Over hundreds of names had been called. The arena platform was smeared with black blood now, the stone drinking it in where it pooled between the cracks.
Those transforming due to Undefinition were put to death immediately, before they could hurt anyone. The Adepts did their work efficiently, without hesitation. One body against eight spears, it was a quick and smooth removal before the next name.
Some didn't undergo Undefinition immediately. The window was between eighteen and twenty years old, after all. A delayed reaction was as common as an immediate one.
It made no difference.
If not in the arena, then in the streets when the change finally came. And if they ran—there had been runners—they were either hunted down and executed, or the world outside the Sanctuaries killed them first. The Undefined Zones were not kind. Several terrible things roamed those spaces, and they were always hungry.
"Rinchen Wintertide."
I finally looked up at the screen. I'd been somewhere else for a while, somewhere inside my own head where the black blood and the bodies couldn't reach me.
The hall was more sparse now, hours had passed, people slouched tiredly in their seats, shifting against sore buttocks, and some had even temporarily forgotten that today could be their last. They chatted, laughed, and talked about nothing, as if talking about nothing could keep death at bay.
But when Rin's name was called, a semblance of order returned to the hall. Conversations died and a lot of them straightened their backs..
After all, Rin was one of the famous ones. And he was even more famous now that humanity had three Sanctuaries thanks to his father.
Rin stood up without ceremony and walked out. Everyone watched the holographic screen as he climbed onto the platform in the center of the arena, taking his place where so many had died before him.
Three seconds passed.
The crowd held its breath.
Then the familiar voice sounded, resonating through the coliseum.
[Rinchen Wintertide has gained Definition]
[Rinchen Wintertide has awakened an Adept Class]
[Rinchen Wintertide is now an Awakened Novice]
[Class: Air Lancer]
[Rank: Adept]
[Stage: Awakened]
The crowd exploded with a loud cheer. So far so good—the ranks that had been appearing were all Novice. Rin was the first Adept to awaken. A genuine achievement, something worth celebrating.
Somewhere in the bowl of seats, his father's eyes were staring down at him. Or maybe it was his elder brother. I didn't know if his father had even made it, but someone from his family had to have come for him and Ysor.
I glanced at her, she seemed relieved that her brother did not turn into an abominable thing despite his monstrous tendencies.
Meanwhile on the screen, Rin's expression tightened subtly. His fist clenched at his side, and for a moment something raw passed across his face before he smothered it.
'Not good enough.'
Having spent years watching him, I knew him enough to know what was going on in his head.
'Ungrateful brat…'
An Adept rank Class was impressive to anyone else. But for a Wintertide? With a father who was a Legend and an elder brother who was a Champion?
Rin stormed out of the arena, suppressed anger rolling off him in waves that even I could see from here.
The next name was called.
"Dante Esmer!"
A dark-skinned boy with black braided hair stepped into the arena and took his place on the platform.
Three seconds passed.
[Dante Esmer has gained Definition]
[Dante Esmer has awakened a Master Class]
[Dante Esmer is now an Awakened Master]
[Class: Fire Beast]
[Rank: Master]
[Stage: Awakened]
This time the roar shook the foundations. The sky itself seemed to tremble under the weight of the celebration. The entire coliseum, as vast and colossal as it was, vibrated like it might come apart at the seams.
One more Master had been added to humanity.
Gaining a Master meant everything. The chances of cleansing other Undefined Zones, of claiming another Sanctuary—it was becoming feasible. Sake Wintertide had done it with seventy Masters. Perhaps another siege could happen and humanity's territory could grow again.
"Axel Neris Rubravis!"
The arena went dead silent.
If the wind had passed at that moment, they would have heard it.
My heart hammered against my ribs. Despite my seeming indifference to everything—the careful blankness I'd worn all day like armor—I was as terrified as everyone else. Maybe more. After all, the son of traitors didn't get second chances.
I didn't realize my palm was sweaty until Ysor opened hers to let me go. She gave me a worried look, but I returned it with blankness. Then she whispered to me just before I stood up.
"Whatever happens here today, nothing about us will change… I promise."
The words managed to put a smile on my face as I stood up. The world felt like it would swallow me as I walked away from her. Each step was like scaling a mountain, my massive body heavy and uncertain. But I walked up the stairs nonetheless, emerged into the arena, and climbed onto the platform.
