The discussions spread like wildfire.
In a world shaped by Reincarnation, years of accumulation, meticulous strategies, and carefully stacked achievements built by major powers were suddenly eclipsed by a single name... someone who seemed to have emerged from nowhere. The invisible balance, upheld by mutual fear and silent caution, began to creak.
History had already proven, more than once, that revealing a Reincarnator's identity was never a simple mistake — it was an invitation to chaos. In the past, it took only one extraordinary talent having their existence exposed for hidden ambitions to cross a forbidden line. The outcome was neither negotiation nor submission, but annihilation. One reckless move was enough to erase entire forces from the board and leave scars that took nearly a decade to begin to heal.
Since then, an unwritten rule had governed the world: identities were sacred. To touch them was to provoke something that neither armies, alliances, nor numbers could contain.
And now, a new name had appeared, carrying an evaluation never seen before.
A rank that represented not only power, but limitless potential.
Those who truly understood its meaning felt a chill crawl up their spines. Not because of what had already been done, but because of what could happen if someone made the mistake of forcing such a player into the open. If a Reincarnator of that level chose to hide, grow, and return… the price would not be paid by an individual, but by entire structures, guilds, even countries.
That was why, amid the rising frenzy, a silent certainty began to form among the most experienced:
All Reincarnators must be cautious.
More than ever, revealing who you are could be more dangerous than any dungeon.
And at the center of this unseen storm, a single name continued to echo — not as a target, but as an omen.
Blank...
…where could the man who shook the entire world be?
Was he already planning his next descent into a dungeon?Gathering in the shadows a secret group filled with terrifyingly powerful individuals? Or perhaps devising plans so dangerous that no one would even dare imagine them?
What was he doing right now?
....
...
.
The sun hung high in the clear blue sky, casting light over the streets and the people walking along the sidewalks. Some were workers heading out to finish their shifts, others were students who had just left school and were making their way to an internet café to have fun playing LoL.
Nothing seemed out of the ordinary.
"Too sweet…" Arthur whispered as he licked his ice cream cone.
"Really? I don't think so," Saeko replied, tilting her head slightly as she tasted hers, a gentle smile on her lips.
The day was hot.
---------------
Across the ocean, within the heart of Drakvar, the most powerful nation among all known powers, an uneasy tension spread through the highest halls of authority.
This was the only country that possessed a Reincarnator who had reached the 30th floor of the Reincarnation Tower.
Their proof of supremacy.
And yet, tonight, that pride was trembling.
Inside a dimly lit conference chamber, the air felt heavy enough to suffocate. At the head of the long table sat the President of Drakvar, a man who appeared to be in his early forties. Faint strands of silver had begun to creep into his dark hair, yet, strangely, time seemed to have failed to leave its mark on him.
His presence alone radiated authority, an oppressive pressure that settled over the room without a single word being spoken. His slightly slanted eyes, an unmistakable trait of the Drakavian people, were sharp and unwavering, as if capable of piercing through lies and souls alike... his fingers slowly tightening against the polished surface before him.
His expression was calm.
Too calm... the kind of calm that preceded storms.
Drakvar had reclaimed its dominance only yesterday, announcing to the world that its champion had broken through the highest known limit of the Tower. The world's attention had finally returned where it belonged.
And then an unknown name appeared with an impossible evaluation.
An SSS-rank, unprecedented in history.
In a single announcement, all eyes shifted.
Drakvar's achievement was eclipsed overnight.
The President slowly lifted his gaze, his eyes cold, calculating.
"I want information on that boy in less than a week. Understood?"
"Yes, President."
A nation like Drakvar did not tolerate variables it could not control.
If Blank could be found, then he would be bought—with resources, protection, authority, anything he desired. Talent like that belonged to empires, not to individuals.
But if Blank refused…
Then he would become a threat.
And threats were erased.
Reports continued to pile up: intelligence failures, sealed information channels, entire regions going silent. Blank's identity remained a void with no trail and past.
That, more than anything, was what disturbed them.
A genius was dangerous, but an invisible genius was catastrophic.
The President leaned back slowly, shadows swallowing half his face as a single conclusion formed in his mind.
Only one outcome would be allowed.
Drakvar would not permit a second sun to rise above the world.
Not unless it shone in its red colors.
------
Luminar Country, in Light City
At that moment, within an elegant garden bordering the heart of Light City, a lone figure dressed in white moved quietly along the stone paths.
She was a woman of striking beauty.
