2316, Earth.

In the year 2316, Earth had become a very different world from the peaceful planet that had once stared helplessly at the stars, oblivious to the threats lurking in the dark void.

For those born into this new age, strength was not a distant dream or a myth from the Sentinel's revelation. It was a reality, recorded in ranks, displayed on insignias, and tested every year.

Inside a training room, the holographic image of an F-Rank Razorcat shrieked, its digital vocal cords producing a sound that grated against the ears. It lunged across the simulation field, its translucent claws flashing under the artificial lights as it sprang toward the young man standing still in the center of the arena.

Adrian moved calmly, his training staff becoming a blur as he parried the beast's first strike. He shifted his weight effortlessly, driving the blunt end of his weapon directly into the beast's projected ribs with a concussive force that shattered the digital physics engine.

The simulation dissolved instantly in a flicker of harmless, dissipating light, neutralized completely with a combat technique that was, as always, utterly flawless.

His mind immediately discarded the fight analysis scrolling across his peripheral vision. It had been a necessary drill, a chore to keep his muscles warm, but nothing more than that.

His intense focus was always fixed on the distant horizon, locked onto the real threats that existed far beyond the fortified city walls.

In his mind, he saw only the colossal A-Rank behemoths his parents faced daily on the blood-soaked, treacherous fringes of the Wastelands. Those were the true monsters, creatures whose mere steps could split roads, whose deafening roars could break the spirits of entire defensive formations, and whose terrifying existence demanded the ultimate strength of humanity's finest Defenders.

That was the elite level of strength he was determined to achieve, and nothing less would ever satisfy his burning ambition.

From the elevated observation deck, the combat instructor's voice boomed, "Flawless technique, Adrian! Exactly what is expected from the son of the defenders," the instructor praised. "Let's hope your awakened affinity is just as strong."

Adrian gave a respectful nod toward the glass booth. The physical technique was only half the battle in this brutal world. The true, boundless engine of power lay dormant within his own soul, quietly waiting for his affinity to finally reveal its nature.

After Earth had awakened, every human awakened an affinity upon turning sixteen, and that affinity decided the direction of their life more than wealth, education, family name, or personal ambition ever could.

…

Later, in the cramped locker room, Leo, Adrian's oldest and most trusted friend, slumped onto a scarred bench, burying his face deep into his trembling hands.

"I can't stop thinking about the ceremony," Leo groaned, the sound muffled by his palms. "I've been reading the forums. Most of the high-rank skill books the Celestial Eleven send back from the universe are specifically tailored for rare, energy-type affinities."

Leo dropped his hands and gestured wildly around the crowd, his voice rising in an anxious pitch that drew a few sideways glances. "We'll all get into the Academy, sure. But what then? If I get a common Stone Affinity, the boilerplate ability, I'll be immediately placed in the Aegis Division for basic frontline training. I'll be cannon fodder."

"I'll spend years mastering low-rank skills just to maybe fight an E-Rank monster one day." His voice cracked, betraying the sound of his deeply rooted frustration.

Adrian moved silently beside him, settling a firm, reassuring hand on his best friend's shaking shoulder. "An affinity is just the starting gun, Leo, not the race itself. The Celestial Eleven are trying their best to collect and give us these skill books. If there is no skill book written for the next stage of your power, we can't just blame them for it. Rather, we need to study our affinity, push our mana channels, and create a new skill ourselves. That's how legends are made."

Leo let out a long, bitter sigh, "Easy for you to say, Adrian. Your parents are living A-Rank legends, there is no way for you to awaken to a useless affinity, and from what I have seen from childhood, your innate talent is higher than average."

Adrian pressed his lips into a thin line. He could not honestly deny the underlying truth of Leo's words. In the world they lived in now, affinity was the greatest force shaping a person's fate. A person's worth, status, military value, academy track, and future opportunities were often measured by a single defining letter, ranging from the common F-Rank foot soldier, whose tragic job was often merely to hold the bloody line until stronger Defenders arrived, all the way to the legendary nation-defending S-Ranks whose existence could alter the fate of entire regions.

The main factor behind those ranks was one's affinity and the knowledge humanity possessed about it. The Celestial Eleven, the eleven ancient heroes who had left Earth to wage war among the stars, continued sending treasures known as skill books back to the planet.

These precious texts contained codified secrets for wielding internal mana, teaching an Awakened individual how to use their affinity properly through a particular skill. The knowledge locked within those pages could accelerate a Defender's understanding by years, sometimes even decades, allowing young Awakened to walk a path already carved by experts rather than stumbling blindly through danger.

