Rodrick ran across the university campus early in the morning. This was usually when students were waking up, but Rodrick now looked for any free moment in his day to train.
Three days ago, he had hit rock bottom. But of course, Rodrick was never going to give up on his goal just because he was frustrated, so now he was dealing with it by pushing himself even harder. He wasn't going to let a bunch of clan descendants leave him behind.
As Rodrick trained his body to the maximum of his ability, he realized that the impressive precision he had thanks to his stellar body was improving.
Apparently, even at level 1, Rodrick could improve. It was logical, something Rodrick had overlooked, thinking that the only way to become strong was to level up in the tower. Now, Rodrick wondered, was the stellar body really worse than the blessed body of the clan descendants?
Probably not.
After finishing his morning jog, Rodrick returned to his room, took a shower, dressed in his university uniform designed for winter weather, and left with his backpack.
When people looked at Rodrick, they couldn't help but smile. Strangely, Rodrick looked splendid today. He smiled happily.
Clearly, these people had no idea why Rodrick was so excited, but of course, they had no reason to know.
As he walked, Rodrick turned his attention back to the system pop-up window in front of him.
"Aspirant, the stellar body has reached the necessary requirement to learn the 'Stellar Combat Arts'."
When he received that message, Rodrick was stunned. He had his own martial arts manual! He didn't need to continue humiliating himself to learn the school's martial arts. At last, he could keep up with the geniuses!
From that moment on, Rodrick had been thinking about going to the training ground. He was supposed to have two theory classes today, but Rodrick preferred to skip them for today; he had something more important to do.
At this university, all student grades were scored on a single practical exam at the end of the year, so Rodrick could skip any classes he wanted; he was confident he would pass this year. Of course, this was an exception. He preferred not to miss any classes.
When he arrived at the training ground, the lights were still off, so Rodrick headed to the light room. Upon entering, he felt a strange, ominous vibe.
"I'd better get back quickly. I'd rather not encounter the spirit of some aspiring student who died turning on the lights..."
After turning on all the lights in the complex, Rodrick quickly returned to the training camp.
"Okay, where do we start?"
Now with his sword in hand, Rodrick opened the system window.
—Status.
Instantly, all the options appeared in front of Rodrick.
Aspirant: Rodrick Gray Oarion
Characteristics: Star Prince, Eternal Forgetfulness.
Level: 1
Titles: Son of the Stars
Anchors: None
Specialty: Weapons Aspirant
—————————
Statistics
Strength: 24
Agility: 21
Stamina: 27
Vitality: 23
Dexterity: 13
Aura: 11
————————
A slight smile appeared on Rodrick's lips. He had improved significantly over the past month. For some, this improvement was brutal; with these stats, a normal aspirant could attempt to challenge at least the eighth floor of the Eagle Tower.
It was good progress, but not enough.
Rodrick slid the statistics window open and selected the new option.
"Star Combat Techniques | Volume One"
"All right, let's begin."
When he clicked on the option in the window, a new one popped up instantly.
"Taking into account the user's precarious situation, the system has decided to exclude all complicated explanations provided by 'Volume 1 of Stellar Techniques' and replace them with something more understandable for the candidate."
Rodrick looked at the system window in amazement.
"Are you calling me an idiot?"
Rodrick was outraged, his own system calling him an idiot...
In the end, Rodrick decided to accept the change made by the system. It was quite likely that the system was right. Who knows, maybe the entire volume of techniques would be impossible for Rodrick to learn.
A new window appeared in front of Rodrick.
"The star techniques have been reformulated.
First steps towards the first technique: Stellar Aura.
- Obtain 20 aura points.
- Obtain 30 points of strength and endurance.
- Obtain 20 points of dexterity.
Seeking maximum efficiency for the user, the system will take care of the other details."
Rodrick stared at the system window with his mouth open. At first, Rodrick had thought that reading this "book" of martial arts techniques would be relatively simple: read and start practicing. But of course, if it was Rodrick, everything had to be complicated.
"Well, let's look on the bright side, at least I won't have to practice that technique relentlessly to learn it."
As Rodrick was about to start training with the sword, the door to the training ground opened. Rodrick quickly turned his head to see who it was, and when he saw who it was, Rodrick simply clicked his tongue in disapproval.
"Tsk."
It was Nicole Azheven. The girl looked at Rodrick from afar and then simply ignored him.
She picked up her sword and began training away from Rodrick.
"I don't care... absolutely not..."
Rodrick began slashing at the air. Each cut was precise, thanks to the stellar body, and the little skill Rodrick had acquired further sharpened that precision. Strength, endurance, dexterity, and even vitality—these stats were firmly connected to fencing. An imbalance in any of these would cause fencing to lose its precision and power. Again, the stellar body took care of that. No matter how much Rodrick focused on a single statistic, the others pursued him relentlessly. The only two that the stellar body couldn't help with were aura and skill; that was Rodrick's job.
"Hey, what clan are you descended from?"
Rodrick was jolted out of his thoughts as soon as that voice reached his ear. Rodrick turned only to find Nicole looking at him curiously. Rodrick frowned.
"I'm not descended from a clan," Rodrick replied, hiding his growing annoyance.
"Really? Sorry, your body is... similar to ours."
Rodrick, hoping Nicole would leave after that, continued his training, but instead, the girl stayed in the same place watching Rodrick train.
"Ignore her, ignore her..."
He thought.
