In a simulated battle resembling real warfare, being taken down on the first day of school by a new recruit was a deep embarrassment for the illustrious student council president, Caesar.
Though Caesar himself appeared magnanimous and indifferent to the incident, his followers did not share his composure. This event had become an unspoken taboo at Kassel Academy—everyone knew not to mention it in public, as doing so would be considered a direct provocation.
At the current celebratory banquet, Caesar's subordinates interpreted Owen's remark as nothing less than a deliberate challenge.
"Your name is Owen, correct?" Caesar's piercing gaze fixed on Muria, taking in the seemingly ordinary student's appearance and committing it to memory.
Kassel Academy gathered students with exceptional qualifications from around the world. While most of them were considered prodigies or near-superhumans in the outside world, to Caesar, they were unremarkable and forgettable.
But now, this provocateur had etched himself into Caesar's mind, albeit in a laughable manner.
"Correct," Muria responded with a calm expression. If the glaring stares of Caesar's entourage had any tangible force, Muria might have been "attacked" already.
Although the tense atmosphere didn't faze him, it clearly unnerved the black-haired boy shrinking behind him.
"Caesar, he didn't mean—"
"Hm?" The golden-haired, lion-like man turned his attention to Lu Tianming. "You call him senior but address me by name?"
"Uh…" Lu Tianming froze, caught between panic and embarrassment. Truthfully, he had avoided addressing Caesar directly due to his complicated feelings. Not only was Caesar surrounded by an aura of superiority, but Lu Tianming also harbored an unrequited crush on Caesar's girlfriend.
"Don't trouble him," Muria interjected, his gaze lingering on the timid black-haired boy. His golden eyes betrayed a hint of disappointment.
Though this boy was the reincarnation of his son, the true essence of his son lay dormant, suppressed by the laws of this world. The boy before him was merely the surface consciousness of the reincarnation—a weak and ineffectual fragment of personality.
It reminded Muria of the state of his own reincarnated body when he first awoke—crippled and on the brink of destruction, nearly defeated by prepared and well-equipped dragon hunters.
"Potential?" Caesar chuckled at Muria's comment. "While I respect the principal's judgment, I've always found the S-rank assessment of Lu Tianming's bloodline questionable. And you? What makes you think he has potential?"
"My instincts," Muria replied flatly.
"If I recall, Owen, your bloodline is only C-rank, and it's not even a perception type."
"Believe it or not, in my eyes, Lu Tianming's talent surpasses everyone here. He is the academy's greatest genius."
"Haha! That's the funniest joke I've heard this year," Caesar laughed heartily. He scrutinized Muria and the nervous boy beside him, then turned and walked away.
"Owen, what makes you think Lu Tianming is the academy's greatest genius? Just because of his S-rank certification on paper?"
As Caesar left, one of his cadre lingered to taunt Muria.
"He's a total loser, yet you're calling him a genius? Are you out of your mind?"
"Heh." Muria chuckled softly and ignored the remark. He turned to the dejected Lu Tianming and offered a reassuring smile.
"Don't mind them. Focus on unlocking your potential."
"I appreciate your faith in me, but I really don't see what potential I could possibly have," Lu Tianming replied with a forced smile.
Muria sighed inwardly. The boy's ordinary demeanor masked a hidden power, recognized by the academy's principal but yet untapped.
"If you were aware of it, it wouldn't be potential," Muria quipped.
Later, in his private dormitory, Muria sat at his desk, reading a book he had borrowed from the library: A Genealogy of Dragons.
"The principal… seems intriguing." He mused aloud, flipping through the pages. Then he paused, furrowing his brow.
"Wait a minute. Did I forget something?" He rubbed his temples, realizing he had neglected an important matter.
"My reincarnated body is still incomplete—crippled and missing limbs. This won't do. It's my default form in this world when I can't use my true power. I need to fix it."
He stood and scanned the room, murmuring, "I'll need some high-energy materials for restoration. Luckily, in a specialized institution like this, I doubt I'll need to use my own resources. Let's see what they have."
Closing his eyes, Muria unleashed his spiritual energy from his true form, concealed within the heart of his reincarnated body. His overwhelming mental force swept across the sprawling academy, penetrating deep underground.
"There it is. Hidden well, but pointless against me."
In a pitch-black tunnel, faint footsteps echoed. Two glowing points of gold pierced the darkness, moving steadily toward their destination.
At the end of the tunnel stood a massive bronze gate, faintly glowing in the dim light. The golden eyes moved closer, revealing the youthful face of a boy no older than seven.
"This door isn't bad," the black-haired, golden-eyed boy muttered, his nose twitching slightly. Then, with a flash of blue-white lightning, his form shifted into a massive black dragon.
Seven meters long, with an emaciated frame marred by scars, the dragon looked like a shadow of its former self. Its once-proud wings were reduced to stumps, and its body appeared frail and starved.
Yet despite its pitiful state, the dragon exuded a palpable aura of strength. It studied the bronze door with keen interest before lunging forward and biting down.
Crunch!
The dragon's powerful jaws tore through the metal, chewing and swallowing the reinforced bronze as though it were candy.
"Quality's lacking, but the quantity is acceptable," the dragon remarked, continuing to devour the door. With each bite, its wounds began to heal, and new tissue formed over its damaged wings.
By the time the door was reduced to nothing, the dragon's skeletal wing structure had fully regrown, though the flesh was still incomplete. Undeterred, it stepped through the now-open passage into a vast underground chamber.
At the center of the space lay the remains of a dragon—a small, metallic bronze skeleton radiating a regal aura.
"A dragon king's remains. I knew a dragon-hunting academy would have treasures like this hidden away," Muria thought, his eyes glinting.
The aura emanating from the bones triggered a primal response in his reincarnated body, urging it to bow in submission. But Muria quickly suppressed the instinct and approached the skeletal remains.
"Slain at birth? Or a failed resurrection attempt? Either way, what a disgrace."
The black dragon circled the bones, studying them with a mix of disdain and curiosity. Then, with a decisive motion, it clamped its jaws around the skeleton and swallowed it whole.
"The remnants of a failed dragon king, stored as a trophy by humans. What a humiliation for dragonkind."
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