Each skill had its own assigned rank, scaling from F to S, and to successfully learn from a skill book, an Awakened individual needed to possess the exact corresponding core affinity. If a person could safely learn and wield a particular ranked skill without their physical body collapsing from the immense strain, that meant the individual had reached that rank. If a D-Rank Defender learned a C-Rank skill and could use it properly in combat, then that Defender would be recognized as a C-Rank from that point onward.

There were risks in this system as well. If a D-Rank Defender attempted to forcefully learn and use a B-Rank skill before their body, mana channels, and comprehension could support it, their delicate internal pathways might be shredded like wet paper.

All of this was manageable, but the cruelest part of the modern world was that the Celestial Eleven had only managed to send a limited amount of knowledge back to Earth.

Many affinities, especially common but conceptually difficult ones like Stone, remained largely mysterious to humanity. If someone awakened an affinity for which humanity possessed high-level knowledge, that person could be actively guided, trained, and pushed through established skill books. 𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚

But if someone awakened an affinity with only limited available knowledge, they could not expect much guidance after reaching the known ceiling.

For such people, the only way forward was to study and comprehend their unique affinity at a fundamental level, deepening their connection to its core concepts and attempting to create new skills from scratch.

It was a monumental task, and not everyone possessed the raw innate talent or, just as importantly, the decade of uninterrupted time required to achieve such a feat, regardless of financial resources. Therefore, the vast majority relied almost entirely on skill books, and if no suitable skill books existed, their future was considered practically doomed.

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"Do not think negatively, Leo," Adrian said after a moment of thinking, "What if you awaken an affinity with good potential?"

"My cousin awakened Fire Affinity last year," Leo replied, his voice dropping to a whisper. "It has A-Rank potential, which sounds impressive, right? But he could only comprehend a basic F-Rank skill book. Now he is stuck throwing firebolts that barely singe a Razorcat's fur. What if I awaken a good affinity and still get stuck because I cannot comprehend it?"

'Potential' meant that the currently known skills and vast body of knowledge humanity possessed could theoretically enable the individual to master skills sufficient to become a Defender of that rank.

If someone awakened an affinity with A-Rank potential, it meant humanity had enough skill books, training methods, and recorded theory to guide that person all the way to A-Rank, assuming they had the talent, discipline, and luck to survive.

If the potential was low, it did not truly mean the path was permanently sealed at that level. It only meant humanity did not possess higher-ranked skill books or enough accumulated knowledge to guide the Awakened further.

Thus, a low-potential user was forced to painfully train their affinity and vastly increase their comprehension entirely on their own, attempting to create higher versions of skills from scratch. It was a path that sounded heroic in stories and brutal in reality.

"That is why the Academy exists, Leo," Adrian said, quickly correcting him and trying to pull his friend back toward the foundational principles of discipline they had been taught since childhood.

"Even if someone cannot comprehend everything from the raw theory of a skill book, the combat experience the Academy provides can still transform them, increasing their affinity understanding by experiencing real battles. It just takes time."

Adrian knew deep down a mere skill book could not provide everything for someone to understand; only a veteran teacher with the exact same affinity could demonstrate its true application in live combat.

Only the brutal act of sparring with a rival could forge genuine, lasting experience through physical pain and hard-won triumph.

Leo's shoulders sagged once again, unconvinced. "It's easy to say, Adrian. But you know reality is always brutal."

Adrian nodded. In reality, some people truly did not have the talent to comprehend their affinity beyond the basics, and some died before they ever had the chance to prove otherwise. Hope was necessary, but hope did not erase statistics, casualties, or the countless names engraved on memorial walls across every fortified city.

Adrian felt the familiar, crushing weight settle heavily on his chest, the constant burden of being the son of two celebrated A-Rank Defenders. His parents had not achieved their miraculous rank through idle luck; they had earned it through decades of mastering countless high-ranking skills, not safely in digitized simulators, but out on blood-soaked battlefields where every single lesson was paid for in life.

Everyone, from his instructors to the onlookers on the high balcony, completely expected him to follow that same crimson path, and to do so quickly. This suffocating pressure had shaped him over the years.

And Adrian himself, from his early childhood, possessed a quiet, almost intimidating confidence and an innate belief in his own limitless potential. His internal will, forged entirely by society's expectation, had always remained unshakable.

"Tomorrow's the ceremony," Leo muttered, intensely staring at his own hands as if reading the future in his palms. "Sixteen years old, and everything changes. Tomorrow, we will stop being kids."

The awakening ceremony occurred annually in every district, a ritual that separated children from their futures with a single touch of crystal. It was the moment that decreed whether they would live lives of relative comfort behind city walls, train for specialized support roles, or march toward the harsh and lethal frontlines where humanity still bled for every safe kilometer of land.

For years, Adrian had quietly watched older students return transformed, their eyes holding new depths of unfathomable power or the crushing disappointment of a severely limited future.

…

The next day.

