Ace_the_owl

Chapter 85. Auction

The Aurium Auction.

In a city of institutions like Arkhos, this auction stood apart.

Everything about sounded expensive.

Held monthly in the Adamant Gallery, the auction stood as the cornerstone of upper-class commerce in Arkhos. Merchant guild leaders occupied the same room as dukes and duchesses, high priests and mages, all drawn by the promise of rare items and even rarer networking opportunities.

The main hall was part marketplace, part theater, and part social bat...

Chapter 84. Atchoo

"You're sure this is the right way?" Deroq hissed, pulling his hood lower as they navigated the narrow passage. Water dripped from the ceiling, each drop landing with a maddening plop that echoed through the tunnel.

"Yes, sir," Prell whispered back, holding his lantern higher. "Third passage on the left, down the stairs, through the copper door. That's what Velth's contact said."

Deroq grunted, unconvinced. The four men behind him shuffled nervously, hands never straying far from ...

Chapter 83. Good Guard, Bad Guard

"You haven't touched your sandwich," Valiant said, gesturing with a small paw toward the untouched plate. "It's quite good, you know."

The young man across the table—Rennik—glanced nervously at the enormous freeman looming in the corner, then back at the sandwich.

"I'm... not hungry," he mumbled.

"Not hungry?" Valiant's whiskers twitched indignantly. "It's been six hours since we brought you here. Everyone gets hungry after six hours."

"Maybe he thinks it's poisone...

Chapter 82. And So It Begins

Adom had been in the library for four hours already, and the nerd in him still wasn't tired of it. The smell of old books, the quiet rustle of turning pages, the occasional whispered consultation—it felt like home. More home than his actual dorm did, if he was being honest.

He glanced at the timepiece in his pocket. Nine minutes left.

On the fourth level of the Academy's grand library, hidden behind the section on pre-empire farming techniques, there was a narrow passage. So nar...

Chapter 81. Game Changer

Adom watched Cass's face carefully. No screaming. No gasping. No demands for immediate explanations. Just a calm, measured assessment of the armored golem now standing in her hospital room.

This wasn't how he'd expected this to go. People usually reacted more dramatically when they discovered his secrets. In his experience, even the most composed individuals tended to lose their cool when confronted with the impossible.

But not Cass. She hadn't even blinked.

"I know how this...

Chapter 80. Partners In Spite

Adom coughed, his lungs burning. The smoke clogged his nose, his mouth, his thoughts.

For a second, he wasn't in the warehouse anymore. He was back in that research camp at Matheran Ridge, the night the Teshani rebels hit them. In another timeline. The same choking darkness. The same ringing in his ears. The same disorientation as he tried to figure out which direction led to safety and which to more danger.

That night, he'd found his friend and fellow researcher Elisa facedown in...

Chapter 79. Welcome To The Market

"How?" Adom stared at the glowing blue bottle in Cass's hand, the question hanging in the air between them.

Cass's lips curved into a satisfied smile, her usual composed demeanor giving way to barely contained excitement. "I went to the Register of Guilds today to check on our application status. While I was there, a handyman from the Lightbringers arrived with the letter." She pulled out an envelope from her inner pocket, the silver wax seal of the Lightbringers still intact. "Official...

Chapter 78. Grasshopper

"This is him? The Spear you've been raving about?" Coach Viriam squinted across the pitch, voice pitched just low enough that he probably thought it wouldn't carry. "He's barely taller than the Krozball posts."

Hugo shifted uncomfortably, his massive frame making the weathered bench beneath him creak in protest. "I know he doesn't look like much, but—"

"Doesn't look like much?" Viriam interrupted, scratching at his salt-and-pepper beard. "He looks like someone's little brother w...

Chapter 76. Best. Friend. Ever.

Adom stared at Naia's outstretched hand. Time seemed to slow as his brain processed what was happening.

Being singled out wasn't unusual for him, but being challenged to a duel by a Tirajin diplomat's daughter on her first day? That was new.

The entire room had gone completely silent. He could practically feel the weight of everyone's stares boring into his back.

The logical part of his mind—the part that had survived decades of experience condensed into memories that some...

Chapter 75. Monopoly

Crafting magic wasn't dissimilar to cooking, Adom had always thought. It required precision, patience, and a willingness to burn your fingers at least twice before getting it right.

He arranged the components Cass had acquired in a semicircle on his workbench. Each piece had been chosen with methodical care: three brass rings of different diameters, carved with minute notches along their inner edges; a handful of silver pins no thicker than sewing needles; a small leather pouch containi...

