Klaeton Whitley moved like a shadow between the trees, twin daggers flashing in the pale sunlight. His breaths came slow and controlled, ears tuned to the forest's unnatural silence. The animals here weren't normal anymore—not since they'd awakened mana.Neither was he.
Once, Klaeton had been a name spoken with awe. A prodigy of the Whitley family. A master of martial arts by age eight, and by ten, a gifted wielder of light magic. Back then, his blades shone with divine radiance, cutting through monsters with ease.
Now, at sixteen, they were just steel.
He paused behind a fallen tree, eyes narrowing on a horned wolf prowling through the clearing. Its fur shimmered faintly with mana. Even the animals had awakened here — this cursed place had changed everything.
He took a deep breath, tensing.
Then he struck.
A blur of motion. A short, vicious skirmish. The beast collapsed at his feet, a final gurgle escaping its throat. Klaeton wiped his blade clean on the grass and slung the body over his shoulder.
"Still alive," he muttered, more to himself than the corpse.
Two Years Ago
Klaeton stood proudly beside his cousin, Garrick Vire, heir to the Vire family, and his father, Dorian Whitley. They had just returned from a dungeon deep within the island — one no other family dared enter. The three had faced a boss together and emerged victorious.
But their greatest prize wasn't the loot. It was the artifact they recovered: a relic capable of measuring mana levels and class alignment.
The elders wasted no time.
Each of the island's four families—Whitley, Vire, Thorne, and Elden—lined up for testing. The artifact pulsed with light as it revealed not only the amount of mana within each person, but also their magical affinity and combat role.
The results were displayed for all to see:
Klaeton Whitley – Fighter
Dorian Whitley – Fighter
Lucian Whitley (Klaeton's grandfather and patriarch) – Tank
Garrick Vire – Fighter
Selene Whitley (Klaeton's mother) – Tank
Lillian Whitley (Klaeton's sister) – Assassin
Caspian Thorne – Mage
Naomi Vire – Mage
Isla Thorne – Fighter
Renna Vire – Assassin
Marion Whitley – Healer
Elias Elden – Fighter
Vera Thorne – Mage
Leif Elden – Fighter
Magnus Vire – Retired Tank
Amira Elden – Mage
Though Klaeton topped the list, the mana levels among them were remarkably close. To outsiders, it would seem suspicious — how could four separate families awaken powers at the same time, with nearly equal strength?
But the truth was stranger still: each family awakened the same elemental attribute across all members.
The Whitleys were blessed with light
The Vires wielded fire
The Thornes controlled ice
The Eldens mastered wind
Mages cast devastating spells from range. Fighters, tanks, and assassins channeled their elemental mana into their bodies and weapons, enhancing every blow. Luminara became a land of specialists—balanced, unified, and formidable.
While Klaeton and his people evolved in secret, the outside world was only just beginning to unravel.
The Catalyst
Two years after Luminara awakened, the rest of humanity experienced a global event known only as the Catalyst.
Mana flooded the world. Gates tore open. Monsters spilled out. And humanity changed.
Chaos reigned.
Governments scrambled to maintain control. Cities fell. Guilds formed. Hunters awakened, each developing unique combat styles and powers. They were sorted into five classes:
Fighters – Physical enhancements: speed, strength, endurance
Mages – Spellcasters with elemental attributes (fire, wind, ice, earth)
Healers – Support specialists capable of restoring injuries and status
Assassins – Stealth-focused killers with high critical output
Buffers – Rare supporters who empowered their teammates
Unlike Luminara, the outside world's fighters didn't awaken elemental attributes. Their magic was internal—raw physical boosts. The rest of the world was scattered and untrained.
Luminara was different.
Its people trained together. The families were competitive, but united. They cleared gates faster, developed strategies quicker, and mastered combat as a culture. They were already strong when the world was still panicking.
But even on their island... there was one place they feared.
Southern Desolation
Beyond the southern mountains, bordered by cliffs and violent seas, lay the forbidden zone known as the Southern Desolation.
Even before mana, none who entered it returned.
After the Catalyst, it only grew worse.
The gates that opened in that region weren't just dangerous — they were world-ending. It was said the monsters inside them could flatten cities. Even more terrifying, the beasts of the Desolation had begun awakening mana themselves.
No other region on the planet saw mana-infused animals.Only here.
No one entered.
No one... except Klaeton Whitley.
Banished at the age of fourteen, exiled for a single mistake that cost him everything.
Now, he survives alone in the Desolation, stripped of the divine light that once defined him… yet still clinging to life.
Something darker waits beneath the surface.
And Klaeton Whitley is not done fighting.