Elsewhere in Thornhaven City - Frostmere Villa
Inside a spacious private training room, frost covered every surface like crystalline paint, transforming the space into a frigid cave. The temperature had plummeted far below freezing.
At the room's center sat a breathtakingly beautiful girl in an elegant white dress. Her thick black hair cascaded to the floor like a midnight waterfall. Her eyes remained closed in deep meditation. White cold air visibly flowed in and out of her mouth and nose with each breath, creating small ice crystals that drifted lazily through the air.
Suddenly, her eyes snapped open—brilliant ice-blue irises flashing with power.
CRACK!
The entire training room flash-froze instantly. Every remaining surface that wasn't already ice became encased in crystalline armor. The temperature dropped another twenty degrees in a single second.
"Finally awakened... my second talent!" Joy flickered across the girl's features, quickly replaced by cold determination.
Her name was Kaelith Frostborn—renowned as one of Thornhaven First Combat Academy's "Twin Goddesses." She was also the illegitimate daughter of Silverpeak Conglomerate CEO Aldric Frostborn and the half-sister of prodigy Rowan Frostborn. However, having awakened only an A-Rank talent during the official ceremony, she'd been consistently excluded and disdained by Rowan's mother. After her father's death three years ago, she'd been expelled from the main Frostborn estate entirely.
Academy students often compared her to Lyris Ashenvale, the other "Twin Goddess." In terms of pure appearance, Kaelith arguably surpassed even Lyris. But her publicly awakened talent, profession, and family standing couldn't match Lyris's advantages.
That's what people knew.
What they didn't know was far more significant.
Kaelith was a regressor—someone who'd lived through the future and returned to the past.
She stood gracefully, bare feet touching the ice without discomfort. Her thick black hair floated behind her as if suspended in water, cold air swirling around her form. Her beautiful face carried an expression of authority and dominance completely incongruous with her apparent age.
"In my previous life," Kaelith murmured to herself, "I purchased an Awakening Stone from an ignorant shop owner in the market district by pure chance—six months after the examination. That's when I awakened my second talent: SS-Rank Absolute Zero. My rise to power began from that moment."
Her ice-blue eyes glinted with satisfaction. "In this life, I obtained the Awakening Stone before the examination period. I've awakened my SS-Rank second talent early. My vitality has broken past ten. And I've changed profession to the Legendary-tier class: Frost Sovereign."
A cold smile touched her lips. "That fool Lyris still tries to show off in front of me, completely unaware she's the actual clown in this scenario. My talent and profession surpass hers by orders of magnitude."
"Idiot who doesn't understand the value of maintaining a low profile. Just wait until the Abyss Cultists identify you as a priority target."
Kaelith's expression hardened with grim determination. "In this life, I will dominate the Martial Aptitude Examination rankings absolutely!"
I must accelerate my cultivation schedule. Reach King-Tier as quickly as possible.
It must be fast.
Otherwise, it will be too late...
Thinking about the terrifying entity that had emerged from the Eternal Abyss in her previous life—the one that brought annihilation to all civilization—Kaelith's ice-blue pupils darkened with shadow. Her fists clenched until her knuckles went white.
"Gods..." she whispered with barely contained hatred.
In her previous timeline, she'd become a Tier 4 Warrior within one year of awakening her second talent. Shortly after, she'd awakened a third talent: SSS-Rank Chrono-Spatial Dominion. Less than three years later, she'd entered King-Tier and stood invincible among her peers.
The world had called her the Ice Empress.
But then, at the conclusion of humanity's three-hundredth year since the Cataclysm, an Abyssal Rift located on a Southeast Asian island had torn open completely. A being whose life-level reached genuine God-Tier had emerged from the depths.
Every supreme warrior on the planet had mobilized. The combined might of humanity's strongest had fought desperately.
It hadn't been enough.
Not even close.
Earth had been destroyed. Civilization obliterated. Billions dead.
In the final moments before total annihilation, Kaelith's third talent—her Chrono-Spatial Dominion—had resonated with an ancient forbidden artifact she'd acquired during her adventures. The combination triggered a catastrophic temporal anomaly.
She'd been reborn. Sent back to the period just before the Martial Aptitude Examination.
"Three years," Kaelith murmured, her voice carrying the weight of apocalyptic knowledge. "Three years until humanity's end."
Only three years remained.
"Fortunately, I have a second chance."
Her ice-blue eyes blazed with absolute conviction. "As long as I can reach Mythical-Tier within these three years, I'll have the power to change everything."
Kaelith's confidence wasn't baseless. She'd once been invincible within her tier, her combat instincts and techniques honed through countless life-or-death battles. She had every reason to be proud.
"Now that I've awakened my second talent, venturing into low-tier Abyssal Rifts alone shouldn't pose significant danger."
"But first, I need to register as an official warrior..."
Kaelith moved to her bedroom, changed into a white casual outfit and baseball cap to minimize attention, and departed for the Warrior Association headquarters.
Warrior Association Headquarters - Registration Area
Several people waited in line ahead of her when Kaelith arrived. She found a seat, closed her eyes, and immediately began practicing the top-tier visualization method she'd acquired during her previous life—a technique far beyond anything available in the current timeline.