Tall and poised, with clear, pale skin and features that felt naturally refined rather than ornamental. Her lips were subtly colored, her brows clean and sharply shaped, framing eyes that held a cool, distant focus... impossible to read.
Her expression was cold. Not cruel, but detached. A chill that dimmed none of her beauty, instead elevating it, wrapping her presence in an untouchable dignity.
She was one of the nation's most formidable Reincarnators, a name known to nearly every citizen of Luminar. A woman who had already reached the 29th floor of the Reincarnation Tower.
The one the world called—
The White Blade.
Selena's fingers subtly glided through the air.
Her beautiful brows furrowed slightly.
"They want me to approach that 'Blank'?"
The message she received caught her off guard.
After reading the analysis of the mysterious "Blank" that had been sent over, she understood a little more.
She could vaguely guess what they were thinking.
She wasn't slow-witted; she knew her image and charm in the eyes of normal men, but normally, she wouldn't actively use such capital.
But this time...
The influence of the Blank was even greater than she had anticipated, to the point where she was needed to use her looks to curry favor...
"The first Reincarnator to ever obtain an SSS rank in a dungeon… it wouldn't hurt to try to establish contact with him, after all. Having a friendship with someone strong is sometimes necessary…"
---------
The next day, Arthur woke up feeling completely refreshed.
Saeko Busujima was lying beside him, a single blanket draped loosely over her, barely concealing her smooth, pale skin. Her breathing was slow and steady, her expression peaceful... she was still fast asleep when Arthur finally opened his eyes.
He watched her for a brief moment before turning his thoughts elsewhere.
Physical fitness, after all, was still extremely important.
For most Reincarnators, deciding how to spend their limited reincarnation points after each dungeon was a painful dilemma.
One option was to directly strengthen their four core physical attributes.
But for ordinary Reincarnators, that path was almost a bottomless pit, an investment that could take decades without ever reaching a satisfying result.
The other option was to invest points into strengthening skills, abilities, or even bloodlines obtained from dungeons or special encounters.
That choice could bring an immediate increase in combat power.
However, compared to raw attributes, upgrading skills or bloodlines consumed an even more terrifying amount of reincarnation points.
Even the most basic skills often required hundreds, sometimes thousands of points—numbers far beyond what most people could afford.
That was why so many Reincarnators, despite spending years climbing the Reincarnation Tower, still ended up practically "penniless."
But for Arthur, this concern barely registered.
After all, he was currently sitting on an enormous reserve of 250,000 reincarnation points.
His first priority was clear: strengthening his own attributes.
Human attributes were divided into four categories—Constitution, Spirit, Strength, and Agility.
For an average person, each of these hovered around 10 points, and Arthur's status panel was no exception.
Increasing a single attribute by one point required 100 reincarnation points.
For normal humans, the first-stage attribute cap was 100 points.
To go beyond that limit required special methods, unique physiques, or bloodline evolutions and the cost would skyrocket accordingly.
In theory, a normal Reincarnator would only need to increase each attribute by 90 points to reach the human peak.
That meant a total of 360 attribute points, costing 36,000 reincarnation points.
On paper, the number didn't seem particularly outrageous.
The real problem, however, was that the effectiveness of attribute enhancement varied wildly from person to person.
As the saying went, not all physiques were created equal.
Many people who invested in attributes felt little to no noticeable improvement.
Unless you increased an attribute by at least twenty or thirty points in one go, the change was often imperceptible.
Compared to the clear and immediate power boost gained from leveling up a skill, most Reincarnators simply weren't willing to gamble their precious points on raw attributes.
Arthur used to agree with that line of thinking.
But after acquiring Grandmaster-level swordsmanship and its accompanying combat experience, he had completely overturned his previous conclusion.
Even with identical attribute values, the actual combat strength displayed by two individuals could differ dramatically.
Just like himself, despite his attributes remaining unchanged, his control and application of Strength and Agility had improved by an entirely different order of magnitude.
Not to mention how his Spirit attribute, which had only been slightly above average, had produced miraculous results multiple times inside the dungeon.
Only now did Arthur truly understand it.
The importance of attributes was far greater than he had ever imagined.
"Then, let's max everything out."
-------------------
Hey there, my original plan was not to include Shizuka and Rika in Arthur's harem, but after seeing the comments on the previous chapter, I'll be opening a poll to decide:
1. Both — only children choose, I want it all.
2. Rika.
3. Shizuka.
4. Neither.