Rumble...
Rolling thunder rumbled on and on for a full fifteen minutes before finally fading away.
Sunlight broke through, and the sky cleared up.
A few students, who had collapsed on the ground, scrambled up, looking embarrassed. They then noticed their pants were soaked, and they shrank into themselves, unable to bear the shame.
"Let's check what job this student has awakened," Flynn said first, eager to know.
The beautiful teacher nodded, checked Allen's awakened job, and announced loudly: "SSS-rank rare combat class... The Heaven-Cursed?"
She paused, rubbed her eyes, and sounded unsure.
"That's right, there is an SSS-rank rare combat class," Flynn smiled broadly, his face beaming with joy. But then he realized something.
"Wait, what job did you say? The Heaven-Cursed?"
Flynn's voice rose a few tones. His smile froze, like someone starved for days who had just eaten a dead cockroach stuck in his throat—not sure whether to spit it out or swallow it.
The Heaven-Cursed is a mighty class recorded only in lost ancient texts.
This class has a special trait: it can practice all magic. Even the weakest beginner spells become Forbidden Spells in the hands of The Heaven-Cursed.
But this class has a deadly weakness. While other jobs use their own power to cast skills, The Heaven-Cursed uses their own lifespan instead.
Just like the name suggests, The Heaven-Cursed means bearing the punishment from heaven.
Ancient records say no one who awakened this class ever lived past thirty. Their lives were like bright, short-lived shooting stars.
"Sigh, what a pity," Flynn sighed softly and slowly sat back down in his chair.
He had originally planned to nurture Allen greatly. A genius from the slums, Allen was easier to control than the City Lord's daughter.
But now, since Allen was The Heaven-Cursed, his life would end before thirty. Flynn didn't want to waste his investment.
Still, he could make the best of it by letting Allen shine during this academy competition.
...
The students below began talking again.
"Allen awakened an SSS-rank class, The Heaven-Cursed? Oh, never mind."
"Damn it, I really thought this kid could rise from nothing to become someone important."
"Rise? Not quite. He climbed onto a branch, but the branch snapped. Boom—he fell and died."
"Bro, that's going too far."
"Going too far? That punk caused such a huge scene just now. He scared the hell out of me, made me lose all face by wetting my pants. Honestly, I'm surprised he's not already dead." The man pointed to his soaked crotch, shouting angrily.
Nobody had noticed he had wet himself until now. Hearing this reminder, everyone pushed back in disgust, distancing themselves quickly.
The students below felt sympathy and pity for Allen, and some even took quiet joy in his fate.
As expected, awakening a special job was just too much for a slum-rat to handle.
He might have lived to 60or 70 before. Now, the best he could hope for was thirty—that was basically a death sentence.
Allen paid no attention to the chatter around him
The Heaven-Curseds consume their lifespan, but Allen's lifespan can be restored, meaning he effectively has an endless supply.
This job is basically a perfect match for him.
Wait a minute?
Something suddenly clicked in Allen's mind.
His father had mentioned a curse on his body and told him to practice the Art of Immortality.
It seemed like his father already knew Allen would awaken the The Heaven-Cursed class...
Who exactly was this father he had never met?
For the first time, Allen felt curious about his own origins. His father seemed shrouded in mystery...
"Allen," the beautiful teacher said, noticing Allen's expression change so much she thought he couldn't accept this job. She offered comfort: "Don't be sad. If you're willing to be ordinary and just live a normal life, making it past thirty is totally fine."
Speaking those words, she felt a bit guilty too.
Telling an SSS-rank class holder to live an ordinary life was like asking a millionaire to beg. No one could accept that.
"Teacher, I'm fine," Allen said, taking a deep breath. He wasn't sad at all.
If they weren't in front of everyone, he would have laughed out loud.
Even so, his smile was hard to control. He pinched his thigh hard, feeling the sharp pain, which helped him act out a look of misery as he awkwardly stepped down from the platform.
"Ah, what a pity for such a good student," the teacher sighed with regret, then continued hosting the job awakening ceremony.
One by one, the called-up students climbed onto the platform, but none could match Allen or Lilia's shining performance. The best combat class awakened was only a B-rank Blaze Mage. Compared to an SSS-rank class, the gap was huge.
