RISE OF THE SKILLMASTER

The morning sky hung low over Seoul, heavy with rainclouds that pressed against the city’s rooftops. Neon lights flickered in the drizzle, smearing color across the wet streets like paint on glass. A quiet thunder rumbled somewhere far behind the skyline, swallowed by the hum of traffic and holographic billboards.

Sam Jimin sat on the edge of his thin dorm bed, staring at the cracked ceiling of Room 203. The orphanage smelled faintly of detergent and old wood. The heater had broken again; cold seeped into his hands as he pulled on his faded school jacket.

Today was his sixteenth birthday. Today was his Awakening.

Outside the window, news drones buzzed along the streets, broadcasting the same warnings they did every week; fresh Spatial Rifts had opened in two districts. Rifters dispatched. It was a reminder carved into his mind.

About 15 percent of the population awakened at sixteen. The lucky ones became Manaborn; people with mana cores, affinities, and System access. Some trained to become licensed Rifters, humanity’s shield against the Rifts. Others tried to live ordinary lives, though mana had a way of pulling people into danger whether they wanted it or not.

Jimin exhaled slowly. On the wall-mounted holoscreen, a loop played of last week’s Rift strike team; spells crackling, blades of pure mana cutting through creatures that looked like nightmares given form.

They seemed untouchable. Everything he wasn’t.

He pulled on his shoes - cheap, worn, barely patched together. His monthly needs barely met and even that was a struggle. Being an orphan meant doing part-time work whenever his grades didn’t collapse.

His hand lingered on the doorknob. “If I awaken… maybe I can change this. Just a little.”

Then another thought clawed up; the memory of his parents. Two low-ranked Rifters who died in a Rift accident when he was barely speaking. That’s what the reports said, anyway. Everyone brushed it off as just another casualty.

Jimin shook away the heaviness gathering in his throat. He stepped out.

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

As he pushed open the orphanage gates, fine rain pattered against his cheap shoes. Overhead, citywide holograms flickered with Awakening Day announcements, sweeping across the gray sky like colorful wounds.

The lower districts of Seoul always felt colder. Cramped apartments. Food stalls struggling to stay open. Children running in alleys with hand-me-down coats. And always, in the background, the looming presence of the Rifter world; guild banners, mana-shielded checkpoints, Rift sirens echoing every other night.

Rifters were the city’s pride. And its curse.

The walk to school took fifteen minutes, enough time for dread to settle in his stomach. His fingers trembled against the umbrella handle. He imagined stepping into the Awakening Chamber and emerging with nothing; no skill, no mana core. Just a normal human. A future with no options.

The academy gates came into view, towering beneath the digital banner:

SEOUL MONTHLY AWAKENING CEREMONY

A boy leaned against the gate, arms crossed, school coat pristine despite the drizzle.

Lee Hyun-woo. Sixteen. Tall. Composed. One of the few students who awakened early last year; a rank-E-9 mage-type with a natural mana affinity for lightning. He is set to attempt the Unified Academy Entrance Exam in three months. Academies, places, where future top-tier Rifters are forged.

His eyes flicked towards Jimin. “You look like you didn’t sleep,” he said. “I didn’t.” Jimin attempted a smile but his voice felt thin. Hyun-woo shrugged. “Awakening Day does that. Just don’t overthink it. You might surprise yourself.” But there was pity buried in his tone. A type of kindness that still hurt.

Before Jimin could reply, a shove hit him from behind.

Kang Dae-ho. Sixteen, broad shoulders, rough fists, and the personality of a kicked boar. He wasn’t a Manaborn yet, but he acted like he owned the place. “Move, trash,” Dae-ho said, brushing past with a laugh. “Wouldn’t want your pathetic luck rubbing off on me.”

Hyun-woo shot Dae-ho a warning glance, but that was all. Jimin didn’t expect more.

He simply kept walking.

The multipurpose hall was packed; rows of students whispering nervously, screens floating above them showing Rift alerts and Awakening procedures. Instructors stood around with tablets, calling names, monitoring mana scanners.

Along the hall’s center stood the Awakening Chambers; sleek pods glowing with faint blue circuitry. Each would evaluate the student’s mana core potential, their affinity, and most importantly, assign their unique skill.

