Echoes of the Abyssal Blade: Path to Free Will - Chapter 29: Cruel World

In an alternate timeline of Warhammer 30k, the Emperor of Mankind discovers the Independence Cluster, a group of technologically advanced worlds that have preserved Dark Age of Technology knowledge. Here, He encounters His first found Primarch, Franklin Valorian, known as the Symbol of Liberty.The charismatic and humorous Valorian, standing 15 feet tall, meets the Emperor with a mix of curiosity and irreverence. Unlike others, Valorian sees the Emperor as a powerful but regular man with a greater purpose, akin to a superhero.

The whole world is subjected to a highly dangerous standardised exam called the Global University Entrance Examination. Answering questions by putting their lives at stake, they would live if they passed the test. Every month the exam will undergo reformation while, occasionally, it is random.

- Description from Novelupdates

Damian, a Centurion of the Punishment Unit of the Baroque Kingdom. “Damn it.” Just once. If I were given just one more chance… ‘I would have truly conquered the battlefield with these guys.’ At the age of 30, he closed his eyes on a nameless battlefield. But when he opened them, he found himself back 17 years in the past. And this time, he had a perfectly functioning mana core that could wield magic. ‘This time.’ I will rise higher than anyone else. I won’t be swept away by the turbulent times. ‘I will conquer.’ Damian, who has returned to the past, wields his spear toward the world.

Ludwig Heart, the heir to a vast fortune and a life of luxury, craves only one thing: freedom from his gilded cage. But when a plane crash catapults him into a world of magic and danger, he awakens not as the hero he dreamed of, but as a victim in a twisted ritual. Trapped between the ambitions of dark necromancers and the wrath of vengeful gods, Ludwig must navigate a deadly new reality where his life is no longer his own. Stripped of privilege and resurrected as an undead pawn, Ludwig’s fight for survival will determine whether he reclaims his destiny—or becomes a mere footnote in a world of shadows and deceit.