By evening, the job awakening ceremony finally ended.
Some were happy, others sad. Students who failed to awaken their jobs hung their heads, feeling hopeless and empty.
But then they thought of Allen.
So what if they failed? At least they wouldn't lose their lives.
They never had big dreams anyway; they'd rather live useless lives than die young.
"Allen," the bald school counselor called out to stop him as he was leaving. "The Dean wants to see you. Go to the Dean's office."
"Yes," Allen replied and turned to walk toward the office.
...
Inside the office, Lilia was already there. She curiously looked at Allen as he walked in.
"You must be Student Allen, right? Please, take a seat," Flynn said with a wide smile, looking kind and gentle.
"I called you both here for the academy competition in half a month. Since you're both SSS-rank class holders, I hope you can help the school get a good ranking," the old Dean said straight away.
"Dean, I have no problem, but Student Allen..." Lilia didn't finish, but her meaning was clear. Asking Allen to join the academy competition was basically asking him to sign his death warrant.
For some reason, even though this was the first time she saw Allen—accurately, the first time she really noticed him—she felt a strange sense of closeness to him.
"Ah, that's just how The Heaven-Curseds are," Flynn sighed, looking deeply reluctant. "Everyone dies eventually. It's either a death greater than Mount Tai or lighter than a goose feather. Student Allen, since you awakened an SSS-rank class, the Light Pope definitely wants you to achieve great things. I'm sure you wouldn't want to live a useless life, right?"
This old man was trying to guilt-trip himself!
Allen cursed in his mind but acted completely enthusiastic. He said firmly, "Dean, I will definitely give my best in this academy competition!"
You stupid kid!
Lilia cursed in her mind, and her opinion of Allen dropped sharply.
"Excellent," Flynn nodded with satisfaction. He opened a drawer, took out two manuals, and said, "These are two cultivation methods: a High-Tier Mortal Grade Martial Sect Cultivation Method and a Low-Tier Mortal Grade Body-Cultivating Art. I'm giving them to you two."
As he spoke, he handed the Martial Sect Cultivation Method to Lilia and slid the Body-Cultivating Art toward Allen.
This old man is playing favorites!
Allen felt annoyed inside. They were both SSS-rank class holders, yet the Dean only gave him the most garbage Low-Tier Mortal Grade manual.
Martial arts methods can boost your base stats. They are divided into four tiers: Divine Grade, Epic Grade, Arcane Grade, and Mortal Grade. Divine Grade is the highest, Mortal Grade is the lowest. Each tier is divided into three grades: Low, Middle, and High.
Lilia looked at the manual on the table but didn't take it. "Dean," she said, "I don't need this. Please give it to Student Allen instead."
As the daughter of a City Lord, she completely looked down on a High-Tier Mortal Grade technique.
Allen's eyes lit up, acting totally eager.
Flynn frowned slightly, looking displeased. He spoke seriously: "Allen, you are The Heaven-Cursed, and you practice magic. This Martial Sect Cultivation Method boosts strength attributes, so it doesn't suit you."
The Heaven-Curseds practice magic?
Allen was stunned. He had checked the The Heaven-Cursed stats, which said you could learn any job skills with no restrictions.
Was this old man trying to trick him, or did he just not know?
"Dean, I want to try it. Even a method that boosts strength can improve my overall power and help me perform better in the academy competition," Allen said without explaining. To Lilia, a High-Tier Mortal Grade manual was worthless, but to Allen, it was a treasure.
"Dean, Allen is going all out for this competition. You wouldn't hold back even one manual, would you?" Lilia stood up for Allen.
"Sigh, these are ultimately school resources. I can't just decide on my own," Flynn said with a troubled look. "How about this? Allen, I'll sell you this manual for ten thousand gold coins."
"Sell it to me?" Allen suppressed his anger and replied, "But I don't have that much gold."
"No problem. As long as you get top three in this competition, you'll be fine. There are gold coin rewards for top three places, and it's a piece of cake for you. This is settled." Flynn shoved the manual into Allen's hands, making it look like Allen was the one getting a huge bargain.
"Hmph!" Lilia let out a short scoff. She felt despised by the old Dean's actions. However, since she and Allen were just ordinary classmates, she didn't say much more.