Chapter 1: CH. 1 | The Useless Classless

"We don’t have a choice!"

"He’s still young, Arslan!"

"I don’t want to burden him with that kind of responsibility!"

Theo hugged his knees, his heart pounding. He didn’t understand what his parents were talking about, but the tone of their voices scared him.

A faint sound of loud shouting came from outside, followed by an explosion. Theo wanted to ask what was happening. But looking at his parents’ state, there was no way he’d get an answer.

That day, his father had aged without reason, his hair turning white and falling out. Beside him, his mother’s hands and parts of her face were bleeding. Her breathing was ragged and her eyes looked exhausted.

"W-What... happened? Dad? Mom?"

His mother turned and crouched down, level with Theo’s eyes. She raised her hand and stroked her son’s hair, a wide smile clearly forming on her face.

"Everything’s going to be fine."

Theo took a long breath and let it out slowly. He tried to trust his parents.

The storeroom door opened, a female knight in white armor came in and knelt before Theo’s parents, "Forgive me, my lord. The house barrier has fallen and enemy forces are breaking through."

Theo’s father nodded, then turned to look at his wife, "Our time is limited, Hana."

"I understand."

"W-What are you going to do?" Theo asked.

"We have to do something. I’m sorry I can’t tell you, my Theo."

"You have to grow up to be a good, strong boy. I’m sure we’ll see each other again someday," Hana said softly.

"No, Mom! I’m coming with you!"

But Theo’s steps were stopped when the female knight held him back, letting his parents walk away toward the door. He cried and struggled, screaming for them to come back.

His mother’s footsteps stopped as she looked back. She smiled, crying at the same time, then raised her wand and pointed it at Theo. A golden orb appeared at its tip.

"I love you more than anything, my Theo!"

.

.

.

"MOM?!" Theo screamed.

His body jolted awake from sleep. He sat up in bed and realized it had all been a dream, one that felt strangely familiar. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ

Sweat soaked his body. He felt exhausted, his heart pounding hard.

What was going on? Why had he kept dreaming about them for days now?

Theo took a long breath and let it out in a short exhale, his hand rising to wipe the sweat from his forehead and temples, while the warmth of the morning light made his room feel stuffy.

His chest ached every time that dream came back. Beyond not knowing who they were, there was a strange feeling rising in his heart, something like longing mixed with resentment.

"Who are they, really?" Theo murmured.

"T-Theo?"

The young man turned, startled, and saw a woman in a nun’s outfit standing near his bed. She looked surprised, holding a tray with bread and milk.

"Sister Michelle?"

His eyes narrowed sharply as he looked ahead. For some reason, Theo felt like Sister Michelle’s face looked familiar, similar to the female knight from his dream.

"Another weird dream? I’ve told you to sleep on time, but you never listen."

"Tell me, Sister Michelle," Theo asked, "do you have a twin sister who’s a knight in white armor?"

Sister Michelle set the tray down hard on the wooden nightstand, then walked over to Theo and poked his forehead.

"Seriously? You keep asking that lately. I’ve told you a dozen times, I’m an only child!"

"I don’t know, you just look like someone," Theo said quietly.

"Just eat and get ready, today’s an important day."

Theo narrowed his eyes, then turned and opened his bedroom window. His eyes scanned the village road, where several teenagers were walking with their parents.

"Where are they going? Is there some kind of fair or festival in the village?"

"Sigh."

"The Awakening Ceremony!" Michelle groaned, "You’re eighteen now, you’re required to—"

"WHAT?!" Theo shouted, his face shocked.

Because of that dream, I completely forgot about the Awakening Ceremony!

"You’re only realizing this now? You’re really something," Michelle said, crossing her arms.

Theo got up right away and started changing clothes while Michelle was still in the room. He turned and saw her spin around instantly, covering her face with both hands.

"Can you wait until I’m out first?" Michelle asked.

"Why didn’t you wake me up earlier? I can’t be late," Theo answered, pulling on his best pants and shirt.

"I already tried, but somehow you sleep like you’re dead."

"I should’ve brought a bucket of water instead," Michelle said.

"Don’t!" Theo said firmly, turning once he’d finished dressing, "Last time you did that, I had to sleep on the floor."

"That was torture for me!"

He walked to the nightstand and grabbed his breakfast. He drank the milk in one gulp and ate an egg sandwich while walking away.

"Thanks for breakfast," Theo said quietly.

Michelle smiled, then turned to see Theo hurrying off, "I’m glad you—"

The door shut before Michelle could finish her sentence. Theo walked through the courtyard of the orphanage, where the other kids were eating their breakfast.

Some of them smiled and greeted Theo warmly, others wished him luck for the upcoming Awakening Ceremony. Theo, pleased, greeted them back.

"I’m coming back with a mage class, just you watch!" Theo said, pointing at all the kids.

"If there’s such a thing as a dumb class, you’ll be the first to get it," a girl said quietly.

Theo turned and saw her. It was Maya, one of the girls living at the orphanage who was the same age as Theo. From the look on her face, Theo could guess how long she’d been waiting for him.

"Hey, Maya. I’m glad you—"

"Akh!"

Maya reached out and yanked Theo’s ear, making him wince in pain and beg for mercy.

"Now what kind of dumb thing did you do to forget the awakening ceremony?!" Maya complained.

