Arthur lay sprawled on the training ground, eyes half-lidded, chest rising and falling in slow rhythm. A strange warmth pulsed through him—not just from the forge or the dull ache of fatigue—but something deeper. Alive. Brewing.
His hand rested over his lower dantian.
"…My body feels so hot," he muttered to himself.
Before the thought could settle, a shadow loomed over him.
"Tch. Still only at the marrow stage?" came a familiar, annoyingly smug voice.
Arthur didn't even have to look. *Of course.*
**Seok Sung.**
"How can someone like you be Grandmaster Kim's grandson?" Seok Sung scoffed, arms crossed like an overly proud rooster. "You're dragging his name through the mud. Honestly, if I were you, I'd do the man a favor and disappear."
Arthur slowly tilted his head to glance at him—expression blank, unimpressed.
Like a man watching a pigeon puff its chest in a mirror.
Why does this idiot keep talking to me? If I'm such a disgrace, then maybe just… walk away?
"Seok Song, was it?" Arthur said, voice dry as sand.
The boy's eye twitched. "It's Seok Sung!
how dense are you?"
Arthur arched an eyebrow. "Strange, I could've sworn it was Seok Something. My bad."
Seok Sung's face turned a darker shade of red. "Ugh. Not that I expect a beggar to remember names properly."
Arthur sat up slightly, brushing dust from his robes. "You do realize my grandfather could probably erase you from the map with a sneeze, right? You sure you wanna keep poking the dragon?"
"You—! Hiding behind him again? Can't you stand on your own?"
Arthur shrugged without shame. "Why bother? If a mountain's willing to block arrows for me, I'm not about to step aside and get skewered for pride."
"You're shameless huh."
"And yet, here you are—still standing in front of me. Who's really wasting whose time?"
"Hmph! You'll never surpass me. Never!" Seok Sung snapped.
Arthur smirked. "Everyone's a prodigy until the results come in."
Seok Sung jabbed a finger toward his chest. "Fine! I'm entering Sable Star Academy too. Let's see who gets the higher class ranking."
Arthur blinked. "Class ranking?"
Seok Sung blinked back, stunned. "Don't tell me… You don't even know that?"
Arthur scratched his head. "...Should I?"
Seok Sung nearly choked. "How are you so ignorant?!"
He composed himself, lifting his chin like a professor giving a lecture. "The academy divides new students into Class 1 through 5. Class 1 is for first-years like us. But even that's split into rankings—from 1-F up to 1-A. Lowest talent and strength get dumped into 1-F. Highest—1-A."
Arthur tilted his head. "So… a sophisticated ranking system built on discrimination. Sounds noble."
"It's not discrimination," Seok Sung said, nose wrinkled. "It's efficiency. In this world, the strong get resources. The weak get leftovers. That's how civilization survives."
Arthur snorted. "Right. And I bet you sleep just fine after stepping over those 'inefficient' people, huh?"
Seok Sung leaned forward, voice smug. "I'll be in Class 1-B or higher. Mark my words. When the academy sees my soul force control, they'll know who is better and whose family is stronger."
Arthur's smile vanished, eyes narrowing just slightly.
"Your family practices the Soul Force Path, right?"
"What of it?" Seok Sung asked cautiously.
"Teach me the basics," Arthur said.
Seok Sung blinked, caught off guard. "Wait… you're on the cultivation path. Why would you—?"
"Just teach me." Arthur's voice was steady now. "Call it a favor. One day, if you need my help—and it's within my strength—I'll repay it."
Seok Sung raised an eyebrow, the mockery in his eyes dimming just a little.
"A favor, huh?"
He smirked, then looked Arthur up and down like inspecting a rat in fancy clothes.
"Fine. But first—go clean yourself up and eat something. You seriously look like you crawled out of a sewer. I'm not wasting soul theory on a starving beggar."
Arthur stared at him blankly.
"…You done?"
"No. But I'll pause the insults until you stop smelling like forge smoke and sweat."
Arthur pushed himself up and mumbled, "This better not be a prank."
"Oh, it'll be painful," Seok Sung said with a grin, walking off. "But not a prank."
Arthur watched him go, sighing deeply.
"First I get tortured by Grandpa's hammer training… now I get to be tutored by a peacock with a superiority complex. What a life."
.
..
...