
by shoemilk
Centuries after collapse, humanity is rebuilding. City-states, spread far and wide, are reaching out, in search of allies. As one such ambassador, renowned Yani hunter-turned-teacher, Basque arrives at a potential trade partner expecting to observe some classes and learn how they train their hunters. Maybe see the sights. An easy six-month assignment. Only, a few days before school starts, his mission changes from "observe" to "teach"—for five years. Given a class filled with legally required, unwanted commoners in a school for nobility, Basque is able to observe:・ An administration willing to stop at nothing to drive him out・ Coworkers so jaded they find hazing the new guy more entertaining than actual teaching・ A retention rate that is a body count A month in, and Basque doesn't know which is deadlier, the creatures who ravaged the world, or the school designed to train people how to hunt them. Mandate one: observe without involvementDirective two: teach them to fightPersonal moral imperative three: every student must survive How is he supposed to balance these contradictory commands at a school where the teaching methods leave him horrified? Welcome to Dyntril Academy where survival is graduation. This is not a linear power fantasy. By revisiting key moments from alternate points of view, Book 1 examines how an insider and an outsider experience a rigid authoritarian society differently, and how even good intentions can end in disaster. What to expect: ・Two main points of view・Found-family elements・A strong romance subplot that drives the plot・School bullying and institutional abuse・Social stratification in a rigid class-based society・Battle school tournament arc・LitRPG elements (no stat sheets)・Grimbright tone: dark world, bright characters Update scheduleMonday, Wednesday, Friday Cover art by Useless Elf! Check out their awesome work!
No streak history
One state-enhanced oracle order, filtered by each list. Observed Royal Road ranks remain separate ground truth.
Rank updated 2 Oct 2026, 06:28 UTC
Entry forecast updated 2 Oct 2026, 06:28 UTC
Ranking model: rs-public-oracle-state-v1
Forecast model: rs-model-entry-v1
Chart history contains only this ranking model's runs; legacy points are not spliced in.
Rising Stars history is uncertain, so no precise projection is shown.
beats 83% of similar stories
beats 28% of similar stories
beats 67% of similar stories
Firing on all cylinders
Traffic and conversion are both strong for a story this size. Readers are finding it and sticking — if Rising Stars is the goal, this is the moment to push.
Benchmarks: 8,060 active Royal Road stories, percentiles within the 150+ chapters band, cohort of 2026-07-02. Conversion is measured as followers gained per 1,000 views over the recent window.