The 10-Star Trait

"Ooh! Ascender Kim Hajun!"

"You— you've awakened?"

I had been lost in a daze over the word 10-Star when the commotion around me snapped me back to my senses.

Oh, right. I was in the middle of praying, wasn't I.

I folded away the message that still felt too impossible to believe, lifted my head, and looked around. The worshippers had all raised their ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠heads like meerkats, staring straight at me.

Hm.

A tingling rush ran through me at the weight of their gazes. Curiosity, wonder, admiration, envy — all of it shimmered in their eyes.

For the first time in my life, I stood at the center of everyone's attention. I puffed out my chest and gave a confident nod.

"Yes. I've awakened."

"WAAAAH!"

"OOOH!!"

The cheers erupted the instant the words left my mouth. A fresh baptism of dopamine flooded my frontal lobe, and the corners of my mouth curled up toward the sky.

"If I may ask, what rank of trait did you receive?"

At the question, I paused to think.

The trait I received is 10-Star.

I rolled my eyes upward and stole a glance at the message still floating before me. If my eyes weren't deceiving me, I had definitely awakened a 10-Star (★★★★★★★★★★) trait.

That should have been unthinkable. The highest rank known to exist was 9-Star.

And even that was held by only seven people in the entire world. The seven bearers of the 9-Star rank were hailed as the great Seven Ascenders, revered as the strongest rankers on the planet.

And here I was, one rank above them all.

Is it really safe to reveal this here?

My throat bobbed as I swallowed. This was a treasure far too enormous for someone like me to carry — a nobody with no power, no backing, nothing.

Best to hold off on announcing it.

When a man with no strength to guard it takes hold of a treasure, and word of it spreads far and wide, that treasure can just as easily become a curse.

Take the lawless regions — China, India, South America — where villain organizations kept enemies everywhere. There had been occasional reports of them kidnapping anyone who awakened a high-rank trait.

Of course, nothing like that would happen here in Korea... but you can never be too careful when it comes to people.

And that wasn't all. Sure, waving around a 10-Star trait could open the doors of any prestigious clan, but—

When you awaken a high-rank trait, the orthodox play is to raise your value first, then join. That's a hundred times better.

Basic common sense of Ascender society, gleaned from somewhere or other. So the right order was simple: confirm the 10-Star trait, then build my strength.

After that rigorous(?) calculation, I straightened my neck and opened my mouth.

"6-Star."

Yes. 6-Star should do nicely. Even that much was an astonishingly high rank to ordinary folks.

"S-six stars?"

"Incredible!!"

"Whoa! He says 6-Star!!"

"That's... insane."

And there it was. The people around me went absolutely wild, throwing a fuss as if they'd struck it rich. They were probably projecting their own futures onto me — picturing themselves awakening 6-Star traits someday too.

"Congratulations on your awakening, Ascender! I'm with the Porta Clan—"

"Do you have a contract with anyone yet? Here at the Zeratool Clan, we offer new awakeners—"

"We're the Hwayoung Clan. If you join us—"

Somehow — I never found out how — the clan scouts prowling the Lobby Floor caught the scent and came running like bloodhounds.

A torrent of handshakes and business cards rained down on me!

"If you leave me your cards, I'll think it over and get back to you."

For now, I accepted every card that was offered. So this was the feeling — like collecting Dragon Balls, the way they said ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠on the Ascender Community. Watching the cards pile up neatly in my pocket, I could feel my newfound status rise through my skin.

Heh heh.

The corners of my mouth quivered on their own.

From this moment on, the pathetic Kim Hajun of the past no longer exists. There is only Kim Hajun, the soaring, unstoppable super rookie.

Just you wait, Yeon-hee! You're going to regret dumping me. Because I'm about to become a man so far out of your boyfriend's ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠league he won't even dare look my way!

Painting rosy visions of the future in my head, I headed home on light feet.

A shabby one-room studio, barely eight pyeong. My old, worn sanctuary.

"Hahh!"

The moment I got home, I dropped onto the edge of my bed and took a deep, pounding-breathed sigh.

"All right, then."

Time to check my status window — the one granted to every Ascender. I'd meant to open it right after awakening, but I'd wanted to examine it calmly, in the quiet of my own place, so I'd resisted the urge the whole way home.

"Status window."

I murmured it quietly, half thrill and half anticipation.

I already knew my trait was 10-Star. But what exactly the trait was — and what perk skill and artifact I'd received with it — I still had no clear idea about any of it.

Combat-type, if at all possible.

The variety of traits an Ascender could awaken was so vast that no one had ever mapped its limits. Combat traits vastly outnumbered the rest, but non-combat traits made up a sizable share too.

If I'd gotten something below 5-Star, a non-combat trait wouldn't have been bad. But at 10-Star, combat was the only right answer. The world's spotlight simply couldn't help but shine on combat types over non-combat ones.

"Oooooh!!"

At the sight of the dignified trait Sage, studded with ten stars, a low gasp escaped me.

One look at the name and it was practically announcing itself: I'm a magic-type trait, bow before me.

Magic-type Ascenders were the rarest of all — nobility wherever they went.

"YES!!"

I threw both arms into the air and belted out a victory cry. In my head, I pictured myself standing shoulder to shoulder with the great Seven Ascenders.

No, wait. I'd just gotten a 10-Star rank — I couldn't be aiming that small.

The one and only First Emperor, standing above the Seven Ascenders.

Yes, that was the only ambition worthy of a 10-Star rank's dignity.

I'm now the strongest Ascender in the world—! ...Whoa, hold on. Wait a second.

