Genius Gamer Reborn into a Family of Heroes

Chapter 15: White Night Castle of Hell (1)

A month had passed since the proving ceremony, and it was the day when the chosen trainees of the Kaladan family, including both collateral and direct bloodlines, gathered at White Night Castle.

Arriving at White Night Castle, which was comparable to the great palace of Randalgates, Harang looked around.

Knights gathered to welcome the entrance of the direct bloodline… or rather, it was quiet.

‘This is how it should be.’

White Night Castle was a realm where the ‘direct bloodline Polden’ of 7 to 8 stars operated, and there was no welcoming for a mere ‘adopted semi-Polden’ of 1 star.

White Night Castle did not provide special treatment for purebloods; one had to prove themselves purely through skill.

The knights here only gathered to welcome the entrance of the 12 elders of the Kaladan Council or the head of the family.

Other than that, no matter how pureblooded they were, if they fell behind the trainees in skill, they had to shut up and silently hone their swordsmanship and strive for improvement.

The entrance procedure to White Night Castle was not very difficult.

The administrative manager sternly warned that from here on, they could not bring in any attendants. For purebloods who grew up in the arms of their attendants, this was said to be the first big hurdle.

For Harang, who never had an attendant to begin with, it was a meaningless statement.

‘I always managed well on my own in my previous life.’

Bathing, laundry, cleaning, cooking—whatever it was, he didn’t care. With years of experience living alone, there was nothing he couldn’t handle.

Entering through the main gate and riding a magic carriage for quite a while, Harang encountered a knight who looked to be in his 30s, waiting.

“You’ve arrived, Trainee Harang.”

Although the knight did not have silver eyes, he spoke to Harang with a somewhat condescending tone.

This was where pureblood children realized that they had truly entered White Night Castle.

For the first time in their lives, those who were called young master or young lady were treated with semi-disrespect, bringing them face to face with reality.

‘It feels like my status has risen.’

On the contrary, Harang, who had rarely been treated with honor by such a great knight, felt pleased.

As Harang grinned mischievously, the knight, with a puzzled expression, extended his hand for a handshake.

“Lieutenant Willis Carlson of the 97th Raw Stone Training Squadron, Black Horse Knights.”

White Night Castle, which maintained a solid first place in military power worldwide, gathered dozens of geniuses every three years as trainees.

Raw Stone Training Squadron. The single rookie training unit that gathered the brightest talents from the Kaladan bloodline and the subordinate families.

Hearing the term Raw Stone Squadron, known for nurturing the elite of Kaladan at White Night Castle, Harang felt a new sense of accomplishment in having achieved his first goal.

‘I’ve just arrived at the starting point, though.’

Willis briefly explained the basics, like what to do here, where the lodging was, and the location of the dining hall.

‘Even for a Kaladan bloodline, it’s quite something to have a lieutenant guide me.’

Finally, Willis turned to Harang as they arrived at the third training ground where young bloodlines and trainees were to be trained.

“Trainee Harang, here’s a warning. This place does not recognize the status of direct purebloods. On the contrary, there are many trainees who are eager to challenge you precisely because you are a pureblood. They can challenge other trainees to duels and engage in ‘ranking competition’.”

Competition again.

“They won’t leave you alone. You’ll likely have a harsher life than other trainees.”

The way to complete the training and receive formal education for Kaladan bloodlines was to defeat all other trainees and achieve the top rank.

If one flaunted their status too soon before becoming strong, they would be subjected to continuous dueling challenges disguised as harassment, preventing proper training and halting their growth.

Willis had seen countless such bloodlines.

Regardless of being collateral or direct, those who thought their talent and status were exceptional stood out only to receive endless duel challenges, exhausting them to the point of not being able to participate in proper training, ultimately stalling their growth.

‘Especially since he’s an adopted direct bloodline, attention is guaranteed.’

Willis thought.

If this kid was as wise as the rumors said and smart enough to take care of himself,

He would surely heed the advice and accept it quietly.

‘Stay low.’

Harang scoffed.

That was the thing Harang hated and was worst at. Whatever he did, whatever he attempted,

He always wanted to do better than others. He wanted to show off his excellence. It was almost instinctual.

Yet, to stay quiet?

“I’ll try.”

Harang reluctantly accepted for now, knowing that causing a commotion on the first day would bring no good.

This place was where the four bloodlines ascended from the collateral families, as well as purebloods in their early teens, received intense training. By spreading the harassment, the pain could be shared.

He had no intention of attracting attention and getting caught alone.

‘They were here already.’

In addition to the four bloodlines who ascended from collateral families, his new older sister Charen.

She and about a hundred boys and girls were gathered in the training ground with tense faces.

All were trainees of the 97th batch this year.

‘They said half of them would drop out.’

Although they ranked trainees, it was not a survival game where those below a certain rank were eliminated.

