched, half amused, as the sheets slipped from their hands. They turned, caught his gaze, and winked just before the doors closed.

  It seems the women here are much bolder.

  He shook his head, wondering whether to pick up the abandoned sheets.

  “My friend, where have you been? You missed—eh! What happened to you? Were you robbed?”

  Adam turned. “Put on some clothes first. Don't come near me while you're naked.”

  Hendrix blinked, then awkwardly wrapped himself in a bedsheet. “We’re both men, it’s fine—”

  Adam’s glare cut him off.

  “Right. My bad,” Hendrix muttered, gesturing for him to come in.

  The room smelled faintly of perfume, the same scent that trailed the girls.

  “So, what happened?” Hendrix asked. “The lockdown, the explosion in Pyren’s Valley. I was worried sick about you.”

  “Uh-huh.” Adam smirked. “Yeah, I can see how worried you were.”

  Hendrix rubbed his neck, sheepish. “Don’t tell me you were caught in that mess?”

  “Let’s just say I was… a little unlucky.”

  “A little?” Hendrix eyed the torn clothes. “You’re lucky to be in one piece.”

  Adam chuckled, then winced. His stomach churned violently, a deep ache twisting through him.

  “Adam? You okay?”

  A new notification appeared.

  [Skill: Devourer is unstable!]

  What the hell?

  The hunger clawed through his insides. He pressed a hand to his stomach, forcing a strained smile. “Just tired. I’ll be fine.”

  “You sure?” Hendrix asked, still concerned.

  Adam nodded. “The welcome ceremony’s tomorrow. We should rest. Wouldn’t want to be late.”

  Hendrix hesitated, then smiled. “Fine. But tomorrow, you’re telling me everything.”

  “Deal,” Adam said, forcing a grin.

  Hendrix laughed as he turned off the lights. “We’re going to have fun here, my friend.”

  Adam lay facing the wall, the grin fading. What the hell was that?

  The hunger had vanished, yet its echo lingered, gnawing faintly at his mind.

  Hundreds of students filled Varidan’s grounds as dawn broke. Mist clung to the grass, and gray clouds stretched across the sky. Despite the gloom, an air of excitement rippled through the crowd as they approached a massive dome upheld by four colossal statues, each wielding a spear.

  Adam craned his neck. The building seemed to touch the clouds.

  “I didn’t expect this many people,” he murmured.

  “This many?” Hendrix grinned. “Last year had over ten thousand.”

  Adam’s head snapped toward him. “Ten thousand? You’re kidding.”

  “Not at all. Though only about half are still alive—or enrolled.”

  Adam frowned. “Alive?”

  Hendrix leaned closer. “Most died raiding dungeons.”

  Adam said nothing.

  “Varidan’s not like other academies,” Hendrix went on. “They value experience mostly. As long as you’re not expelled, you’ll spend most of your time inside the subset dungeons.”

  No wonder Vicar sent me here, Adam mused.

  “Which is why picking your class as an Awakened is crucial,” Hendrix added.

  Adam stopped walking. “There are different classes?”

  “You didn’t know?” Hendrix looked at him like he’d grown two heads.

  Nearby students turned to stare, whispering among themselves.

  Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  They’re staring like I just confessed to eating dirt.

  Hendrix grabbed his shoulder and pulled him aside. “You’re a strange one, Adam. How’d you even get in here not knowing that?”

  Adam just smiled. The truth was far too ridiculous to tell.

  Hendrix sighed. “Alright, you know that most Awakened have a unique Blessing, right?”

  Adam nodded.

  “Since we’re different, it would be foolish to expect us to perform the same tasks,” Hendrix explained. “Take Pyren and Emria, for example. Pyren could never fight the è?ù head-on like Emria did. And if Emria had tried crafting weapons, they’d never compare to Pyren’s. Officially, Pyren’s Blessing was classified as a Support type, while Emria’s was Attack.”

  “Oh, that makes sense,” Adam said. “Are there other classes?”

  “Attack and Support are the main ones, but each has subdivisions.”