Every Manaborn received one unique skill and one or two additional skills . Unique skill is truly unique. Two people’s unique skills can be similar but can never be exactly the same. The other awakened skills are usually common to rare grade. The rest came from System rewards, combat, or training.

Jimin swallowed as he approached the line.

Looking through the glass dome of the hall, the Seoul Rifter Association Headquarters cut into the clouds, its black steel frame towering like a silent judge.

“That is where destinies are written,” Ms. Park Eun-ji said as she approached him. Her voice was calm despite the strain on her face. “When your name is called, step into the chamber. Don’t panic; let the System read you naturally.” Jimin nodded along mechanically.

Beside him stood Seo Yuna, a girl with big glasses and a soft voice. “Nervous?” she asked. “Terrified,” he admitted. She fiddled with her sleeves. “Well… statistically, fifteen percent awaken. So... you might be one of them.”

“I hope so.” “If you do,” she whispered, “maybe we can both aim for a Rifter Academy next year.”

Her smile eased something tight in his chest.

“Student No. 210, Seo Yuna.” Yuna stepped into the pod. A moment later, the hologram above it lit up:

【AWAKENING SUCCESSFUL | UNIQUE SKILL AWAKENED | ONE SKILL]

[ RANK: E-2 】

Yuna came out with tears in her eyes. “I… awakened” Jimin grinned. “Congrats.” “Thank you,” she said, flushed and teary-eyed.

“Student No. 211, Kang Dae-ho.” Dae-ho swaggered toward the pod. Seconds later:

【AWAKENING SUCCESSFUL | UNIQUE SKILL AWAKENED | ONE SKILL]

[ RANK: E-3】

Dae-ho walked out in style. He looked like he had won the lottery. He smirked at Jimin. “Try not to embarrass yourself, orphan.” Jimin’s throat tightened.

Names passed. Numbers counted down.

Finally-

“Student No. 213… Sam Jimin.” A hush. A silence rippled through the nearest students. Some watched with curiosity. Others whispered.

Jimin’s throat tightened. His feet felt hollow. He ignored all of it and walked forward.

—---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Awakening Chamber was colder than he expected; sterile, Filled with mana circuits. A young Association technician checked his tablet. “Sam Jimin? Sixteen? Okay?” “Yes.”

“Good.” The tech motioned to the pod. “Step in. Keep your mind steady. If you’re chosen as Manaborn, you’ll feel a pull when your mana core forms. Don’t resist it.”

Jimin nodded. “A mana core… if I can just get one.” He stepped inside. The door slid shut. Darkness swallowed the world.

A low hum built around him, crawling under his skin and along his spine. It felt like invisible hands reaching through him; searching, measuring.

Then-

A cold whisper of power trickled into his veins.

[Awakening sequence initiated]

The words weren’t heard. They were simply there, etched across his mind. His thoughts flickered; lonely nights in the orphanage, parents he barely remembered, Hyun-woo’s distant kindness, Dae-ho’s laughter.

Then something tugged deep inside him. Mana surged; icy, electric, pulling from his chest outward. He gasped as something tight and dormant cracked open inside him. His mana core. Small. Faint. But real.

And then-

Light burst behind his eyelids. A translucent screen unfolded before him, glowing with arcs of mana. His heart thrashed. "This is it… please… please, just let me awaken.”

More text formed slowly, as if the System was choosing its words carefully.

【AWAKENING COMPLETE】

His breath hitched. The technician outside knocked. “Sam Jimin? The system should display your rank and primary skill now.”

Jimin couldn’t respond. Because the final part was still writing itself. The door clicked open. Light flooded in.

He stepped out. All eyes turned toward the hologram above the chamber; the public result every student received. Gasps spread through the hall.

Ms. Park inhaled sharply. “…E-1 and no additional skills?”

Hyun-woo’s expression froze. Dae-ho’s grin bloomed.

The hologram displayed:

【AWAKENING SUCCESSFUL | UNIQUE SKILL AWAKENED | NO SKILLS 】 【RANK: E-1】

A low murmur rippled among the students.

Weakest possible rank. Common. Mocked. Ignored.

But it was a rank. He had awakened. Jimin swallowed, throat tight. He had taken his first step.

But no one in the hall; not even Jimin, knew his life had just cracked open.