So why did so many geniuses drop out?

Simply put, Kaladan’s training was excessively harsh. In the system of infinite competition, constantly aiming swords at each other, those in the lower ranks were not even treated as people.

They were given leftover scraps for meals, assigned to shabby accommodations, and stripped of all other privileges and rights.

The Kaladan bloodline and subordinate families were no exceptions.

If one had no skill, they were out.

This place perfectly embodied meritocracy.

“Is that kid the one…?”

“The bloodline adopted into the main family?”

“Should we call them pureblood now?”

“Who knows…”

The children started whispering at Harang’s late arrival. Perhaps because they all had been treated as geniuses or monsters where they came from, their spirits remained high even seeing a Kaladan bloodline.

Regardless, as Harang quietly moved to a corner,

Gulp!

Feeling a chilling sensation, he quickly braced his knees.

Thud-!!

At that moment, a tremendous weight, as if his body weight had quadrupled, forced his knees to bend with an overwhelming sense of gravity.

“Aaaah?!”

“Ugh!”

“Aaah! Save me!”

It seemed Harang wasn’t the only one who felt it, as children all around started screaming.

Harang quickly realized.

‘A wide-area weight amplification spell!’

A spell that dramatically increased the gravitational force in a designated area, making the weight feel several times heavier, estimated to be around 120 kg.

Creak…!!

Soon, the training ground door opened, revealing a middle-aged man.

He stroked his beard, slowly looking around, then spun the staff embedded with a crystal.

“First time seeing you arrogant brats. Just because you got some recognition outside, you’re making a racket.”

Looking around belatedly, all the trainees had collapsed on the floor, unable to move.

In this place, the only child standing firm against gravity was… one.

Harang was the only one.

“Oh? There’s a persistent kid here. Silver eyes, are you Kaladan?”

‘…Damn it.’

It was then that Harang realized his plan to avoid attention had already gone awry on the first day.

The senior trainees were all staring at Harang.

Had it ended here, Harang wouldn’t have minded much.

But the magician didn’t seem to intend to leave him alone.

“You seem to be holding up well. How about this?”

Woom!

A deep bronze magic circle unfolded above Harang’s head. As a thin, gray plate fell through, he hastily raised both hands.

Thunk!

‘Ugh!’

Incredibly heavy. It felt like his bones were resonating.

Yet, despite that,

Harang endured.

He did not bend his knees!

‘Damn, that wretched magician…’

What grudge did he hold to impose such a trial on him?

No, he had already realized.

This was a simple act of hierarchy establishment.

Regardless of their past lives, they were nothing but weaklings and mere trainees.

This act was to firmly imprint this fact into their minds.

Realizing this, a message appeared in the air.

━━━[Sub Quest]━━━

Unyielding Will!

– Content: The instructor is trying to break your will and pride, to shatter your self-esteem. It’s the best way to handle the geniuses of prestigious families! But you are born with the qualities of a hero. You cannot break under such a trial.
– Objective: Overcome the instructor’s test!
– Reward: The first authority of the Silver Dragon Contractor

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Although a quest was given, Harang didn’t even bother to read it thoroughly. Instead, his anger at wanting to overcome the current situation was greater!

His action was simple.

“Uaaah!!”

“Oh?”

With muscles straining to the point of bursting, he used the rocket-like propulsion of magic to launch the rock towards the platform where the middle-aged magician stood!

Thud!!

Whether due to the man’s magic or Harang’s lack of strength, the rock landed precariously at the magician’s feet.

Yet, that alone seemed enough.

Snap!

With a satisfied expression, the middle

-aged magician snapped his fingers, dispelling all the gravity.

Then, he suddenly raised his thumb with a wide grin.

“Congratulations, adopted boy. Harang, was it? You’re the first to withstand my welcome ceremony and resist.”

He even winked, looking genuinely pleased.

Despite the playful gesture, no one took it lightly.

“Who’s that trainee?”

“They say he’s the adopted Kaladan bloodline.”

“Even if he’s a Kaladan…”

“Throwing a rock at an instructor?”

“Showing off too much on the first day.”

Harsh gazes pierced him from all around. It was the senior trainees glaring at Harang.

‘Don’t stand out.’

Though advised, the situation wouldn’t let him be. Harang simply wanted to focus on his training quietly.

‘…Whatever.’

The coming days might not be easy.

The senior trainees wouldn’t leave Harang alone, disguising harassment as duels.

But what of it?

Even if he lost, numerous duels would become experience points for his future, laying the groundwork for progress.

‘Rather, it’s better this way.’

Harang looked around, meeting the eyes of the senior trainees. A few seniors flinched under his intense gaze.

‘Come at me.’

As much as you can.

Even in his previous life, he faced countless challenges, eventually becoming a champion.

The challenges from senior trainees were merely the first step.

There was nothing too overwhelming for him.