"Did you hear? His Highness, the Uncrowned Prince, got beaten up again."
"Really? Was it Roderick again?"
"Of course it was! I heard that during today's combat class, Roderick challenged His Highness once more. And, as always, His Highness just kept dodging, never striking back."
"Sigh... he's so good-looking and so gentle. Why won't he fight back?"
"Who knows? Maybe the fall of his kingdom broke his will to fight. After all, The Blood Moon Incident was unimaginably tragic."
"Shh! Stop talking—he's here!"
On the Awakening Plaza, the crowd instinctively parted to form a path. A tall, slender figure stepped into view. Dressed in the uniform of the Royal Academy of the Tin-Silver Kingdom, he carried a few bruises on his face, but they did nothing to diminish the eerie beauty of his features.
This was Daniel, the sole survivor of the Crossbridge Kingdom, now adopted by the Tin-Silver Kingdom—the Uncrowned Prince.
"Well, well, if it isn't our dear Prince Daniel. Still bruised up, huh?"
"If you hate fighting so much, why bother showing up to the Awakening Ceremony? Why not just live peacefully as a useless freeloader?"
"Your Highness, have you abandoned your quest for vengeance?"
Daniel remained calm, his face expressionless, seemingly deaf to the mockery and whispers around him. He walked straight toward the center of the plaza, where the colossal Awakening Stele stood—a ten-meter-tall obsidian pillar that flickered faintly with arcane light.
Today was the day. Every year, students who reached the age of eighteen gathered to undergo their Awakening Ceremony. And finally, today was Daniel's turn.
At this moment, he saw nothing but the Awakening Stele before him.
Ten years. A full decade.
Ten years ago, the Blood Moon had descended. Scarlet beams of light rained down, enveloping the entire Crossbridge Kingdom. Once the strongest human empire, Crossbridge had seven demigod-ranked powerhouses.
But against the bloody pillar of light, even they were powerless.
In just a single night, the Crossbridge Kingdom vanished as if it had never existed. From nobles to commoners, palaces to slums—everything related to Crossbridge was wiped off the map.
By the time people from other nations arrived to investigate, they found only the youngest prince—Daniel—lying unconscious at the site of what used to be the Du Heng Royal Palace.
As Crossbridge's closest ally and the second-largest human empire, the Tin-Silver Kingdom took in the orphaned prince. He was brought to the Royal Academy, where professors raised him together.
But no one knew Daniel's greatest secret—
He wasn't from this world.
Daniel was a transmigrator from Earth.
Ten years ago, he had crossed into this world with the descent of the Blood Moon. At the same time, a strange prompt had appeared before him:
[Beginner Mission Activated: For ten years, you must not initiate an attack on any living being.]
[Mission Reward: Divine Advancement]
For the sake of this Divine Advancement, Daniel had endured in silence for ten years!
This world was far more dangerous than Earth. Legendary races roamed freely, and humanity was constantly under threat. In such a world, strength ruled over everything.
But Daniel's mission forbade him from initiating any attack—what did that mean?
It meant he was seen as a burden, a disgrace, a coward—someone anyone could bully with impunity.
Because of his noble birth, Daniel still received the privileges of royalty in the Tin-Silver Kingdom. But this only sparked jealousy and contempt from the other noble students. To them, Daniel was nothing more than a stray dog from a fallen house. He had no right to enjoy royal treatment.
What made it worse was that Daniel displayed incredible talent in theory. His academic performance had consistently ranked first in the entire academy!
The nobles couldn't stand it. To be outshone by someone they deemed inferior was humiliating. And so, they vented their fury in combat classes—where they knew Daniel couldn't fight back.
After all, the Uncrowned Prince had never once retaliated.
For ten long years, Daniel endured ridicule, beatings, and humiliation.
And now... the ten-year mark had finally arrived.
All the patience, the waiting—it would all be worth it now.
There was a flicker of anticipation in Daniel's eyes.
He raised his hand and pressed his palm against the icy surface of the Awakening Stele.
At first, the stele showed no reaction. Then, after a few seconds, a faint glow emerged. It was a dull gray—dim and unimpressive.
The crowd erupted in jeers.
"See? What did I tell you?"
"Gray light—that's the lowest rank, an F-grade talent!"
A professor stepped forward to inspect the inscription glowing on the stele. His expression turned complicated—mostly disappointment, with a hint of pity he tried to hide.
He cleared his throat and announced loudly:
"His Highness Daniel has awakened the F-grade talent—[Furniture Craftsman]."
[Furniture Craftsman]
The crowd went dead silent for a second—then burst into laughter.
"Hahahaha! Furniture Craftsman? Are you serious?!"
"He's really a waste! Didn't even awaken a combat-type talent!"
"This is perfect! Daniel can now be an apprentice in the Academy's woodworking shop!"
"Why not just work as Roderick's housekeeper? Hahaha!"
Daniel stood silently before the stele, his face calm. But deep in his eyes, emotions stirred beneath the surface.
[Ding!]
[Beginner Mission 'Ten Years of Endurance' completed!]
[Distributing Reward...]
[You have received: Divine Advancement!]
[Divine Advancement in progress...]
[Congratulations! Talent 'Furniture Craftsman (F-grade)' has been successfully upgraded to 'The Infinite One (SSS-grade)']
[You have gained Talent Specialization: Infinite Skill Points, Infinite Plunder, Infinite Fusion, God-Rank Skill Compendium.]
"Daniel, you can step down now!"
"Hey, being a Furniture Craftsman isn't the worst thing, you know!"
"Well... if you've finished awakening, please leave the platform now, Your Highness."
Daniel finally snapped out of it and turned around. Under the strange gazes of the crowd, he walked away from the plaza.
Back at the dormitory—
Bang!
He shut the door behind him with a loud slam.
Forcing himself to stay calm, he dropped onto the sofa, heart still pounding.
Because during the awakening, he had discovered something shocking—
He could see [stats]!
Yes, just like in a game—every person had visible attribute values and levels.
He even saw his mentor Simar's information:
Level 53 Windrider!
Others only knew that Professor Simar was a tier-5 Windrider, but Daniel could see it all: exact level, attributes—everything crystal clear.
So then, what are his own stats...?