"What is that?" Luna asked her hand moving to grab the remote off the table.


    "Have you seen this symbol before?" Nn asked, grabbing his shirt from the sofa.


    He tried to show the shoulder to Luan, but to his surprise, when he looked down at his own shoulder, he found an unbelievable truth.


    The symbol was gone!


    The clear mark, which seemed like some sort of stamp on his shoulder, had vanished.


    It was now spotless, as blue as his uniform.


    "But how?" Nn whispered, noticing Luna''s raised eyebrow.


    "Never mind..." he muttered, tossing the shirt aside. But he could feel her gaze still on him.


    "You seemed serious. What is this symbol? Describe it to me," she asked with interest.


    Nn told her everything he remembered about the symbol to the best of his ability.


    After Lun listened, all she said was,


    "Hmmm."


    It was clear to Nn that she had no idea what the symbol was, and he didn''t press the issue any further.


    He guessed if the symbol had any meaning, she would have recognized it.


    Luan turned her attention to the TV, and as usual, she gotpletely absorbed in the movie ying on the screen.


    Nn finished his meal and tried to engage with her, sitting and watching the movie together.


    But soon enough, he found his eyelids getting heavy.


    He didn''t find the movie very captivating. It was just dull to him, aplete contrast to Luna, who seemed so engrossed.


    In the end, Nn left her, taking his dishes to the sink and washing them.


    Then, he moved into the bedroom andy down on his bed, his thoughts drifting to the events of the day.


    He nced at his runic card, seeing that his experience points were still perfectly intact.


    "From tomorrow on, I''ll begin my training."


    ''Most students will be heading to the special cultivation rooms, at least those who managed to keep their points from the hungry two-star ascendants. That''s the best and fastest way to improve their strength."


    "But the cultivation chambers won''t do anything for me. I can''t control divine essence anyway. It''ll be useless until I get rid of the curse..." Nn reasoned, his eyebrows furrowing.


    ''How do I even get rid of the curse?'' he wondered, though he wasn''t asking anyone in particr.


    Nn was frustrated at being unable to use his divine essence, unlike the others, especially after learning how effective his own essence could be.


    Just what kind of power awaited him if he could control it? The limitless possibilities.


    "Hey, system, do you know any way to unseal my divine essence and break my curse?" Nn asked hopefully.


    [No! Don''t ask me...] the system replied harshly, and Nn huffed, ignoring its attitude.


    "If I can''t visit the special cultivation rooms, then the only ce to improve my strength is the Karatos training room."


    "The tools are more advanced, so I should see some monumental growth if I give it my all."


    "For now, that''s the only option I have."


    "Once I gain more knowledge of the academy and improve my strength, I''ll focus on earning more experience points."


    "Even my points are useless, as there''s nothing I can use them to buy..." Nn mused.


    He remained in the same position for a while, simply staring at the white design of the ceiling.


    His thoughts drifted back to the strange symbol, and Nn felt his curiosity piqued once more.


    He was sure the mark had been there, yet it mysteriously vanished when he tried to show it to Luna.


    Besides, he had noticed that other ascendants started avoiding him once they saw the mark on his shoulder, scurrying away in clear fear.


    It was obvious that whoever had marked him belonged to a group the majority of ascendants didn''t want to mess with.


    [Someone''s going to be in trouble soon,] the system teased, but Nn shook his head calmly.


    "No! If anything, this is a blessing in disguise. With that mark on me, it keeps most of the ascendants off my back. That''ll give me plenty of time to keep growing my strength."


    "Eventually, they''ll reveal themselves to me, and I''ll be more prepared than ever."


    "This isn''t so bad..." Nn mused, trying to turn his situation to his advantage.


    Now that he had been marked, at least he knew the group after him was powerful.


    He was being targeted, which made him even more alert, knowing they wouldn''t dy their attack for long.


    Whenever they came for him, he''d be ready.


    His train of thought derailed when the door opened, and a figure stepped in.


    It was none other than Luan, and Nn noticed that the white mist that usually covered her had greatly receded.


    Luna also noticed Nn''s intense gaze on her.


    "What?" she asked.


    "Your cold aura... it''s reducing?" He questioned, raising an eyebrow.


    He knew he was helping her, but he wasn''t really healing her. He was just unfrosting her frozen organs—not truly breaking the curse or illness, whatever it was.


    "I''m getting better..." Luma said with a grin, and Nn raised an eyebrow at that before shrugging it off.


    "It''s 9:00. Go to sleep already," Luma told him as she skipped to his side, burying herself within his mattress.


    The girl who had fought so hard the first day he wanted to sleep by her side had eventually gotten rid of her shyness about wanting to sleep next to him.


    She nestled herself deeper into him, and Nn soon turned into a blue, ming figure, with the mes gently dancing over his skin, lulling her to sleep.


    "Hey, Luan?" Nn suddenly called out.


    "Yes?"


    "I''ll be resuming training tomorrow after school. It''ll take at least five hours, so I''ll be back around 9:00. Not 4 anymore."


    Nn informed her, and Luna nodded.


    "That''s fine. Guess you''ll have to eat a lot before you leave, then. If you''re not back by 10:00, I''lle searching for you," she said, and Nn rolled his eyes