The morning sun barely touched Blackridge Village, its rays struggling to pierce the layer of gray dust constantly drifting from the ruined northern cliffs. The village sat at the very edge of human territory—a reminder that five hundred years after the Apocalypse, safety was still a luxury.
Today, however, Blackridge was alive.
Dozens of families filled the stone-paved square, their voices anxious and excited as they waited around the towering crystal pillar that dominated the Awakening Grounds. Children clung to parents, adults whispered predictions, and elders stood silently with hands behind their backs.
Every eighteen years, the Awakening Ceremony took place.
And today, Kael Yun would awaken.
Kael stood alone at the back of the crowd, his hood pulled low. Most of the other teens were gathered in groups, laughing nervously, offering each other encouragement or exaggerated boasts.
"So, what do you think you'll get?" a girl asked her friend.
"Anything above D-Rank and I'll scream," the boy replied proudly.
Kael exhaled softly.
He didn't belong in their conversations.
He never had.
He wasn't born into a strong family.
He had no connections.
And he had no expectations.
All he wanted was a profession decent enough to let him survive.
The Awakening Grounds buzzed with energy as the village registrar—a middle-aged woman with sharp eyes—cleared her throat and stepped forward.
"Attention! We begin in five minutes! Please line up according to surname!"
Teens hurriedly formed a line. Kael moved last, pulling his hood tighter. He didn't want to stand out. In a world where strength determined everything, being noticed before you had power was an invitation for disaster.
"Kael Yun," someone muttered behind him. "He'll awaken as what… an E-Rank Farmer? Maybe Cook?"
A few snickers followed.
Kael didn't react. He hadn't reacted to these things for years.
"Poor boy."
"No talent, no background, no future."
He let the whispers pass through him like wind.
One by one, teens stepped onto the rune circle. The crystal pillar flared, announcing their professions and ranks.
[Profession: Archer — C Rank]
Cheers erupted.
[Profession: Miner — D Rank]
Sympathetic pats on the back.
[Profession: Healer — B Rank]
Gasps of envy.
Then—
"Next: Kael Yun," the registrar called.
A hush fell over the villagers. Even the children went quiet.
Kael stepped forward slowly, boots crunching on the ancient stone. He lifted his head just enough to see the glowing runic circle before him.
He exhaled once.
Just let me get something useful.
Anything that helps me survive.
He placed his feet inside the circle.
The moment he did, the runes ignited beneath him—too bright, too fast.
Wind blasted outward from the crystal pillar.
"What—?"
"Is something wrong with the pillar?"
"Why is it reacting like that?!"
The registrar took a step back. "Stabilize the energy output! Quickly!"
But it was already too late.
The pillar exploded with blinding radiance.
A pillar of blue-white light shot upward, ripping the sky apart. Thunder cracked despite the clear weather. The ground shook so violently that several villagers stumbled back.
Kael felt the energy surge through him, burning and freezing at once.
His breath hitched.
His vision blurred.
Then everything… aligned.
The voice that followed wasn't loud. It was absolute.
[Awakening Sequence Initiated.]
[Subject: Kael Yun]
A pulse of light spread outward from the crystal, washing over the entire square like a shockwave.
Kael heard gasps.
He heard someone choke.
Someone else fell to the ground.
The system paused—
as if the world itself was deciding what he would become.
Then—
[Profession Awakened: SPELLBLADE — SSS Rank]
The square went dead silent.
No one spoke.
No one moved.
Even the wind seemed afraid to breathe.
Spellblade.
A profession lost to history.
A hybrid path once taken by warriors who mastered both arcane magic and close-range combat.
A profession believed extinct.
And SSS Rank.
A rank so rare only three humans in recorded history had ever awakened it.
A rank reserved for those capable of changing the fate of nations.
The registrar's eyes widened in horror and awe.
"He… he awakened an SSS?"
"That's impossible..."
"An SSS Spellblade? Here? In Blackridge?"
But the system wasn't finished.
[Talent Awakened: EVOLUTION CORE — Unique]
[Effect: Gains permanent attribute increases through battle. Skills evolve under combat pressure.]
Even Kael's breath caught.
Unique.
There were dozens of talents.
Hundreds of variations.
But Unique Talents existed above them all—one-of-a-kind abilities that appeared only once per generation.
And the Evolution Core…
A talent that grew stronger the more one fought.
A talent that adapted.
A talent that learned.
A talent with no upper limit.
Villagers stared at him as if he were something divine. Or something terrifying.
Then the final message appeared:
[Initial Combat Power: 2,184,000]
[Status: National Record — #1]
A collective gasp swept through the square.
"He broke the national record!"
"No way—no one has ever started that high!"
"What monster did we just witness awaken?"
Kael didn't know what to say.
He didn't know what to feel.
But deep inside his chest, a strange warmth flickered—
not excitement, not pride…
but something sharper.
Purpose.
For the first time in years, Kael felt something shift within him.
A path had opened.
A dangerous one.
But a real one.
Before he could move, a sudden chill crawled down his spine.
As if… something far away was watching him.
And it was.
Beyond the Border, past broken mountains and corrupted forests, in the depths of a land ruled by demons, a colossal shadow stirred. Its single crimson eye opened slowly, gleaming with ancient hunger.
A voice echoed across the wastelands.
"A Spellblade… after centuries."
"An Evolution Core… how amusing."
It leaned forward, claws curling into the ground.
"Grow stronger, little human.
I will devour you when you ripen."
Back in Blackridge, Kael staggered slightly as the sensation faded.
The registrar rushed to him, clutching a trembling slate.
"Kael Yun… by federal decree, all SSS awakeners must be transferred to Heaven's Meridian Academy. An elite escort is already en route."
Kael blinked. "Already…?"
"Yes," she whispered, eyes still wide. "Your Awakening sent a national alert."
Of course it did.
SSS awakens triggered immediate responses to prevent kidnappings, assassinations, and demon interference.
Kael stepped out of the circle, the runes dimming beneath him.
The villagers parted instinctively, clearing a path.
Some looked in awe.
Others in fear.
A few in envy.
But none dared step close.
Kael Yun, the quiet boy they ignored for years, had become something else entirely.
He looked up at the sky where the last traces of lightning flickered.
His Awakening was over.
But his life…
his real life…
had just begun.
He tightened his fists.
Whatever lay ahead—academy trials, demons, politics, power—he would face it alone.
He always had.