"Are you sure you're not a descendant?" Nicole asked a second time.
"I'm very sure of where I was born, so no!" Rodrick replied, finally expressing his annoyance.
"Your sword technique is bad, extremely bad, but your body seems to be correcting it with every cut you make. It doesn't look like the body of a normal person."
Rodrick sighed.
"What do you care?" Rodrick said, frowning at her.
"Oh? Looks like I hit the nail on the head. What are you hiding, boy?"
Nicole approached Rodrick, looking him in the eye with cunning. A small drop of sweat fell from Rodrick's forehead. He hated situations where he was forced to reveal one of his secrets. This had always been Rodrick's greatest weakness, especially when faced with such a... spectacular girl.
"No, not at all. You're wrong, I'm not hiding anything. Why would I?"
The girl looked at Rodrick with a stifled laugh.
"Oh, really?"
Nicole moved even closer to Rodrick. Rodrick could feel the girl's breath on his face.
"Yes, really."
Nicole stepped back and sighed.
"Okay."
And so the confrontation ended.
***
The day was coming to an end, and Rodrick was still wielding his sword on the training ground. He had been training here all day. He had only left once to eat. He was tired, but not tired enough. He could keep going until dawn, he was sure of it.
Rodrick was now shirtless, his defined muscles completely pumped up from the hard training. With each slash Rodrick made, his muscles contracted, seeking maximum power. When Rodrick finally stopped to catch his breath, his stellar body reaped the rewards of the arduous training.
"+6 strength points gained"
"+3 endurance points gained"
"+5 vitality points gained"
"+4 agility points gained"
"+6 dexterity points gained"
Rodrick smiled when he saw the system window. He was becoming brutally powerful. The first technique of stellar combat arts was just around the corner.
Rodrick was currently learning the techniques that his fencing teacher was teaching him with great difficulty, but it didn't matter. Rodrick knew that this was only the foundation of his future martial power.
The next day was quite eventful.
Upon waking up, Rodrick went for his morning jog and attended all of his classes.
The first one was Aura Management.
"Okay, guys. Let's continue where we left off in the last class. Everyone take a seat on the floor."
Rodrick took a seat on the tatami mat in the aura training room. The place was so spacious that even with eighty students in it, there was still plenty of room to spare. Rodrick had stopped being surprised by the crazy measures taken by this academy. It was understandable, after all, this was the only academy in the world. Rodrick thanked heaven that the main language was English, his native language. There were also many people who spoke Spanish, and it was easy to communicate with them, as Rodrick shared that language as well. Since he was a child, his parents had insisted that he learn at least two languages, as it was necessary in this world.
Sitting on the tatami mats in the room, the aura training began.
"Okay, you already know how to start. The aura is the energy that gives shape to our bodies. We are all born with an aura and we die with an aura. The arrival of the towers simply strengthened the aura that already existed in our bodies. Think of it that way. Extract the excess fundamental aura in your bodies and begin to imbue it into your bones, slowly..."
Rodrick followed the instructions to the letter, but so far he had only managed to imbue the bones of his fingers with aura. The task was incredibly difficult. One might think that it would be as simple as imagining it to make it happen, but the process was more than that. You had to push the aura with your own will.
"Remember, those who have finished imbuing all the bones in their body, begin the process of creating your first anchor word.
The anchor word: all aspirants seeking to rise beyond the tenth floor should have at least one anchor word. These work in a strange way. To get your first anchor word, you must choose a word from your entire vocabulary, the one that connects with you the most, and then, with strong willpower, imbue it with all the aura you have accumulated in your bones so far. It is the next step as an aspirant.
According to what the Theory teacher, Adolf, had mentioned, imperial class aspirants can have up to five anchor words, an entire phrase!
Just by mentally or physically mentioning your anchor word, the aura accumulated within the anchor will fully return to the aspirant's body. That's how it worked.
For Rodrick, it was impossible that anyone here had finished the process of imbuing their bones yet. Everyone here was supposed to be at level one, so it seemed illogical to ask them to create their first anchor word.
"Master, how long does the process of creating an anchor word take?"
When that subtle female voice spoke those words, all attention in the room turned to her.
"Oh! I'm glad you asked, little Nicole. It can take about a year or two," said the master enthusiastically.
"Really? Sir, I just formed my first anchor word..."
A deadly silence flooded the room. Rodrick's hair stood on end; it had been a long time since he had felt this silence.
The teacher stood up and approached Nicole. He touched the girl's head and then began to laugh softly.
"My God, you really did it... I have a genius in my class!"
Rodrick watched the situation from afar, preferring to maintain his concentration and continue imbuing his bones with aura. He wasn't going to be left behind; now he would only compare himself to himself. He had promised himself that.
Rodrick clenched his teeth, forcing himself not to get frustrated. The difference in talent could cause two things in people. For some, the difference in talent could completely crush them, causing them to give up and leave the path behind. For others, the difference in talent was simply fuel to keep going.
Then, a boy standing near Rodrick raised his hand.
"Teacher, form an anchor word."
Everyone turned their attention to the second boy. He seemed to be about the same age as Rodrick and looked quite ordinary, with brown hair and gray eyes. When the teacher approached to check, he smiled again.
"Wow, we have two geniuses in the class!"
When the teacher mentioned the word "Genius," the boy clicked his tongue. Rodrick thought he was the only one who had heard it. Rodrick looked at him with a frown.
"...Oh?"