The twin suns of Orvenya cast a pale, golden light over the city of Draymoor. Among its towering stone walls and glowing mana lamps, life moved with purpose—merchants shouted, warriors trained, and nobles watched from their high balconies.
But in the city's outer rings, where stone gave way to rusted metal and crumbling streets, a different kind of silence lived.
Here, in a small room buried beneath a worn-down house, Kael Virein opened his eyes.
The air was cold. Damp. His breath formed faint mist in front of him. Cracked walls surrounded him, lit only by a flickering mana circuit embedded in stone. He sat up slowly, muscles aching from the day before's Training.
---
Today was Awakening Day.
The thought cut through the quiet like a blade. Every sixteen-year-old across the city would stand before the Core Awakening Stone to discover their elemental affinity—and their worth.
Kael pulled on a black shirt, then silently opened the trapdoor beneath his bed. A narrow staircase led to a hidden space below. Stone walls, a worn training dummy, faded runes scorched into the floor—this was where he trained alone, while others played or dreamed.
No one would fight for him. No one would save him.
Today would determine if he would remain a forgotten shadow or become something more.
After one final breath, Kael climbed back up, left his house, and stepped into the streets of Draymoor.
---
The city was alive with energy. Young candidates gathered in groups, families accompanying them with pride and anxiety. Kael walked alone through the outer ring's cracked lanes until the roads grew cleaner, the buildings taller.
He entered the central plaza just as the final preparations finished.
The Core Awakening Stone stood at the heart of the plaza—a towering crystal etched with ancient runes, pulsing with faint blue light. Around it stood officials in dark robes and noble examiners watching the process.
Kael took his place among the crowd of teenagers. Some wore ceremonial robes with their family crests. Others wore enchanted armor.
He wore silence.
A sharp voice spoke behind him. "What's a slum rat doing here?"
Kael didn't turn. He knew the voice— Verrian Elvorth, a young vampire noble.
Kael said nothing. His gaze stayed on the stone.
The ceremony began.
Names were called one by one. Each candidate stepped forward, placed their hand on the stone, and the runes glowed—fire, water, wind, lightning, and rarer elements like shadow or celestial flame. Some were cheered. Others whispered about hidden potential.
Kael waited.
Then a voice came—
"KaelVirein."
He stepped forward.
The moment his foot touched the raised stone platform, something happened.
---
Chime.
Not from the plaza.
Not from the world.
From within.
Kael flinched slightly.
Then—a voice.
Cold. Mechanical. Ageless.
"Initializing… ORIGIN PROTOCOL."
His heart pounded. A faint blue screen blinked into existence in front of his eyes. Floating. Transparent.
["Scanning Host…"]
["Bloodline Match Detected."]
["Designation: Origin Heir."]
["Clearance Level: Sovereign."]
[" System Activation Complete."]
Kael stood frozen.
He had heard rumours of "systems"—mysterious powers that chose people and granted abilities beyond reason. But he had never seen one. Never believed he'd be chosen.
But he was mistaken when he thought it was one of those system's, he had heard.
This wasn't just any system.
It was ancient.
Powerful.
And somehow… it felt like it knew him.
Another panel appeared.
[SYSTEM ONLINE]
[ Name: Kael Virein ]
[ Race: Human (?) ]
[ Core: Unawakened ]
[ Bloodline Sync: 0.0001% ]
[ System Authority: Base Sovereign Access ]
[ System Note: You are not forgotten. You are sealed.]
---
Kael's fingers twitched.
He hadn't touched the stone yet. This… whatever it was, had activated on its own.
What was this "Origin Heir"? What did it mean to be "sealed"?
He didn't have time to think.
"Place your hand," one of the examiners said impatiently.
Kael stepped forward and pressed his palm against the Core Awakening Stone.
Silence.
No glow.
No reaction.
Seconds passed.
A few laughs rippled through the crowd.
"Coreless?"
"Waste of space."
Even the examiner looked annoyed. "Step away."
Kael withdrew his hand calmly, but inside, his thoughts were spinning.
