I Became the Only Non-mage in the Academy

My mind was hazy.

The boundary between dreams and reality blurred.

I was somewhere in between.

A pleasant drowsiness enveloped me.

It felt as though I was floating on water.

Savoring the sensation, I slowly opened my eyes.

[The Infinite Black Flame Star observes its target.]

Inside my body, black stars began to rotate.

Silently, an enormous amount of black energy started accumulating.

This was a power I must be wary of.

A power that devoured the Black God, a power even I didn’t fully understand.

However, simply fearing this power and ceasing to accumulate it would lead to nothing.

There were still many malevolent gods lurking in this world, preying upon it. The so-called Great Evil, humanity’s enemy, was still alive.

I rose to my feet and followed my established routine.

Cultivate energy and train the body.

Using the unnamed martial art crafted by Kim Seo-hyun and the Heavenly Demon, I trained my body.

Then, with the Swordmaster’s talent, I honed my swordsmanship.

Just by performing these three tasks, my skills had been growing tremendously.

If an S-rank talent had certain limits, an EX-rank talent shattered those boundaries entirely.

If a related talent existed, even training it felt as if the end was within reach.

And recently, I added another routine.

There was only one reason for this.

It was because of the reward I received after defeating the Malevolent God, the Black Sun.

“Hmm…”

Sitting down, I pondered over myself.

The new power residing within me responded.

“What should I call this?”

Black governed the power of destruction.

The powers associated with black that I had obtained included the Energy of Defying Heaven, Boundary, Form, and Abyss.

The Energy of Defying Heaven represented negation, Boundary signified division, Form manifested essence, and Abyss submerged everything.

These powers created nothing.

They existed solely for destruction.

White, however, was slightly different.

Alchemy represented transformation, and Seal signified bestowal.

These powers, derived from creation, produced, bestowed, and transformed.

The being that governed such powers was presumed to be the Martial God.

“Should I even call him the Martial God?”

The one who created nothingness.

The Martial God.

In that sense, calling him the Martial God fit.

Yet, his method of battle involved a different power.

“The one who rewinds time.”

The Malevolent Gods referred to him as such.

In the Epic World.

Kim Seo-hyun, having entered the final chapter, fought against all the Malevolent Gods.

And Kim Seo-hyun single-handedly killed every one of them.

The outcome, however, was the worst-case scenario she did not wish for: all lifeforms on Earth perished as a result.

Still, that accomplishment could not be undermined.

In most dimensions, Malevolent Gods destroyed all planets.

Considering how even the gods of the Hundred Temple, Asgard, and Olympus fled from them, it was an incredible achievement.

“6.7 billion years, wasn’t it?”

The Martial God fought alone.

He stood against the Malevolent Gods by himself.

Manipulating time and wielding the power to create nothingness.

Rewinding time, over and over again.

For 6.7 billion years, he fought the Malevolent Gods alone.

To be honest, while I’d like to gain the White Stat, I also found it undesirable.

Rewinding time and fighting.

It sounded noble.

But when I thought about whether I could fight the Malevolent Gods for 6.7 billion years, I grew skeptical. I considered myself mentally strong, but if asked whether I could endure that unfathomable time span, I’d immediately shake my head.

Even if told to fight for just 100 years, I’d still hesitate.

“So, obtaining White is…”

No matter how I thought about it, it’s a negative option.

Which was why I chose another power.

This was the reason I was meditating now.

“A power that I define myself.”

A power to be shaped by my will.

As I reflected on the reward, I delved deeper into my thoughts.

[You have eliminated the Malevolent God, Black Sun!]

[Overwhelming achievement! All eyes turn to your journey.]

[Calculating contribution… You have contributed 73% to the subjugation of the Malevolent God, Black Sun.]

[You have achieved the highest contribution in the subjugation of Black Sun.]

[Verifying conditions for Absolute Stat...]

[You have fulfilled the conditions for Absolute Stat: White. You have also fulfilled the conditions for Absolute Stat: ?? You may choose one of these two powers.]

Blue windows began to appear.

I narrowed my eyes and focused on the Absolute Stat: ??.

“Not even Talent, Reading (-) can discern it?”

Talent, Reading.

It rarely failed to identify something.

It couldn’t analyze Infinite Black Flame Star, the Celestial, or powers possessed by Kim Seo-hyun, Ershil, or Hong Yu-hwa.

“Now that I think about it, it’s not that useful…”

No, it is useful.

The abilities it cannot read are exceptionally high-tier.

I quietly gazed at the screen.

Reading seemed to urge me.

To choose between White and the mysterious power.

“White is undoubtedly certain, but…”

Yet doubts lingered about whether I could fully master it.

I didn’t think I could properly handle such powers.

As for the mysterious power, I had no idea.

This was my first time encountering the concept of Absolute Stats since arriving here.

I knew the entity within Kim Seo-hyun’s body was the Martial God and that he controlled White. But beyond that, I could only speculate.

“If I choose White…”

It would immediately grant an enormous boost in combat power.

Even Black alone was sufficient to kill Malevolent Gods.

But not immediately.

The Black Sun brought its true form.

And hastily at that.

It couldn’t properly descend through the ritual.

Probably due to my presence here and some other unknown factors that forced it to descend prematurely.

At first, heroes even mistook apostles for their true forms.

That’s why it was possible to defeat them.

Still, I had confidence.

If I continued to cultivate Black’s power, I expected to one day defeat them alone.

“Could it be Gray?”

I pondered the Power of Gray.

The Energy of Defying Heaven.

And the magic of starlight.

When those forces combined, they formed a power once called Absolute Authority.

