Chapter 3: Kael Ashford

"Argh! My head hurts. What happened?" I pinched my forehead as a terrible headache throbbing behind my eyes. I remembered falling asleep in my room after binge-watching some anime, but I didn't think it would lead to this kind of pain. I slowly opened my eyes despite the ache, and what I saw gave me an even bigger shock than the headache. "Huh? Where am I?" It was definitely not my room. The bed was too firm, the ceiling too high, the scent of old wood and lavender unfamiliar—nothing like my room. I clearly remembered that I'd gone to sleep in my own bed, and the room's design was far too unique to belong to any of my friends. "Just where am I?" For a few seconds, I just lay there, staring blankly. I wanted to figure out where the hell I was, but first, I had to deal with this splitting headache. I looked around from the bed and saw the room was sparsely furnished, the most noticeable items being a neatly folded uniform and a few books. There was also a study table and chair. "Looks like a school dorm!" That was the most logical conclusion based on what I saw. After half an hour of lying on the bed, the pain had dulled enough to be tolerable. I scrambled to my feet. "Something feels different." Whether it was my sight, strength, or general awareness, my body felt... strange. I looked at my hands and legs. "What the hell?" My hands were full of calluses, and my legs were muscled in a way I'd never seen before. Plus, I seemed to have grown at least half a meter taller or something. I quickly ran over to the mirror. The face staring back at me wasn't the one I remembered. My hair was darker, my frame leaner. Pale skin, taller build. Eyes like dull silver under the morning light. "Who the hell...?" I pinched my cheeks to see if I was dreaming—but no, it hurt. The reflection was a stranger. It took me a few more minutes to gather my thoughts. "Is this... transmigration?" I'd read too many novels not to recognize what had happened. I just never thought it would happen to me. And not like this. (Shouldn't I be hit by a truck or something?) Apparently, I transmigrated while sleeping. I looked outside. The world was different, yet it still resembled modern Earth. "Looking around, I saw plenty of students wearing the same uniform as mine, which only confirmed that this really was a student dormitory." At least I wasn't in some ancient civilization with no technology. And it didn't seem to be a cultivation world either. Otherwise, I'd probably see someone flying around with a sword. From what little I'd seen, I had no idea what kind of world I'd ended up in. Maybe it was the same world, just someone else's body. "First of all, let's find out more about myself." Aside from some casual clothes, all I had was a uniform and a watch. Fortunately, the school uniform had a name tag, which helped me figure out my new identity. Kael Ashford! "Is this my name?" Weird name, but nothing particularly special about it. Then I looked at the watch, which looked like an advanced piece of tech. I tapped the screen, and instead of just showing the time, it projected a full display—a screen hovering in mid-air. "WOW!" It looked like hologram technology which wasn't possible on Earth, at least not from a watch. I tapped again, and the screen lit up with a soft beep—clearer and brighter than any smartwatch I'd ever seen. The sleek interface pulsed faintly before expanding into a holographic projection above my wrist. **************************** [Arcadia Academy – ID Access Terminal] Tap to Open Student Identification **************************** I blinked. "Arcadia... Academy?" The name sparked something in my memory—too familiar to ignore. (Didn't I read a novel with such a name?) I remembered one of the web novels I read featured characters who attended Arcadia Academy before setting off on a world-saving journey. The one I stayed up all winter break reading. "What was the novel's name again..." I thought for a second before it clicked. "Savior's Dawn!" A decently popular web novel set in a magical world plagued by demons, with a cast of brilliant heroes rising to confront the darkness. Still, I wasn't sure if I'd transmigrated into that exact novel—or even if it was the same world, I might be in the different time period as the novel took place. But one thing was clear: this smartwatch was not something from Earth. I was definitely in a different world. Still, it was fortunate that it held more info about me. I tapped again to open the student ID. The screen changed, revealing a digital ID card, complete with a profile image that—yep—definitely wasn't my old face. **************************** [STUDENT PROFILE] Name: Kael Ashford Age: 17 Affiliation: Arcadia Academy Profession: Swordsman Academic Rank: 134th Dormitory: North Tower – Room 304 Class: First-Year **************************** I stared at the card, mind racing. "With that picture, there's no denying it. I'm Kael Ashford—apparently a new student at Arcadia Academy" That much was confirmed by the student profile. "Rank: 134th? Doesn't sound like a great student..." Being ranked so low wasn't exactly encouraging. I didn't even know how many students were in the academy, but 134th didn't sound very impressive. Not that I could complain—I wasn't exactly a top student back in my old life either. "Profession: Swordsman, huh?" Yup. Definitely a fantasy world. Though, with this level of tech—including holograms—it was far from primitive. "Is this really Savior's Dawn?" S~eaʀᴄh the nôᴠel Fire.nёt website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Curious but I had no way to confirm it. Hoping to learn more, I tapped another icon labeled 'Schedule' to see what else I could find out from the watch. It showed today's date along with a bright red notification: **************************** ENTRANCE CEREMONY – 9:00 AM Location: Auditoriums **************************** I glanced at the current time. 10:28 AM. My eyes twitched. "Shit! Today is the Entrance Ceremony!" I scrambled into the uniform. The fabric felt like it had been tailored to my new body. I slapped the watch back on my wrist. It chirped again, projecting a glowing map of the campus, my position blinking in real time. I was at the far end of the North Tower. The Auditoriums? All the way on the other side. "This is so not how I imagined my first day after transmigration." I didn't even have enough time to process what was happening, and I already had to make a run for school. I didn't particularly care about entrance ceremonies but I knew I couldn't afford to be absent the first day of the school. If I was going to live as Kael Ashford, I had to act the part. First, I needed to learn more about this world. And right now? That meant getting to the auditorium—fast.