Chapter 37 — Coward

Damian lay on a bed inside the medical clinic.

He seemed to be having a terrifying dream – his body shivered, teeth clenched tight. Tears ran down his face.

"NO!!!"

He woke with a start, breathing heavily.

"Huff... Huff... Huff."

He remembered. He remembered the memories his brain had been trying to suppress.

The memories of Alessio’s older brother.

The memories of how his brother was tortured by a psycho.

The memories of his last words.

Gain power!

As Damian wiped his tears, he looked around to see three awkward faces staring at him.

"...Bad dream?"

The lean, bespectacled boy was the first to break the silence.

"...Who are you?"

Damian pushed his memories aside and looked toward the three students present in the medical room with him.

"...My name is Edrin Kael, ranked 8th in the year. The guy with broad shoulders is Ronan Hale, ranked 9th.

And the girl is Lysa Morwen, ranked 10th. You fainted in the gravity room, so we brought you here."

"...I see. Thank you."

Damian recalled the moments before he collapsed. He’d been pushing himself to improve his physical attributes as much as possible when he hit his limit and fainted.

"Don’t mention it. We didn’t want to leave you in the hands of those Nobles, so we all came together to make sure you were safe."

Ronan Hale spoke in a loud, cheerful voice. Just like his towering body, his voice carried weight.

"You were really awesome, managing to run for so long under all that gravity. All of us have S-ranked talent, but we collapsed pretty soon.

You, on the other hand, kept improving and even managed to break through to rank E. You clearly deserve your top rank."

Lysa Morwen spoke up, clear admiration reflecting in her eyes.

Damian looked at the trio and saw sincere admiration in each of their faces with no malice.

"...Thank you."

Edrin spoke again, his eyes meaningful.

"But we intended to meet you before this as well. As you’ve probably realized, we’re also commoners.

I researched and got in touch with many seniors as soon as I entered this Academy. Commoners are suppressed every year.

And you must have looked at the forums as well – all the seniors are thrilled that finally someone like you has risen to gain a seat in the council..."

"You can talk with me directly. Just state your intentions."

Damian already understood what Edrin was hinting at.

"...Do you plan on leading commoners? By now, you must have also realized that Nobles will see you as an enemy, even if you don’t do anything to them.

When something threatens their benefits, they won’t sit back and leave things to chance."

After hearing this, Damian remembered what happened at the student council room that morning.

He knew it even then – he would eventually have to face them all.

"Edrin, was it? I know you have some ideas in your mind. In a week, clubs will start recruiting students from our year.

I want you to gather anyone who holds similar thoughts. One more thing... I need you to gather information about what exactly Nobles do to commoners.

What exactly is this so-called suppression? If you’re all serious about this, then give me a call during recruitment day. I’ll come and meet you all."

All three of them nodded seriously. They were already feeling glad that Damian hadn’t refused them outright.

"Also, how long was I unconscious?"

Damian asked, since he didn’t want to miss his weapon arts training.

"Not long. Just an hour. The doctor who treated you said you’d wake up soon, so we stayed here just in case." Edrin replied. Clearly this guy was the one making decisions among the trio.

"I see. I’ll head back to the dormitory to change my clothes."

Before anyone could stop him, Damian was already moving out of the medical clinic.

Silence enveloped the room again.

"...Are you sure about this?" Ronan asked Edrin.

It was Edrin who’d made the decision to seek Damian out.

All of them were said to be among the most talented commoner students this year, so it didn’t feel right placing their hopes on someone they barely knew.

Lysa also looked skeptical.

She already knew that Damian was strong and hardworking, but entrusting their future to someone wasn’t an easy thing to do.

"Trust me on this. Although Damian looks a little aloof, there wasn’t one instance where he treated us with disdain.

And it’s not just that – do you think commoners never had anyone talented? Look at our seniors.

They started just like us, but eventually they realized no matter what they did, the outcome was the same. Nobles first went after the average talented, eventually making them either join or be isolated by the rest.

