Three hours. That's how long Sunny had been playing Minecraft with the Prince's supplies.
He held up a leather chest piece. It started as raw beast hide and some iron rivets, but after three rounds of [Fusion], it looked like something a spec-ops assassin would wear.
[Ding!]
[Item: Shadow-Step Leather Vest (Uncommon+)]
Defense: 25
Effect: [Lightweight] - Increases Agility by +2.
Durability: 40/40
"Agility plus two? Hell yes."
Sunny stripped off his ragged servant shirt and pulled the vest on. It tightened automatically, fitting his frame perfectly. He felt faster just sitting there.
"Status."
[Status Window]
Name: Sunny
Level: 3
Strength: 5
Agility: 8 (6+2)
Endurance: 4
Mana: 12/12
Active Gear: Shadow-Step Vest, Balanced Iron Shiv.
"Not bad for a stowaway," Sunny grinned. He grabbed a handful of dried meat he had found—and fused with some spicy herbs—and chewed contentedly.
Suddenly, the wagon lurched violently.
SCREEECH!
The convoy slammed to a halt. Sunny slammed into a crate of potions.
"What the fuck?" he hissed, rubbing his shoulder.
Outside, chaos erupted.
"KILL THE GUARDS!"
"STRIP THE CARRIAGES!"
"LEAVE NO ONE ALIVE!"
Roars of men and beasts filled the air.
Sunny crawled to the back of the wagon and peeked through a gap in the canvas.
It was an ambush. And a big one.
Hundreds of bandits were pouring down from the canyon cliffs. They rode on Dire Wolves and Giant Spiders. They wore mismatched armor painted with a red skull.
"Red Skull Bandits," Sunny muttered, searching the original owner's memories. "Notorious trash. They prey on merchant caravans. But attacking a Royal Convoy? They must be suicidal."
A bandit riding a spider leaped toward the Prince's floating carriage.
"We're rich, boys! The Prince is inside!" the bandit screamed, drool flying from his mouth.
The Ironblood Clan guards were struggling. They were outnumbered.
Cain, the arrogant bastard, was fighting off two wolves with his fire-breathing lizard, looking panicked.
"Help me! Someone help me!" Cain shrieked.
Sunny watched with cold eyes.
"Die, you piece of trash. I hope they eat your legs first."
Just as the bandit's spider raised its sharp legs to smash the white-gold carriage, the door opened.
A boot, polished to a mirror shine, stepped out into the air. It was the blonde man. Prince Valerian.
He didn't look scared. He looked... annoyed. Like someone had stepped on his shoe.
"Filth," Valerian said. His voice wasn't loud, but it cut through the battlefield noise like a knife.
"You dare disturb my reading?"
The bandit on the spider paused.
"Huh? Pretty boy, give me your—"
Valerian raised one hand. A golden ring on his finger flared with blinding light.
"Manifest," Valerian commanded. "Aqueous."
The sky darkened instantly.
Sunny's eyes widened.
Above the canyon, a massive rift in space tore open. Water poured out. And from the rift, something colossal emerged.
It was a whale.
A massive, majestic blue whale, easily the size of a football stadium. It didn't have wings, but it swam through the air as if the atmosphere was its ocean. Runes of water magic glowed along its flanks.
[Ding!]
[System Warning: High-Threat Entity Detected!]
Sunny quickly used his System to scan it.
[Monster: Sky-Ocean Leviathan]
[Grade: Platinum (Low)]
[Status: Annoyed]
"Platinum..." Sunny whispered, a chill running down his spine.
Sunny recited the hierarchy in his head as he watched the whale block out the sun.
Iron (Novice): The trash tier. Most soldiers and commoners. (Levels 1-10)
Bronze: Skilled warriors. Can handle basic monsters. (Levels 11-20)
Silver: Elites. Captains of the guard. Respected in small cities. (Levels 21-40)
Gold: Lords and Generals. Walking tanks. One Gold ranker can wipe out a small army. (Levels 41-60)
Platinum: Disasters. They are strategic weapons. Nations fear them. (Levels 61-80)
Diamond: Legends. Only a handful exist in the kingdom. (Levels 81-99)
Prince Valerian, at eighteen years old, was commanding a Platinum beast.
