"Attention, students. Today is your last chance to awaken, so listen carefully." The woman standing beside the awakening orb waited for the whispers to settle before continuing. "When I call your name, come forward and place your hand on the orb. Keep it there until I tell you to remove it, even if you feel some discomfort. If you have any questions, ask them now."
Luke sat near the back of the hall, rubbing his damp palms against his trousers. He had arrived in this world three weeks ago, and he still occasionally caught himself expecting to wake up in his old apartment.
He had no idea how he had ended up here. One night, he had fallen asleep after staying up far too late working in the office, and the next morning, he had woken in a bedroom larger than his entire apartment.
There had been a maid beside his bed, calling him "young master," which had seemed like an excellent start until the previous owner’s memories began pouring into his head.
Apparently, he was now Luke Ashford, the eighteen-year-old son of the wealthy Ashford family. He had money, a handsome face, practically everything any man could dream about, except for one thing.
He had failed to awaken.
At first, Luke hadn’t understood why that was such a disaster. His family was wealthy enough to support him for the rest of his life, and he certainly wasn’t going to complain about being spared the responsibility of fighting monsters.
Surely there was nothing wrong with enjoying a comfortable life while people with swords the size of doors handled the dangerous things.
Unfortunately, the Ashfords had very different opinions on the matter. They were a family of Awakeners, with generations of powerful warriors and mages behind them, and apparently that meant Luke was expected to become one too.
After three weeks here, Luke agreed with them. He had watched people conjure flames in their palms and slay beasts twice their size without even blinking. Knowing that he might be able to do those things made it rather difficult to remain satisfied with a comfortable bed and a generous allowance.
Luke snapped out of his thoughts as he watched the first guy walk to the platform. "Place your hand here," the instructor said. The boy nodded and pressed his palm against its surface. A faint light gathered beneath his fingers, and the conversations around Luke gradually died away.
For several seconds, everyone watched in silence. The light moved through the orb in thin, uneven strands, briefly gathering around the boy’s palm before fading. The next second, the brutal notification appeared for everyone to see.
[Ding! Awakening Failed]
"You can remove your hand now," the instructor said.
The boy looked as if he was about to burst into tears. He kept his palm against the orb for another few seconds, staring at the notification as though it might change if he waited long enough. Eventually, the instructor reached over and gently touched his shoulder, and he lowered his hand.
"Please return to your seat," she said. "Someone will speak with you after the ceremony about your options."
He nodded without looking at her and walked down the steps.
"This was his second attempt, wasn’t it?"
"Yeah. His mother’s a D-rank Awakener with a healer class. I thought he’d get something decent too."
"Damn. Even a class like his mother’s would’ve set him up for life."
The boy lowered his head as he passed them, though he had clearly heard every word. He squeezed through the row to his seat and sat down without looking at anyone.
While the main hall welcomed promising talents and newly awakened students, everyone here had already experienced failure once. They had returned for one final attempt, hoping they still had a chance to become something more but it looked like most would end up with the same result all over again.
Luke shifted in his seat, trying not to stare at the boy. He had told himself that things would be different for him since he was essentially another soul rattling in this body, but he had absolutely nothing to support that theory.
For all he knew, he had brought the soul of an ordinary office worker into a body that couldn’t awaken, which hardly sounded like a winning combination.
"Next, Hannah Reed."
A girl a few rows ahead of him stood and made her way toward the platform. She tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear before placing her hand on the orb, her lips moving as though she were saying a prayer.
[Ding! Awakening Successful.]
[Class: Wind Mage — D rank]
"Congratulations. You can check your initial skills in your status panel. Please wait until you’re in a designated practice area before trying them."
"Thank you," Hannah said, her voice shaking. "Thank you so much." She nearly missed a step on her way down, catching the railing with an embarrassed laugh.
A wind mage sounded good. He had watched one fly over the estate a few days ago, carrying a delivery bag and looking thoroughly bored with something Luke would have given a kidney to do.
