**I died at 3:47 AM on a Tuesday, face-first into my laptop keyboard.**
The cause? Binge-reading *"Sword Saint's Infinite Regression"* for the fifteenth time instead of sleeping like a normal human being. Chapter 847 had just dropped, and I couldn't resist. The hero was about to unlock his ultimate regression ability, the demon invasion was reaching its climax, and—
*Thud.*
Heart attack. Twenty-two years old, fueled by energy drinks and terrible life choices. At least I died doing what I loved: avoiding responsibility.
**But death, apparently, had other plans.**
---
I woke up to the sound of crying.
Not the dignified, quiet sobbing you see in movies. This was full-blown, snot-dripping, ugly crying from someone who clearly had no idea how to handle bad news.
"Why... why did this happen to our family?" a woman's voice wailed nearby. "First my husband, now this..."
I tried to sit up and immediately regretted it. My head felt like someone had stuffed it with cotton and regret. Worse, nothing looked familiar. I was in a small, shabby room with stone walls and a single window that let in dim morning light.
**This wasn't my apartment.**
"Marcus, please," the woman continued, and I realized she was talking to me. "The Awakening Ceremony is in two hours. You have to get ready."
Marcus? Who the hell was Marcus?
I stumbled to my feet and caught sight of myself in a cracked mirror hanging on the wall. The face staring back wasn't mine. Younger, maybe seventeen, with messy black hair and tired gray eyes. Thin build, like he hadn't eaten properly in months.
**Then it hit me.**
Marcus Thorne. Extra #2847 in *"Sword Saint's Infinite Regression."* A background character so irrelevant that he didn't even get a last name until Chapter 73, right before the demon beasts tore him apart.
The realization should have terrified me. Instead, I felt weirdly calm.
**I'd reincarnated into my favorite web novel. As a mob character destined to die.**
"Marcus?" The woman—his mother, I realized—poked her head through the doorway. She had the same gray eyes, but hers were red-rimmed from crying. "Are you feeling alright? You look pale."
"I'm fine," I heard myself say, though my voice sounded different. Younger. "Just... nervous about the ceremony."
She managed a weak smile. "Don't worry, sweetheart. I know your father didn't awaken a strong talent, but that doesn't mean you won't. Sometimes these things skip generations."
**Right. The Awakening Ceremony.**
In this world, everyone underwent the ritual at seventeen. You placed your hand on the Crystal of Revelation, and it measured your talent rank. F through SSS, with most people landing somewhere in the D to B range.
Marcus Thorne, according to the novel, was about to become the academy's biggest joke. Zero talent. Zero rank. Zero future.
"I should get ready," I said, already planning my next moves. If I was stuck in this world, I needed to survive past Chapter 73. That gave me... what, maybe six months before the demon beast invasion?
**Time to change some fates.**
---
Aetherian Royal Academy looked exactly like I'd imagined it. Massive stone buildings covered in ivy, towers that scraped the clouds, and enough magical energy in the air to make your teeth itch. Students in crisp uniforms walked around like they owned the world.
Most of them did, honestly. This place was for the elite—noble families who could trace their bloodlines back centuries, merchant dynasties with enough gold to buy kingdoms, and the occasional scholarship student who'd shown exceptional promise.
I was none of those things.
"Marcus Thorne," I muttered, checking the crumpled acceptance letter in my pocket. "Scholarship recipient. Academic performance: barely adequate. Family background: dirt poor. Expected talent rank: probably F."
**Perfect. Flying completely under the radar.**
The Awakening Ceremony took place in the Grand Hall, a cathedral-sized room with stained glass windows that depicted legendary heroes from history. Hundreds of students sat in neat rows, while their families packed the viewing galleries above.
I found my assigned seat in the back—naturally—and watched as one by one, students approached the Crystal of Revelation.
"Anastasia Blackthorn!" the ceremony master called out.
A girl with silver hair and cold blue eyes walked forward like she was attending her own coronation. The moment her palm touched the crystal, it erupted in brilliant light that had everyone shielding their eyes.