Chapter 74. Wangara

The sun had already begun its descent behind the city's western towers by the time Adom reached the meeting point.

The Imperial Bank loomed ahead, all cold marble and rigid columns. Late afternoon light bounced off its pale facade while pigeons squabbled over crumbs on the steps. A bell tower somewhere struck five, its deep tones mixing with the constant background hum of the city. A few well-dressed merchants were concluding their business for the day, chatting idly as they descended t...

Chapter 73. Control

"Dream walking?" Adom asked, the words feeling strange in his mouth. "What are you talking about?"

Biggins studied him. The playful shopkeeper was gone, replaced by someone sharper, more focused.

"Have you been having unusually vivid dreams lately, my boy? Dreams that feel more real than they should?"

Adom's mind immediately flashed to the apple tree, the blue-flamed egg. The cave that felt more solid than any dream had a right to be.

"Wait—that was dream walking?!"<...

Chapter 72. Shadows

Adom stood in line at the post office, tapping the envelope against his palm. It felt heavier than it should have, though it contained just a single sheet of paper. He counted the people ahead of him.

Four.

His eyes drifted to the clock on the wall. 1:17 PM. The place smelled of paper and ink and something faintly spicy that might have been the perfume of the woman two spots ahead. He stifled a yawn. Six hours of sleep hadn't been nearly enough, and his body was making that abunda...

Chapter 71. The Talk

"Does it hurt?" Valiant asked, dabbing antiseptic on the shallow cuts across Adom's shoulder.

They were back in Valiant's living room. The place looked different now—more alive. Extra lamps had been lit. Papers were spread across the table. A half-eaten celebration pastry sat abandoned on a plate. The room practically hummed with new energy.

"Not really," Adom replied, wincing slightly as the antiseptic stung. Surprisingly, it... didn't hurt as much as he thought it would. The c...

Chapter 70. Brawl

"–uck!" Valiant's curse hung in the air, cut short as his tiny jaw dropped open.

Adom smiled down at the stunned mouse beastkin. There was something oddly satisfying about watching someone's entire worldview shift in real-time. The way Valiant's whiskers froze mid-twitch, how his eyes widened to perfect circles.

Careful, he told himself. This kind of ego trip would put him on par with Helios, and the thought of developing an ego that massive made him shudder internally....

Chapter 69. Almonds

"Are you okay?" Adom asked, watching Cass's face in the dim light of the cave.

"Shh," she replied, not taking her eyes off the mountain of gold before them.

The only sound was Zuni chirping softly as he hopped around the edge of the treasure pile, occasionally pawing at a shiny coin before moving on to investigate something else.

Adom stood quietly beside Cass, hands in his pockets, trying to look casual while she absorbed the sight. He'd brought her here after they'd sealed...

Chapter 68. Schemes and Plots

Adom stifled a yawn, blinking in the afternoon sunlight filtering through the brand new park's canopy of elm trees. Westgrove Park was one of Arkhos' newest additions, built in the elven style with winding paths and trees arranged in seemingly random patterns that somehow felt perfectly natural.

The day had warmed nicely, making the wooden bench beneath him almost comfortable. Almost. He shifted position, trying to work out a knot in his shoulder—the price of yesterday's silv...

Chapter 67. The Dream

Danner stumbled over a fallen log, his breath coming in ragged gasps. Blood soaked his left trouser leg, turning the fabric a sticky, rust-colored brown.

"Run faster!" Lissa shouted from ahead, twin daggers still clutched in white-knuckled hands as she ran through the dense undergrowth. Her usually immaculate armor was tattered, one sleeve completely torn away to reveal a network of fresh cuts.

Behind them, the screeching grew louder. Not the mindless howling of simple predators, ...

Chapter 66. Apeshit

"Shit. Shit. Shit."

Adom muttered the curse with each pounding step as he retreated from the ridgeline, moving with all the stealth of someone trying very hard not to become a four-armed ape's dinner. Zuni clung to his shoulder, tiny claws digging in to avoid being dislodged by Adom's frantic pace.

John had gone back into the inventory.

"Did it see me? I think it saw me. It definitely saw me."

No, that wasn't quite right. The silverback had looked in his direction, but...

Chapter 65. Picnic

"Mother-loving, son of a—" Adom ducked as fangs snapped shut where his throat had been a heartbeat earlier. "—dung beetle!"

For someone who had lived a couple lifetimes, his curse vocabulary remained... disappointingly tame at times. Something to work on, perhaps, though it was currently low on his priority list of skills to develop.

