William woke up in a vaguely familiar place. The arched ceiling, the dim glow of the hanging lamps, and the smell of medicinal herbs stirred a memory. He was back at the hospital—the same one where they'd treated him after his first collapse.
He glanced at his body. Bandaged from chest to limbs, yet oddly enough, he felt no pain. In fact, he felt... energized. Like his body had been reforged from the inside out.
"Angel, show me what happened after I passed out."
"Replaying memory..."
A projection appeared in front of his eyes. He watched himself, bloodied and broken, being carried into the infirmary by Jayce and another cadet. The healers moved quickly, splinting bones, closing wounds, stabilizing his mangled body.
Then Aurus arrived, striding in with Jayce following behind, looking uneasy. Without a word, the old mage pulled out a small bottle filled with a pink liquid. Jayce tilted William's head, and they poured it down his throat.
As soon as the liquid was gone, Aurus spoke in a low voice:
"Make sure he's ready tomorrow."
"Understood, Lord Aurus," Jayce replied.
After that, no one else came to visit. Only Jayce stopped by occasionally to check on him and make sure he was still breathing.
"Angel, analyze the potion. Same as last time?"
"Analyzing... Confirmed: the potion administered this time is 300% stronger than the previous one. Components: unknown. No matches in the database. Detected changes in user's body:
→ Strength: 3.9
→ Agility: 3.9
→ Vitality: 4.9"
William sat in stunned silence. That potion hadn't just healed him—it had transformed him.
The door creaked open. Jayce stepped in, dressed in his combat gear, jacket slung over one shoulder. He was smiling like a man who'd just watched someone defy death.
"Kinda poetic, huh?" he said. "You got your ass kicked on your first day here... and now, you're leaving with another beating. Let's just hope wherever you're going, the ass-kickings don't end until you're dead. No second chances out there, believe me."
"I'm sorry, Commander," William said, sitting up. "But I couldn't just leave them. I wasn't going to let those bastards touch them."
Jayce rubbed the back of his neck, sighing.
"I get it. I used to be the same. Charging in, fists swinging, heart first. But eventually, you learn... very few people are truly worth putting your life on the line for. Still—" he clapped a hand on William's shoulder "—I'm glad you did it. Means you're still human. That's rare these days."
William stood up. The floor creaked slightly beneath his feet—his body was denser, stronger.
Jayce noticed.
"Looks like your body took in that potion real well. You're close to becoming a full-fledged knight. Your blood's nearly there, but your muscles and tendons still need to catch up. Use this moment. Train hard while that potion's still in your system. Feed your muscles and tendons with that surging blood. You've done great. With those stats, you'd pass the formal academy entrance exam without breaking a sweat."
Jayce's words lit something inside William. He was right. His stat system—strength, agility, vitality—was based on muscle output, tendon reflexes, and blood density. A formal knight would need to hit 5.0 across the board. His blood had the vitality... but the rest wasn't there yet.
As they walked out of the infirmary, William asked:
"Commander, will there be... consequences for what I did yesterday?"
Jayce laughed.
"After raising all that hell, you're worried now? You're hilarious, kid. But no. Don't stress. All those crusty old nobles skipped town early yesterday morning. And at Black Rock Academy, no one gives a damn about your past. They only care about one thing—power. And you? You showed plenty of that."
William let out a breath, finally able to relax.
"So only Sir Aurus is connected to Black Rock?"
"Exactly. Each recruiter sends their picks to a specific academy. Aurus is the only one with ties to Black Rock. And trust me, you'll need everything you've got to survive in there."
They shared a laugh, and William suddenly remembered something. He reached into his clothes and pulled out the necklace he'd bought in the market.
Jayce raised an eyebrow.
"Nice pendant. Hmmm... looks interesting. Bet it's a magic artifact."
William's eyes widened.
Jayce chuckled again.
"I'm no mage, but I'm not blind. I've seen a few magic trinkets in my day. In fact—" he pulled a ring from his finger and handed it over "—check this out. It's called Heart of Stone. Got it as a reward for a near-suicidal mission. Let's just say it's the reason I ended up looking like a stitched-up dog. This little thing lets you survive a level-1 spell from a formal mage without a scratch. If I'd had it earlier, well... I might've looked prettier."
William examined the ring with reverence.
"Angel, scan it."
"Scanning... No matches in the database. Full analysis requires activation."
Exactly what William had expected. If Angel could fully analyze magical artifacts, it'd be game-breaking.
"So... how do I activate it?"
"Needs mana," Jayce said. "But there's barely any around here. Every living being has a sliver of it inside them. Just enough to trigger an artifact once. But keep in mind—these things are one-use only. And I'm not wasting mine just to give you a demo."
William nodded, gripping the ring like a precious relic.
The future awaited. Beyond the sea, beyond broken bones and spilled blood, Black Rock loomed like a shadow... and a promise.