"The time you all have been waiting for has finally come, this will be your one and only chance to awaken. If you fail... then prepare yourselves to live the rest of your lives as civilians, working ordinary jobs, and living ordinary lives."
The teacher’s voice rang out across the vast hall, clear and steady as it echoed off the high walls, reaching every corner where nearly a hundred students sat gathered, their eyes fixed on him, their expressions tight with nervous anticipation.
This moment decided everything.
Around the hall, students sat upright, some clenching their fists, others staring blankly ahead as if trying to calm their racing thoughts, while a few whispered quietly to the people beside them, unable to contain the pressure building inside their chests.
Hope filled the air, thick and suffocating, mixed with fear that no one wanted to admit.
Among them sat Alicar, positioned somewhere in the back of the crowd, his posture straight but tense.
His attention drifted for a moment as the voices of his friends reached his ears from right beside him.
"Let’s go, dude, we all have to awaken and form a team!"
"Agreed," another quickly added, "the four of us together will be completely invincible."
"I’m telling you right now," the third chimed in with a grin, glancing toward Alicar, "Alicar’s definitely getting a crazy class. He always ranks second in the practical exams, there’s no way he gets something weak."
The three voices belonged to Daan, Alex, and Levi, Alicar’s closest friends within the academy.
For the past two years, the four of them had stuck together, training, studying, and waiting for this exact day, the day they would finally turn eighteen and be given the chance to awaken their classes.
It was the turning point of their lives.
Three centuries ago, Earth itself had nearly ended.
Without warning, rifts had torn open across the planet, cracks in reality that spilled out creatures beyond imagination.
Monsters poured through endlessly, overwhelming cities, destroying nations, and dragging humanity to the edge of extinction.
Civilization had collapsed into chaos. Or at least, that was how the stories described it.
Because just as humanity was about to be completely erased, something else appeared: the Eternal Realm.
No one truly understood where it came from or why it chose humanity, but it granted certain individuals the ability to awaken, giving them classes, powers, and access to a world beyond reality where they could grow stronger.
Those who awakened became the ones who fought back.
Decades of brutal battles followed, filled with loss and sacrifice, but eventually, humanity managed to push the monsters back, sealing most of the rifts and reclaiming what remained of their world.
Peace returned... but it was never absolute.
Because the Eternal Realm never disappeared.
It still existed, lingering alongside reality, accessible only to those who successfully awakened a class.
Within it were endless dangers, countless monsters, and even foreign races that no one had fully mapped out.
And more importantly, it held Layers, each one more dangerous than the last, each one holding the promise of greater power for those who could survive them.
Alicar knew all of this. Everyone did.
Which was exactly why his heart was beating faster than ever before.
He didn’t need to become the strongest. He didn’t need to stand at the very top.
But he wanted a chance.
At the very least, he wanted to awaken a decent class, something that would allow him to stand beside his friends as they entered the Eternal Realm together, just like they had planned for years.
Because no matter how you looked at it, there was no path more promising than becoming an Awakener.
"Let’s begin," the teacher said, breaking the tension as he reached down and picked up a sheet of paper resting on the table before him.
His eyes scanned the list briefly before he called out the first name.
"Daan Evanz."
"Oh shit... I’m first?" Daan muttered, his face instantly losing color as the reality of the situation hit him all at once.
For a brief second, he hesitated.
Then he took a deep breath, straightened his posture, and forced the fear off his face before stepping forward, each step echoing faintly in the quiet hall as all eyes turned toward him.
When he reached the front, the teacher gestured toward the object resting on the table.
A smooth, translucent orb.
"Place your hand on the awakening orb," the teacher instructed calmly, "If there is a reaction, then you have awakened. If there isn’t..."
He didn’t finish the sentence. He didn’t need to.
The implication alone was enough to send a chill through the room.
The awakening orb used a person’s soul to determine their class, meaning only a human with a strong enough soul might awaken.
Daan swallowed once, then extended his arm without further hesitation, placing his palm flat against the surface of the orb.
For a moment, nothing happened.
A second passed. Then another.
And just as the tension began to tighten around everyone watching—
The orb suddenly burst into a brilliant light.
