As I headed to the training hall owned by the academy, I saw a large number of boys and girls who had arrived before me.
They came from branch families, vassal houses, or external organizations allied with the clan.
"Hey, isn't that him?"
"Yeah. The illegitimate child. The ninth, Lee Cheol."
"I heard he caused a stir during the Cheolseon and Naming Ceremonies."
"It must have been pure luck. What could an illegitimate child possibly amount to?"
They probably thought they were whispering, but I could hear them all too clearly.
'It's been a while.'
As someone born illegitimate, this was something I'd experienced my entire life—jealousy over bloodline, a mix of wariness and disregard.
Before my regression, these words had been nothing short of agonizing.
But now, things were a little different.
"It's not possible to achieve that kind of result at the Naming Ceremony with just luck. Especially if the Lord saw fit to reward him."
"Agreed. Honestly, I'm pretty curious. An illegitimate child who keeps making unprecedented waves? Sounds interesting."
Not all the gazes and words directed at me were negative.
I hadn't expected these kinds of reactions, leaving me feeling a bit conflicted.
At that moment, the training hall grew a little quieter.
"Oh, it's the eighth young lady."
My younger sister, Lee Seohyun, walked in. Though she still had some baby fat, her appearance remained undeniably cute.
Everyone's attention turned to her.
She spotted me and immediately stiffened, but she forced herself to walk over as if nothing was wrong, awkwardly waving her hand.
"Ah, h-hey!"
"Yeah, it's been a while."
Standing beside me, Seohyun kept sneaking glances my way, obviously hesitant about something.
"Do you have something to say?"
"W-what? Of course not!"
"Then just wait quietly. You're making me lose focus."
"Ugh! How dare you act so cocky, you—!"
She turned toward me with a glare, ready to snap back, but then she seemed to remember something. She flinched and lost her momentum.
"Well, actually… I do have something to say…"
She fidgeted with her fingers.
"T-that is… You're not still upset about what happened at the Naming Ceremony, are you?"
"The Naming Ceremony? What do you mean?"
"You know, when I said I was disappointed…"
After a long pause, I finally understood what she was referring to.
'She means when I chose to challenge the Outer Hall of Trials and she said she was disappointed?'
She must have been dwelling on the things she blurted out in the heat of the moment.
Even though it had been nearly two years since the ceremony.
'She grew up to be a cold-hearted person, but as a kid, she actually has this kind of cute side to her.'
Most of the children in the Soongmu Clan lacked social finesse, except for a select few.
After all, they were born to rule over others and lived completely different lives from the common people.
"I mean, you do hold grudges sometimes, so I just thought, maybe… If you were still upset… I, well, I misunderstood, so…"
Was it really that hard for her to just say "I'm sorry"?
"Forget it. I never gave it a second thought."
"R-really?"
"More importantly, how have you been? I haven't seen you since the banquet."
"Of course! I've been great!"
Her face brightened instantly.
"I heard you're being trained under Little Aunt! What kind of person is she? I heard she's pretty eccentric. Oh, and you got into Janggyunggak, right? What's it like there?"
She was firing off questions excitedly when—
"Attention!"
A group of men in martial uniforms lined up on the platform of the training hall.
They were the instructors in charge of cadet training.
***
"From this moment on, we will proceed with class assignments. When your name is called, stand in rows before your designated instructor, from Class 1 on the left."
The cadet training of the Soongmu Clan was conducted under the academy supervised by the Elders' Council.
The training program lasted a total of three years.
As Soon as We Turned 12
Both Seohyun and I applied as soon as we reached the minimum age of 12, but most of the cadets were older than me.
Cadets received a broad education, beginning with foundational subjects like mathematics, history, language, and etiquette. They also trained in weapons, magic, mercenary tactics, poison crafting, antidote formulation, and many other disciplines.
Since they were occasionally thrown into real-world scenarios and battles, fewer than half managed to graduate within the standard three-year period.
That's why class assignments were so important.
Each year was divided into five classes. The lowest, Class 5, was essentially a dumping ground for last year's dropouts and repeaters.
Given that group evaluations were a significant part of the first-year program, being placed in a higher-ranked class was a major advantage.
"Lady Lee Seohyun, you are assigned to Class 1. Congratulations."
"Thank you."
Seohyun accepted her assignment with a bright smile and made her way toward Class 1.
"Lee Cheol… young master."
The instructor seemed reluctant to use an honorific for me, forcing out the words with great hesitation.
"Here."
"Right. Thank you."
I took the assignment paper and stepped down from the stage.
As soon as I read it, I let out a dry chuckle.
'I figured this would happen, but I didn't expect them to be this blatant about it.'
Class 5.
They had dumped me into the so-called garbage pit.
I could already guess how this had happened.
'Assignments for direct bloodline cadets are determined based on their performance in the Naming Ceremony, and the evaluations are handled by the academy.'
The academy was a department under the Elders' Council, which in turn was influenced by Lady Baek, the matriarch, and the old men of the council.
Giving an illegitimate child like me an unfair disadvantage wouldn't have been difficult for them.
A Class 5 instructor approached me slowly.
"Class 5 is this way, young master."
"Understood. I'll head there now."
As I started walking, my eyes met Seohyun's.
