Twenty years ago, the world stood on the brink of extinction.
From the depths of the cosmos, they emerged—beings humanity dared to call Monarchs.
These entities, composed of unfathomable mana, feasted upon life itself, drifting through existence like dark stars, extinguishing all that breathed in their wake.
Cities crumbled in the shadows of their ascendance. Nations dissolved in mere days. Humanity's weapons turned to ash against a power so divine it seemed paradoxical. Amidst that sea of despair, when hope flickered like a dying ember, nine heroes rose—chosen by destiny, bound by an indomitable will.
They traversed continents, rallying the remnants of humankind for one final confrontation against the darkness. Among them were Han Seojin and Lee Mirae, champions of Korea—wielders of light and steel, their prowess unmatched. It was above the ruins of Seoul that the final battle unfolded.
The Monarch of Oblivion, the oldest and most fearsome of its kind, descended in a cataclysmic storm.
The sky fractured into jagged shards as mana tempests raged for seven long days. When the chaos subsided, the ancient being lay defeated—its colossal form dissolving into golden motes, its essence scattering like dying starlight.
Mirae stood over the fading remnants of a god, breathless, her sword dripping with radiant light. "You've lost," she whispered. A hollow smile crept across the Monarch's face, an expression steeped in centuries of chaos.
"Lost?" it murmured. "No, mortal. It's not yet finished. "His voice echoed through the burning sky as his body disintegrated, leaving behind a single fragment of his core—pulsing faintly amid the ruins. "When the Monarch of Calamity returns, he will awaken the others. When peace blinds you… they will remind you of fear."
The war ended, and the world rejoiced. The heroes declared victory—Monarchs destroyed, Earth saved, a new era born. But behind closed doors, a darker truth lingered.
The Monarch's final words were not a curse. They were prophecy.
In secret, the surviving heroes and global leaders understood that peace was only temporary. The Monarchs would return—and humanity had to be ready. Thus, the World Hero School System was founded: a global network of academies presented as training grounds for aspiring defenders.
But in truth, it was a vast surveillance and selection mechanism—designed to find those with unusual mana signatures, potential successors… or anomalies. Individuals like Han Jiwoo.
Years later, Han Seojin and Lee Mirae dedicated their lives to studying the fragment of the Monarch's core—determined to uncover its secrets.
After three years, the fragment pulsed one final time—silent, unseen. In that instant, deep within Mirae's womb, an unborn child stirred.
The fragment did not corrupt him. It did not consume him. It became his power.