Chapter 2: The Art of the Mog

I hadn't slept. It’s hard to get any shut-eye when a transcendental entity is doing laps around your ceiling on invisible stairs while screaming about "negative rizz" and "the grindset."

"Step! Step! Tung! Step!" Subaru yelled, his frying pan hitting the air with a metallic ring that defied the laws of acoustics. "You’re slouching, Bodrei! Your jawline is soft! How do you expect to mog the dean if you can’t even maintain a perfect mewing streak while sleep-deprived?"

I was currently standing in the middle of my room, holding two massive crates of pure mana-gold. My legs were shaking. According to Subaru, the only way to build "Merchant Aura" was to carry my wealth physically until my body adapted to the weight of my own greed.

"Master, I have 1,000 lives of sword mastery," I wheezed, my muscles screaming. "I could kill a dragon with a toothpick. Why am I holding boxes of coins?"

Subaru stopped mid-air. He landed on an invisible step and looked down at me with those wide, unblinking eyes. "The sword is for the weak, Bodrei. A true SSS-Rank doesn't fight; they simply exist, and the world loses. You aren't training your muscles. You're training your Presence."

[Aura Training Progress: 84%]

[New Skill Unlocked: Passive Mogging (Level 1)]

Effect: Weak-willed individuals within a 5-meter radius will feel an inexplicable urge to apologize for being in your way.

The sun began to peek over the horizon, signaling the start of the entrance exams. I dropped the crates—the floorboards groaned—and headed for the vanity. I didn't reach for my old leather armor. Instead, I pulled out a suit made of Enchanted Myril-Silk and pinned a brooch made from a compressed Mana Core to my lapel.

"If we’re going to the Academy," I muttered, looking at my reflection, "we’re going in style."

The Gates of Tung Tung Sahur

The Academy wasn't just a school; it was a fortress built into the side of a floating mountain. Thousands of hopefuls stood at the base of the Great Ascent—the 10,000 steps leading to the main gates.

Carriages embossed with royal crests lined the path, but I arrived in a gold-plated palanquin carried by four high-level Golem mercenaries. As I stepped out, the air around me shimmered.

"Look at that clown," a voice sneered.

I turned to see a group of young nobles. In the center was a tall, blonde boy leaning on a claymore that glowed with a faint blue light. Prince Kaelen. In my 432nd life, he was a hero. In this one, he just looked like a target.

"The son of a merchant at the Academy?" Kaelen laughed, walking toward me. "Money can buy you a seat at a table, Bodrei, but it can't buy you talent. You don't have the aura of a warrior. You smell like... paperwork."

Subaru appeared behind Kaelen, invisible to everyone but me. He was vibrating with excitement, his knife twitching. "Bodrei," he whispered in my ear. "He’s baiting you. He’s trying to cap. Show him the stairs."

I didn't draw a weapon. I didn't even use mana. I simply adjusted my tie, tilted my head slightly, and activated Passive Mogging.

The atmosphere shifted. The air around me grew heavy, cold, and impossibly dense. It wasn't the heat of a fire mage or the pressure of a swordsman—it was the suffocating weight of 1,000 lives of experience combined with the sheer, arrogant confidence of a billionaire.

Kaelen’s smirk vanished. He took a half-step back, his hand trembling on his sword hilt. He felt it—the sensation that he wasn't looking at a merchant’s son, but at a monster disguised in silk.

"You're right, Kaelen," I said, my voice calm and echoing with a hint of Subaru’s static. "Money can't buy talent. But it can buy the mountain you're standing on. Now, get out of my way. You're blocking the view."

I walked past him. He didn't move. He couldn't.

[Aura Points Gained: +500]

[Status: Social Dominance Established]

[Master Subaru is pleased. Current Brainrot Level: Stable.]

At the top of the Great Ascent, a massive gong sounded. A stern-faced proctor stood before the massive iron doors.

"Welcome to the Entrance Exam," the proctor shouted. "The rules are simple. Reach the top of the inner sanctum. But be warned: the stairs are alive. Only those with the strongest will—and the highest rank—will survive the climb."

Subaru cackled, banging his pot in a rhythmic Tung-Tung-Tung that matched the beating of my heart.

"Stairs?" I whispered, a dark grin spreading across my face. "He really said stairs, Master."

"Light work, Bodrei," Subaru hissed, already beginning to climb the air. "Let's show them how we farm."

[Objective: Complete the 'Stairway to Heaven' Exam]

[Reward: Level 10 and SSS-Rank Recognition]