The dungeon was dark and silent.
On the 90th floor, broken stone covered the ground. The air felt heavy, like something dangerous was watching from the shadows. In the middle of the floor stood a boy. A sword in his right hand, a shield in his left. His breath slow… but steady, In front of him moved a huge serpent-type monster.
An S-Rank beast.
Its long body slid across the ground with a low sound. Red eyes stared at the boy without fear. Anyone else would have run but the boy did not move. He faced it directly.
A few weeks earlier.
Somewhere in Europe. Inside a normal classroom, Aragon Blackridge sat near the window. He looked outside at the sky, not listening to anything around him.
"Which anime should I watch today…? Maybe something with an overpowered hero…"
Other students were laughing, talking, walking around. It was just a normal school day.
Then suddenly: A bright magic circle appeared on the floor, Light exploded everywhere. Someone screamed , Someone fell , Aragon covered his eyes.
And then… silence.
When the light disappeared, twenty students were no longer in the classroom. They were standing inside a huge hall, Out of fifty students in school, only twenty had been taken. The others were outside during break. The hall looked like an ancient king's palace. Tall pillars, Wide red carpets , High windows with colored glass. Torin ran to a window and looked outside.
"This… this is a medieval city. There's a giant wall around it."
Fear spread quickly.
"Where are we?"
"Is this real?"
"Someone tell me this is a joke!"
But Aragon… was smiling, His heart was beating fast. No way… Did I really get summoned to another world?
Instead of fear, he felt excitement.
"This is my chance" , The giant doors opened. Royal guards entered first. Then a king, a queen, a princess, a general… and a mage holding a crystal staff.
The mage stepped forward , "Welcome, brave heroes. You stand in the great Pandora Kingdom."
The king spoke loudly, "We have summoned you to defeat the Demon Lord.
Among you is the Legendary Hero who will save this world."
The students stared in shock.
Darian laughed nervously, "You expect us to fight a Demon Lord? We're just students."
Some students laughed with him, But Aragon stayed quiet. Legendary hero…Maybe… it's me. A crystal ball was brought forward.
"The god of this world has given you new power," the mage said.
"Place your hand on the crystal. Your rank will appear."
One by one, students stepped forward.
S-Rank.
A-Rank.
B-Rank.
C-Rank.
Excitement filled the hall, After some time, only Aragon remained.
Whispers started.
"The bullied kid…"
"He'll be weak for sure."
Aragon ignored them. Back in my world, I was nothing. But here… I can change.
He placed his hand on the crystal. The light flickered… weakly, Then stopped, The hall became silent. One letter appeared-F.
"No way…"
"F-Rank?"
"That's lower than E…"
Even the king looked disappointed. In this world, ranks started from E and went up to SSS. But F was not even a real hero rank. It was the rank of slaves. People who could not grow. People with no future. Aragon's mind went blank.
""F…? , This must be wrong…"
Laughter spread across the hall. His chest felt tight. The mage finally spoke, asking everyone to go to their rooms and prepare for a banquet. Teams and weapons would be given later. Students left with excitement. Aragon walked slowly behind them. As he passed, the mage quietly looked at the general. The general gave a small nod. Something felt… wrong. Very wrong, And Aragon did not understand why.
The next evening felt colder. Aragon walked through a long stone corridor with the other boys. No one walked beside him, Whispers followed again.
"F-Rank…"
"Why is he even here?"
Darian smirked, "Don't drop your weapon later, okay? Oh wait… you probably won't even get one."
Laughter....
Aragon stayed silent, Just wait something will change.
They entered a large ceremony hall.
Weapons were displayed everywhere: Swords, staffs, bows, armor each shining with soft magical light.The king sat on his throne.
"Tonight, heroes will receive weapons based on their ranks," he announced.
One by one, names were called, S-Ranks received beautiful glowing weapons. People gasped in admiration. A-Ranks received strong enchanted gear. B-Ranks and C-Ranks received simpler magic weapons. Some felt proud, some felt slightly disappointed.
Then, "Aragon Blackridge."
The room became quiet again .He stepped forward. After a long pause, a guard brought…a plain iron sword.
No magic
No light
Nothing
Murmurs spread.....
"That's not even ranked…"
Aragon looked at the king, "Is this… really for me?"
"Be grateful you receive anything," the king replied coldly.
Those words hurt more than laughter. Darian laughed loudly, But from the back, a soft voice whispered:
"That's not fair…"
A girl stood there, eyes full of guilt. She looked like she wanted to help… but she stayed silent.
The general spoke calmly, "An F-Rank cannot grow. Keeping him among heroes will only lower morale."
The king answered without emotion, "Then remove him."
Aragon froze....
"You… are dismissed from the Hero Corps," the mage said, "You may leave the kingdom at dawn."
Just like that, No anger, No trial, Nothing. Only abandonment. Aragon tried to protest but was quickly put off and soon the weapon ceremony came to an end .
That night, Aragon sat alone in a small room, The iron sword rested on his knees cold, empty. Like his future. Outside, the kingdom celebrated its new heroes, Inside, something quiet began to change.
Not anger
Not yet
Something colder,
And when dawn came…The hero they summoned…would walk out of the gate alone.....