So, I went back into the jungle to practice my newly acquired, supposedly overpowered Blue Origin transformation. And do you know what happened? I didn't get to practice. Nope. Because the RNG in this world is absolute garbage. I got ambushed by an E-Rank Shadow Wolf.

  And to make matters worse? It was evening. In fantasy logic, shadow-type monsters get a massive stat buff when the sun goes down. (Thanks, Writer. I really appreciate the level-scaling adjustment just when I wanted a quiet training montage).

  "Huh," I sighed, drawing my Black Knight sword. "What a pain in the ass I have got now."

  The Shadow Wolf let out a guttural howl that rattled my eardrums. I didn't wait for a formal invitation. I channeled my Qi and charged right at it.

  The beast lunged, swiping its massive claws in an arc of dark energy—Night Slash.

  My survival instincts, honed by two years of eating dirt in this very forest, flared. My reflexes kicked in instantly. "Wind Walking!" I shouted, stepping on the air itself and launching myself above the strike to dodge.

  While hovering mid-air, I brought my blade down. "Infernal Slash!"

  An arc of Phoenix fire slammed into the beast, but I wasn't done. I immediately shifted my grip, driving the sword straight down for a Phoenix Thrust. Physics time: by striking perpendicularly, I concentrated all the kinetic force into the smallest possible surface area on the wolf's body, making the impact infinitely stronger.

  The blade bit deep. The wolf yelped, stumbling back. It was injured, sure, but now it was thoroughly pissed off. It opened its maw and spat a condensed sphere of dark mana—Shadow Ball—straight at my face.

  I twisted in the air, dodging it by an inch. "Too slow!" I mocked.

  But as the sphere sailed past me, the wolf just... vanished. It literally melted right into the darkness of the forest floor.

  "Wait, what?" I blinked, my momentum fading as gravity began pulling me back down. "Where did the aggro go?"

  I was completely confused, falling mid-air with my guard lowered. Then, my Spirit Sense screamed. It didn't come from the trees. It came from right below me.

  The wolf erupted from my own shadow, claws glowing with that sickly dark mana. Night Slash.

  I was caught completely off guard.

  Slash.

  "Gah!" The claws tore through my defense. Injured and in genuine pain, I plummeted, crashing hard onto the damp forest floor.

  I lay there for a second, gritting my teeth. (Okay, note to self: shadow mechanics are completely broken. Patch required). I drove my sword into the dirt and dragged myself back to my feet, panting.

  "Alright. It's time," I spat, wiping a speck of blood from my chin.

  I tapped the silver locket around my neck. Instantly, the metal expanded, shifting and locking around my body—the Black Knight Armor. I felt the heavy, comforting hum of its defensive stats settling over me.

  "Round two, Fido."

  I charged at the wolf again. We clashed, and this time, it wasn't a quick exchange; it was a grueling, high-speed brawl. Steel rang against claws. I unleashed a relentless flurry of slash attacks and elemental blades, trying to lock the beast down. But the wolf was slippery. Every time my blade was about to connect, it disappeared into the shadows, only to instantly appear before me, its claws swiping for my throat.

  "Okay, now I'm just annoyed," I gritted my teeth. "Let's see you dodge an area-of-effect attack. Phoenix Overdrive!"

  I ignited my Qi, coating my armor and sword in a blazing inferno. I essentially turned myself into a homing missile of superheated plasma and crashed straight toward the beast.

  But this stupid furball had the audacity to use its broken teleport mechanic again. It vanished right before impact and instantly materialized at my blind spot, ready to take my head off from behind.

  This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

  Predictable.

  "Gotcha," I smirked. Pivoting on my heel, I used the momentum of my missed strike and channeled both the explosive heat and the crushing gravity of my dual cores into one perfect, heavy swing. "Draco-Phoenix Sword Strike!"

  CRACK.

  The heavy black blade slammed into the wolf mid-lunge. The sheer elemental force ripped through its shadow-buffed defenses, and the beast instantly shattered into a cloud of golden dust.

  "Huff... huff..." I leaned on my sword, my lungs burning, waiting for my stamina bar to refill. "Finally. Boss fight over."

  I tapped my locket and ring, disabling the Black Knight armor and sword, letting them shrink back down to their convenient jewelry forms. "Let's see the loot. Better be worth the HP loss."

  Floating in the fading dust was a glowing E-Rank Monster Essence and... a dusty book.

  I tossed the Essence into my spatial bag—free XP is always welcome—and grabbed the book.

