For someone who had spent most of his recent time locked in a cell, my first day outside passed in the blink of an eye.
I saw Ada first. My sister was truly happy to see me again ... and had developed that annoying personality trait where she acted like she was my mom.
I was particularly shocked when I opened her status window…
Name: Ada Starlight
Affection Points: 99
The number was terrifyingly high. I'd thought 50 was the cap.
Unlike Phoenix's window, Ada's status page was incredibly long ... like it could drill into the ground if I let it keep going.
With affection that high, I could see everything about her. Her thoughts, her abilities, what she liked, what she hated…
Every detail, in overwhelming clarity.
That's when I started wondering ...what use did I even have for this ability?
Oh, and I should mention ... I tried using Third-Person pov on Ada.
It worked. Terrifyingly well.
I really did feel like a player, watching her from behind.
It was a relief, honestly, that Ada seemed to be the only person this ability worked on.
If not... who knows what I might end up doing to them?
Yes, Ada was the only one.
...Or so I thought.
"What's with that look on your face? If you keep zoning out like this, I'll beat it back into focus."
A fist slammed against my sword, forcing me back a step.
"…Sorry."
"Being locked up for so long dulled your combat instincts... Let's keep going until that body of yours remembers how to move again."
Carmen cracked her knuckles, her eyes glowing as she locked onto me.
In response, I took my stance, gripping Balerion, and muttered under my breath:
"…What am I even fighting for anymore? What's the point of regaining these instincts?"
Ignoring my idle remarks, Carmen pressed forward, launching attack after attack in hopes of shaking the rust off me before I returned to the Temple.
I understood. She was doing this for me ... even if she didn't say it. And I was grateful, especially for how she had always protected Ada.
Not to mention… the moment I opened her status window, I felt completely at ease.
Name: Carmen Starlight
Current Affection Points: 50
Rank : SS-
Combat Style: Stardust
This person trusts you and sees you as both an ally and someone important.
Her affection score was high enough to reveal a lot. And apparently, it wouldn't rise above 50 unless I did something about it—
Something I'd done by accident with Ada.
Even now, I still didn't fully understand how this new system feature worked.
I spent a full week inside the Starlight estate.
The manor we stayed in was isolated from the rest of the capital, peaceful and quiet.
Ada didn't leave my side for even a minute that whole week. She clung to me constantly.
And strangely enough… I didn't mind it.
Somehow, I'd started seeing her as a real sister.
I never would've guessed that something so simple could change our relationship so drastically.
I still remembered the surprise and joy in her eyes when I started treating her like family, after all those old barriers between us had crumbled.
Family... That was all I'd fought for up to this point.
And now, that family was right here ... manifested in Ada Starlight.
That warmth I felt… maybe this was what my father meant when he told me to live.
This.
This kind of life ... maybe that's what he always wanted for me.
Deep down, I hoped that was the answer.
I wished for a future kind enough to allow such a life to bloom.
…
…
…
Time really flies.
Before I knew it, I was back at the Temple again.
The place hadn't changed at all.
And strangely enough, I realized I'd made a lot of memories here over the past year ... from my first days and bitter struggle, to the final battle of the Victoriad.
Now, I was no longer a first-year. I had officially joined the elite class of the second year.
I didn't realize it until I tried to enter my old room on the first floor and found a younger girl standing inside.
Awkwardly, I had to carry myself upstairs, drawing unwanted attention and stirring up a commotion I could've done without.
And in that moment… I realized how the others saw me now.
I saw hatred in their eyes ... disgust.
To them, I was a criminal. And to be fair, I had just come out of prison.
But among the disgust, I saw something else ..
Fear.
Dread.
Without me even noticing, my name had started to carry weight.
Far more than it ever did when I was just "Frey, the guy who tried to rape a noble's daughter."
Not that it mattered. I never cared what people thought of me anyway.
I climbed the stairs, step by step, to the second floor ... marking one more level of progression in my Temple life.
And then, I saw someone else heading to the same place I was.
That broad back… platinum blonde hair… a towering, muscular frame that was hard to forget.
We had once fought each other to the brink of death not so long ago.
