"You're free to do whatever you want from here on. No one's forcing you to make a specific decision," Cline said. "As a Sleeper, you're also entitled to enroll in the Awakened Academy. You'll be provided with food, lodging, and a range of preparatory classes.
"It's late in the year, so you won't be able to learn much-but it's better than nothing."
He paused for a moment, then added, "So, what do you say? Do you want me to take you to the Academy?"
Reinhard thought for a few seconds. The decision wasn't hard. Coming from the outskirts, he had no other way to prepare properly and the Academy was clearly the best choice.
"Yes," he said finally. "I'd like to go to the Awakened Academy."
___
Reinhard sat quietly in Cline's PTV.
After agreeing to go to the Academy, Cline was now driving him there.
They didn't talk much. Reinhard simply stared out the window, watching the scenery blur by in silence.
Eventually, boredom crept in, and he summoned his runes.
His gaze drifted to his attributes and he noticed something new.
Attributes: [Radiant Presence] [Calm Mind] [Battle Master] [Flavour Grace]
'Hmm, so I keep the attributes I create forever?' he thought. 'Well, that's cool. At least there's no time limit or anything.'
He had planned to check his abilities later when he was alone, but excitement got the better of him. There was still time, and curiosity was too strong to resist.
'Let's see... what kind of attributes can I get?'
He thought for a moment, glanced around, then turned his eyes to the world outside the PTV window.
'Oh yeah,' an idea flickered in his mind. 'That should suffice for now.'
And just like before, the Nightmare Spell's voice echoed in his head:
[New attribute acquired.]
[Attribute Name: Clear Sight.]
Suddenly, the world brightened.
'Holy fu—' He could pick up far more details than before, even the text on distant signs was now crystal clear.
He tested the ability for a while, until the novelty began to wear off.
Looking back inside, he summoned his runes again and checked his attributes.
To his surprise, the list had changed.
Attributes:[Radiant Presence] [Calm Mind] [Battle Master] [Clear Sight]
'So the other attribute disappeared, huh?' He hadn't wished for that, which probably meant it happened automatically.
Still, he wanted to confirm.
[New attribute acquired.]
[Attribute Name: Flavour Grace.]
Attributes: [Radiant Presence] [Calm Mind] [Battle Master] [Flavour Grace]
'Welp, that's disappointing,' he sighed inwardly. That meant he couldn't keep more than one self-created attribute at a time.
Leaning his elbow against the car door, he rested his chin on his hand and thought it through.
'So, based on what I know... there's no cooldown after summoning an attribute, but I can only hold one at once. I could switch them depending on the situation, though... Still, stacking them together would've been a lot more usefull.'
___
Reinhard stood before the massive, seemingly indestructible crimson gates of the Awakened Academy.
The Academy was like a city within a city. Built like a fortress, it was surrounded by towering alloy walls, a deep moat, and countless heavy turrets positioned to form a lethal air-suppression dome. No Nightmare Creature, not even the colossal titans, were supposed to be able to breach its defenses.
Snow drifted down in slow, silent flakes, gathering on the ground around him. The world was still and cold before the gates.
He stood there alone. Cline had dropped him off with a brief "Good luck on your journey," and information that someone would come to fetch him and then he was gone.
After a few moments, the massive gates began to move.. The giant, ridiculously thick sheet of reinforced metal slowly descended, creating a long bridge. The end of the metal bridge hit the special grooves in the ground and stopped moving after a set of loud clicks.
Reinhard watched the spectacle for a few seconds, Then, taking a slow breath, he stepped forward and crossed the threshold.
He'd be lying if he said he wasn't a little excited maybe even intimidated.
___
'Damn, I'm so smart…' Reinhard thought, standing alone in a corner of the large hall where more than a hundred Sleepers had gathered.
Before entering, he'd decided not to get involved with anyone. But with his [Radiant Presence] attribute boosting his charisma and his already good looks, he knew staying completely under the radar would be hard. So, as a countermeasure, he'd created an attribute called [Gloom Veil].
As the name suggested, it made him less noticeable in others' eyes.
And now, there he was, standing alone, watching everyone else chat in groups.
'When will this damn ceremony start already?' he thought, irritated.
Standing by himself had gotten boring. At one point, he even considered creating an attribute that stopped him from getting bored — but since that would mean replacing [Gloom Veil], it wasn't really an option.
So he let the idea go with a sigh.
Just as that moment a tall man in a dark-blue uniform stepped onto the stage. Tall wasn't even the right word — the man was practically a giant.
He had broad shoulders, an athletic build and a gorgeous brown beard. His eyes were calm and serious. After reaching the center of the stage, he gave Sleepers a long look.
"I am Awakened Rock. Sleepers, welcome to the Academy."
Everyone listened in complete silence.
"In less than a month, you will be summoned to the Dream Realm. Some of you might think you're well prepared. You're wrong. The Spell is merciless and cunning. The moment an Awakened begins to think too highly of themselves, they die. I've seen countless Sleepers like you lose their lives. I've seen Masters fall. Even Saints are not guaranteed to survive."
'Yup. For a first impression of the Awakened world, this sure is awe-inspiring,' Reinhard thought sarcastically.
"In the next four weeks, we will do everything we can to increase your chances of survival. You'll train under some of the best instructors in the world. But don't be fooled by their reputations — in the end, whether you return from the Dream Realm alive depends on only one person: you. The responsibility to survive is yours, and yours alone."
Except for the Legacies, most of the Sleepers exchanged nervous glances, fear slowly taking root in their eyes.
Awakened Rock continued:
"You are not children anymore. It's a shame, because you ought to be. But the Spell has decided otherwise. You have been to the First Nightmare, so you already know what it's like. Your parents, your teachers and your friends can't help you anymore…"
'Can't say I don't know how that feels already.'
Now that Awakened Rock had successfully fucked the mood, he finally moved on to the important part.
"Now, let's talk about the difference between Nightmares and the Dream Realm…"
___
Thanks for reading the chapter.
See you next time.