Two more students went up, and neither awakened. The next one surprisingly awakened. Just as Luke was starting to feel a bit more confident, the next few students failed consecutively. Overall, the success rate seemed to be about one in ten.
Soon it was his turn.
"Luke Ashford."
Luke stood, suddenly conscious of how many people were turning to look at him. Until now, most had been too occupied with their own results to notice who was sitting near the back. Apparently, his surname was enough to distract them.
"Ashford? As in that Ashford family?"
"Yeah. His older brother’s a B rank Flame Knight."
"Shit. Imagine having to go home after failing when your brother’s got a class like that."
Luke would rather not imagine it, especially when there was a decent chance he would find out for himself in the next few minutes. He let out a breath of air and walked to the awakening orb.
The instructor glanced at his face. "Luke Ashford?"
"Yes."
"Place your palm against the orb."
Luke nodded and stepped closer. Tiny flecks of light drifted beneath the crystal’s surface, gathering near his fingers as he raised his hand. He hesitated for a moment before pressing his palm flat against it.
Warmth spread into his fingers. He resisted the urge to shift his hand and watched the light grow brighter. So far, so good.
He distinctly remembered that nothing had happened during the previous owner’s first attempt. The poor guy had stood there for almost a minute, waiting for a reaction while his father watched from the front row.
At least his father hadn’t bothered coming this time.
In a second, the warmth reached Luke’s chest, and he straightened as something stirred beneath his ribs. It was a strange sensation. Instinctively, he tried to hold on to it. The orb brightened at the same time, glowing brighter than it had for any of the students before him.
"Is that normal?" someone whispered behind him.
Luke hoped the answer was yes, though he wouldn’t complain if it meant he was about to receive something exceptional. His supposedly modest expectations began climbing as light spilled over the platform. Perhaps an A rank wasn’t entirely out of the question.
Then the sensation in his chest suddenly slipped away, just as fast as it had appeared.
Before he could even think, the big blue screen appeared for everyone to see.
[Ding! Awakening Failed]
What the actual fuck? Luke stared blankly at the words in front of him.
"Wow, the Ashford young master actually failed!"
"After all that light? I thought he was about to get an A rank class."
"Maybe they should’ve spent less on supplements."
A few people laughed, and Luke found himself pressing harder against the orb. It had to have done something. He could still feel a faint tingling in his fingers, although the warmth in his chest had disappeared completely.
"Keep your hand there for a moment," the instructor said, leaning toward the display on the pedestal.
Luke immediately looked at her. "Is something wrong with it?"
"I’m checking the reading."
He held still while she tapped through several screens. Behind him, the whispers continued, but he barely listened. His attention remained fixed on the instructor, waiting for her to frown at a faulty connection or announce that the orb needed another minute.
Instead, she straightened and looked at him with the same expression she had given the first boy.
"The result is confirmed. You can remove your hand."
"But what was all that light?"
"A reaction to the mana. Unfortunately, the intensity doesn’t determine whether you’ll awaken." She paused before adding, "I’m sorry."
Luke slowly lowered his hand. He wanted to argue, but he couldn’t think of anything to say. "At least he’s still rich," someone muttered as he passed.
Luke might have agreed with that an hour ago. Right now, he would have happily traded his enormous bedroom for whatever class let that delivery guy fly. The bastard had probably finished work by now and was complaining about something equally wonderful.
He reached his seat and sat down, avoiding the curious glance of the student beside him. The instructor called another name, and the ceremony continued.
"Fuck me. This is torture." Luke leaned back in his chair and stared at the ceiling. Was there really no way for him to use magic? As if answering his question, he suddenly heard two system notifications beep. "Don’t tell me... I am being disowned or something?"
He opened his system screen, and two notifications popped out.
[Ding! You have obtained a new title ’Marked by the Fate’]
[Ding! You have unlocked a unique talent - Infinite Luck]