"Sorry. I overslept," Theo answered, "It would’ve been a lot better if you’d slept with me last night. I could’ve—"

"AKH!"

The girl looked even more annoyed and punched Theo in the stomach, sending him crumpling to the ground in pain. Maya didn’t seem to care, choosing instead to walk off and leave the orphanage, leaving Theo in pain.

"W-Wait, Maya!"

Theo forced himself up and hurried after Maya, limping despite the soreness.

"You... almost got me that time," Theo said, catching up to Maya.

"You got lucky. I missed because I lost focus," Maya answered.

Maya clenched her fist, her face turning back toward Theo, "If we’re late and have to wait until next year, I swear I’ll kick you right there!"

Theo gave a small smile and quickened his pace to a half run. For him, getting to the village square on time was non-negotiable if he didn’t want to end up bruised, kicked by a human-shaped monster like Maya.

Maya, the girl who lived at the same orphanage, dreamed of becoming a knight. She trained with a sword, worked on her physical strength, and studied the knight class herself to improve her chances.

Theo? He wanted to be a mage. He’d been amazed the first time he saw someone use magic, whether for fighting, defending, or anything else.

The two of them walked into the village and arrived at the square. The place was packed with teenagers, sitting in the chairs provided, waiting for their number to be called.

Theo and Maya lined up, got their numbers, and sat down in empty seats, right next to each other.

As time passed, every seat filled up with participants. Theo let out a sigh of relief, he’d made it to the awakening ceremony.

A female instructor in a white robe stepped onto the stage. She struck her wand down and conjured a magic orb to begin the awakening ceremony.

"Welcome, everyone, to the Awakening Ceremony of Talon Village!"

"I’m Zicha, I’ll be your instructor today," Zicha announced, speaking loudly to the crowd.

"I’ll explain how this works. Listen carefully."

All the participants listened to Zicha, then nodded in understanding since the process was simple. Most of them already knew, having seen it before.

Zicha activated the magic orb with her mana. The orb glowed bright blue, startling all the participants.

While everyone was mesmerized, Theo suddenly felt a sharp pain in his chest that spread to both his eyes. He lowered his head, trying not to let anyone notice.

"Theo? What are you doing?"

"My chest... it hurts."

"Did you eat breakfast?" Maya asked. Theo nodded.

Maya leaned in close to Theo, whispering so as not to draw attention, "Calm down. Take a deep breath."

"Should I go get the instructor?" Maya asked quietly.

"No."

Theo took a long breath and let it out slowly. He started to feel calmer, but it wasn’t enough to ease the pain in his chest.

Either way, he had to hold on a little longer. Once the awakening was over, he’d go get his condition treated.

"You’re starting to scare me, Theo."

Theo turned and smiled at Maya. But her reaction looked different. She narrowed her eyes and leaned in closer.

"Maybe it’s because I’ve never really looked closely before, but your eyes look... different?"

"What do you mean? My eyes are still there, right?" Theo asked.

"Yeah, but your pupils... were your eyes always blue, Theo?"

Blue? My eyes have never been blue. What is she talking about?

He had no idea what Maya meant, but he tried to steady himself. He could still hear other participants’ numbers being called, and hear them receiving their classes.

He’d tried everything he could to ease the pain, but nothing worked. Then his number was called, and Maya turned to him and whispered.

"I’d better go call them—"

"No!" Theo said firmly, "I... can do this."

Theo stood up and walked unsteadily, forcing his body to keep going. Just walking from his chair to the stage took forever, long enough to leave him drenched in sweat.

When he reached the magic orb, Zicha noticed something was wrong and asked him about it right away. Theo smiled and told her he was fine.

"Are you okay?"

"I’m okay!"

"All right."

"Place both your hands on the orb," Zicha said.

He did as told. Both his hands touched the orb, and a blinding blue light flashed in front of him. As the awakening process ran, Theo fought to hold back the pain in his chest with everything he had.

[Awakening process successful!]

[Synchronizing with host]

[Warning! Mana synchronization failed]

[Class: None]

Theo’s eyes went wide as a system panel appeared right in front of his face the moment the orb lit up. The panel told him the mana core synchronization had failed.

Class... none? What’s happening? Do I not have a class? Can that even be possible?

This has to be a mistake... this is wrong!

Zicha saw the system panel and her eyes went wide. Theo looked up and watched the woman’s expression change.

"Try it one more time!"

Theo nodded and agreed. He did it a second time. But the result was the same. Zicha was confused, not sure what to do.

Seeing no other option, Zicha finally announced, "Participant number 21, Theo... has no class!"

"No class? That means he’s classless!"

"Good rhyme when you pair it with useless, useless and classless!"

"HAHA! He’s done for. Class is your future. Without a class, he’s got no future!"

The young man collapsed, dropping to his knees on the stage floor, wincing in pain, compounded by the crushing shock of having no class, which meant he was different from everyone else.

H-How is this possible... I don’t have a class?

What’s wrong with me?

The pain became unbearable, and Theo nearly blacked out. But before he closed his eyes, he caught a faint glimpse of a golden panel appearing in his blurring vision.

[Mana Core has successfully synchronized with Ancient Authority]

[Congratulations! Authority of Mystic Eyes Activated]