After training—
No, calling it training would be a lie.
After getting mercilessly beaten up by my so-called partner, I dragged my battered body home.
The moment I stepped through the door, I collapsed onto the sofa.
"Ah, damn… every bone in my body's screaming. I'm not moving. I'll just rot here and die."
Then it hit me.
I'd awakened a law.
A law.
And yet, I still had no idea what my passive ability even was.
During the fight, we hadn't touched our abilities at all—just sword. Pure ancient style.
"Tch… I should check my passive ability… ah, damn this pain."
With a groan, I forced myself up. Excitement replaced the aches in my muscles. After all—
Who wouldn't want to find out what kind of superpower they had? It's every kid's dream… except mine came with bruises.
"But… how the hell do you even check a passive ability? I don't feel any different."
"—Oh! Idea!"
The moment the thought hit me, I bolted straight to my practice room.
Step one: test raw strength.
I grabbed the weights.
"…What? Only fifty kilos?"
I muttered to myself.
Before awakening, I could only lift twenty-five. Now it was fifty. Sure, that's double—but when other people were casually benching one-fifty to one-seventy-five… yeah, this wasn't impressive.
Still, I didn't lose hope. Next test: speed.
I ran.
"Damn it, my stamina's just as pathetic… and my speed's only a hair better than average!"
Fine. Plan C—kitchen experiments.
I turned on the stove, letting the flame flicker to life, and cautiously placed my hand above it.
"…Oh. No heat? Did I just get fire resistan—AHH! HOT! HOT! Damn it, what the hell?! Why did it stop working halfway?!"
Switching targets, I dunked my hand into cold water. Nothing. No chill. A few seconds later, though, the freezing sensation crept in.
That's when it clicked.
My passive ability was… a temporary nullifier. It stopped anything harmful from affecting my body—for a short period of time. Even after it wore off, the heat or cold felt weaker than before.
"So… basically a short-term shield, huh."
I flopped back, staring at the ceiling.
"Seriously? Is that all I got? First, my talent's ranked E, so my cultivation speed is already crawling slower than everyone else's… and now this low-tier, basic passive? Talk about trash luck."
But after a moment, I sighed.
" but what choice do I have? I can only move forward toward my goal," I murmured to myself. Only by walking that path can I hope to find something that matters—something capable of giving meaning to all of this. If not, then nothing will matter, and everything will dissolve into the same emptiness… a void where even the idea of meaning becomes meaningless.
I chuckled bitterly.
"Ah, Arishu… you're really screwed."
With that, I headed for the shower. I wanted to just crash on the sofa, but my OCD refused to let me sleep dirty.
....….…
The alarm screamed at 4 a.m., dragging me out of whatever half-dead state I called sleep. Did I want to wake up? Of course not. But wanting was a luxury for people who could afford to waste time. I couldn't. This wasn't about comfort—it was about execution. So, I got up, cultivated until 7 like a machine on schedule, and then went through the motions of getting ready for class. Black coffee in hand, because apparently, I enjoy drinking bitterness both in life and in my cup.
As I stepped into the classroom, the chatter died for just a second, then it came rushing back—only softer, sharper. Eyes darted my way.
"Oi, that's him, right? The guy who got paired with Aya Kairo."
"Yeah, yeah—number two in the year… and number last."
A snicker. "Pfft, that's gotta be the unluckiest team in history."
"Unlucky for her, you mean. He's just gonna drag her down."
Another voice chimed in from the back, half-laughing. "Did you see the training yesterday? She wrecked him. Couldn't even keep his stance."
"Hah, I swear, if I was her partner, I'd at least be some help."
"Some help? You wouldn't even last longer than him."
"Maybe not, but at least I wouldn't look like I was about to cough up a lung."
And they laugh, but I don't care. But there's one more person who doesn't care either—and yes, that's my partner, Aya Kairo. When I see her, she's just sitting in her seat, reading a book without paying attention to anyone. I feel a little happy knowing she also doesn't care; if she did, I'd be stuck without a partner.