**"A-RANK TALENT: FROST SOVEREIGN!"**
The crowd went wild. Anastasia smiled like she'd expected nothing less. She probably had—the Blackthorns were one of the most powerful noble families in the kingdom.
"Incredible," someone whispered behind me. "A-Rank at seventeen. She'll probably make S-Rank before graduation."
More names were called. More talents were revealed. The pattern was depressingly predictable: nobles got high ranks, commoners got middle ranks, and scholarship kids like me got the leftovers.
"Jonathan Steele!"
**"B-RANK TALENT: IRON FORTRESS!"**
"Elena Drakemoor!"
**"A-RANK TALENT: SHADOW STEP!"**
"Damien Cross!"
Wait. I knew that name.
A tall guy with golden hair and confident blue eyes strode forward like he owned the place. This was him—the protagonist of *"Sword Saint's Infinite Regression."* The hero who would eventually save the world through sheer determination and increasingly ridiculous power-ups.
He placed his hand on the crystal, and for a moment, nothing happened. The silence stretched uncomfortably long. Then—
**CRACK.**
**"S-RANK TALENT: INFINITE REGRESSION!"**
The crystal didn't just light up—it practically exploded with golden radiance that washed over the entire hall. Students gasped. Teachers looked stunned. Even the ceremony master had to steady himself against his podium.
**The protagonist had awakened his cheat ability.**
Damien smiled that perfect hero smile and walked back to his seat while everyone whispered about the legend in their midst. S-Rank talents appeared maybe once in a generation. This kid was destined for greatness.
**Too bad I was about to steal his spotlight.**
"Marcus Thorne!"
**Showtime.**
I stood up, ignored the confused murmurs from students who'd clearly never heard my name before, and walked toward the crystal. My heart was pounding, but I kept my expression blank.
**This was it. The moment that would define everything.**
I reached out and placed my palm against the Crystal of Revelation.
Nothing happened.
The crystal remained completely, utterly dead. No light, no energy, not even a faint glow. It was like I'd touched a piece of ordinary glass.
**Silence.**
Then someone started laughing. Others joined in. Within seconds, half the hall was giggling at the scholarship kid who couldn't even activate the crystal.
"Is it broken?" someone called out.
"No," the ceremony master said quietly, consulting his notes with obvious embarrassment. "The crystal is functioning properly. This student appears to be... talentless."
**The laughter got louder.**
"Talentless trash!"
"How did he even get into the academy?"
"Someone check his scholarship paperwork—there must be a mistake!"
I stood there, hand still on the crystal, letting the humiliation wash over me. This was exactly how it happened in the novel. Marcus Thorne, the extra who was so pathetic he couldn't even awaken an F-Rank talent.
**Perfect.**
Because while everyone was busy laughing at the "talentless" loser, something else was happening inside my head.
**[INITIALIZING...]**
**[ABYSSAL ARCHIVE SYSTEM ACTIVATED]**
**[WELCOME, HOST]**
**[SSS-RANK TALENT: ABYSSAL ARCHIVE - UNLOCKED]**
**[BEGINNING TALENT ACQUISITION PROTOCOL...]**
**[CURRENT ARCHIVE STATUS: EMPTY]**
**[TARGETS DETECTED: 247]**
**[AWAITING FIRST ACQUISITION...]**
I pulled my hand back from the crystal and walked to my seat, ignoring the continued laughter and whispers. Let them think I was worthless. Let them dismiss me as another failed extra.
**They had no idea what they'd just witnessed.**
The ceremony continued around me, but I wasn't paying attention anymore. I was reading the translucent blue screens that had appeared in my vision, each one promising power beyond imagination.
**SSS-Rank talent. The highest possible classification.**
**And absolutely no one suspected a thing.**
I glanced around the hall, my gaze settling on each student in turn. Anastasia with her Frost Sovereign. Jonathan with his Iron Fortress. Elena with her Shadow Step.
**Even Damien Cross with his legendary Infinite Regression.**
All of them were just entries waiting to be archived.
**All of them belonged to me now.**
The talentless extra smiled for the first time since awakening in this world.
**Let the collection begin.**