Chapter 1
In this world, every life is measured by the gods. At the age of sixteen, each soul is brought before the Conduit of Fate, where the Pantheon System decides their worth. To be chosen is to be Blessed granted a Class, a fragment of divine power, and a place among the strong. Knights, Mages, Healers, Artisans the pillars of society.
But those who are rejected… the Nulls… are cast aside. No Class. No blessing. No future. They are the broken gears of the divine order, sentenced to labor until their bodies collapse.
The sun was high above Luminas
Lee's heart hammered in his chest as he stood among hundreds of youths in the Cathedral of Light. Marble pillars reached into the heavens, draped in banners of the Pantheon's gods: the Sun Lord, the Earth Mother, the Storm Lord, the Forge Father. At the center of the hall sat the Conduit of Fate a massive crystalline altar, carved with divine runes that glowed faintly with every heartbeat of those who approached it.
There's so many people here this year, Lee thought, swallowing hard as the crowd murmured with excitement. I can't wait to see what Class I'll get…
At sixteen years of age, every child of Luminas had awaited this day. At the Ascension Ceremony, the Pantheon itself bestowed a Class a holy blessing that determined one's place in society. Warriors, Mages, Smiths, Healers. The chosen became Blessed. The unlucky became nothing.
The Pantheon System governed reality the Conduit reached into a soul and aligned it to a god's blessing. A Class was granted, along with a fragment of divine power.
The priest in white and gold robes raised his staff, voice echoing. "Children of Luminas! Know this truth — the Pantheon grants strength only to those worthy. The weak are cast aside, for weakness is imperfection. The Conduit sees what lies in your soul and the Conduit does not lie."
The boy ahead of him stepped forward, trembling. He placed both hands on the Conduit. Runes flared. The crystal pulsed, scanning, probing. Then the air erupted in golden light.
[CLASS GRANTED: SOLAR CHAMPION]
The crowd gasped. Solar Champion a direct blessing of the Sun God, rare and powerful.
The priest at the dais lifted his arms. "The Conduit has chosen! A warrior of light, a defender of Luminas! Rejoice!"
The crowd roared. Parents cried with pride. The boy stumbled back, wide-eyed, his body already glowing faintly with his new power.
Lee's fists clenched. That'll be me. After all that training, all those fights as a kid… I deserve this.
When his name was called, Lee walked to the altar, nerves twisting inside him. He pressed his palms to the crystal. For a moment, silence. Then…
The interface appeared.
But the words shattered his breath.
[ERROR: No compatible blessing found]
[USER: REJECTED]
[STATUS: NULL]
Lee's throat went dry. W-what…? I wasn't chosen?
The priest's voice cut the silence like a blade. His eyes were cold as he raised a hand.
"The Conduit has found you imperfect. You are a Null."
The word struck harder than any blade.
The Cathedral filled with whispers.
"Did he really get nothing?" a girl murmured, then chuckled.
"Stop, he might hear you," her friend giggled back.
Lee's vision blurred. His dream, his life gone in an instant.
"The Pantheon is merciful. You will serve society in the way you are able.
The priest sneered. "Your place is in the Ash Pits. You will serve where even failures are useful." a magic circle flaring beneath Lee's feet.
"Wait please!" Lee shouted, reaching toward the crowd. But the people only stared. A boy whispered, "I heard there hasn't been a Null in years…"
The world dissolved in light.
The Ash Pits. Exile. Living death.
When Lee opened his eyes, the stench of ash and blood filled his lungs. Shackles bound his hands. Around him stretched a wasteland of jagged rock and smoke the Ash Pits. Nulls slaved here, mining crystals from monster-infested ruins until their bodies broke.
A guard barked at him. "Get moving, trash."
And so he did. He worked. And worked.
The Nulls were fed minimal rations dry bread, thin gruel, water laced with grit. Sleep was rare, stolen in broken stretches.
Two years passed in relentless labor. Lee's body became lean and muscled, his skin calloused and scarred. Every joint ached, every bone threatened to give way under the strain. Hunger gnawed at him constantly, and exhaustion was a dull, unending companion.
He had learned to survive by being small, by not drawing attention to himself to vanish into the endless sea of Nulls, invisible to both guards and fate. Yet, beneath the layers of grime and despair, something in him refused to die.
Days bled into months. Months bled into years. The only thing that hadn't broken was his will
But one night, that too cracked
Lee was eighteen now. His spirit, nearly gone.
"I'm tired…" he whispered one night, staggering beyond the camp. "I don't want to live anymore."
From the shadows of the monster zone, wolves emerged. A pack of a dozen, their eyes glowing with hunger. Lee sank to his knees. At least it'll end here.
Then the impossible.
A glitch of light flickered before his eyes. His dead interface burned alive with runes written in an archaic tongue.
[SYSTEM UPDATE DETECTED]
[LEGACY CONNECTION: Blade Saint]
[CLASS UNLOCKED: Blade Saint Aspirant (Legendary)]
[STAT RECONSTRUCTION COMPLETE]
Lee gasped. His status shifted:
[STR: 10 | VIT: 10 | AGI: 12 | INT: 0 | WIS: 9 | LCK: 5]
[STAMINA: 120/120]
[MANA: 0/0 — LOCKED]
[BLESSING: NONE]
[LEGACY BLESSING: Blade Saint]
[QUEST: Unlock the First Seal — 0/100 XP]
"I… I have a Class," he muttered, disbelief washing over him. A laugh, half-sob, escaped him. "I finally have a Class!"
But the wolves closed in, teeth bared. Lee stood, chains still on his wrists, eyes burning with newfound resolve.
"…If this is my blessing… then I choose to live."
"But first…" He faced the wolves.
"…I'll take care of you"
[QUEST ACCEPTED: UNLOCK THE FIRST SEAL.] [OBJECTIVE: SLAY THE ASH WOLF PACK. 0/4]