"Hurry, Hurry! We're going to be late!"
"Please don't let this Instance be too hard… Otherwise I'll have to delay graduation… May Atana bless her devout follower…"
"A 'devout follower' who hasn't even finished reading the Holy Canon once? I think bribing the dean would be more effective."
"That won't work either. Madeleine would reward him with a Greater Fireball before he even opens his mouth."
"You guys are all so confident. The graduation Instance isn't like regular training—someone fails every year."
"Fail? My goal is to break the previous record and get into Altera Academy!"
"Talk like that and you'll end up with no friends… Hey, by the way, who's that guy?"
An untimely clang, clang interrupted their chatter.
Rhett Donovan stopped in front of a heavy door marked [Armory], and everyone peered inside with curiosity.
Cold light filtered through a narrow window into the dim room, intertwining with the crimson glow radiating from heated metal. The contrast illuminated the handsome face of a young man.
The boy paid no attention to the people gathered at the doorway.
He mechanically raised his hammer. Muscles tightened, veins bulging, as the hammer traced a short yet ferocious arc before crashing down.
The iron block on the anvil glowed orange-red, flashing rhythmically with each strike. Amid showers of sparks, a short sword gradually took shape.
"Graduation ceremony's already started—why is someone still working?"
"Yeah! And he's handsome! Does anyone know him?"
"He…" Rhett frowned slightly, hesitating. "I think I've seen him before…"
"Tch. Rhett, don't doubt it—you've definitely seen him."
The man beside Rhett curled his lips, disdain dripping from his voice as he stared at the boy inside.
"Caelan Grey. A real celebrity."
"Caelan Grey? Oh! You mean that bottom-ranker? The only one in the entire academy who still hasn't awakened a talent or class?"
Rhett blurted it out, then immediately shut his mouth, guiltily glancing into the room.
Seeing that Caelan was still single-mindedly hammering that useless lump of iron, he finally let out a quiet sigh of relief.
"So that's him. Such a shame—he's so good-looking."
"What's the point of being handsome without ability—"
"Alright, alright!" Afraid they'd say something even harsher, Rhett hurriedly pushed the group away. "We're almost late. Let's go!"
The noisy voices faded into the distance.
The hammering stopped.
Using tongs, Caelan lifted the nearly finished short sword. He swept the blade's edge swiftly through water. White steam billowed as he let out a soft sigh.
"Do the students at this academy really not know what respect is? Or do they seriously think a 'normal person' who hasn't awakened anything can't hear them from this distance… Whatever."
Caelan picked up the freshly quenched sword, his eyes flickering.
"The ten-thousandth sword… You'd better be worth these years of humiliation and endurance."
Five years ago, he had transmigrated into this world—
a world where games had merged with reality.
A lucky few would awaken a Class, each granting different combat Skills.
After arriving here, Caelan awakened a System, capable of activating a Class through completing its tasks.
However, there were prerequisites.
Normal Class Awakening Condition: Do 10 push-ups.
Hidden Class Awakening Condition:
Forge 10,000 swords
Loop-practice the System-provided sword technique 100,000 times
Fully aware of how important long-term growth was, Caelan decisively chose the second path.
From that day on, he forged swords and practiced sword techniques without rest, year-round.
After five grueling years, he completed the 100,000 sword-technique repetitions six months ago.
And today—finally, just before the graduation ceremony—he fulfilled the final prerequisite.
[Ding!] Congratulations to the host for completing all prerequisite quests.
Unique Class Awakened: White Swordsman (Level 1)
[Sword Skill Tree Unlocked]
Initial Skill Acquired: Slash
—After a brief charge-up, deliver a powerful forward cleave.
[Unique Talent Acquired:] Infinite Ascension
—Breaks level caps. All skills can be upgraded to Lv.99,999.
"White Swordsman… and this starting skill look pretty ordinary, just like any other class," Caelan muttered.
"But…"
His gaze locked onto the talent description, and his heart began to race.
Although he hadn't awakened any skills over the past five years, he never skipped related coursework.
In this world, all skills—regardless of class—cap at Lv.100.
Yet this unique talent allowed him to shatter that limit!
As a veteran gamer from his previous life, Caelan instantly realized just how absurdly broken this talent was.
Take something as basic as Fireball—the difference between Lv.1 and Lv.100 was already worlds apart.
But due to efficiency concerns, no one would deliberately push such basic skills to high levels. Once higher-tier replacements appeared, basic skills were abandoned entirely.
But for someone with Infinite Ascension—
Basic did not mean weak.
Even Fireball, at Lv.99,999, would unleash devastation no Lv.100 Inferno Blast could ever match.
"Slash… I wonder what it looks like at Lv.99,999?"
His eyes drifted uncontrollably toward the [+] icon next to his only skill.
He tapped it.
The skill level increased by one—and Caelan's mouth twitched.
"…So it upgrades by spending money?"
After a moment's hesitation, he long-pressed the plus sign. A number popped up.
20,000,000 gold coins.
That was the cost to raise Slash to Lv.99,999.
"This price…" Caelan gritted his teeth, his heart bleeding.
"…is painfully accurate."
Twenty million gold coins.
After subtracting the expenses from forging swords for the System quests, this amount was everything he had.
Strictly speaking, it was the money his parents had left him.
Caelan did have parents in this world… probably.
He had never seen them.
They were supposedly sent to the "frontline" and disappeared entirely, leaving him behind with a massive sum of money for living expenses.
"Money is just an external possession…"
"I'll just earn it back later!"
Clenching his teeth, Caelan dumped all his money in.
[Ding!] Skill Slash has been upgraded to Lv.99,999.
Skill has evolved into Infinite Lightblade.
Effect:
Launch a devastating light-sword slash within a 50-meter frontal range.
Attack carries Anti-Magic properties, dissolving all magic within the affected area.
[Ding!] Congratulations!
First skill upgraded to Lv.99,999.
Bonus Passive Skill Acquired: Last Strike
—When mental energy is depleted, grants one additional skill activation at no cost.
"Holy—this is straight-up cheating!"
Caelan reread the skill descriptions, his entire body trembling.
A fifty-meter-radius light-blade slash.
Unlimited length.
And even after running out of mental energy, he still had one free cast.
For a moment, Caelan was lost in thought.
Then he checked the time.
There were seven minutes left before the graduation test Instance closed.
"…Perfect."
He smiled faintly.
"Looks like I'll make it after all."