Meanwhile, Vaelor's shadow clone arrived at the same location and spotted Kieran's contact immediately.
The woman was a striking beauty with golden-blonde curly hair styled professionally, an elegant figure displayed by her fitted work uniform, and confident bearing. She wore professional heels that clicked against the polished floor, drawing attention—particularly to her long legs accentuated by dark stockings beneath her work skirt. Many male warriors present for registration found their gazes drifting in her direction repeatedly.
Spotting Vaelor, her eyes lit up with recognition. She approached with a warm smile, her movement graceful despite the heels.
"You must be the junior guild member Kieran mentioned! She told me you'd be coming."
"My name is Selene." The blonde extended her hand, and Vaelor accepted the handshake with polite professionalism.
"Vaelor Draeth. Thank you for taking time to help me with this."
Observing Vaelor holding Selene's delicate hand, several male warriors present couldn't suppress their envious—and slightly resentful—stares.
"It's no trouble at all! Kieran and I have been close friends for years. Her junior guild member is practically my junior as well." Selene's smile was genuine and welcoming. "I didn't expect someone so young to register as a warrior already—and so handsome, too!"
Her expression turned playfully mischievous. "Do you have a girlfriend? Would you consider an older woman?"
Vaelor maintained diplomatic silence.
"Haha, I'm joking!" Selene laughed, clearly enjoying his discomfort.
After guiding Vaelor through the preliminary registration procedures, Selene explained, "Next, you just need to pass the combat assessment to receive official warrior certification."
"There are still a few people ahead of you in the testing queue. Have a seat here and wait—I'll call you when it's your turn."
She gestured to a seating area where one other person already waited.
Vaelor thanked her and took a seat beside the girl in the white outfit and baseball cap.
He glanced at her briefly. Despite the cap partially obscuring her features, her exceptional beauty was immediately apparent. Delicate bone structure, flawless pale skin, an aura of cold authority that seemed unusual for someone so young.
Interesting. Someone else my age registering as a warrior today. She must have broken through early as well.
Sensing his gaze, Kaelith opened her eyes and fixed him with an ice-cold stare for approximately two seconds before closing them again and returning to meditation.
Not one of the confirmed early-breakthrough prodigies from my previous life's memories, she thought dismissively. Probably just another arrogant fool who overestimates his abilities and wants the prestige of "warrior" status before the examination.
Two young people who appeared to be students, sitting together in the warrior registration area, inevitably attracted curious attention from other registrants.
"Those two should be academy students, right?"
"This is the warrior registration section. Are they actually here to register?"
A short-haired young man in a muscle shirt—physique suggesting dedicated training—sneered openly. "Registering for what? Look at that skinny kid. You can tell his vitality hasn't even reached ten. They're probably here to take photos and videos to show off to their classmates. Lots of people do that. Registration only costs a thousand points anyway—failure doesn't mean much to wealthy families."
"Ah, that makes sense," several people agreed, nodding with understanding.
After hearing this explanation, the crowd's expressions shifted from curiosity to contempt. Multiple individuals looked at Vaelor and Kaelith with obvious disdain.
Rich kids playing pretend warrior, the general consensus seemed to be.
Vaelor, naturally, ignored them completely. His shadow clone's purpose was purely functional—register, obtain badge credentials, return home. The opinions of random strangers held zero relevance.
Kaelith similarly paid no attention to the commentary. She'd experienced far worse in her previous life and possessed absolutely no interest in proving herself to irrelevant nobodies.
The muscular young man, noticing that neither teen reacted to his mockery, felt his ego bruised. He raised his voice deliberately.
"Hey, kids. You know this is the warrior registration area, right? Not the academy career counseling office. If you're just here for social media content, maybe do it outside so you don't waste everyone's time."
Still no response from either teen.
The man's face reddened with irritation. "I'm talking to—"
"Next registrant: Kaelith Frostborn. Please proceed to Testing Chamber Three."
The announcement cut through the tension. Kaelith opened her eyes, stood with fluid grace, and walked toward the indicated chamber without acknowledging anyone present.
Her cold aura and confident bearing left several people momentarily speechless.
"She actually went in?" someone murmured with surprise.
"Maybe she really is a warrior..."
"Impossible. She's like sixteen at most."
The muscular man scoffed, though less confidently than before. "She'll fail the assessment and come out embarrassed. You'll see."
Vaelor allowed himself a faint smile, though his expression remained otherwise neutral.
That girl... her aura is genuine. She's definitely a warrior. Probably Tier 2 based on the vitality signature I detected.
And there's something else. Something... strange about her presence. Like she's older than she appears, though I can't identify the specific cause.
Interesting.
Through his consciousness link with his main body, Vaelor's original self—still at home analyzing martial techniques—received all these observations with curiosity.
Another prodigy who broke through early. The competition this year really is exceptional.
I wonder how she'll perform in the assessment.
Inside Testing Chamber Three, Kaelith faced the examination proctor with absolute calm, ready to demonstrate exactly why underestimating her would be a fatal mistake.