"Fuck the Pride Month…"
Noah muttered under his breath, shoving his hands into his jacket pockets as he walked down the main street of Larkshade City. The sky overhead burned in hues of unnatural purple, bathed in the arrogant glow of the Star of Pride.
Dust motes shimmered like smug little gods, catching light that made everything look like it thought too highly of itself.
He hated this month.
The bonding ceremony always took place in Pride Month. A month when the Star of Pride shone its brightest and made the whole city act like they owned the universe.
People strutted instead of walked. Every conversation somehow became a competition. Even beggars asked for donations like they were royalty.
Noah didn't have the luxury of sin-induced confidence. That required being affected by a Sin Star, and Pride was one of the most contagious. The Star Guild insisted that letting a bit of pride seep into people made them more ambitious, more driven.
So they modified the city's array to let in more starlight. Idiots. It just made everything more unbearable.
Naturally, the number of people wanting to bond with a star skyrocketed during this month. A perfect storm of delusion and ambition.
Noah walked in the middle of one such crowd now, dozens of teenagers and young adults marching toward the central square, eyes filled with dreams of greatness and legendary spells. He didn't blame them. He was one of them.
He just wasn't like them.
Most of them were under the star's influence. He wasn't. He double-checked the thin iron needle stuck into the vein of his forearm, a local grounding tool to block sin radiation.
Primitive, painful, but effective. No manipulation. No false emotions. Just him and his own will.
Noah exhaled. "Good. Still myself."
The last thing he wanted was to wake up next month bonded to a Star, realising he'd made the biggest mistake of his life while high on celestial pride.
He glanced at the others in line. Half of them would probably regret everything by next moon cycle—if they lived that long. Not everyone survived after bonding.
He cut through three side alleys and turned at the giant obsidian clocktower that marked the Square of Stars. The city square buzzed with nervous energy. A floating platform hovered at its centre, where initiates lined up like offerings.
Magic lights floated overhead, dimming the purple sky, but it still bled through, staining everything.
The line moved quickly. The Star Guild was efficient today. Before long, it was his turn.
He stepped onto the platform and nodded at the bored old man sitting at the activation pedestal. The man didn't even look up, just pointed toward the glowing obelisk in the centre.
Noah placed his palm against it. A low hum passed through his skin.
Then came the voice:
[Congratulations on bonding with the Star of Preservation]
[Purpose: When death shadows over those who are not meant to be its victims, be the brightness that erases that shadow.]
[Grade: Origin]
Noah blinked. The screen floated in front of him, shimmering in gentle white and blue light. He stared at the words for a long time, then scratched the back of his head.
'What the fuck is Origin grade?'
There were seven known grades of stars: Ordinary, Common, Rare, Epic, Mythical, Celestial, and Divine. Everyone knew that. Divine was the peak—stars that could bend fate and reality.
But Origin?
That wasn't on any chart. Yet.
He glanced at the sky, half-expecting some cosmic disturbance. Normally, bonding with anything above Rare triggered visible phenomena—auras, rings, falling starlight, sometimes even spontaneous storms.
But for him?
Nothing.
No lightning. No earthquakes. No one gasping in awe.
Just a faint pulse in his chest where his heart used to be.
'It replaced my heart,' he thought. Not metaphorically—literally. Bonding with stars replaced their hearts. Lives of a bonded star and its bonder were entwined, unless both of them destroyed they could live longer.
He could feel it beating now, imitating his heart. A steady rhythm of something not quite human.
The old man on the platform yawned. "Little boy, get down. Peeps are waitin'."
Noah stepped back, still staring at the Star Screen. He heard the man mutter, "Another ordinary star…" under his breath.
His jaw clenched.
'So they think it's ordinary.'
He stepped off the platform. The others waiting in line gave him brief glances—some curious, others indifferent—but no one said anything. In a world where ninety percent of people failed to bond at all, Noah was already a winner.
At least, that's what they thought.
Noah didn't speak as he walked into the side corridor that led to the guild registry. The noise faded behind him. He held up his hand and summoned the Star Screen again.
Name: Noah Walker
Star: Preservation
Grade: Origin
Evolution: Nebula
Radial: 100/100
He stopped walking.
"Hundred… what?"
Even Divine stars were said to start at 50 Radial at most. Most Ordinary bonds started around 10. A hundred was unheard of. He reread it again. Still the same.
'Okay… breathe. Don't scream. Just… go register. Get paid. Get a spell. Don't collapse.'
He forced himself forward into the Guild's administration office. A young receptionist with silver hair and glowing eyes glanced up as he approached.
"Name. ID," she said flatly.
He gave her the information. She tapped away, then handed him a badge with a single ring etched in gold.
"Single Circle Spell Master. Rank assigned. You may now proceed to the Spell Archive."
She pointed toward a glowing doorway across the room.
"You may select one Single Circle spell. Choose carefully. Consider your Radial capacity and choose the spell. Don't waste this chance to obtain something above your capabilities—you will regret it."
Noah nodded. "Thanks."
She was correct. Single Circle spells required 10 Radials just to build the base—it was the minimum required to unleash a spell. Then spells had their criteria to build structure, mostly ranging from 1 to 10.
Then the element in the spell required Radial. Generally, a newbie Spell Master started with spells using common fundamental elements. That's because these elements were what they could easily control without fearing any backlashes.
'A common fundamental element costs 2 Radials. So an ordinary Spell Master with 20 base Radials can almost use a single spell before their radius is emptied.'
However, he was different. He had more than triple the amount of Radials they had. He could choose a spell with a powerful structure without worrying about his inability to unleash it.
'But I have to choose wisely. If I select a spell which I can only use one time as my Radials empty, that will become dangerous unless I destroy my enemies in one move.'
And he wasn't that confident enough to think he could one-shot monsters. So he decided to choose a spell that could improve his body reactions and also inflict high damage on a large area.
'Something with lightning or wind element will be good… these are the two elements with movement buffs. Wind is good for movement though, but it lacks strength.'
His hand trembled slightly as he walked toward the door. He could tell it was excitement. But he wasn't sure if it was for obtaining his first spell… or imagining fighting with it.