Now, he glanced sideways at me, a golden eye gleaming with raw intensity.
"Well, well… Frey Starlight. Decided to show your face at last?"
Daemon turned fully toward me, his temper as explosive as ever.
"Daemon. You being the first one I run into here… What's wrong? Did you get lost and accidentally wander into the elite class?"
I smirked, ready for our usual war of words.
But Daemon responded coolly.
"Hmph. You'll be seeing me a lot from now on."
He pulled out a black card engraved in gold, revealing his new designation:
Elite Class – Rank AB-11
Now that I looked closely, his uniform wasn't one from the Abyss class.
"AB-11?"
I raised an eyebrow, and Daemon explained:
"It means I belong to both elite classes now."
Which made sense.
The only reason he'd been placed in the Abyss class to begin with was due to the political struggle between the prince and the princess.
To maintain neutrality, he wasn't allowed in either of their classes.
But now, with the looming threat of war, that neutrality was abandoned.
Daemon was officially added to the elite class ... though in a rather strange way, as a member of both Class A and B.
However, being assigned rank 11 in both classes… that was a clear slight against him.
He read my thoughts instantly, smirking as he pointed at my own card.
"What's wrong? Is Number One pitying me now?"
Just as he said… my rank in Class B had changed since last time.
Frey Starlight – Class B-1
Apparently, ever since the Victoriad, I'd become number one.
I sighed, replying to Daemon.
"Numbers don't mean anything."
"True."
He agreed, and we continued up the stairs together.
I was surprised by how civil he was being with me. I still remembered how hostile he used to be.
"You seem like you've got a lot on your mind," he said.
"I do, honestly. Since when can we exchange more than three words without fighting?"
I asked, confused, and Daemon raised an eyebrow.
"What? You'd prefer if I started insulting you again?"
Honestly… I kind of thought he would.
"No. I just assumed you looked down on people like me."
"I do."
He answered quickly, but didn't stop walking.
"I look down on those who fight for meaningless things ... people who act like they've achieved something when they haven't. That kind of shallow pride makes them shallow people."
I nodded.
That was Daemon Valerion... his warrior's philosophy laid bare.
He turned slightly to look at me.
"But you're different, Frey Starlight."
"Huh?"
"I've never seen anyone fight with such desperation… the way you did. That raw hunger… the drive that said losing would be worse than dying. Like it was truly the end."
Daemon paused, recalling our semifinal match.
"Someone who fights like that… is a true warrior."
His words left me with a strange feeling.
Daemon Valerion ... the combat-obsessed lion of House Valerion ...had just acknowledged me.
I knew what he said shouldn't matter.
It was meaningless, really.
But for some reason, I couldn't think of anything to say back.
My thoughts stalled.
So the first words that came to mind left my lips instead:
"A true warrior? I'm just a killer."
I'd meant it more as an insult to myself than anything.
But Daemon just laughed as he walked ahead toward his room.
"A killer? Open your eyes, Starlight. You're surrounded by people who've all killed at least once."
Killing in this world, in this era, didn't carry the same weight it used to.
The real reason everyone freaked out back then wasn't about who I killed… it was how I killed them.
The danger I represented.
The ones who judged me for my "crimes" were people who had slaughtered thousands themselves.
It was never about morality.
And Daemon understood that ... unlike the common students who despised me for it.
"I'm looking forward to our next fight, Frey Starlight. Be ready."
With that, he ended the conversation and disappeared into his room.
I smiled too, then turned toward my own.
"I'm looking forward to it." I muttered.
I couldn't help but check Daemon's status window out of pure curiosity.
And what I saw caught me off guard.
Name: Daemon Valerion
Affection Points: 30
Rank : B
Combat Style: Dragon's gate
This person respects you and considers you a rival.
I needed to stop treating the elite class students like characters from some story.
They were more real than I was, in many ways.
I still didn't know what I was supposed to do next…
Or how I was meant to live.
Even the final mission from my system was still blank.
But whatever the answer was…
I was sure I'd find it here, within the Temple walls.
And just like that ... My second year at the Temple began.