Eight thirty in the morning, half an hour before the final assessment.
The morning sunlight filtered through tempered glass, illuminating the heavily guarded base training ground.
In the corridor, Cseper William and Caroline walked side by side into the training area.
He licked the last bit of cream lingering at the corner of his mouth, savoring the irresistible flavor.
Beside him, Caroline glared at his childish behavior with a mix of disdain and resentment.
"Cseper, are you a hamster or something? Eating so much that you even polished off my share of strawberry shortcake?"
"What hamster? This is called strategic stockpiling~"
Cseper pushed up his sunglasses, the lenses reflecting a sly glint. "Besides, Caroline, today's the final assessment.
Those guys are already short-tempered on a good day, and right now, they're like powder kegs—ready to explode at the slightest spark. If a fight breaks out later…"
Before he could finish, a timid figure suddenly scurried over from a corner of the training ground.
"C-Cseper-bro, Caroline-sis…"
Chen Kong, like a startled rabbit, spoke with a trembling voice, cautious and hesitant.
He was short and scrawny, his cheeks gaunt, and his oversized training uniform had frayed, whitened cuffs, clearly a size too big.
It was obvious he wasn't faring well at the base.
But Cseper didn't snub him for it.
"Yo, Kong!"
He threw an arm around Chen Kong's shoulders, grinning as he ruffled his messy hair. "How's it going? Had breakfast yet?"
"I-I ate…"
"What'd you eat?"
"Just… the standard nutrient meal…"
Chen Kong's voice lacked confidence.
In truth, he hadn't even managed to eat the standard nutrient meal—it had been snatched away by other trainees.
Unaware of this, Cseper, hearing his response, dramatically gasped.
"What?! You're eating that pig slop on a crucial day like the final assessment?"
Cseper shook his head in mock dismay. "No wonder you haven't activated your Star Core, Kong."
Chen Kong blinked in confusion. "Huh? Does what I eat for breakfast have anything to do with my Star Core?"
"Of course it does!"
Cseper pointed at himself with a serious expression. "As the number one genius of the Embers Organization, my brain consumes the equivalent of three adults' worth of sugar every day. Don't believe me? Look…"
He suddenly leaned in close, his sky-blue eyes behind the sunglasses glinting with a dangerous shimmer, as if stars were swirling within them.
Though it was just a simple glance, Chen Kong felt an overwhelming pressure emanating from Cseper in that instant.
It was as if the person before him wasn't a peer only half a month older but a ferocious Star Beast, capable of tearing him apart with ease.
Seeing Chen Kong, the "protagonist," spooked by a mere glance, Cseper grinned.
"See, Kong? That's what happens when you eat nutrient meals."
"Why am I so strong? Obviously because I eat double portions of sweets every day!"
"If you ate double portions of sweets like me, you might awaken your Star Core in no time."
"R-Really?" Chen Kong's eyes lit up instantly.
"Idiot, he's messing with you."
Before Chen Kong could ponder the truth of Cseper's words, a cold female voice cut in from ahead.
Chen Xing, Chen Kong's older sister, had appeared in front of the trio at some point.
The blood-red long sword "Bloodflame" strapped to her back gleamed with an eerie light in the morning sun.
Seeing her, neither Cseper nor Caroline reacted strongly.
But Chen Kong, still under Cseper's arm, shrank like a mouse spotting a cat, his expression visibly timid.
"S-Sister…"
Chen Kong curled into himself, lacking even the courage to meet her gaze.
Chen Xing paid him no mind.
She was long accustomed to her useless, good-for-nothing younger brother.
Without sparing him a glance, her crimson Star Eyes locked onto Cseper.
"Cseper, trying to fool someone with that nonsense sweets theory again?"
"How can you call it fooling~?"
Cseper spread his hands with a cheeky grin.
"Science proves that sugar not only boosts brain function but also—"
"Shut up!" Chen Xing cut him off coldly. "You think everyone's a sweets addict like you?"
Her words silenced the entire training ground.
The surrounding trainees instinctively stepped back, clearly aware of what was coming.
After all, the last person who spoke to Cseper like that spent a full month in the infirmary.