Well, I already knew from reading novels what kind of person Aya Kairo is. But still, reading about someone and actually knowing them are two different things. People can say, or you can read, that a person is "good," but when you interact with them, you might find they're not that good for you—maybe not for others either. Whatever the reason, I'm genuinely a bit happy.
So, I walk to my seat and sit down, ignoring everyone else. And just as I settle in, Miss Emily enters the class and the whole room goes silent.
"Hello, class. I hope everyone's having a good morning."
"Yes, ma'am."
"Okay, so today we are going to learn about spiritual energy."
"But before that, I have an announcement. A portal of Mystic Realm has appeared outside the city, and we have confirmed that it is also a battlefield from the past. It will take some time to stabilize, so next month—once it is stable—all classes will be going to the secret realm. Remember to train hard until then so you can perform better in the secret realm," Miss Emily said.
Upon hearing this news, some were excited while others were fearful. And why wouldn't they be? A Mystic Realm containing a past battlefield—these are realms that opened in the past when all four and five races fought each other. Mystic Realm contains vast cultivation resources and natural treasures, so the races fought over them fiercely. After some time, the realm's portal would close, and there's a low chance it would ever connect to Earth again. Once it does connect…
It was like a gold mine—filled with natural resources and treasures for cultivation, along with relics left behind by those who had once fought there. One could even find rare cultivation techniques. But every gain comes with a loss, and in a Mystic Realm with a past battlefield, the dangers were far greater than in a simple Mystic Realm. That's why some were excited while others were fearful.
However, when I looked at the main characters, they remained calm.
And just like that, our class began.
...
After class, I came straight home. Only one month left before we head into the Mystic Realm. That's not a lot of time, and I'm already far behind everyone else in my class. If I don't catch up now, I'll just end up as someone's stepping stone—and I don't particularly enjoy the idea of being under anyone's feet.
So, I freshened up and started cultivating. Four hours later, I realized something was off. At first, I thought it was just me being paranoid, but no—this was real. Normally, when someone cultivates, spiritual energy enters their body, tempers their mind, strengthens their soul, makes them a little less pathetic overall. But for me? Nothing. Not even a microscopic 0.0001% improvement since the day I awakened my first law.
Sure, I know changes aren't instant—but this was absurd. Every time I absorbed spiritual energy, it felt like it just… disappeared. No trace, no residue—poof. Gone. My first guess? My body was absorbing it in some strange way. Second guess? Maybe my Void Law was eating it. But apparently, I was wrong.
"Let's see where you're going, little energy," I muttered, trying again. This time, I focused on tracking its path inside me.
What I saw was… well, shocking would be an understatement.
The moment the spiritual energy entered my body, it didn't flow through my meridians, didn't temper my body, didn't nourish my soul. It simply… ceased to exist. Like dust scattered in the wind, it vanished without a trace — as if reality itself had decided I wasn't worth the effort. My body wasn't absorbing it; my law wasn't refining it. It wasn't rejection, it wasn't failure — it was pure annihilation.
I stood there, frozen. If my talent had been low, there would've been room for struggle, for grit, for some underdog comeback. But this? This was a dead end so cleanly carved it almost felt like the universe had taken the time to make it look artistic.
Still, I wasn't about to declare defeat. Not yet. But before I could formulate any world-shaking solution, a much more urgent thought crossed my mind: I need a cold coffee. And strawberry-chocolate cake. Preferably both at once. After all, great minds don't solve impossible problems on an empty stomach.
I unlocked my phone and placed an order from the academy canteen — strawberry chocolate cake and a cold coffee. Barely five minutes later, the doorbell rang.
Opening the door, I was greeted by a cute delivery robot holding my order. I paid, took the tray, and shut the door behind me.
The moment I took the first bite of the cake, my mind went blank.
"...Damn. Who made this? In front of this, even heaven would be embarrassed. Forget spiritual energy—right now, this cake is my cultivation path."
I dug in without mercy, alternating between cake and coffee. Eating… yeah, that's a skill I could happily master for life.
As I savored another bite, a thought struck me.
"Next month's Mystic Realm exploration… If I'm lucky, I might find something there. Maybe some rare book or ancient text with a clue I need. And if not—" I smirked to myself, "—I'll just think of another way."