Morning came with all the mercy of a brick to the face.
My alarm chimed, birds screamed outside, and I stared at the ceiling like it had personally betrayed me.
"Five more minutes," I whispered.
[Reminder: F-Rank assembly begins in twenty-five minutes. Estimated travel time: thirty-seven minutes.]
"…Math isn't your strong point, huh?"
[Mathematics Level A+. Host, however, remains at Level 'Wishful Thinking'.]
I buried my face in the pillow. "Just five."
Five became fifteen.
When I finally rolled over, sunlight speared through the curtains, straight into my retinas.7:52 A.M.
"OH COME ON!"
Uniform. Boots. Half-buttoned shirt. No breakfast. I sprinted out of the dorm with toast-shaped regret in my heart.
By the time I reached the main gate, the rest of F-Rank was already there. Two transport orbs hovered nearby—metal spheres humming with blue light, ready to carry us to the training zone.
Instructor Wei stood at the front, arms folded, expression carved from stone. His cybernetic arm glinted like a warning sign.
Every head turned as I skidded to a stop, panting.
He didn't even blink.
"Han Yue," he said. "Nice of you to join the living."
I saluted weakly. "Sir, I was… spiritually preparing."
"You were asleep."
"…Spiritually."
A few classmates snickered. Someone muttered, "Dead man walking."
Wei's gaze sliced through the laughter. "F-Rank doesn't tolerate excuses. If you're late again, you'll run to the ruins barefoot. Understood?"
"Crystal."
He nodded once. "Good. Board up."
The transport's interior vibrated softly as it lifted from the ground. Through the glass slit, the academy shrank beneath us—its gleaming towers fading behind morning fog. Ahead, the world turned gray.
Twenty minutes later, the orbs descended through clouds of dust and silence.
What lay below looked nothing like the shining capital we'd left.
Cracked highways. Collapsed towers half-buried in vines. Wind whistling through broken windows. Faded billboards still clung to concrete like ghosts of laughter from a different age.
The Ruins of Nanshi.
Once a thriving city—twenty years ago, it had been the first to fall when the beasts descended. Now it served as the Academy's lowest-rank training field.
We landed in what used to be a plaza. Grass burst through fractured tiles; a rusted fountain leaned sideways, its dry basin filled with weeds.
Wei stepped out first. "Welcome to your classroom," he said. "No walls, no comfort, no mercy."
He pointed toward the shattered skyline. "Out there are the fragments of our past—and the reason you train. The beasts don't care about your ranks. They care about survival."
I looked around, heart pounding. The air smelled of metal and memories. The silence felt… heavy, like the city itself was watching.
Pebble warmed faintly in my pocket, as if sensing something old and dangerous.
Our group gathered near a toppled monument. Chen Bo—of course—was glowing with excitement, serpent emblem gleaming on his wristband.
He spotted me and grinned. "Overslept again?"
"Don't act like you're surprised."
"Not surprised. Just impressed you're still alive."
"I'm adaptable," I said. "Like mold."
He laughed and clapped my shoulder. "Stick close, maybe some of my luck'll rub off."
"Or your serpent will eat me."
"Also possible."
Before I could retort, Wei Tian's voice cut through the chatter.
"Form pairs. Your task today is simple: survive until sunset. The city's outer zone is mostly safe, but I make no promises."
"Sir," someone asked, "what if we get attacked?"
Wei smirked. "Then fight. F-Rank isn't about avoiding danger—it's about dancing with it."
He tossed a small black sphere into the air. It burst, projecting a floating map that marked boundaries in glowing red. "Cross the red line, and you'll meet something that doesn't care about your GPA."
Then, he turned to leave. "I'll be monitoring. Try not to die before lunch."
And just like that, he vanished into the dust.
Pairs formed fast. Chen Bo teamed with a confident girl from D-Class who'd been "transferred for disciplinary reasons." Figures.
I ended up with the quiet guy from yesterday—the one who shadow-boxed in the corner. He gave me a nod.
"Han Yue, right?"
"Yeah. You?"
"Lin Kai."
He adjusted his gloves. "Let's not slow each other down."
"Deal. You lead; I'll pretend I know what I'm doing."
He almost smiled. "Fair."
We stepped through a broken archway and into the ruins proper.
The deeper we went, the quieter it grew. No birds, no insects. Just wind sighing through broken glass.
I kicked a rock. It clattered down the street, echoing too loud. My system chimed immediately.
[Alert: Noise level—reckless. Possible hostile detection chance increased by 18%.]
"Then you walk, system."
[Negative. I lack legs.]
"…Should've guessed."
Lin Kai glanced back. "Talking to yourself?"
"Yeah, it's a coping mechanism."
He shrugged. "Fair."
We passed what had once been a supermarket, its sign half melted. Inside, shelves lay collapsed, covered in moss. I could still make out faded packaging—Nanshi Chips: Taste the Future!
"Guess the future didn't taste great," I muttered.
Pebble pulsed once in my pocket.
[Environmental note: traces of old ether contamination detected. Recommend caution.]
"Ether contamination?" I whispered.
[Residual beast energy. May cause mutations. Or indigestion.]
"…Helpful."
Lin Kai motioned for silence. From somewhere deeper in the street came a low, wet growl.
We froze.
A shadow moved behind a shattered car. Two yellow eyes blinked once, then vanished.
He mouthed, run?
I nodded vigorously.
We backed away slowly, then turned and sprinted. Pebble throbbed like a heartbeat in my pocket. Behind us, claws scraped concrete.
[Host adrenaline rising. Congratulations, you're officially in survival mode!]
"NOT HELPING!"
We dove into a side alley just as something huge slammed into the street, sending dust flying. Through the haze I glimpsed it—an animal shape, skin fused with armor plates, its mouth a jagged nest of teeth.
A Scavenger Beast—low-tier, sure, but still deadly to untrained students.
Lin Kai whispered, "We can't outrun it."
"Got any bright ideas?"
He lifted his hands, aura flickering faint blue. "I can stun it for three seconds. After that, we improvise."
"Perfect. My specialty."
[Host: Probability of survival—36%. Suggest using available item.]
"What item?!"
[Check inventory.]
I mentally flicked the panel open. The Resonant Core glowed faintly.
"Wait—you want me to use the crafting option now?!"
[Opportunity breeds innovation! Or regret.]
I sighed. "Fine! Pebble, time to earn your keep!"
The stone flared in my palm—golden light searing through the dust. The Resonant Core pulsed in response, hovering midair. They collided, light merging, twisting—
—and something solid formed in my hand.
A short, jagged blade of stone and metal, edges still rough but humming with energy. Pebble's warmth flowed up my arm.
[Temporary Weapon Created: Prototype Golem Edge.]
[Durability : Low. Style : "Desperation Chic."]
"Good enough!"
Lin Kai charged, aura flaring. I followed, yelling something halfway between a battle cry and an apology.
The beast turned, but Lin Kai's flash of light caught it off-guard—its body froze mid-lunge. I swung the blade.
Impact.
Stone met flesh. Sparks flew. The creature shrieked and staggered back, ichor spilling across the cracked asphalt.
"GO GO GO!"
We ran again, ducking behind a bus skeleton until silence returned.
Both of us gasped for breath. My arms shook; the blade in my hand faded back into glowing dust and re-formed into Pebble.
Lin Kai stared at me. "What… was that?"
I looked at the faintly steaming rock. "My pet rock decided to become a knife. Long story."
He blinked. "You're weird."
"Thanks. I try."