Chapter 1: The Man Chosen by an SSS Talent
Rain poured endlessly from the dark sky. Beyond the glass window, the city lights shimmered, their reflections dancing across the floor of the cramped apartment.
Leon sat quietly by the glass. A cup of coffee rested on the table next to him, long since gone cold. On the opposite wall, the television continued broadcasting the evening news.
"...the youngest Sword Master in the country’s history..."
"...a genius blessed by fate..."
"...the future pillar of humanity..."
Cheers erupted from the crowd on screen as a handsome young man stood proudly before a sea of flashing cameras. Leon watched silently for a few moments before picking up the remote.
*Click.*
The screen went dark. The apartment fell back into silence, leaving only the steady hum of the rain.
"...A genius blessed by fate," Leon muttered, a faint, bitter smile appearing on his face.
Ten years ago, people had used those exact same words to describe him. Back then, nobody doubted his future—not the Awakener Association, not the academies, not the guilds, and certainly not Leon himself.
After all, an SSS-Rank Talent had appeared. The entire nation had celebrated. News channels fought over interviews, academies competed to recruit him, and guilds offered contracts worth absolute fortunes. For weeks, Leon Hart was the most famous Awakener in the country. The future legend. The once-in-a-century prodigy destined to stand at the peak.
Then reality arrived.
Slowly raising his hand, Leon summoned his status screen.
[ Name: Leon Hart ]
[ Race: Human ]
[ Class: Necromancer ]
[ Level: 1 ]
---
[ Strength: 1.2 ]
[ Agility: 1.1 ]
[ Constitution: 1.4 ]
[ Intelligence: 0 ]
---
[ Skills ]
• Undead Summoning Lv.1
• Corpse Detection Lv.1
---
[ Talent ]
• SSS-Rank: Infinite Evolution
His eyes lingered on that final line. *Infinite Evolution.* The talent that had changed his life, and subsequently destroyed it.
Necromancers relied on mana more than almost any other class. Mana was everything. Without it, they couldn’t cast spells, command undead, or walk the path of death. And Leon possessed absolutely none. Zero.
The moment his examination results were revealed, the world flipped. The academies withdrew their invitations, the guilds lost interest, and the reporters vanished. The future legend became a joke overnight. Actually, a joke would have been better; at least people remembered jokes. Leon was simply forgotten.
For ten whole years, he had searched desperately for a solution. He buried himself in ancient books, tried experimental treatments, bought rare medicines, and even dabbled in forbidden rituals. Anything that might increase his Intelligence stat by even a decimal point.
Nothing worked. The number remained exactly the same: zero.
A hollow laugh escaped his lips. An SSS Talent, a Necromancer, and no mana. What a ridiculous combination.
He tapped the details of his talent.
[ SSS-Rank Talent: Infinite Evolution ]
[ Description: You can evolve anything connected to your soul without limits, as long as the evolution requirements are fulfilled. ]
[ Activation Requirements: Sufficient Mana, Evolution Points ]
*Anything connected to your soul.* Leon had read those words thousands of times, yet he still couldn’t test them. What did "anything" mean? Undead? Skills? Weapons? The system never explained, and because he lacked the mana to trigger it, Infinite Evolution had remained dormant for a decade—a treasure chest he couldn’t open.
He closed the screen. Outside, the rain kept falling. The world moved forward, new geniuses were born every year, and heroes rose to fame. Meanwhile, he remained stuck at the starting line. A Necromancer who couldn’t use magic, holding an SSS Talent he couldn’t activate.
Sometimes he wondered if things would have been easier if he’d just awakened an ordinary, trash-tier talent. At least then he could have given up. But Infinite Evolution never allowed him to fully quit; every time he looked at it, a tiny, annoying spark of hope remained. What if he finally met the requirements? What if everything changed?
Leon stared out at the blurry city lights. "If only I had enough mana..."
The words had barely left his lips when a sudden, violent pain pierced his chest. He frowned, clapping a hand over his heart. The pain instantly intensified, making his breathing heavy and ragged.
"...What?"
Cold sweat broke out on his forehead as the room began to spin. The floor seemed to tilt beneath him. Leon tried to force himself up, but his legs completely failed, and he collapsed back into the chair.
A strange, numb calm settled over him as his body hit its absolute limit. For ten years he had carried nothing but regret, watching others achieve the dreams that were supposed to be his.
As his vision slowly darkened, a weak, self-deprecating smile appeared on his face. How pathetic. The owner of an SSS-Rank Talent, dying entirely alone in a miserable apartment.
The rain kept falling. Leon slowly closed his eyes, the final image in his mind being the name of the talent that had haunted him for a decade.
[ SSS Talent: Infinite Evolution ]
Darkness swallowed everything.
***
Leon suddenly snapped his eyes open, his chest rising sharply as he gasped for air.
He wasn’t looking at his water-stained ceiling. Instead, a magnificent crystal chandelier hung above him. Golden carvings decorated the ceiling, and heavy silk curtains covered enormous windows. The room alone was larger than his entire old apartment.
Leon stared blankly at his surroundings, his mind completely wiped blank. "What...?"
He froze. His voice sounded entirely unfamiliar. It was younger, smoother, and completely lacked the raspy fatigue he was used to.
Slowly, he swung his legs out of the bed. Every movement felt bizarre, like he was piloting a piece of machinery rather than moving his own limbs. Then, his eyes caught a large, full-length mirror standing against the far wall.
*Step. Step. Step.*
He approached it, his heart hammering against his ribs. When he finally stood in front of the glass, the color drained from his face.
"No way..."
Long black hair, incredibly pale skin, sharp noble features, and clear, emerald-green eyes. It was a face he had never seen before in his life.
His trembling hand reached out and touched the glass. The reflection copied the movement perfectly. The young man staring back at him was definitely not Leon Hart.
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