Farmboy becomes King with the Lust System

The academy's main hall buzzed with a chaotic energy that morning, the air thick with the smell of polished wood and the faint tang of mana lingering from early practice sessions.

Students crowded around a massive wooden board mounted on the stone wall, its surface etched with glowing runes that displayed the weekly class rankings.

Excited chatter filled the space, voices overlapping in a mix of gloating, groaning, and gossip. Jae shuffled through the throng, his boots scuffing the cold stone floor, still groggy from a restless night in his new dorm room.

His muscles ached from the spider fights, and his mind was heavy with thoughts of his mom and Clara, but the commotion snapped him alert. He caught snippets of conversation, names, numbers, boasts, and realized what was happening.

The weekly rankings had dropped, and everyone was losing their minds over it.

Jae pushed his way to the board, his heart thumping with a mix of curiosity and dread.

He wasn't expecting much, he was the new guy, the non-noble, the one everyone whispered about like he was a fluke.

Still, seeing his name listed at 200 out of 300 students hit like a punch to the gut. His jaw tightened, his fingers curling into fists as he stared at the glowing runes spelling out his rank. Two hundred.

Barely above the bottom third. After everything, this was where he stood? The number burned into his eyes, a cold reminder of how far he still had to climb.

A familiar sneer cut through the noise. "Well, look at that. Two hundred? Pathetic, peasant." Sun's voice was sharp, dripping with smug satisfaction as he leaned against a nearby pillar, his dark eyes glinting with malice.

A few of his cronies snickered, their whispers slicing through Jae like knives. "Thought he was some hotshot mage," one muttered.

"Guess it was all dumb luck." Another chimed in, "Yeah, no way a commoner's that good. Just a fluke."

Their words stung, each one a jab at the confidence Jae had been scraping together since arriving at the academy. He wanted to snap back, to tell them he'd crush them all eventually, but he bit his tongue, his chest tight with frustration.

He trudged back to his seat, the classroom's stuffy air doing nothing to cool the heat rising in his face.

Slumping into the wooden chair, he felt the weight of his rank settle over him like a heavy cloak.

Two hundred. He was still so damn weak compared to these nobles, with their fancy training and cushy lives.

The Lust System had given him a nice boost, Strength, Speed, skills like Phantom Step and Gravity Touch, but it wasn't enough. Not yet.

He needed to push harder, level up faster. He hadn't exactly had time to chase girls between cave missions and dodging Sun's hate.

Maybe it was time to change that. Find a girl, rack up some points, get stronger. Whatever it took to climb that board and shut these snobs up.

Byun plopped into the seat beside him, his chair creaking under his muscular frame. "Yo, scrawny, why's your face all long?" he asked, his voice light but sharp, that trademark smirk curling his lips.

Jae glanced at him, the noble's golden hair a messy halo in the torchlit room. "I'm ranked two hundred," Jae admitted, his voice low, almost bitter. "Pretty shitty, huh?"

Byun's eyes widened, genuine surprise flashing across his face. "Two hundred? No way. I had you pegged for top ten, easy." His tone was half-joking, but there was an edge of sincerity that made Jae's chest loosen a bit.

Byun leaned back, crossing his arms. "What's your rank, then?" Jae asked, already suspecting the answer.

Byun's smirk widened, all cocky charm. "Number one, obviously," he said, like it was no big deal. Jae's eyebrows shot up, a mix of respect and envy hitting him.

So Byun really was the strongest in the class, not just talk. Jae leaned forward, his voice firm. "Just so you know, I'm coming for that top spot someday."

Byun laughed, a loud, carefree sound that turned heads. "Oh, I'm looking forward to that fight, scrawny," he said, his eyes glinting with excitement, like he genuinely wanted Jae to challenge him.

The next class was a drill, and Ms. Lira strode in, her heels clicking sharply on the stone floor. "Alright, listen up," she said, her voice cutting through the chatter. "We're splitting into groups of four for a capture-the-flag exercise. Your goal: grab the opposing team's flag before they get yours. Use your mana shields, your skills, everything you've got."

The class buzzed with anticipation, students sizing each other up. Byun tried to maneuver his way into Jae's group, flashing that charming grin at Ms. Lira, but she wasn't having it, assigning him elsewhere with a stern look.

Jae ended up with Jeon, a lanky guy who looked like he'd rather be napping than fighting, Amira, a girl whose scowl screamed she was pissed to be stuck with the "commoner," and Elise, another quiet one who seemed as checked-out as Jeon.

Great. A team of misfits. Jae's stomach sank as he eyed their opponents: three massive boys, all muscle and bravado, and a girl with a sharp, determined face that set off every alarm in Jae's head.

She wasn't just here to fight, she was the brains, the one calling the shots. Her eyes locked on his, cold and calculating, and Jae knew this wasn't going to be easy.