Adrian's pulse remained steady as he and an anxious Leo joined the massive stream of sixteen-year-olds slowly flowing toward the central ceremony hall.

The massive, imposing structure loomed before them, its walls embedded with veins of luminescent metal. The alien architecture defied conventional geometry, spiraling upward in impossible curves that seemed to physically bend space itself.

Inside the cavernous space, hundreds of nervous teenagers clustered tightly in neat rows, their nervous energy creating an electric undercurrent that made his teeth ache.

High above them, the exclusive balcony reserved for high-ranking Defenders gleamed. Adrian's gaze found his parents almost immediately in the sea of elites. Their twin A-Rank insignias caught the hall's ethereal light, throwing dazzling prismatic reflections across the walls below.

Both his mother and father watched him with expressions of high expectation and pride. The sheer weight of their monumental legacy pressed against his shoulders. Every single eye in that elite balcony had turned specifically toward him, measuring, evaluating, waiting to see if their celebrated bloodline would manifest in a powerful awakening.

At the hall's center, the legendary Affinity Crystal completely dominated the massive space. It was a monolithic structure, and its dark surface rippled with bizarre patterns.

The assigned proctor, a stern woman whose C-Rank insignia marked her as formidable but ultimately limited, finally began calling out the names.

"Sarah Chen."

The very first name echoed through the cavernous hall. Sarah's legs trembled as she slowly approached the crystal.

The Affinity Crystal waited for her in silence. As Sarah's shaking palm made contact, the crystal's interior instantly erupted into spectacular, cascading ribbons of pure emerald light.

A holographic screen materialized instantly above the crystal: "Healing Affinity, Rank A Potential."

Excited murmurs rapidly rippled through the gathered crowd. Healing affinities were considered true treasures, their rare wielders destined for the prestigious medical corps where they would safely mend shattered bodies and broken spirits, enjoying immense wealth and status.

Sarah stumbled backward, tears streaming down her pale face as relief and ecstatic joy warred for dominance. High above, her parents in the observation deck clutched each other desperately, their faces radiant with uncontainable pride.

"Marcus Wong."

A stocky boy with heavily calloused hands stepped bravely forward. As he touched the stone, the crystal pulsed violently with a deep amber fire.

"Earth Affinity, Rank B Potential."

Marcus grinned broadly. Earth wielders reliably formed the backbone of defensive formations, their skills essential for protecting cities from monster incursions, a reliable, if unglamorous, career path.

The ceremony continued its relentless march. Adrian watched each awakening, silently cataloguing the patterns of light and energy that dramatically emerged from the crystal's hidden depths.

"Elena Vasquez." Violent lightning crackled sharply within the crystal, "Lightning Affinity, Rank B Potential."

"David Kim." Deep shadows pooled within the crystal, "Shadow Affinity, Rank B Potential."

Suddenly, Leo's name rang out across the hall, and Adrian felt his friend's nervous energy dangerously spike like a sudden fever. Leo approached the daunting crystal, as sweat visibly beading on his forehead. He placed his hand on the smooth surface.

The crystal responded immediately with beautifully swirling currents of bright silver and deep blue.

"Water Affinity, Rank A Potential."

An A-Rank Potential!

This easily enabled Leo to master skills sufficient to become an A-Rank Defender, placing him in the elite echelon of society right alongside Adrian's legendary parents.

Leo's tense face exploded into a massive grin that could have easily powered the entire hall's lighting system. He eagerly caught Adrian's eye across the room and triumphantly pumped his fist, a silent, deeply grateful explosion of his earlier fears. Leo was thoroughly satisfied knowing he could get official guidance all the way up till A-Rank!

The agonizing minutes crawled by slowly. Each subsequent name brought Adrian steadily closer to his momentous moment of truth, the terrifying instant when his internal potential would be laid completely bare before the assembled crowd and his expectant parents.

"Adrian Blackwood."

The hall's buzzing atmosphere shifted instantly. Whispered conversations died simultaneously as every single gaze in the vast room converged on him.

Adrian rose slowly from his seat, his movements betraying none of the wild anticipation that furiously coursed through his veins. Above, his parents leaned forward simultaneously.

The crystal loomed before him, its dark surface reflecting severely distorted, rippling images of his face. He could physically feel the accumulated hopes and dark fears of everyone present, their combined emotions creating a staggering psychic pressure that actively threatened to buckle his knees, yet his immense, innate will held perfectly firm.

His palm finally met the crystal's surface. It was neither warm nor cold, a bizarre contact that seemed to aggressively reach straight through his skin and physically grasp his very essence.

The proctor's hand moved quickly to the glowing activation panel, her trained fingers hovering lightly over the controls that would determine his entire future. "Beginning affinity scan," she announced loudly.