The days leading up to the Trial of Summoning blurred into a grueling, monotonous cycle of pain and progress. By day, Astraeus was a ghost in the halls of Silverwood Academy, enduring the taunts and the pity with a cold, analytical detachment. He attended his classes, not to learn magic, but to learn about those who used it. He studied their movements, their arrogance, their reliance on a power that he was immune to. Every sneer, every dismissive glance, was filed away by the system as data on potential threats.But when night fell, his small, cold dorm room became a crucible. Under the relentless direction of the God System, he subjected his mortal body to the Primordial Body Tempering exercise. Each session was a fresh hell, a new inventory of agony. The system was a merciless instructor, pushing him to the absolute brink of collapse and then one step beyond. Muscle fibers tore and were rebuilt stronger. His stamina, though depleted after each session, recovered faster every day.
[LEVEL UP!]
[Host has reached Level 4.]
[Strength: 15] [Agility: 10] [Stamina: 35/100]
[New Ability Unlocked: [Minor Pain Resistance]. The host can now mentally suppress up to 20% of physical pain stimuli.]
The notifications were his only reward. The numbers on his status screen were the only proof that this self-inflicted torture was working. He was still laughably weak compared to the god he had been, but he was no longer the fragile, helpless boy who had woken up in the mud. A subtle change was taking place. The boy's thin, almost emaciated frame began to fill out with lean, hard muscle. The perpetual slump in his shoulders was replaced by a straight, unwavering posture. The haunted, defeated look in his eyes was gone, replaced by a chilling stillness.He was becoming a weapon. And no one even noticed. To them, he was still just the boy with no magic.
Two days before the trial, the practical application classes intensified. The academy grounds buzzed with energy as students practiced their most powerful spells, preparing to impress the spirits they hoped to summon. Astraeus was in a dueling class, a mandatory course even for him. The instructor, a stern woman named Master Valeriana, believed that even non-mages should understand magical combat, if only to know how to run away effectively.Today's lesson was defensive shielding. Students were paired off, one casting weak, stinging hexes while the other practiced conjuring a magical barrier. As always, Astraeus had no partner. No one wanted to be paired with the failure; it was a waste of their practice time."Ren," Master Valeriana called out, her voice sharp. "Since you are... unable to participate in the standard exercise, you will serve as a moving target."A wave of snickers went through the class. Astraeus's role was a familiar one: dodge the stray spells that missed their intended targets. It was meant to be a humiliation."Kael," the instructor continued, her eyes landing on the blond bully. "You seem to have an excess of energy today. You will be practicing your 'Arcane Javelins.' Your target," she said, pointing directly at Astraeus, "is him. Do not worry," she added, looking at Astraeus with cold indifference. "The training spells are non-lethal. They will merely sting. A lot."Kael's face split into a malicious grin. This wasn't a lesson; it was a publicly sanctioned beating. He stepped forward, his palms crackling with blue energy. "My pleasure, Master Valeriana."The other students stopped their own practice to watch, eager for the show. They formed a loose circle, trapping Astraeus in the center of the dueling pitch with his tormentor.
"This is for the courtyard, you worthless rat," Kael whispered, his voice low and venomous. He began to gather mana, a shimmering, spear-like construct of blue energy forming in his hand. It was more powerful than a simple training hex. He was putting real force into it.Astraeus stood perfectly still, his face a mask of calm. Inside his mind, the system was already running calculations.
[Threat Detected: 'Arcane Javelin' spell.]
[Power Level: Moderate. Intent: Malicious. Projected Impact: Significant pain, second-degree burns, potential for broken ribs.]
[Instructor is permitting the attack. No external help is available.]
[Calculating Evasion Patterns…]
"Run, little rabbit," Kael taunted, enjoying the moment. "Let's see you dance."He thrust his hand forward, and the arcane javelin shot across the field with a piercing whistle. It moved faster than a mortal eye could track. To the onlookers, Astraeus's situation was hopeless. He was a stationary target for a magical projectile.But Astraeus wasn't seeing a blur of light. In his vision, the system had highlighted the javelin's exact trajectory, a glowing red line cutting through the air. A series of precise, numbered footsteps appeared on the ground around him.
[Execute Evasion Pattern: Delta-7.]
At the last possible nanosecond, when the heat of the javelin was already scorching the air in front of him, Astraeus moved. He didn't just dodge. He flowed. In a single, impossibly fluid motion, he took two sharp steps to the left, twisted his torso, and ducked. The javelin screamed past his right ear, so close it singed a few strands of his hair, and slammed into the far wall of the training ground, exploding in a shower of sparks.A dead silence fell over the students.Kael stared, his jaw slack. That wasn't the clumsy stumble from the other day. That was the movement of a master duelist. It was impossible."Lucky move," Kael snarled, masking his shock with anger. He conjured another javelin, this one crackling with even more power. "Try this one!"He launched it. Again, Astraeus waited until the last moment. Again, he moved with unnatural grace, a simple side-step and a lean that was so economical it looked like the spell had just missed on its own.
Frustration and rage began to cloud Kael's judgment. He started flinging javelins wildly, one after another. "Stand still!" he roared.One javelin. Two. Five. A dozen. The air became thick with the whistle of arcane energy. And Astraeus, in the center of it all, was a phantom. He never took more than a few steps. A slight turn of the shoulder, a dip of the head, a quick shift of weight. He moved with a preternatural calm, his eyes never leaving Kael, his expression unreadable. He wasn't just dodging; he was analyzing. With every spell Kael threw, the system gathered more data on his casting speed, his targeting habits, his tells.The other students were no longer snickering. They were watching in stunned silence, their mouths agape. They were witnessing something that didn't make sense. Magic was the ultimate force. It was fast, powerful, and inevitable. But here was a boy with no magic at all, making a mockery of it with nothing but movement. He was untouchable.Even Master Valeriana, who had been watching with a critical eye, was now leaning forward, her stern facade cracking to reveal utter astonishment.Finally, Kael exhausted himself. He stood panting, his mana depleted, his face slick with sweat. He had thrown everything he had, and he hadn't landed a single hit. He had failed to touch the untouchable.Astraeus stood in the center of the pitch, completely unharmed. He hadn't thrown a punch, cast a spell, or said a word. But he had utterly dominated the exchange. He had won.
He slowly straightened up from his final evasive maneuver and looked directly at Kael. His gaze was cold, flat, and ancient. It was the look of a god judging a gnat. In that moment, Kael didn't see the magic-less failure he had tormented for years. He saw a predator. For the first time in his privileged life, Kael felt a sliver of genuine fear.Astraeus then turned his gaze to the rest of the class, sweeping it over the stunned faces of the students who had mocked and ridiculed him. He held their gazes for a moment, letting the silence stretch, letting the impossibility of what they had just witnessed sink in. He was making a statement without uttering a single word: Your power is not the only power. Your rules are not the only rules.Finally, he looked at Master Valeriana. The instructor's face was a complex mixture of shock, confusion, and a dawning, grudging respect. She saw him now, truly saw him, for the first time. This was not the same boy from last week.Breaking the silence, Astraeus gave a slight, formal bow. "Thank you for the lesson, Master Valeriana," he said, his voice even and devoid of emotion.Then, without waiting for a dismissal, he turned and walked away, leaving a courtyard full of stunned mages in his wake. He walked with a purpose he hadn't had before, his back straight, his steps sure. The whispers that followed him were no longer of pity or contempt. They were of confusion, disbelief, and a newfound, nervous fear.The boy with no magic was no longer a joke. He was a mystery. And that was far more dangerous.