  “Then our unlucky seniors must mostly be in the Attack class.”

  “Exactly,” Hendrix said, nodding. “It’s the class with the most casualties—and the fewest graduates.”

  Realization dawned on Adam. No wonder he said he prefers dungeon brokering.

  They moved closer to the towering structure ahead.

  “Who decides which Blessing belongs to which class?” Adam asked.

  Hendrix scratched his head. “No idea. Probably the instructors. They’ll test us when the time comes.”

  “But you’re joining the Support class, right?”

  Hendrix grinned. “One hundred percent. I’m lucky my Blessing qualifies for both.”

  “How do you know that?”

  “I got tested before coming here.”

  Oh. Adam wondered how much training the average student had gone through before even setting foot in Varidan Academy.

  He clapped Hendrix on the shoulder. “Thanks. I really didn’t know any of that.”

  “Don’t mention it,” Hendrix said with a grin. “But let’s hurry. With this many people, we’ll lose all the good seats.”

  They picked up the pace, climbing the grand stairs into the colossal hall.

  This is… too much.

  The interior was as majestic as the outside—an elegant mix between an opera house and an auditorium. Rows of seats swept upward toward marble arches. At the front stood a raised dais with ornate chairs, and five glowing pillars lined the edges, each radiating cool, calming light.

  “Why are you staring at the luminous rocks like that?” came a teasing voice.

  Adam turned.

  “Leave them be, Madeline,” Isabel said, chuckling as she pulled her friend along. “Arthur and the others are waiting.”

  Madeline winked at Adam before following. Isabel offered only a polite smile.

  Adam glanced at Hendrix, who looked anything but amused.

  Still holding a grudge, huh?

  “I don’t like them,” Hendrix muttered. “And that’s saying a lot—I like everyone.”

  “They probably don’t like us either,” Adam chuckled. “Forget about them.”

  Had they not revealed themselves, he might not even have recognized them.

  “Come on,” he said. “Let’s find seats.”

  Hendrix took the lead. Adam followed—but caught Madeline whispering to a bald man while pointing his way. The man met Adam’s eyes and smiled.

  “Adam! Remind me,” Hendrix called over his shoulder, “who told me to ignore them again?”

  Adam pretended not to hear and slid into a nearby seat.

  Minutes passed as more students filled the amphitheater. From his vantage point, Adam noticed certain individuals who drew every eye in the room. Students clustered near them, eager to talk, while others kept their distance.

  At Varidan, where connections meant survival, those few clearly sat at the top of the chain.

  Then there were the opposite—the outcasts. Entire rows avoided them.

  Those are the ones I’ll steer clear of.

  He quietly committed faces to memory, scanning the crowd—until he felt it: someone watching him.

  Across the aisle sat a young man with spiky gray hair and pale, ashen skin. The ten seats around him were empty.

  Why is this guy staring at me?

  A whisper brushed his ear. “Are you from beyond the walls?”

  The man’s lips curved into a faint smile.

  Adam frowned. This ‘beyond the walls’ nonsense again. What does it even mean?

  “No,” he whispered back.

  The stranger’s smile vanished. He turned away.

  I really need to find out what’s so special about this wall everyone keeps asking about.

  Before he could dwell on it, Hendrix spoke up beside him. “Adam, you’re not feeling any headache, right? Are your eyes okay? No swelling?”

  Adam raised an eyebrow. “Why?”

  “You don’t know who that is, do you?” Hendrix said quietly, nodding toward the gray-haired man.

  Adam shook his head.

  “That’s Bj?rn Helias,” Hendrix whispered. “People call him The Vein. If you stare too long, your veins bulge five times their size. Some say he’s killed people just for looking at him wrong.”

  Adam snapped his gaze back to the man. What kind of insane Blessing is that? But I didn’t feel anything strange earlier…

  A sudden pinch on his arm. “Don’t stare,” Hendrix hissed. “It’s bad news if he takes an interest in you. I’ve heard he’s a complete psycho.”