  [Skill Book: Shadow Walking]

  [Effect: The user can sink into a shadow and emerge from any other shadow within a 100-meter radius. Range can be increased with mastery.]

  My eyes went wide. A genuine, excited grin stretched across my face.

  "Oh, this is broken," I laughed, practically doing a happy dance in the dark. "A tactical short-range teleport? This is an S-tier drop masquerading as an E-Rank skill! Amazing! Absolutely worth the scratches."

  I checked the sky. It was completely pitch black now. "It's night. I should get back before the C-Ranks wake up for their midnight snacks."

  The Next Morning

  The Academy had officially assigned Team 7 a private waiting room before the battle phase briefing. It was a nice room—plush velvet sofas, marble tables, and high-end complimentary snacks.

  The only problem? My highly esteemed teammate, the Genius of the Century, was nowhere to be found.

  I sat on the sofa, tapping my foot impatiently while Celestia happily munched on a pastry across from me.

  "Are royals genetically programmed to be late?" I groaned, checking the grandfather clock in the corner for the fifth time. "Or do they genuinely believe their time is more valuable than everyone else's? Because from a tactical and corporate standpoint, this is highly unprofessional."

  Celestia rolled her eyes, swallowing her bite. "Don't say things like that, Ragna. They're royalty. They are the busiest people in the country. They have a lot of work to do."

  Suddenly, she paused. The respectful, defending-the-crown expression melted off her face, replaced by that absolutely infuriating, mischievous grin.

  She leaned forward, resting her chin in her hands. "Oh... I get it now."

  "Get what?" I asked, my eyes narrowing.

  "You're just antsy," she teased, her golden eyes sparkling with pure evil. "You just can't wait to see her in person, can you? You're counting the seconds until your beautiful Princess walks through that door."

  "I am counting the seconds because I value efficiency!" I snapped, pulling my hood down slightly.

  "Aww, how cute," Celestia cooed, completely ignoring my logic. "My little brother is in love," Celestia finished, her golden eyes sparkling with pure, infuriating amusement. "Don't worry, she will be here in a moment."

  "It's not like that!" I snapped, my voice cracking slightly as I pulled my hood down further. I could feel the heat rising in my cheeks, which was incredibly frustrating. I am a pragmatic thinker, not some blushing teenager.

  Before I could formulate a logically sound defense, the heavy door creaked open.

  Two figures walked into the room.

  The first was a girl. And let me be completely objective here: she was stunning. She wore a pristine white dress adorned with elegant purplish-pink designs and stripes. Her hair was that same familiar purplish-pink, and her eyes, though a slightly lighter shade, matched perfectly with her dress.

  As for her figure... well. Mhmhm. (Clears throat). I'm not going to sit here and give you a creepy, overly detailed anatomical breakdown, okay, Writer? Let's just keep it professional and say her proportions were, objectively, perfect. She was so beautiful that my brain completely short-circuited, and I physically could not take my eyes off her.

  But it wasn't just the Princess who caught my attention.

  Right beside her stood a woman, probably somewhere between twenty-five and thirty years old. She was clad in armor forged from gleaming, silver adamantite—an incredibly dense, durable metal. A crisp white cape draped elegantly from her shoulders, trimmed with golden edges and bearing a golden symbol on the back.

  She had golden blonde hair, and her eyes... her eyes were blue. A piercing, electric blue. Just like mine.

  While the Princess walked in looking visibly annoyed, this blonde woman radiated a calm, grounding presence, offering the room a warm, gentle smile.

  And the strangest thing happened when I looked at her. My chest tightened. I felt this bizarre, inexplicable pull—a deep, resonant feeling that I knew her, that I was somehow very close to her. It defied all logic. I had literally never seen this woman in my life, yet my instincts were screaming that she was important.

  Celestia, noticing my absolute paralysis, leaned over and whispered with a smug, teasing smile, "Here you go. Watch her to your heart's content."

  I didn't even have the brainpower to snap back. I just sat there, silently gazing at the girl.

  Then, the Princess opened her mouth, and the angelic illusion shattered instantly.

  "How could they?!" Starlia Lesse huffed, her beautiful face twisting into a scowl of pure, unfiltered royal entitlement. "Placing me with a lowly commoner! Me, the Princess of the Kingdom of Razia!"

  Ah. There it is. The arrogance.

  Lowly commoner? I almost laughed out loud. I have a deity's feather and a dragon's scale functioning as my internal organs, sweetheart. But sure, let's see how this plays out.