The Shadowmane lunged again, its wolf-like body moving with unnatural speed. Four glowing yellow eyes tracked his every movement, saliva dripping...

Chapter 64. Hunting

"LAST CALL FOR MISTY VALE! Final entry before permanent closure! LAST CALL!"

The guild officer's voice boomed across the small clearing by the old mill where a shimmering portal stood within a stone archway. Blue lanterns dotted the path, their flames cutting through the morning mist. Not much to see beyond their glow, just a cluster of adventurers—maybe fifteen in total—gathered around the entry point, checking equipment and sharing last-minute strategies.

Adom jogged the fin...

Chapter 63. The Perfect Build

Power.

In this world, it came in countless forms. Some subtle as a whispered secret, others as obvious as a thunderclap. Magic that bended reality, wealth that moved nations, knowledge that outlasted empires.

Yet there was something primal about physical power that resonated across time and worlds. That satisfaction of watching a stone crumble in your grip or climbing a mountain others deemed impossible. Even in a world of mages and monsters, there was something undeniably appeali...

Chapter 62. Potential

The warm, rich aroma of fresh pastries and roasted coffee beans enveloped Adom as he settled into a corner table at the Crimson Leaf Teahouse. The establishment was relatively new, having opened just two months ago, and Adom had been curious about it ever since hearing fellow students rave about their unique offerings.

The display case near the entrance showcased pastries he'd never seen even in his past life—airy ring-shaped dough glazed with vibrant fruit coatings that the Valandian...

Chapter 61. Bonding 101 (Is this working for you guys?)

"It bit me! That thing just bit me!"

A shrill voice echoed through the sunlit classroom as a gangly third-year student backpedaled frantically, nearly tripping over his own feet. His right index finger was clutched dramatically in his left hand, though there wasn't a visible mark on it.

"Mr. Tanner, please control yourself," Professor Elowen said with the weary patience of someone who'd witnessed this exact scene dozens of times before. "The quillick did not bite you. They physica...

Chapters Updated and new ones coming today

Hey everyone,

Sorry for the lack of chapter today. I was quite sick and just got home. Feeling much better now though! I've been able to edit the chapters I wrote while recovering and will be uploading three of them today (or tomorrow, depending on your time zone).

I'll also be more frequent with the daily updates now because the "light" edits are finally done. I made a few changes to the story as mentioned before - Adom's parents now know he is a regressor, which you can read in ...

Chapter 60. Krozball

"And for your fifth elective..." Crowley checked his notes, "Advanced Combat Applications. Bold choice."

Adom nodded.

"And I'd like to add two extracurricular electives as well," he said. "Advanced Alchemy from Professor Mirwen's department and Basic Bonding from the Druidic department."

Crowley raised an eyebrow. "An ambitious schedule. Most students struggle with just their core classes."

"I can handle it," Adom said simply.

Crowley made the additional notation...

Chapter 59. Butterfly Effect

Adom's third yawn in five minutes earned him an elbow in the ribs from Sam.

"You look like death warmed over," Sam whispered. "Did you sleep at all last night?"

"Not really," Adom admitted, rubbing his eyes.

The Grand Amphitheater buzzed with the voices of hundreds of third-year students. Tiered seating curved in a half-circle around a central stage, where a podium stood empty, waiting for the day's proceedings to begin. Morning light streamed through the high windows, illum...

Updates about the edits

Hey everyone!

I wanted to give you all a quick update on the revision process. I kind of underestimated the amount of time it would take to properly edit the chapters one by one, but I'm almost done! I thought I'd share with you what I've already changed with the upcoming revision.

One of the most important changes is in the chapter "Family Time," where Adom tells his parents about the regression. I had been thinking about that one for a while, and the more I did, the less it made...

Chapter 58. Badges and Consequences

"I'm innocent! You can't do this to me!"

Kev's voice cracked as he strained against the guards holding him. His face had gone from defiant to desperate in the two hours since they'd arrived at the checkpoint.

"We were just trying to survive the exam! These kids are lying!"

The processing area outside the checkpoint had transformed into an impromptu tribunal. Guild officials, city guards, and other exam participants had gathered to witness the commotion. What had started as r...

Chapter 57. Gankers

Shit.

Dain Kattis had made a lot of bad decisions in his thirty-two years of life, but getting caught by a team of mages had to be near the top of the list. What had he been thinking? All that talk about easy pickings in the dungeon, all those rumors about rich academy kids carrying premium gear they barely knew how to use—it had clouded his judgment.

This year's exam was completely fucked.

The academy had let too many mage candidates. Normal delvers like his crew never st...