Then, the system spoke again:
---
[Core Status: Sealed Under Ancestral Lock]
[Element: Null-Origin Flame (Suppressed)]
[Rank: [Unknown]]
[System Quest Generated: "Prove Existence"]
[ Objective: Slay one awakened creature ]
[ Reward: Unlock 1% of Core ]
[ Penalty: Termination of System Link ]
---
Kael exhaled slowly.
He wasn't coreless.
He wasn't weak.
He was locked.
And now he had a choice.
Run from the truth… or earn the right to unlock it.
---
Night fell over Draymoor like a shroud of iron.
The twin suns dipped below the horizon, casting long shadows across the cracked walls and broken alleys. Lights flickered in the noble districts, and mana orbs floated lazily above main streets. But the outer rings fell into silence, swallowed by the dark.
Kael didn't return home.
Instead, he moved through narrow paths and forgotten tunnels, heading east—toward the Wild Foglands.
No sane person ventured there without a core.
But Kael had no intention of surviving through caution.
He had to fight. Had to awaken. Or the system would vanish—and with it, the only clue to the truth behind his bloodline.
---
The air grew colder as he approached the boundary gate. Beyond it, the land twisted—corrupted by time and unfiltered mana. Old trees leaned in unnatural ways. Fog drifted like it breathed.
Guards were posted at the gate, but Kael knew the cracks in the walls, the broken stonework behind the watch post. He climbed silently, moving like shadow, until he dropped into the mist beyond the wall.
The Wild Foglands.
Even the air felt wrong.
The system blinked to life again, responding to the proximity of awakened threats.
---
[System Notification]
[ Combat Zone Entered: Wild Foglands – Tier 1 ]
[ Objective: Kill one awakened mana beast ]
[ Status: Quest Active ]
[ Reward: Core Unlock – 1% ]
[ Warning: Lethal threat level present]
---
Kael gripped the rusted iron spear he'd stolen days ago. The metal was chipped, the shaft uneven—but it was something.
He walked slowly, ears alert.
The world around him whispered—distant growls, the rustle of leaves, the crunch of bone beneath the fog. Every sound felt closer than it was.
Then he heard it.
A low snarl.
Something moved in the fog ahead. Four-legged. Broad. Its eyes glowed red through the mist. Fangs gleamed in the moonlight.
A Duskhound.
Kael tensed. It was a low-tier mana beast—but awakened. Its body pulsed faintly with corrupted energy. If it pounced, he'd have only seconds.
The beast growled—and lunged.
Kael rolled to the side, barely dodging its claws. Dirt and rocks scattered beneath him. He struck with the spear, but it glanced off the hound's shoulder. Too shallow. Not deep enough to kill.
The hound turned, snarling louder.
It attacked again.
Claws raked across his side—burning pain tore through his ribs. He staggered, blood seeping through his shirt. But he didn't fall.
He couldn't.
A new sound rang in his ears. Not external.
[Emergency Protocol Triggered]
[ Combat Mode Engaged — Sovereign Override Lv. 1]
Suddenly, the world slowed.
Not literally—but Kael's perception shifted. Every movement the beast made seemed easier to track. His instincts sharpened. His breath grew calm.
He moved— not wildly, not in panic.
He shifted left, crouched low, and let the hound pass him.
Then—
He turned.
He flipped the spear and drove it up, straight through the hound's eye as it landed.
A violent shriek tore through the fog.
The beast fell.
Dead.
---
[System Update]
[ Quest Complete ]
[ Core Unlock: 1% ]
[ Element Identified: Null-Origin Flame ]
[ New Skill Gained: Sovereign Perception (Lv. 1) ]
[ System Note: First seal broken. Memory echoes stir.]
---
Kael stood still, blood on his arms, chest rising and falling slowly.
He looked down at the beast.
Then at his hands.
No surge of lightning. No explosion of flame. Just the steady pulse of something deep inside. Something vast. Ancient. Waiting.
For the first time in his life…
He felt real power awakening.
Not loud. Not visible.
But steady.
Like a storm far away—but moving closer.
He tightened his grip on the bloodied spear.
This was just the beginning.