'Appraise.'
Victor's right eye darkened, swallowing all light nearby. His pupil twisted into a mysterious symbol that glowed with an ethereal green color.
Information appeared before his eyes.
---
[Name]: Victor Cruz
[Age]: 17 years old
[Profession]: Beast Tamer
[Talent]: Mysterious Physique, The Ancient Eye
[Title(s)]: [The Ancient Gate's Successor], [Skylar Scholar], [The Ghost of the Underground]
[Affiliation]: Student of Skysworn Academy
[Cultivation Stage]: Great Origin - No Cores
---
[Beast Bond(s)]:
[Name]: Mirage
[Type]: Wolf of the End
[Description]: A powerful heavenly existence bound by an unbreakable contract with Victor Cruz, hailing from an ancient forgotten era of the universe. Unable to appear in reality due to certain reasons.
---
[Victor's Inherited Abilities/Traits]:
[Successor of the Ancient Gate],
[Master of Reality],
[Rune Affinity]...
---
[Background]: [A lone assassin from another world, Victor earned the title of 'Ghost' due to his silent and deadly reputation in his past life. He died during one of his missions and awakened in a completely different world in the body of a young, untalented Skylar Scholar.]
---
'This is a bit terrifying...'
After scanning through the information, Victor couldn't help but feel a mixture of shock and fear in his heart.
Even his past wasn't safe...
Against the Ancient Eye, there was no such thing as a secret past or a perfect disguise. It could see through everything at a glance.
'Thankfully, it's under my control.'
Victor inwardly sighed in relief. The eye was absurdly overpowered. However, he could only use it sparingly, as frequent use of its abilities could destroy his mind.
After experiencing its capabilities, he turned it off. He could feel his thoughts slowing down each second while it was turned on.
'Any more, and I might faint again.'
Victor pondered for a moment. After signing the soul contract with Mirage, he asked some questions about the eye.
The old wolf had told him the side effects would go away as his strength grew, but for now, he could only use the appraisal ability five times on a person before it became dangerous.
The side effects depend on the importance of the target. If he used the eye to a rock, it wouldn't consume much of his energy.
However, for living beings, who are more important than a rock, using the eye consumes far more energy.
Victor thought about it for a while before remembering something important from their talk.
"Mirage, didn't you say I would inherit some of your abilities after signing the contract? Why do I only see two? Is that all?"
At that moment, a small wolf appeared on his shoulder. Its fur was as white as heavenly clouds, and its eyes burned a striking orange, like twin suns.
[... You used the Ancient Eye?]
Victor nodded, finding Mirage's appearance oddly cute. Without thinking, he patted the wolf with his finger, reminded of his dog in his past life.
"That's right."
Mirage froze under the pat, his fur shaking in awkward indignation. With a glare, he vanished, returning to Victor's mind with a huff.
Woosh!
Victor couldn't help but show a look of disappointment.
[... Don't do that again, human.]
Mirage's voice echoed in his mind, irritated.
[As for your question, the answer is simple: you're too weak. Most of my abilities are still sealed.]
Hearing this, Victor lost interest in the topic. Since Mirage said so, those abilities would naturally become available as he grew stronger.
He glanced at the clock. It had been a while since his last class ended, and his next one was starting soon.
[Practical Beast Warfare and Cultivation]
The next class was a very important subject in the Skysworn Academy's curriculum.
It introduced students to battling magical beasts, harnessing their power in combat, and fighting opposing beast tamers in combat.
Victor was very interested in this aspect.
This world had a cultivation and beast-taming system that humanity painstakingly formed to defend themselves against threats.
Moreover, the culture and history of this world were very different from Earth.
'Beasts, beast taming, and beast taming battles... how interesting.'
Since he wanted to blend in with this world's people seamlessly, it was crucial to check out one of the biggest aspects that built up this world's society.
As the saying goes, when in Rome, do as the Romans do.
Victor sighed before getting out of bed. He looked at the nearby mirror, seeing the face of Victor Cruz who resembled him in his youth in the past.
'Odd. But the universe is odd.'
He went on one more review his memories before he walked away.
After he was done, he smiled slightly. If his old friends and enemies were here and saw his smile, they knew that someone was added to his death list.
Victor walked away from the clinic with a small smile.
***
The Skysworn Academy had a lot of students entering every year despite its infamously low acceptance rate.
That was natural. People were attracted by the mystical and powerful influence it had.
There was a saying, the Skysworn Academy can make one, no matter who, reach the sky in a single step.
Students all over the campus had enrolled in this academy wishing to turn their life around.
Victor, who was making his way to the training field at this moment was no exception.
"This should be the place."
Looking up, he saw the sign 'Training Field' on top of the doorway. He took out his ID and swiped it in the sensor slot by the door.
Beep!
The door opened, revealing an exaggeratedly large field. Equipment of all kinds—target practices, dummies, and even arenas—were placed across the field.
Victor's eyes widened in surprise as he stepped inside.
His eyes went all over the field, seeing a lot of students already present. Among the students, he recognized a familiar figure.
It was a beautiful girl with long blonde hair. Her eyes were shiny green, resembling a pair of rare emeralds.
All of the students near her seemed to be attracted by her beauty, male and female alike.
However, she was indifferent to all of the gazes, as if she was already used to it. She simply sat quietly on the side.
'That's... Ning Yuxue.'