At first, Lysian thought he had been seeing things after having woken up from a traumatic event. But it was as clear as day: a blue light flashed before him, presenting a line of text inside a box that read, "Congratulations! You've received the title 'Moribund Conqueror!'"

He reached out over to it, trying to make sense of what he was witnessing, "What the?..." His hand phased right through the screen, startling him. Lysian began to panic a little, wondering if he had hit his head too hard to somehow be having illusions.

He decided to see if there was anyone else in the room, spotting a dark-haired boy that was sitting in a chair with his eyes closed. Lysian didn't recognize him, but he noticed that he wore the same year uniform as him.

"Um... Excuse me?" he called out for him quietly, not knowing whether or not he was asleep.

To his surprise, the eyes immediately fluttered open in response to his meek voice, revealing the comforting shade of caramel. However, his wide gaze was off-putting to Lysian.

"You're awake!" the boy exclaimed, seeming awfully chipper of Lysian's state of consciousness. It was as if he had been waiting for him to wake up. He quickly grabbed onto his hands, cupping them into his palms. "I've been waiting for you to finally get up, Master!" He didn't hesitate for a moment, the name rolling off his tongue like it was natural. His expression was practically shimmering with admiration.

"What?" Lysian took a moment to take in his words, blinking at him in confusion, "Master? Who? Me?"

But Lysian quickly shook that off, having different priorities. "Nevermind that, can you see this?" he asked, pointing directly at the blue rectangle before him, "Is this some sort of magic?"

The boy followed Lysian's gaze, but failed to see what he was referring to. He blinked at him a few times, wondering what he was supposed to be looking at. The only thing in front of them was a vacant space of the infirmary office, and a window that shone sunlight over them.

He then finally drew to a conclusion, offering Lysian a look of pity. "Did you hit your head too hard?" he muttered absently, unsure of how else to respond to his question.

Lysian's eye twitched, feeling devastated from the received feedback. He wasn't sure what to believe – his classmate who didn't seem quite that bright or the vision before him that was clear as day.

As soon as he sighed, something popped up before him with an audible 'ding.' The previous line of text was now replaced with a new, paired with another box. It read, "The title 'Moribund Conqueror' has now been equipped. You've now reaped the benefits: [D+] Fear Resistance! [D+] Adrenaline Rush! [F+] Stamina Boost! [B] Lucky Chance!"

What he had thought were illusions were slowly becoming more prominent to him, rendering him as flustered. 'The hell is all this?' he thought, his eyes flickering around to read the words a few times to make sure he wasn't mistaken the first.

The skills he gained were inspired by his recent near-death experience, figuring the first three were self-explanatory. But he had no idea what 'Lucky Chance' entailed. Based off the lettering, it appeared to be the highest grade of the batch.

It seemed as though the box knew he would be curious, presenting a new area of blue to give him a brief explanation: "After barely evading death, 'Lucky Chance' gives you the opportunity to save yourself once more! (Can only be used once every two months)"

Lysian squinted at the description received, finding its lack of information to be slightly disappointing. 'Why's it so vague? I'd rather not have my life be in danger that often...'

While he was in the middle of thought, he felt the atmosphere around him shift. But he was too preoccupied to even comprehend the change in time.

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The boy that sat beside him was now standing from his seat, a grim look shadowed over his face. With a swing, he aimed a sharp object for Lysian's throat. It was only then that Lysian had realized something had gone wrong, his ruby eyes widening in shock.

What was even more so was that he had somehow survived it. His reaction was a bit too late, but his body was not.

Earlier, it felt like he was being pulled by a force that made him slide down the bed to dodge the boy's advances. Instead of being sat up, Lysian was now lying down on the mattress in a panicked fit. There was a small hue of blue in his eyes, slowly beginning to fade away as the sense of danger disappeared.

