Chapter 5: Initial Dungeon! Exclusive Equipment Blind Box! I’m Taking First Place!

Chapter 5: Chapter 5: Initial Dungeon! Exclusive Equipment Blind Box! I’m Taking First Place!

"What is this?!"

The thermos in Mr. Ellis’s hand fell to the ground with a clatter, spilling hot water everywhere.

Ignoring the heat, he stared at the sky with his mouth wide open.

The principal also stood up from his chair, his knuckles turning white as he gripped the railing.

"Unprecedented..."

His voice was barely above a whisper.

"This is an unprecedented phenomenon!"

In his thirty years as principal, he had seen many Awakening phenomena.

There had been flames, frost, fierce beasts, and weapons.

But he had never seen anything like this.

And the pressure from this phenomenon was much stronger than the thunder that had appeared earlier.

According to the rules, the stronger the phenomenon, the stronger the awakened Class would usually be.

The black phenomenon lasted for a full ten seconds before slowly dissipating.

A deathly silence filled the gymnasium.

Everyone remained staring upward.

No one moved, even as their necks began to ache.

Click.

The door to Room 10 opened.

Nathaniel Beaumont walked out.

The expression on his face remained calm, as if the earth-shattering phenomenon had nothing to do with him.

The way everyone looked at him had changed.

There was reverence.

Curiosity.

And even a hint of awe.

Caleb Rowan stood where he was.

The smile on his face had become as stiff as a cheap mask.

He watched Nathaniel approach.

That strange sense of pressure made him uncomfortable.

"What did you awaken?"

Caleb couldn’t help himself.

He rushed forward and blocked Nathaniel’s path.

His voice was hurried and slightly strained.

Nathaniel stopped and looked at him.

"It’s a secret."

He only said those three words.

Caleb froze for a moment.

Then anger replaced his surprise.

"A secret?"

He didn’t believe Nathaniel could be stronger than him.

He absolutely refused to believe it.

Nathaniel ignored him, walked around him, and returned to the class lineup.

"Brother Nathan!"

Daniel was the first to rush over.

He grabbed Nathaniel in a bear hug.

"That was incredible! That black shadow almost scared me to death!"

Daniel was so excited that his face flushed.

"Even though I don’t know what Class you awakened, it’s definitely powerful. That pressure was completely different from Caleb’s lightning."

The surrounding classmates also gathered around.

"Congratulations, Nathaniel."

"Young Master Beaumont, you’ll have to carry us in the future."

"Your awakening was insane."

Nathaniel responded with a small smile.

He wasn’t in the mood to explain.

There were too many things he still didn’t understand about the God of Shadows.

Especially the Shadow Tiers.

He needed time to figure them out.

Soon, the Awakening Ceremony for all students ended.

Out of more than a thousand students, fewer than two hundred had awakened Combat Classes.

Only Caleb and Nathaniel had triggered major phenomena.

The principal stood on the high platform once again.

The flush on his face hadn’t faded.

He was clearly in a very good mood.

"Very good. This year’s Awakening Ceremony was a great success."

The principal cleared his throat.

Then he took out a new crystal ball from behind him.

This crystal ball was larger than the one used for Awakening, and inside it, a mass of gray mist slowly swirled.

"This is the entrance to the Initial Dungeon."

The principal pointed toward the crystal ball.

"Every newcomer who has just awakened a Class has one chance to enter the Initial Dungeon."

"This is a benefit provided by the state."

"There are fifteen levels in total."

"For every level you pass, you can gain a large amount of experience and rewards."

"The more levels you clear, the higher your final evaluation and the more valuable your rewards."

At the mention of rewards, the students below the stage immediately became excited.

The Initial Dungeon was a newcomer’s first opportunity to gain real combat experience and valuable resources.

In previous years, some students had obtained powerful skill books inside.

Others had obtained rare materials and sold them for large amounts of money.

"To encourage everyone..."

The principal raised his voice.

"The school has decided to provide additional rewards for the top one hundred students in this year’s dungeon ranking."

The crowd became even quieter.

"The first-place student will receive..."

The principal paused.

Then he pulled a black jar from his pocket.

The jar wasn’t large, only about the size of a palm.

It was sealed with red wax.

"An Exclusive Equipment Blind Box."

"Unbound."

The entire gymnasium erupted.

"An Exclusive Equipment Blind Box?"

"And it’s unbound?"

"My god!"

"If this were sold, it would be worth millions!"

"You couldn’t even buy one easily! It can produce exclusive equipment suited to the user’s Class."

"If you’re lucky, you might even get Gold-grade equipment!"

"They’ve really gone all out this year."

The students were buzzing with excitement.

Even those who had awakened Life Classes couldn’t help but stare at the black box.

Nathaniel’s eyes also lit up.

An Exclusive Equipment Blind Box.

That was exactly what he needed.

The God of Shadows had already shown him something important.

Ordinary equipment wasn’t necessarily compatible with his Class.

His power came from Shadow Authority, not conventional weapons.

If he wanted equipment that could properly enhance his abilities, an item specifically suited to his Class could be extremely valuable.

Nathaniel looked at the black box.

He had to get it.

"First place..."

Nathaniel muttered.

He looked toward the dungeon entrance.

"I’ll take it."

"What?"

A familiar voice sounded beside him.

Caleb had somehow approached again.

He looked at Nathaniel with that same provocative expression.

"We both have special Classes, and both of us triggered phenomena."

Caleb held his head high, one hand resting on the hilt of his Thunder Sword.

"But I’ll prove that I’m the strongest."

Daniel couldn’t stand it anymore.

"Caleb, don’t be so arrogant. Nathaniel’s phenomenon was clearly more terrifying than yours."

"What use is a bigger phenomenon?"

Caleb snorted.

He scanned the crowd before suddenly raising his voice.

"My initial Strength attribute reached 60 points!"

The announcement was loud.

The surrounding students instantly fell silent.

Then an even more intense wave of discussion erupted.

"Sixty points?"

"I only have eight!"

"I have twelve. He actually has sixty?"

"An ordinary Warrior’s initial Strength is around fifteen. He has four times that!"

"That’s terrifying."

"Is that the difference between an ordinary Class and a special Class?"

The crowd’s reaction was exactly what Caleb wanted.

His expression became even more confident.

This was the source of his pride.

Sixty Strength at Level 1 was an enormous advantage.

He looked at Nathaniel triumphantly.

He wanted to see shock.

Panic.

Inferiority.

Anything.

However...

He was disappointed.

Nathaniel simply looked at him.

He blinked once.

"Oh."

That was it.

His expression remained as calm as still water.

There wasn’t even a trace of surprise.

For a moment, Caleb didn’t know how to react.

He had spent all that effort announcing his attribute.

And Nathaniel had answered with one word.

"Oh.

Daniel covered his mouth.

He could already see where this was going.

Caleb’s face slowly darkened.

Nathaniel looked at him again.

Then his gaze moved toward the dungeon entrance.

He had already seen his own attributes.

He had no interest in comparing them publicly.

The numbers on his panel were his secret.

And the God of Shadows had only just begun to reveal itself.

Nathaniel’s fingers tightened slightly.

The shadow beneath his feet stirred.

Five Shadow Soldiers were currently hidden inside it.

Nobody here knew.

Nobody could see them.

Nathaniel glanced at the black blind box in the principal’s hand.

A faint smile appeared on his face.

"First place..."

He repeated quietly.

"I’m taking it."