It radiated outward in waves, forcing several students to shield their eyes as the glow intensified.
And within that light, a massive sword took shape, floating in the air as if summoned from nowhere.
The weapon shimmered for only a brief moment before dissolving into particles of light that surged forward, sinking directly into Daan’s body.
His figure trembled slightly as the energy fused with him. Then it was over.
"Congratulations!" the teacher exclaimed, his previously calm demeanor replaced with clear excitement as his eyes shone brightly. "You have awakened the powerful Paladin class!"
The hall erupted instantly.
Cheers, shouts, and applause filled the space as students reacted to the success, and among them, Alicar, Alex, and Levi were no exception.
Daan had done it. One of them had crossed the first step.
Following that, the process continued.
Names were called one after another, students stepping forward to face the same judgment, some walking away with their heads lowered and eyes empty, while others returned with expressions of disbelief and joy after successfully awakening.
The success rate hovered around 50%. Not terrible. But far from guaranteed.
Still, as time passed, it became clear that luck had not abandoned Alicar’s group.
"Congratulations, Alex Starfield, you have awakened the powerful Bone Wielder class!"
Cheers rose again.
And shortly after—
"Levi Reaver, you have awakened the powerful Dawn Archer class!"
Three out of four.
Not only had they succeeded, but each of them had obtained powerful, rare classes that went beyond the basic roles most people ended up with.
It should have been a perfect outcome.
As the hall continued to fill with a mix of celebration and quiet despair depending on each result, Alicar remained seated, his hands resting on his knees, his thoughts becoming louder with every passing second.
Because now, it was his turn.
"Alicar Soulveil."
The moment his name was called, everything else seemed to fade slightly.
He stood up, nodding once toward his three friends before stepping forward, his expression controlled but his chest tight with pressure.
Each step felt heavier than the last until he finally reached the table.
The orb stood before him, silent and still.
"Good luck, Alicar," the teacher said, offering a small nod.
Alicar returned a faint smile, then extended his arm, placing his palm against the surface of the orb.
He focused. Completely.
Every bit of hope, every ounce of determination, everything he had built up over the past two years, he poured it all into this moment.
He waited. One second. Two. Three. But nothing.
The orb remained unchanged, its surface dull and lifeless, as if it rejected his very existence.
The silence stretched longer than it had for anyone before him.
Even the teacher hesitated, allowing a few extra seconds to pass.
But the result didn’t change. If anything, the orb seemed emptier than ever before.
"That’s enough," the teacher finally said with a quiet sigh, shaking his head slightly. "Such potential... wasted. I’m sorry."
Then came the words that cut deeper than anything else.
"Awakening failed. Next person."
Just like that, it was over.
Alicar lowered his hand and turned away, walking back toward his seat as the weight of dozens of gazes settled on him.
The gazes were filled with indifference, as they knew whoever failed to awaken wouldn’t go far.
He barely noticed them.
What he did notice was what awaited him when he returned: Daan, Alex, and Levi.
For a moment, he expected something—anything. A word. A reaction.
But instead—
"I really thought he’d get something insane," Daan muttered, his tone flat.
"Guess exam scores don’t mean anything here," Alex added with a small shake of his head.
"So we wasted two years?" Levi sighed, irritation clear in his voice. "We could’ve found someone better to team up with."
Their words didn’t even acknowledge him. It was as if he had already been removed from their world.
And in that moment, Alicar understood. The past two years hadn’t meant what he thought they did.
To them, he had simply been a potential asset. Now that he had proven useless, he was nothing.
Soon enough, other newly awakened students approached, gathering around Daan, Alex, and Levi, their attention drawn to their rare classes.
Alicar was pushed aside naturally, without resistance.
"Well," Daan eventually said as he stepped forward, glancing at Alicar with a faint, almost amused smile, "Try not to get into trouble. Though I guess that won’t be an issue... for a normal human."
That was the last thing he said. After that, they were gone. Just like that.
"...So be it," Alicar murmured under his breath, his expression darkening slightly as he turned away, already pulling out his phone and removing their contacts without hesitation.
He couldn’t leave the hall until the awakening ceremony was over, so Alicar simply sat on the ground.
People had already forgotten about his existence by now.
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