The boy was still holding his blade, hovering around the area where he should have been. Lysian glanced over at his classmate, conflicted with betrayal and fear. "What the hell was that for?! Are you insane?" he shouted, clutching the white sheets to his chest like a shield.

The dark haired boy withdrew from his position, now standing upright. He fiddled with the blade, tossing it in the air only to catch it again. Lysian now sat up, scooting to the side of the bed furthest away from him. He couldn't take his eyes off of the dagger, seeing how talented the boy was with handling sharp objects. He could barely nick himself, always somehow catching the handle.

"I knew it," the boy said, a twisted smile over his face.

"Huh?!"

The boy leaned in closely to him, their noses barely touching. His caramel eyes bore into his, watching the azure color completely disappear from his pupils. "I was testing you because I wanted to confirm it," he said, "But you really are strong. That's the same shade of blue I saw when you finished off that Reptant Giant."

He was getting a bit too close for comfort, disturbing Lysian. Before he could get any closer, Lysian whisked his head away to face the window instead. "W-what are you talking about? You mean that lizard monster I was running away from in the forest?" he asked.

Lysian received a nod in response, a short rundown by him following after, "I followed you that day, because I was curious how you would fight. So I hid up in the trees!"

Lysian's brow furrowed, unsure of how to intake what he had just said. He concluded that his classmate was most definitely a weirdo.

"That was also how I saw you kill that monster, in one go."

"What?"

That wasn't possible. That didn't sound like him at all. Lysian knew he wasn't very athletic compared to other kids his age. And due to his health, he avoided dangers that could make it worse.

Lysian studied the boy's face to make sure he wasn't trying to pull his leg. He was especially cautious since he already faced being insulted a few times by his peers.

Just then, it dawned upon him. The boy spoke of the incident as if it happened some time ago, sending Lysian into a slight panic.

"Then how long was I asleep?" he asked with a low voice, his fingers gripping down onto the sheets in worry.

The boy paused, having to think about it for a moment. He even brought his hands out, still wielding the blade, to count with his fingers. Once he finished adding, his face lit up again, "About five days!"

Lysian's jaw dropped, suddenly feeling the world crash over him. "Noooooooooo!!!!!!!" he wailed in devastation.

He had just enrolled into Liberium with the goal of being a good student; it was a studious lifestyle he had always wanted after being homeschooled for all his life before. He was looking forward to his first week as well, now shattered with his streak of absence. Just thinking about the amount of work he had to catch up on left him in shambles.

Due to the ruckus, the nurse stormed into the room in concern. "What's going on?!" she exclaimed, her eyes darting around to analyze the situation.

A student with a knife, and the patient she had been tending to now with a disheveled appearance. There was only one conclusion she drew to.

"Eaton Sterling! Step away from him this instant!" she warned, looking around to grab the nearest defense. It wasn't much, but she settled for a glass bottle of disinfectant.

"What for?" he shrugged, not knowing why she was so alarmed. Then he looked over at Lysian to see if he had an idea, the dagger coming into his field of vision. "Oh!" He suddenly grew sheepish, skillfully flipping the blade around his fingers to hide it behind his back.

"It's, uh... It's not what you think!" he plastered a goofy smile over his face, laughing nervously to himself in hopes to defuse her caution.

The nurse sighed, realizing that Eaton meant no real harm. If he did, he wouldn't have done it in such an amateur manner. But it didn't excuse the fact that he was still carrying around an actual weapon on campus, which was a violation of school regulations.

"You're coming with me, sir," she paced towards him, swiping the blade away with ease before apprehending him.

"Noo!! But I still have so much more to talk about with Master!!" Eaton cried, his voice dying out as he continued to be dragged away from the office.

Right when he left, Lysian was left alone in the room speechless. It was as if a storm had just passed, finally allowing him a moment's rest.

He slid back down onto the bed, tucking himself underneath the blanket to recover from what just happened.

'Was it me? Did I actually kill it?' He his hands out to analyze them, 'But how?'