“I don’t feel confident about that either.”

When I first saw it, I worried about the repercussions of that power.

It’s a force capable of destroying an entire planet without hesitation.

If Black governs destruction, then this power seemed aimed at the annihilation of everything.

If only I had some idea, even vaguely, of what the “Question Mark” power was…

“What are you contemplating?”

Black Heaven spoke to me from the side.

If Black Heaven knows something, I might get an answer. That thought suddenly crossed my mind.

I explained my situation to him, in broad terms.

“…A being that creates nothingness can manipulate time? It’s not a strange notion, but…”

Black Heaven frowned briefly before looking at me.

“There’s something suspicious about what you’ve said, but… for now, I think choosing a different power would be better.”

“Why?”

“That power called White—it seems suspicious. If someone who can single-handedly defeat the Malevolent Gods possesses it, there’s a chance it might bind you to their will.”

“Is that so?”

“And as for the power marked with a question mark, it might be a power you’re discovering for the first time.”

“A power I’m discovering for the first time?”

“Yes. You said White is based on creation or transformation, right? Black is the opposite of that.”

“That’s my guess.”

“Your guess is likely correct. If so, then the power marked with a question mark might belong to neither. It could be a power based on preservation or flow, rather than creation, transformation, or annihilation.”

“Preservation or flow?”

“That’s just an example. But… you’re wary of Black, and you seem uneasy about White. So acquiring a different power might be a viable option. The entity granting you this power seems to oppose the Malevolent Gods.”

“That’s true.”

The system, through Talent: Reading (-), always seemed to guide me against the Malevolent Gods and their plans.

[You have selected the Absolute Stat: ??]

[The Absolute Stat: ?? is an undefined, mysterious power. It may change based on the path you’ve walked or what you need most.]

The path I had walked.

The first thing that came to mind was “Savior.”

The moniker that was tied to the power of Pama.

Thinking back, that title didn’t achieve much.

It merely contributed a small amount or was nullified by stronger powers.

“…But what can I do about something so useless?”

To me, it was a surprisingly useless power.

Of course, having it was better than nothing.

However, if it were enhanced by an Absolute Stat, the story would change—no, it would change significantly.

When I first obtained the Absolute Stat: Black, I realized I could wipe out tens of thousands of Mines if they gathered.

[Alternatively, the Absolute Stat: ?? can be determined by you, as conveyed by the will of the world.]

A power I created myself…

This would require careful consideration.

For now, I decided to set it aside.

I turned my head and focused on one spot.

“Oh, isn’t this the newly ascended transcendent Swordmaster?”

“…Out of nowhere?”

“Well, not out of nowhere. Everyone’s talking about your One Slash. The effect was remarkable, wasn’t it? You sliced what might’ve been the true form of the Black Sun in half. And then, you outright killed it afterward.”

Merlin chuckled, clean-shaven and dressed sharply in a suit.

“Well, an announcement will go public soon enough. They’ll say Savior Lee Seo-ha defeated the Nazi Empire, the incarnation of evil.”

“I suppose so.”

There was no hiding it, even if I wanted to.

I didn’t directly participate in the war, but the eyes of the world—no, the entire globe—were focused here.

Though I wasn’t on the battlefield, the surrounding areas were so packed with people that roads were briefly paralyzed, according to the news.

“So, the royal family plans to host a party…”

“How annoying.”

I let out an honest, displeased groan.

Normally, such an event wouldn’t be possible. The British royal family is one of the most influential forces in the world.

If it were Ershil, she might have blocked it. But I didn’t want to owe her a debt, so maybe I would’ve been dragged into it anyway…

“Things are different now.”

The eyes of the world are upon me.

At that event, I proved myself. I demonstrated that I was stronger than the transcendent.

And one of the transcendent-level powers, the Heavenly Demon, was on my side.

The British royal family must’ve already understood as much.

“Haha, as expected, you’re down-to-earth. Then, how about a party with our close acquaintances?”

“So persistent… but will the Knight King attend?”

“Oh-ho, it seems you’re curious about our Knight King.”

Merlin’s eyes twinkled as he spoke.

To be honest, I was.

To be more precise, I was intrigued by the golden sword the Knight King possessed.

Excalibur.

A sacred sword that banished beings from other realms.

While it’s ineffective against fully manifested Malevolent Gods, it could send partially descended Malevolent Gods or apostles back to their realms.

Having such a sword would be reassuring.

After some thought, I replied to Merlin.

“When’s the party?”

“When would you like it? If the Knight King knows you’re attending, he’ll adjust accordingly.”

“What about today?”

“Very well. I’ll make the arrangements for today.”

Merlin clapped his hands with a smile and left.

“See you later, then.”

“Sure.”

Afterward, I paused to think.

Thanks to my ex-girlfriend, I had some knowledge of high-society parties.

Pretentious gatherings where people feign sophistication, laugh hollowly over wine and fine cuisine, gossip behind others’ backs, and engage in scandalous behavior when eyes meet.

That was my biased perspective, but it was based on things I’d seen firsthand.

“Still, if the Knight King is there, it should be fine.”

The Knight King is a figure synonymous with nobility and trust.

If he hosted the party, such antics were unlikely to occur.

I was naïve to think that.

Never did I expect to become directly involved.

“So… what do you plan to do with me?”

With a trembling voice, Ershil looked up at me.

The situation was strange. Ershil was pinned under me on the bed, and I was on top of her.

It was a scenario that anyone would misunderstand.

To make matters worse, Ershil was dressed in a revealing outfit.

“How did it come to this?”

Seriously, how?