"That's just unfair," Sunny muttered, feeling a mix of jealousy and hunger.
"I want that."
Valerian flicked his finger down.
"Crush them."
The whale let out a low, mournful song that vibrated the bones of everyone present.
Then, it flopped.
It literally just body-slammed the canyon floor.
A massive shockwave of water and mana exploded outward. The bandits didn't even have time to scream. The Dire Wolves, the Giant Spiders, the men—they were instantly flattened into paste.
The ground shook so hard Sunny's wagon bounced into the air. He grabbed a strap to hold on.
When the water mist cleared, the canyon was silent. The bandits were gone. In their place was a flat, muddy wasteland mixed with red paste.
The Ironblood Clan guards stood there, their mouths hanging open. Cain was trembling, his pants visibly wet.
Valerian yawned. The massive whale dissolved into blue particles of light and returned to his ring.
"Clean up the road," Valerian ordered, stepping back into his floating carriage. "And if we stop for trash again, I'm executing the guards."
The door clicked shut.
"Yes, Your Highness!" The guards scrambled, terrified.
Sunny let out a breath he didn't know he was holding.
"Holy shit. That was... efficient."
...
Three hours later.
The convoy finally stopped moving. But this time, the sounds outside weren't of battle. They were sounds of a bustling metropolis.
"We have arrived at Starfall City!" a herald announced.
Sunny peeked out.
Massive walls made of white stone towered hundreds of meters into the sky. Magic barriers shimmered above, protecting the city. Through the gates, thousands of people were streaming in—hopeful students, merchants, and warriors.
This was it. The hub of the world. The location of the Starfall Academy. The convoy rolled through the dedicated VIP lane, bypassing the long lines.
As soon as they passed the inner gates and entered the crowded, noisy streets, the convoy slowed down to navigate the traffic.
"This is my stop," Sunny decided.
He didn't want to arrive at the Ironblood Clan's designated lodging. If he did, he'd be put back to work as a stable boy, or worse, discovered for Bolton's murder.
He waited until the wagon turned a sharp corner, momentarily blocking the view of the guards behind them.
"See ya, suckers."
Sunny vaulted over the tailgate. He landed in a crouch on the cobblestone street, rolling forward to absorb the impact. His increased Agility made the move smooth and silent.
He instantly pulled the hood of his stolen cloak up.
No one noticed him. The streets were too packed with weirdos. He saw a guy walking a two-headed lizard. He saw a woman with blue skin. A dirty kid jumping out of a wagon was nothing new here.
Sunny merged into the crowd, moving against the flow of the convoy. He watched the Ironblood Clan wagons disappear into the distance.
"Good riddance."
He walked toward the city square, where a massive holographic screen floated in the air.
[STARFALL ACADEMY ENTRANCE EXAM]
[REGISTRATION CLOSES IN: 2 HOURS]
[LOCATION: COLOSSEUM]
"Two hours," Sunny checked the sun. "Tight schedule."
He patted his pocket. He had 15 silver coins. Enough for a meal and maybe a cheap inn, but the registration fee...
He walked up to a nearby bulletin board.
[Exam Fee: 10 Silver Coins for Non-Nobles.]
"Damn inflation," Sunny spat. "That leaves me with 5 silver."
But then, a blue screen popped up.
[Ding!]
[New Quest: Path to Power]
[Objective: Pass the Entrance Exam.]
[Reward: Access to System Shop + Fusion Level 2 Unlock.]
[Failure Penalty: Death (Just kidding, but you'll probably die of starvation).]
Sunny smirked at the cheeky System message.
"Fusion Level 2..."
If Level 1 let him make magic items out of trash, Level 2 probably let him fuse monsters.
He tightened his grip on the strap of his bag.
"Alright, System. Let's crash this party."
He turned and walked toward the Colosseum.
But first, he needed to find a toilet. Riding in a crate for six hours was murder on the bladder.
[Ding!]
[Stamina Recovering...]
"Shut up, System."