She looked furious, as if she would step forward and protest if I didn't do something myself.
I shook my head.
'It's fine. I was planning to request Class 5 even if I had been assigned to Class 1.'
I knew Class 1 was where the elite gathered.
The students assigned there were born with extraordinary talent and had the unwavering support of the factions they represented.
'As a result, they'll receive the highest-level education and achieve exceptional results.'
This wasn't discrimination.
The curriculum was simply tailored to the cadets' abilities, and their accomplishments were a natural outcome of that. The only difference was where each person started.
Along the way, they would build connections and, in the distant future, become the political foundations for one another.
This was the reason the privileged maintained power. It was also why those from the bottom struggled to break through the glass ceiling.
'But how many of those elite cadets actually became truly outstanding figures?'
I turned my gaze.
The Class 1 cadets stood in perfectly aligned rows, wearing confident smiles.
I knew their futures.
They would indeed become remarkable figures.
Some would rise to lead branch families or vassal houses. Others would become key decision-makers in the administration or the Elders' Council. A select few would be recognized as core forces of the clan's elite combat units, the Four Guardian Divisions.
But that was it.
That was their limit.
Not one of them had gone beyond that.
Their strength stemmed from something simple—
They were born with superior blood and given superior support.
Of course, they must have trained tirelessly.
They weren't delicate greenhouse flowers; they had been thrown into countless real battles.
But they had never fought to the death for something.
They didn't know how to struggle and take what they wanted.
They thought they did, but what they called struggle was nothing more than the controlled challenges dictated by Soongmu Clan traditions.
'That glass ceiling is solid as ever.'
The Ones Who Break the Glass Ceiling
But, on rare occasions, a mutation appears—someone who smashes through that glass ceiling.
Those who refuse to stop fighting—both against themselves and against the world—ultimately achieve brilliance beyond anyone's expectations.
I am going to meet those people.
***
Lee Taeshin moved his fountain pen across the documents as Lee Taehong entered his office.
Papers were reviewed, approvals were given, and discussions took place.
"I heard the eighth and the youngest have entered the cadet academy this time."
"Yes, it has been a little over a week."
"The eighth must have been assigned to Class 1, naturally. But the youngest… was put in Class 5? How did that happen?"
Without a change in his expression, Taeshin looked at Taehong, who responded with a slight tension in his voice.
"According to the evaluation report submitted by the academy… They claimed that the Trial of Struggle and the Trial of the First Hunt are still being studied, so there wasn't enough evidence to give him a high rating. Additionally, they lowered his score in hunting because the recording device was frequently attached and detached, making the footage of his monster kills incomplete."
Taehong pressed his lips together.
On the surface, it sounded logical.
But to assign Class 5 to a child who had accomplished so much—one whom the family itself had even rewarded—was absurd no matter how one looked at it.
"I see."
Even after hearing this, Taeshin merely flipped to the next document, unaffected.
Feeling frustrated, Taehong removed his reading glasses and let them hang around his neck.
"Lord… No, Elder Brother. I must ask you—why aren't you doing anything about this? No matter where he came from, the youngest is still your child. You know this injustice keeps happening."
"Taehong."
His voice was calm, devoid of reproach or pressure. It wasn't a scolding, just a simple question, as if speaking to a younger sibling.
"Do you think I should personally intervene in matters like this?"
If he stumbled over such an obstacle, that was the extent of his potential.
That was likely how Taeshin saw it.
Taehong bit his lip.
"…I apologize."
"Did he protest against this decision?"
"No. If anything, he accepted it far too quietly. But… how could he truly be fine with this?"
As Taehong answered, a sudden doubt crept into his mind.
How was he feeling?
Would that cunning nephew of his really just accept something like this without resistance?
If anything, he should have caused an uproar over such an unfair decision.
So then… why?
"Who else is in Class 5?"
"Give me a moment."
Taehong tapped on his work tablet, then spoke in a measured tone.
"…Nothing remarkable. Aside from one student from Soongmu Orphanage, the rest are primarily from vassal houses or branch families. There are 20 in total—seven new cadets and 13 repeaters."
The first-year cadets were divided into five classes.
Class 1 was reserved for the most outstanding students, those expected to rise above even the privileged elite.
From a political and networking perspective, being in Class 1 was highly beneficial.
Class 5, however, was an entirely different story.
'Wait… could it be?'
For the first time, Taehong felt as if he had grasped the youngest's intentions.
He was trying to build his own faction.
Class 5 was mostly composed of those with weak backgrounds, little support, or no affiliations at all.
They were outsiders—people who existed outside the established power structure.
"Fascinating, isn't it? He has always defied everyone's expectations."
"…But it won't be easy. Class 5 cadets passed the entrance exam, so they must be talented, but they are still weaker compared to the other classes."
"We'll see."
Leaning back in his chair, Taeshin tapped his fountain pen against the desk.
'Building a faction from those untouched by the privileged elite. A noble idea… but in the end, they are still just those who were left behind.'
A true talent shines even when buried in obscurity.
If they had not risen on their own, perhaps they were never meant to.
How would the youngest manage to find diamonds in a place everyone called a trash heap?
For the first time in a while, Taeshin found himself curious.
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