I had been whooping over my trait alone when the stat sheet caught my eye, and my mouth snapped shut.

My Magic stat is... 1?

My pupils trembled.

Base stats for a freshly awakened Level 1 ranged from 1 to 10. A 5 in something like Vitality or speed was considered solid — most people started out converging around 5.

But a 1 was a serious problem. And not simply because the number was low.

A starting stat of 1 means your stat growth rate is garbage too, doesn't it?

Yes — the growth rate. That was the culprit.

Leveling up raised your five stats. Can't I just pick which stats to raise? No. Stats rose automatically, according to each Ascender's natural inclination. Which meant a high base stat had a high chance of increasing on level-up, while a low base stat barely budged no matter how many levels you gained.

I remember being shocked when I heard about an Ascender who'd started with 1 Agility and still had an Agility stat of 7 past Level 30.

Thirty-plus level-ups, and his Agility had risen only six times.

And my stats looked primed to go exactly the same way.

If the growth rate of Magic — the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠single most important stat for a magic-type — was a pile of dung, could I ever grow properly? I'd received the supreme 10-Star trait, and yet I was headed straight for half-Ascender status, wasn't I?

The image flashed vividly in my mind: me, gasping and wheezing after casting one spell, recovering for an eternity, casting one more, wheezing again. Premature-ejaculation magic.

"Uuuuuugh."

A groan leaked out of me.

Well — I supposed I could console myself that Spirit, the second most important stat for a magic type, was a 10.

"My perk skill says... the power of my magic gets amplified? What does that even mean?"

Did it make my spells stronger? I tilted my head at the skill Sage's Aura. The second perk skill, Sage's Sight, was just as opaque. Perceives truth itself? What was that supposed to mean?

Why were the explanations so unhelpful?

It was a puzzle I could have solved with calm thought, but the shock of my 1 Magic stat made concentration impossible. No matter how good those perk skills looked, with Magic at 1, I couldn't shake the feeling that I was only half an Ascender.

"If this is how it's gonna be, I'd rather have awakened a non-combat trait!!"

I cried out, drowning in self-pity.

And that was the moment.

"M-Mythic grade?"

My eyes went wide as saucers at the artifact's grade. And how could they not?

The equipment and artifact grades released by the Sky Tower ran in order: Normal — Rare — Advanced — Hero — Legendary — Mythic.

Of all the Seven Ascenders, only two had ever obtained a Mythic-grade item. And even they hadn't been handed theirs at the start, like me — as far as I knew, they'd earned theirs through staggering luck and even greater suffering.

"So 10-Star means you get a Mythic-grade artifact right out of the gate. That's insane."

I murmured it without thinking, staring at the Sage's Tome in my hand.

And that was the moment.

- Of course it's insane. It was this great one's own trait, after all.

"...!"

An unfamiliar, young voice drifted out of nowhere, and I nearly dropped the Sage's Tome in fright.

"Wh-what the—"

- Heh. You can see me and still not understand? What a dim-witted creature.

The youthful voice came again — and at the same moment, the Sage's Tome in my grip began to shudder.

"Did... did this thing just talk?"

- 'This thing'?! How DARE you address this great one as 'this thing'!

Golden light burst from the Sage's Tome at the very words.

Above the Sage's Tome, a palm-sized, translucent boy floated into view.

- I am Aleon, the Great Sage, once hailed as the mightiest and most feared of Pangaea. Apologize at once for your insolence, and I may — just this once — deign to forgive you.

I stared, speechless, at the tiny creature(?) bouncing up and down atop the tome. At last, I managed to speak.

"Uh... right. Sorry about that."

What is this thing?

I quietly studied the little fellow who'd introduced himself as a Sage. He was translucent like a hologram, so I couldn't tell what he truly looked like — but even accounting for that, he was an absurdly handsome little tyke, radiating noble grace.

Glossy, swinging hair in a short bob. An upturned nose and bright, clever eyes. Baby fat still lingering in his cheeks, and flawless, spotless skin. A face so beautiful it would make a young prince weep with envy.

One oddity, though — his ears came to sharp points.

This kid's not human, is he.

That much I could deduce: Aleon had been an elf in life.

- Hmph. Why do you gawk at me so?!

When I kept staring blankly, he crossed his arms and began grumbling. Was he trying, in his own mind, to assert dominance over me? No matter how rudely he treated me, that face of his made everything he did look adorable. The reason I'd been struck speechless when he demanded an apology wasn't fear at all — it was the fairy-like cuteness of his expression that had stopped my tongue.

I can't say for sure he's a real Sage, but his background certainly seems extraordinary.

Given that even among elves the royal bloodline was called High Elf, I ventured the guess that he was one of those.

"Well, it's just... your origins seem pretty impressive."

- Hoh hoh. So those eyes of yours are not merely decoration after all.

The self-proclaimed Sage wriggled and squirmed at my words for some reason, and I nearly burst out laughing. No matter how I looked at him, the boy was undeniably cute.

In the middle of feeling miserable, I suppose I should be grateful to have gained such an adorable pet(?).

Thanks to him, my gloomy mood had lifted considerably.

Right — so what if I had premature-magic? With a 10-Star trait, surely I'd at least turn out middling.

And it was the very moment I settled into that comfortable optimism—

- Very well! I shall grant you my magnanimity. I sensed you despairing over that mouse-tail of a mana vessel you carry. Shall I, out of special favor, teach you the solution?

Ellaon glanced up at me with a haughty, smug expression.

My eyes flew wide open.

A way to fix my premature-magic constitution?