  “Is he that powerful?” Adam asked quietly.

  “Adam, don’t even think about it,” Hendrix said flatly. “He’s one of the ten A-ranked Awakened in our year. You really don’t want trouble with him.”

  Adam’s eyes lingered on Helias’s back. An A-rank? I wonder how powerful he really is—

  [Skill: Devourer is unstable!]

  The notification flashed before the creeping hunger surged up again. His stomach twisted; his hands trembled. Something coppery and sweet rose in his throat—then vanished just as suddenly, leaving him drenched in cold sweat.

  When he looked up, Helias was staring right at him. The man’s mouth curved open slightly. Then he stood. Gasps rippled through the hall; a few students bolted for the exits.

  “Why the hell did he stand up?” Hendrix muttered. “Wait… is he—coming this way?”

  The dread in his voice was palpable. Adam stayed still, watching Helias advance. No one dared block his path.

  Moments later, the tall, wiry figure loomed over Hendrix. Every student nearby had already abandoned their seats.

  “Move,” Helias said.

  The deep, heavy tone didn’t match his youthful face.

  “Alright, we’ll move—” Hendrix started.

  “Find another seat,” Adam cut in. “There are thousands of empty ones. Why should we give up ours?”

  “N-no. We’ll move,” Hendrix stammered, glancing up—and screamed. Thick veins bulged across his forehead, spreading down his neck and arms.

  Adam shot to his feet, fists clenched. A D-rank stood no chance against an A-rank, but he wasn’t about to let this bastard toy with his friend.

  “You want to fight me?” Helias smirked.

  Adam didn’t reply. He met the man’s gray eyes head-on, refusing to look away.

  Seconds dragged. Then Helias chuckled. “So, it wasn’t a fluke,” he said. “You really can nullify my Blessing. Interesting.”

  He stepped closer, ignoring Hendrix’s pained gasps, and offered a hand. “Name’s Bj?rn Helias. What’s yours—and where are you from?”

  Adam’s expression darkened. His gaze flicked to Hendrix, then back. The man didn’t even care what he’d done.

  “Oh,” Helias said lightly. “I’m terribly sorry about your friend. Got a little excited.”

  He reached into his coat and produced a small vial of blue liquid. “Here. My way of apologizing.”

  He tossed it toward Hendrix, but Adam caught it midair, never breaking eye contact.

  “It’s not poison,” Helias said, half-laughing. “I’ll drink it myself if you want.”

  “Uh, Adam,” Hendrix said weakly, “it’s real medicine. High-grade, too.”

  Adam’s glare softened just slightly. Without a word, he handed the vial over. Hendrix drank; the bulging veins faded, skin returning to normal.

  Helias smiled. “See? Friends already. Mind if I sit here?”

  “I’m not your friend,” Adam said, sitting back down. “Do what you want.”

  Helias slid into the seat beside him anyway. “We’re all friends now,” he said with a grin. “I’m Bj?rn Helias of Cemil. I heard your friend call you Adam. Where are you from?”

  Adam stayed silent. Helias turned to Hendrix instead. “And you, tattooed one?”

  “Hendrix Moon of Dratol,” he replied hesitantly.

  “Hendrix Moon. Strong name,” Helias said, laughing as he shifted to the seat beside him. “Tell me more about yourself.”

  Adam closed his eyes, jaw tightening. The hunger was back—stronger this time.

  What the hell is going on?

  He drew in deep breaths, but it only worsened. Then he heard it.

  “Why are you hesitating, Adam? Slaughter them all. Slaughter someone—anyone.”

  That voice again. The one from the floating mass at Pyren’s Valley.

  And then, just as suddenly, the hunger vanished.

  “Settle down, everyone!”

  A clear, commanding voice filled the hall. The lights dimmed, and a massive portal opened above the dais. The murmurs died at once as five figures stepped through.

  “On behalf of Varidan Towers,” the lead figure announced, “I welcome you all to the six thousand seven hundred and eighty-fifth Varidan Entrance Ceremony.”