Nicolas Frey
I jolted awake.
"Haaa... haaa... what the hell was tha—hah?"
The last thing I remember was... I was drowning in the river, then I saw a light.
But where am I now?
My eyes scanned the room. It was a small living room.
A closed window was on the side, and two rooms were attached to this one.
Pulling the blanket aside, I crawled down from the bed.
As soon as my feet touched the ground, an unfamiliar sensation ran through my body.
'Strange.'
Did someone save me?
In the distance, I saw a mirror.
Although I wanted to know where I was, somehow I instinctively moved toward it.
My eyes locked onto it, but the reflection wasn't what I expected at all.
A complete stranger stared back at me.
He had messy black hair and golden eyes.
"What?"
I truly didn't understand what was happening. My mind plunged into a state of chaos and confusion.
What happened to me? Why did I look like that?
Th-this is a dream. A bad dream.
My eyes fell on a letter on the mirror table.
I tried to control my rising heartbeat. I didn't know what it was, but I somehow knew it was bad news.
An envelope, sealed with wax stamped in the shape of a burning phoenix, lay on the table.
Ember Academy was scrawled across it in ink that shimmered like embers.
I tore it open,
----
To Nicolas Frey,
By decree of the Eclipse Council, you are hereby summoned to participate in the Entrance Examination of Ember Academy.
Date: 5th of June
Location: Skyward Spire, District 7
Failure to appear will result in immediate revocation of your Awakener status.
—Headmaster Ignis Veyne.
----
Seeing that, my heart unnaturally calmed down.
A smile bloomed on my face as I laughed,
"Haa... haha... hahaha..."
"Damn, what kind of dream comes with this much dark humor? What's next? A status window?"
As soon as those words left my mouth, a blue window glitched into view before me.
==STATUS==
Name: Nicolas Frey
Race: Human
Age: 16
Rank: Awakener
Potential: Master
Discipline: Wielding
Secondary Attributes:
STR: F
AGI: F
END: F
INT: D
CHA: E
Skills:(empty)
============
My smile turned into a frown, then into horror.
"What the actual fuck?"
How is this possible?
Now I am... Nicolas? That bastard from the early arcs.
No, no no no.
This can't be happening.
I pinched myself. I could feel the pain, and the environment was too real to be a dream.
Suddenly, it came without any warning, pain.
Like hundreds of scorpions were stinging my brain.
The pain was unbearable. I was screaming before I even realised it.
"ARRRHHHHHHHHH!"
After who knows how long, it slowly began to subside, but then the second wave hit me.
I gritted my teeth as my hand clenched. This time, along with the pain, foreign memories started flooding into my mind.
After some time, it ended.
"Haaa... haaa... haaa..."
I began taking quick breaths.
My mind was a complete mess.
All my memories were jumbled.
I took my time sorting through them, his memories, to be exact: Nicolas Frey's.
Now I had no choice but to accept it. I was transmigrated, and I had become Nicolas.
==STATUS UPDATE==
INT: D —> C
=================
This is so messed up.
I can't just always cling to the past, can I?
Let me think for a second.
My life was always shit. And now, this world is straight-up cringe.
I was bored in that world, but this one is interesting. After all, this is a fantasy world.
Now I've become this idiot, what should I do?
He is of no use to the plot.
Leonard Shade, the MC of the story, is absurdly overpowered.
I'm sure Leonard will take care of world-threatening problems.
As long as I stay away from trouble and those calamity-bringers, I can live.
Honestly, I was bored just a few hours ago. But now,
I'm getting excited.
This is no ordinary world, after all.
This is a world of flying islands, hovering cars, superpowers, virtual reality, and so much more.
Even if the world thinks I'm Nicolas, I know that I'm not.
If someone blames me for his mistakes, the best thing I can do is just ignore them.
It's better than mindlessly fighting back when I don't even have any evidence to prove.
So the best thing I'll do is take advantage of the very future I know.
I checked the date. Today is the 15th of May.
There are 20 days before the start of the academy.
I stripped off my loose T-shirt I started inspecting myself.
Very skinny body, almost no muscles. I get why his stats are F.
The face was pale and lightly wrinkled, the eyes were darker, hair was very messy.
I need to make this body better.
Turning around, I walked toward the window and opened it.
Immediately, bright sunlight blinded me.
My eyes blurred as they adjusted, and what I saw took my breath away.
Towering skyscrapers were everywhere. In fact, I was in one.
Looking below, my eyes caught many hovering cars.
