The Last Paragon in the Apocalypse

Lightning streaked across the battlefield like a meteor shower, lighting up the sky in brilliant flashes. The monster that had dared to approach barely made it within 3km of the young woman holding the lightning-streaked bow firing lighting shot after shot.

Hanna stood her ground, calmly firing one lightning arrow after another. She didn't bother with any fancy techniques or flashy moves. It was as if she didn't have any special skills at all, aside from morphing her lightning into arrows. And in truth, she didn't. She was one of the many who had awakened without any active skills.

Her only strength was her lightning element, and that alone made her stand out despite her lack of active skills. It gave her a raw, unshakable power that put her a step above the average awakened. She had no fancy combat moves or special abilities. All she could do was shoot her bow, transforming her lightning into deadly arrows.

But the speed at which she was killing was unlike anything you'd expect from someone with such a basic and average Stats. Everybody knew lightning element is one of the most powerful elements out, so it wasn't a coincidence she was that lethal with the bow.

During the city selection, Hanna had nearly washed out. Had it not been for a stroke of luck, she wouldn't have even made it into the top 200. That near-failure broke her for days, leaving her devastated.

But instead of giving up, she pushed herself harder. She began training relentlessly. Though she lacked active skills, she knew that honing her lightning abilities alone would be enough for now—until she could afford to buy a skill, which for some reason, cost an absurd amount.

They always said that once you reach the Saint-level, you'll automatically gain a passive skill and an active skill. Some lucky individuals even received a full technique set. Hanna had her sights set on that. It was her goal. But she also knew the path to becoming a Saint wasn't going to be easy.

That's why she was exploiting a loophole in the trial, one the announcement lady had hinted at. She planned to use it to her advantage.

The trial is called Endless for a reason. In most trials, you had to clear the first wave of monsters before the next one came. But this one was different. There were no waves. The monsters appeared at random, all mixed together.

Right now, Tier 4 monsters were roaming the battlefield, but Tier 6 could show up at any moment, with no warning. It was chaotic—but in a strange way, Hanna found it exhilarating.

She knew some of the geniuses with slower kill rates would be overwhelmed when the higher-tier monsters arrived. They'd be crushed under the sheer weight of numbers. But not her. She had figured out the key to survival—kill fast, rack up points before things got out of control.

And so far, her plan was working.

With her lightning arrows firing at an insane speed, Hanna was eliminating monsters quicker than anyone else. Her ability to stay ahead of the chaos made all the difference. While others were still struggling with the Tier 4 creatures, she was already thinking about the higher ones that would inevitably come.

She wasn't just here to survive. She was here to win—and stay beside her little brother, Klaus, who had accepted her into his family. These past days with Klaus and his mother had been the best of her life. She wasn't going to lose her place by Klaus's side anytime soon. After all, she is still Klaus's personal assistant.

Unbeknownst to Hanna, the moment Klaus woke up from his 72-day coma and welcomed her as his sister, her destiny changed in ways none of them could have imagined. And now, during the trial, part of that change was beginning to show.

Hanna's grip on her bow remained as firm as ever, but something was shifting within her. At first, she relied purely on raw strength to make her lightning arrows fly with devastating power. But now, there was something else happening, something deeper. It showed in her eyes.

Her eyes flickered with lightning, the same energy that now danced around her. As she loosed arrow after arrow, it was as though she was transforming. Even though this was just a virtual world, her consciousness was being affected by something greater.

She was becoming more lethal, more precise. Her lightning arrows began dealing far more damage than before. When Tier 5 monsters appeared, they stood no chance. They crumbled under the weight of her power.

The battlefield soon filled with creatures ranging from Tier 4 to Tier 6, but none of them managed to cross the 2km line she had set. It was like an invisible barrier of destruction; anything that dared to approach was struck down before even getting close.

Hanna wasn't just fighting anymore—she was evolving. Her lightning grew fiercer, her attacks sharper, and even in this digital realm, she felt the change within her soul. Something had awakened, and it was making her stronger than she ever imagined.

Yet through it all, Hanna's thoughts remained steady. All she could do was kill—and keep killing.

===============

In the observation room overseeing the trial, 12,000 small screens displayed the participants' progress. Soon, some of the screens began to turn red, signaling that contenders were washing out. The speed of their failures was staggering, and in no time, the number of active screens began to dwindle.

"Who is that?" a lady suddenly asked, pointing at one screen showing Hanna's trial. The display showed her firing lightning arrow after lightning arrow with deadly precision.

"Is she not using any skills?" a man commented, eyes fixed on the way Hanna's lightning arrows materialized seamlessly in her bow.

"Indeed," the announcement lady confirmed, clearly impressed. "She's just using her lightning as arrows. No skills involved."

"But how is that possible? You can't maintain that speed and power without a skill or technique," another person chimed in, making everyone else glance curiously at Hanna's screen.

"That's because this young lady has a lightning elemental mark," a calm voice spoke from the back. The War Goddess, who had been silently observing, now looked closely at Klaus's big sister, a small smile tugging at her lips. "It's faint, but it's there. I doubt she even realizes it yet."

"What? That... that shouldn't be possible," the announcement lady stammered. "Only someone who has formed a Sage Core can start sensing an elemental mark, talk less of someone who is just a master"

"Well," the War Goddess said, "she's a genius, then. The mark is there, and that's why she's wielding her lightning with such mastery."

The officials in the room exchanged shocked glances. They knew exactly what an elemental mark was—and what it meant. It's a rare, powerful link that binds an individual closer to the element they awaken.

Those with that mark often seen as a tattoo on their forehead hold great control over the said element with unparalleled mastery. So anyone with the mark or promised to have the mark is branded as a genius among geniuses.

The day she awakens the mark is the day she will truly command the storm and the heavens with lightning grace.

"She's like a Lightning goddess with a bow," a younger woman whispered, her eyes sparkling with admiration as she watched Hanna's lethal efficiency.

Hanna, unaware of the conversations happening in the observation room, continued firing her lightning arrows, each shot more powerful than the last.

However, on one side inside the Oracle, Klaus is standing at one spot and using his hands like a choir coordinator to direct the Void Piercing Needle to kill monsters like they are dummies.

[A/N: Full disclosure, aside from the Main Character, Hanna is my second favorite character. I am sure y'all will love her once you read about her pasts]