Rise Of The Lesser-Blood

Tom spent his very first night in Sector 9 surrounded by the warm, chaotic energy of his family. Over a makeshift dinner, his father Arthur had handed him an official velvet pouch left behind by a royal courier. The Kingdom of Samra did not just relocate the families of Grade A talents, they secured them. Inside the pouch was a staggering government incentive: fifty gleaming silver crowns and a recurring monthly stipend voucher meant to cover all their living expenses.

For a family that used to survive on copper scraps, it was an astronomical fortune. His mother had wept with joy, Leon had stared at the silver in total disbelief, and for the first time in his life, Thomas fell asleep without the crushing weight of poverty pressing down on his chest.But the next morning, reality came knocking. It was time to return to Blackspear Academy.

Now, Thomas stood right outside the towering oak doors of Class 1 A, his heart hammering against his ribs. Because he had been stuck in a week long coma, he was not just the late kid. He was the first new student to join the class after orientation. He was the ultimate weirdo, a lesser-blood carrying an elite Grade A Talent.

Thomas took a deep breath, steeling his resolve, and pushed the heavy classroom doors open.

The moment the hinges creaked, the ambient chatter inside the massive, amphitheater style classroom died instantly. Dozens of pairs of eyes snapped directly toward the doorway. The front rows were packed with wealthy High-blood students dressed in pristine, gold trimmed uniforms, their expressions immediately souring into disgust as they noted his lack of a family crest. Yet, further up the benches, a small group of lesser-blood students stared back at him with wide, awestruck eyes.

”Well, well. If it isn’t Thomas, the grand hero of the lesser-bloods!”

The mocking voice cut through the silent classroom like a whip. A young man sitting in the very front row leaned back in his ornate chair, a cruel smirk plastered across his face. ”You have finally decided to grace us with your presence. We were beginning to think a simple awakening had permanently broken you.”

Thomas kept his face completely blank, but his eyes locked onto the boy who had shouted. He was breathtakingly handsome, with perfectly structured aristocratic features, pale skin, and striking ebony eyes behind a pair of silver rimmed glasses.

Thomas felt a sudden jolt of recognition. This arrogant young noble looked awfully similar to the beautiful, mysterious senior girl who had spent the last week using his comatose body as an excuse to skip her own classes, the very same one who had hidden her identity before walking out of the infirmary.

The handsome boy tilted his chin up, his gaze dripping with a dangerous condescension. ”Come on in, Thomas. Don’t be shy. We have all been dying to see what a Grade A utility talent from the slums actually looks like.”

”Ahem.”

A sharp, magically amplified cough echoed from the front podium, cutting off the High-blodd boy’s unwelcome greeting. The homeroom instructor, a stern, middle aged man with sharp grey eyes, stepped forward and tapped his cane against the marble floor.

”That is enough, Lord Julian,” the teacher said, his voice cold and commanding. He turned his eyes toward the door, gesturing stiffly with his hand. ”Thomas. Come inside the classroom. You are already a week behind on the curriculum. Do not waste any more of our time standing in the doorway.”

”Yes, Instructor,” Thomas said quietly.He stepped forward, ignoring the burning glares of the high bloods and the intense, curious stare from Julian. He walked down the center aisle of the amphitheater, his boots clicking softly against the stone. Passing row after row of silent, hostile nobility, Thomas made his way all the way to the very top.

He climbed the stairs to the back row and took an empty seat right next to the other lesser bloods. With his arrival, they were now four in total, two girls and two boys.

The stern instructor turned back to the front podium and cleared his throat, commanding the immediate attention of the room. ”Thomas, open your foundational texts. Today we will be reviewing the absolute laws of magical theory. You have four major lectures to help you comprehend your new powers before your final combat block this afternoon. Do not lag behind.”

Thomas quietly opened his leather bound notebook. The blonde boy sitting right next to him leaned over slightly, careful to keep his voice low so the hostile high bloods in the front rows would not catch on. He was a handsome young man with clean, sharp features, but the complete lack of a family crest on his collar clearly marked him as a fellow lesser blood.

”Hey,” the blonde boy whispered, flashing a quick, relieved grin. ”I’m Ryan. Guess we are the back row squad. Lucky for us, we are actually assigned as roommates in the freshman dorm room here. Plus, our new’ houses back down in Sector 9 are right next door to each other. Also, a senior asked me to record last week’s classes for you. I will hand them over tonight.”

Thomas gave a small nod, feeling a genuine wave of relief. Having an ally who shared his living quarters both at the academy and back home was a massive advantage.For the next several hours, the professor’s magically amplified voice droned through the amphitheatre. He laid out the fundamental pillars of the world’s power system, explaining how academies were built specifically to help students learn how to control their unique gifts. Thomas listened intently, his pen flying across the page as the core definitions were broken down one by one.

The lecture then shifted to the threats lurking beyond the kingdom’s borders. The professor described Mana Beasts, dangerous wild creatures born with natural elemental affinities that allowed them to wield raw mana effortlessly, unlike humans. Yet, not all beasts were enemies. Some were pure, highly intelligent creatures known as Familiars, capable of forming official, binding contracts with human partners. Finally, the instructor warned them about Runes, the ancient, volatile language of power used in advanced sorcery. Runes held limitless applications, but if a mage failed to use them with absolute, flawless precision, the language would violently corrupt their mind and body.

Thomas stared down at the handwritten words in his notebook, his chest tightening. Never use mana in its raw form, or you become a Sinner.

He looked down at his own hands, mentally pulling up his hidden system interface. Neher Khepri had given him Endless Adaptation and the Eye of Khepri, powers that completely shattered every single rule the instructor was talking about. If the academy or the Holy Church ever found out his true capabilities, they would not just label him an anomaly. They would brand him not just a heretic but a Sinner and hunt him to the ends of the earth.

Ryan leaned over again as the professor closed his heavy textbook. ”Alright, that is the end of the boring theory blocks,” Ryan muttered, his expression turning sharp and serious. ”Get ready, Thomas. The final class is Combat. And if given the chance, Julian is definitely going to try and make an example out of you.”