Scratching my messy hair, a smile bloomed on my face.
"It was... a nice welcome, I guess."
"I should get ready."
***
In this world, danger is everywhere.
My potential is listed as "Master." I had no way to change that, at least not yet.
There were only two vague mentions about increasing one's potential in the entire story. I need to look into them later. But right now, I'm too weak.
First, I need to raise my secondary stats.
I closed the window and turned back into the room.
No time to waste.
I picked up the loose T-shirt from the bed and slipped it on.
Then I checked my bank details.
---
Account Balance: 636.02 UM
Loan: 100,000 UM
---
After the Second Calamity, when other races started settling here, humanity had to agree on a universal currency for intercontinental and interspecies transactions.
That's how 'UM': Universal Marks, came into existence.
Looking at the account balance, I frowned.
No wonder this guy became a villain. Debt, failure, frustration. But still... it felt like overkill.
I walked out of the apartment and onto the street.
The city buzzed with life. Flying cars zipped overhead, people of all races crossed paths—beastfolk, dwarves, elves. Life had adapted, even thrived.
I headed toward the market.
Now that I had Nicolas' memories, I started digging through them. I needed to understand his fall. Why did he become a stepping stone for the protagonist in the first place?
And then it hit me.
Nicolas Frey. An Awakener from a working-class family.
Two years ago, a massacre took place on the street where he lived. Calling it an "incident" doesn't do it justice.
His parents died. He was lucky or unlucky not to be there. He'd gone to his sister's academy entrance exam.
When he returned, all that was left was rubble and ash.
But why did that tragedy make him a villain?
Here's the twist: the massacre was part of a power struggle within a major guild.
The female lead's guild, to be exact.
And guess what happened next?
At the academy, he clung to the female lead. Harassed her. When the protagonist, Leonard Shade steps in as he humiliates Nicolas.
What an idiot.
Instead of whining to the heroine, he should've exposed the guild's crimes in smarter ways.
He tried to be fair. That 100,000 UM loan? He borrowed it from the black market to pay a broker to publish an anonymous exposé.
The article got deleted within hours. Barely caused a ripple.
Now the debt loomed over his head like a sword.
But debt only matters if you plan to live a long life. One successful raid in a dungeon and I could double that money.
I arrived at the market.
The chaos of haggling voices and the stink of spoiled fruit hit me all at once. It was alive, noisy, and real.
I searched for an alchemy stall and found one tucked between a potion booth and a spell scroll vendor.
I bought a few black lotus flowers and dried sunfruit seeds.
Done here.
I stuffed them into a cloth bag and started heading back.
Pulled out my phone.
---
20 unread messages from Big Sis.
---
I didn't read them. Not interested.
In this world, you're considered an adult at 16. If you're an Awakener, you're allowed to enter cleared, certified dungeons.
I searched for a beginner-level dungeon online and booked a slot. Easy enough. It's one of the most used, lowest-risk dungeons out there.
A smirk tugged at my lips.
If this works, my body should improve quickly.
"Haa... haa..."
Just a one-hour walk and I'm already this exhausted?
I stared at my trembling legs and sighed.
It took effort just to open the apartment door.
As much as I wanted to collapse into bed, I forced myself to stay up.
Now's not the time.
I shuffled into the kitchen and began preparing a potion with the ingredients I'd bought.
Nothing fancy, just toss the dried seeds and lotus petals into a blender with some water.
It turned into a pitch-black, sludgy liquid that looked like cursed oil.
I sniffed it.
My stomach churned instantly.
"Damn, they weren't kidding about the smell."
I gave the mix a swirl, then steeled myself.
If you think drinking this stuff will boost my stats directly, you're wrong.
If it worked like that, black lotus and sunfruit seeds would be rarer than dragon hearts.
Then why bother?
You'll see soon enough.
I grabbed a small knife from the drawer. Took a deep breath.
Then sliced across my palm.
The blade sang as it split flesh. Pain bloomed instantly, sharp and hot.
Blood trickled into the mixture, swirling into the black liquid.
I hissed through my teeth.
Can't waste a drop.
The moment the blood hit the mix, my vision swam.
My knees buckled. My head spun.
Just how pathetic is this body?
Clenching my jaw, I wrapped the wound tightly with a cloth to stop the bleeding.
I wasn't worried. As an Awakener, I'd heal in a few hours.
Knowing I wouldn't stay conscious much longer, I stumbled to the bed and collapsed.
Sleep took me.
And I didn't resist.