Since then, aside from Caroline, Cseper's closest confidante, no one dared talk to him that way.
But Cseper didn't seem fazed by Chen Xing's sharp tongue.
He shrugged casually, putting on an exaggerated look of hurt.
"Xing, you're gonna break my heart talking like that."
Then, as if struck by a sudden thought, his expression shifted. He stared at Chen Xing, her refined features and commanding, queen-like aura, until she looked back at him with a puzzled expression.
Just as Chen Xing was starting to feel baffled by his gaze, Cseper lowered his voice out of nowhere.
"Xing, is this big reaction of yours because you're not actually looking down on Kong but jealous that he's getting my special guidance?"
"If you'd just said so earlier…"
"Huh?!"
Chen Xing's expression twisted instantly.
"Me, jealous of that trash?"
She yanked the long sword from her back, pointing its tip directly at Chen Kong beside Cseper.
"Two years, and he can't even manage basic Stellar Energy sensing. Trash like him deserves—"
"Hey, I can let a lot of things slide, but talking about your own brother like that? Not cool."
Cseper's playful grin vanished, and the eyes behind his sunglasses turned dangerous.
In an instant, an invisible pressure radiated from him, spreading outward.
The nearest trainees' legs began to tremble, and Chen Xing's hand, gripping her sword, shook slightly.
But it wasn't fear—she was stubbornly resisting the overwhelming, tsunami-like pressure.
"Am I wrong?"
Chen Xing gritted her teeth, pushing back.
"Out of the thirty-six trainees in the Starfall Project, he's the only one who can't even—"
"That's because his Star Core is special."
Cseper cut her off abruptly.
His words detonated like a bomb among the crowd.
Everyone turned to Chen Kong with shocked, skeptical looks. Even Caroline, who thought she knew everything about the trainees, raised an eyebrow, as if weighing the truth of Cseper's claim.
If anyone else had said it—even Chen Xing, Kong's own sister—no one would've taken it seriously.
But coming from Cseper, the top trainee in the Starfall Project, it carried a different weight.
Because Cseper didn't bother lying to them.
"M-My Star Core is… special?"
Even Chen Kong himself froze, stunned by Cseper's words.
Seeing his lack of confidence, Cseper gave a mysterious smile.
"Yup, so special that no one but me has figured out what your Star Core really is."
"Wanna know what I've discovered?"
Chen Kong nodded eagerly, his usually timid, dim eyes now sparkling with a glimmer of hope.
Knowing the original plot of the first season, Cseper didn't mind leaking some info to Chen Kong, the drama's protagonist.
He leaned in close, whispering so only the two of them could hear.
"Kong, your Star Core isn't unactivated—it's just too powerful, so powerful that even you can't control it."
Chen Kong's eyes widened. "Then why can't I—"
"Shh—" Cseper pressed a finger to his lips, smiling. "Kong, answers are only meaningful if you discover them yourself, right?"
Just then, the training ground's doors swung open.
A squad of fully armed guards marched in with synchronized steps.
Their black tactical helmets bore the Embers Organization's emblem, glinting coldly under the lights, exuding an unapproachable aura.
"Looks like the assessment's about to start~"
Cseper released Chen Kong, giving his shoulder a light pat.
"Do your best, Kong. I'm really rooting for you."
Encouraged by the top trainee of the Starfall Project, Chen Kong—the undeniable bottom-ranker of the thirty-six—seemed to swell with newfound excitement, his expression visibly energized.
But his enthusiasm didn't last long before Chen Xing doused it with cold water.
"Idiot, you actually believe that nonsense? Cseper's obviously messing with you."
"If your Star Core was really that special, fine, maybe we wouldn't have noticed—but why haven't the organization's people noticed either?"
"You don't think the organization's experts are as clueless about Star Cores as we are, do you?"
Chen Xing's analysis was logical and grounded in reality.
The crowd's gazes on Chen Kong shifted from initial shock back to calm indifference.
Even Chen Kong had to admit her words made sense, and his eyes dimmed once more.
Seeing Chen Kong suppressed yet again by his sister, Cseper spoke up. "Xing, how about a bet? Let's wager on whether Kong can awaken his Star Core during the final assessment."
"Bet what?"