No one can change anything being alone. If all of our seniors failed to break their fate of being suppressed, why should we arrogantly think that we’re any different?"

Edrin looked very serious as he laid out his thoughts. He then placed his hands on both of their shoulders.

"Are both of you strong enough to suppress those SS-ranked talents? I don’t think anyone among us is.

So why shouldn’t we bet on the only one who can? Yes, everyone is skeptical. But do you think his talent would be low, considering his performance today?

I was also a bit worried about my decision earlier. But after looking at that madman, I’ve come to realize one thing."

"What is it?" Ronan and Lysa asked, puzzlement showing on their faces.

"...Only a madman can challenge an entire social construct built over centuries."

Edrin uttered those words with firm determination flashing through his eyes behind his glasses.

"And I certainly don’t want to become a subordinate of those filthy Nobles."

"..."

"..."

****

Damian stood in front of the mirror in his dormitory room.

"Sigh... these are completely ruined. Good thing the academy provided spare uniforms."

Looking at his blood-soaked clothes, he sighed.

"Status."

━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Name: Damian Valcor

Age: 15

Rank: E- → E

Talent: S

Core Attributes:

Strength: 35 → 45

Speed: 34 → 43

Stamina: 40 → 50

Vitality: 35 → 41

Aura: E

Will: 145 → 149

Skills: —

Shooting: B+

Hand Combat: B

Telekinesis: E+

Aura Control: D- → D

Weapon Arts: —

Omega Point - S: Initiated

Abyssal Slaughter -SS: Initiated

━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Looking at his status screen, his core attributes showed tremendous growth from the pressure he’d put on himself earlier.

’The pain was worth it...’

Damian smiled a little, looking at his E rank. He’d finally improved his physical qualities, which automatically increased his rank to his Core level.

’Aura control has also risen...

Till the club recruitment starts, I’ll solely focus on my growth. Other matters can wait till then.’

As he closed his status screen, the memories came flooding back – uninvited, unrelenting.

Damian’s breathing quickened.

He grabbed the axe from the side of his bed, his knuckles white around the handle.

"BOOM!"

The first strike shattered the bedframe.

"Fuck..."

Another swing. Wood splintered.

"FUCK!"

Again. And again.

"FUCKKKK!!!!"

Even the reinforced academy materials couldn’t withstand his fury. The bed collapsed into wreckage under the relentless barrage.

His chest heaved. The axe slipped from his trembling fingers and clattered to the floor.

Tears streamed down his face - hot, bitter, unstoppable.

"I just... I just stood there..." His voice cracked. "Like a fucking coward... watching him die..."

His legs gave out. He crumpled to the floor, clutching his head as if he could physically tear the memories out.

"He was dying... and all he cared about was me. Even then. Even at the end, he..."

Damian’s teeth ground together so hard his gums split.

The metallic taste of blood filled his mouth, but he didn’t care. The physical pain was nothing... nothing compared to this.

Minutes passed. Or maybe hours. Time felt meaningless.

Eventually, his breathing slowed. The tears dried on his cheeks, leaving cold tracks behind.

Damian looked up at the ceiling, his eyes red and hollow.

Then something shifted in his gaze. The anguish crystallized into something harder. Colder.

"Power..." His voice was barely a whisper, but it carried the weight of an oath. "Brother... I won’t disappoint you."

He pushed himself to his feet, unsteady but resolute.

"I, Damian Valcor, will become the very symbol of Power." Each word came out deliberate, carved from stone. "Never again. Never again will I be too weak to protect the people I love."

He stared at the broken bed, the shattered wood, the axe lying among the debris.

"This is my promise to you."

His fists clenched.

"So rest in peace, brother. Your death won’t be in vain."

The room fell silent. Only the sound of his steady breathing remained.

The boy who had collapsed in grief was gone.

What stood in his place was something forged in pain.