The stone was warm beneath my feet. Warm from the lights, from the bodies, from hours of blood soaking into it.
I stood there... and three seconds passed.
But there was nothing.
After three seconds, my heart plummeted. Sweat pooled at my temples and slid down my face. I clenched my fist and begged in my mind, the words running together like a desperate prayer.
'Please... please... please...'
Five seconds passed. The circle of Adepts wielding their vicious spears were already closing in, their steps measured and professional. They'd done this hundreds of times today.
I exhaled heavily as another second passed. Still nothing. I didn't know how Undefinition felt, didn't know what sensations preceded the change. I only knew that getting stabbed by eight spears at once would hurt. I knew that much for certain.
Six seconds passed... Seven...
The spears drew closer. Slowly now.
Just then...
[Axel Rubravis has gained Definition]
As the voice resonated through me, a massive weight lifted from my chest. My knees buckled. If the floor hadn't been smeared with black blood, I would have collapsed right there. Instead, I locked my legs and stayed standing by sheer will alone.
'I'm alive!'
But my relief was short-lived.
[Axel Rubravis has awakened a Class]
[Axel Rubravis is now an Awakened Mundane]
[Class: Hollow]
[Rank: Mundane]
[Stage: Awakened]
[Axel Rubravis has become an Established Mundane]
[Axel Rubravis has become an Ascended Mundane]
[Axel Rubravis has become a Transcendent Mundane]
[Axel Rubravis]
[Class: Hollow]
[Rank: Mundane]
[Stage: Transcendent]
The coliseum was silent.
But it was a different kind of silence than before. I stood there, staring at the runes floating in front of me, my expression completely lost.
First was the shame of the class itself.
A Mundane rank was no different from an ordinary human. Since every being had to be Defined to exist properly, Mundane ranks were considered the new baseline of humanity—people who had barely escaped Undefinition, the ones who scraped through.
For the son of a Sovereign, this didn't just fall short of expectations.
It made me useless.
I was only useful enough to serve as a meatshield should humanity want to claim another Undefined Zone.
"What a disappointment!"
"Go to hell, where your father and mother are!"
"Damn, all my hopes!!"
"You should be ashamed of yourself, you fatass!"
The curses rained down immediately, as if people had been waiting for permission. As if they'd been holding this hatred in all day, just hoping for a target.
I turned and walked away. As I walked, a stone struck the back of my head, disrupting my steps and making me stagger.
I righted myself and kept walking, my hands clenched at my sides.
More stones flew and missed. Another one found its mark, splitting the skin above my ear. Blood trailed warm and wet down the side of my face as I descended into the hall, but I didn't reach up to touch it.
I just kept walking.
Everyone in the student hall watched me pass. Their eyes were filled with contempt, their whispers loud enough to reach me.
"I really thought he was going to awaken a Sovereign rank class."
"Fate is a bitch, bro."
"It's a good thing he didn't, honestly. I hate him."
Everyone could hear. The boy wasn't even trying to be quiet. From across the hall, I saw Ysor's fist clench. She suddenly stood up and turned to face him—a boy with short black hair and a smug expression.
"You hate him?" Her voice cut through the murmuring. "You hate him because he's stronger than you? Because he always beats your ass despite being so fat?"
The boy looked at her with a slight frown. "Of course you'll defend him. He's your pet, after all."
Ysor's expression went dark. She lunged toward him, wanting to bury her fist in his face—
"Ysoriel Wintertide!"
She stopped herself mid-motion and straightened, though her eyes never left the boy.
"You better pray I don't become Undefined." Her voice was quiet now. "Because if I do, I'm escaping that place and coming to tear you to shreds first. Before anything else."
The boy shivered. Visible fear flickered across his face.
"Who even says things like that?!"
But Ysor was already walking away. She threw me a glance and left the hall, crossed the arena floor, then climbed onto the platform.
She stood there and waited.
I managed to raise my head. Blood still dripped from my temple, but I watched. If I couldn't amount to anything, at least Ysor could.
'It would be nice if she became a Legend.'
I thought it with a small smile despite everything—despite the blood, despite the shame, despite the looks. I was truly hopeful for her. She deserved it.
'Ysor, you can do this.'
Three seconds passed.
...However, there was nothing.
Five seconds passed, the same thing, ten passed… then a minute…
Before the Axiom finally sounded:
[Ysoriel Wintertide has failed Definition]