"How about sweets? If I win, your dessert rations for the next three months are mine. If I lose, then…"
Before Cseper could finish, Chen Xing cut him off.
"Fine, but you can't interfere to help him."
"No problem."
Cseper agreed readily, a cunning glint flashing in his sky-blue eyes behind the sunglasses.
After all, having read the original script through the Popularity System, he knew Chen Kong would be pushed to his limits in the assessment and awaken his game-breaking "Stellar Energy Nullification" ability.
This bet was a guaranteed win.
But to Cseper's surprise, Chen Xing wasn't done with the terms.
"And I want to change the stakes."
"Change what?"
Chen Xing took a deep breath, her striking eyes blazing with a dangerous fire, her brown hair visibly turning crimson.
"If I win, I don't want your desserts. I want you to fight me seriously, with everything you've got."
At that, Cseper's playful demeanor vanished. He silently removed his sunglasses.
In an instant, that terrifying, tsunami-like pressure swept through the training ground again.
Though Chen Xing had already experienced his aura once, this time it was harder to withstand.
And this time, Cseper was clearly serious.
His pressure was fiercer, more suffocating than before.
Looking at Chen Xing, struggling to hold her ground, Cseper said calmly, "Xing, some things I can let slide once or twice."
"But three or four times? That's a whole different story…"
He stepped toward Chen Xing, who was forced to half-kneel under his pressure, looking down at her.
"After all, a lion doesn't tolerate a hyena's repeated provocations."
"So, how about you fully master your Star Core and understand its true purpose before you talk about challenging me?"
"Because right now, you're nowhere near worthy of making me fight seriously. You can't even handle my pressure, can you?"
With that, Cseper lightly patted Chen Xing's tense shoulder and withdrew his aura.
The tense atmosphere in the training ground instantly eased.
But Chen Xing, with her proud personality, wasn't ready to back down.
Twice now, she'd been overwhelmed by Cseper's Stellar Energy pressure alone.
Gritting her teeth, she gripped her demonic sword Bloodflame tightly.
Or rather, she couldn't accept that she didn't even have the ability to make a move against him.
Seeing Chen Xing seemingly ready to defy him, Cseper's eyes narrowed slightly.
Beside him, Caroline silently slipped her hand into her pocket, as if gripping something.
For a moment, the air in the training ground seemed to freeze.
No one dared speak loudly.
Just then, the training ground's metal doors swung open.
The crisp sound of high heels echoed, and a graceful figure stepped into the training ground.
"Yo, bullying your classmates again, little Cseper?"
Instructor Yun Meng approached with elegant, cat-like steps, her curvaceous figure in a black uniform drawing covert glances from the adolescent Starfall trainees.
But that was as far as it went.
They knew full well that Yun Meng, with her angelic figure, had a personality more devilish than a demon's.
Only with Cseper did she show a "special care" akin to a friendly big sister.
That was the privilege reserved for a genius.
Faced with Yun Meng's sudden teasing, Cseper immediately protested, "I'm innocent, Yun Sis! I was just having a friendly, productive exchange with Xing. How is that bullying?"
"Save it." Yun Meng lightly tapped his head, then turned to Chen Xing. "The assessment's about to start, and you're trying to pick a fight with a classmate? Xing, have you forgotten the organization's rules?"
At that, Chen Xing silently sheathed her demonic sword and lowered her head, returning to the group.
Watching her retreat, Yun Meng said with exasperation, "Little Cseper, why do you always have to mess with Xing? You're both the organization's top prodigies. Can't you just get along?"
Cseper spread his hands. "Yun Sis, it's not my fault. Xing provoked me first. I'm just defending myself."
"You…"
Yun Meng shook her head helplessly, then said, "Fine, we'll deal with you after the assessment."
"Now, get back in line. The assessment's starting soon."
"There are some big shots from the organization here today, so you'd better not screw this up."
Cseper grinned. "Don't worry, Yun Sis. I'm the strongest."
Despite his near-arrogant claim, Yun Meng, though tempted to urge him to be humbler, didn't argue.
Because, as Cseper said, among the thirty-six trainees of the Starfall Project,
Cseper William was, without a doubt, the strongest.