What was better than witnessing the looks of disbelief and shock on the faces of people who looked down on you and showed you all kinds of negative stuff, from disgusted looks to hurtful comments. Pinky this, Pinky that. Some most likely didn’t know he had a name.

Silas sat with Chloe to his side with a smug expression that literally screamed, "Despair, cos I’m real!"

They were currently in the academy’s large assembly hall to listen to the details of the Awakening Outing, which they had heard a hundred times already. The academy didn’t just call the selected participants to listen, but all of them, whether awakened or not, whether you’d already experienced the outing or not, so they knew what the principal would be saying from the heart. But today’s session was bound to be different because a certain someone didn’t plan on lying low.

The list of participants had already been released on the academy’s platform, but they would be mentioned again for clarification. The clarification they needed. The confirmation that Silas, aka Pinky, was actually an S-Rank awakened. The truth was really hard to accept, but that was reality, and Silas was enjoying it to the fullest.

Speaking of enjoyment, his mind drifted back to the night before. Chloe had tapped out. She still wasn’t prepared to take the final step, even though she had accepted Silas for who he is and who he is becoming. Though she stayed long enough to witness how he pounded Anna to heaven and back. She wasn’t idle in anyway too. This wasn’t some NTR shit. Besides, the other two wouldn’t allow her to stay idle and watch them destroy each other. If it was the dick that she couldn’t take in her tight and sealed pussy, then she could take it in other places, or take other things in other places. They finished their sweet farewell session at 3 AM, and went to sleep after bathing, where another session, just kisses, licking, and sucking, took place.

Chloe would occasionally shake her head, causing Silas to chuckle. He knew exactly what she was going through, as he was the same. After all, he was just a little bit more experienced than her in sex matters if you excluded his advantages of a system and the various traits and skills it came with.

Well, anyway, the principal, Theodore, got on stage and started talking lengthily about what the Awakening Outing entailed and what they were expected to do and not to do. It was the same old chant as always. After that, he looked towards Silas, who nodded and grinned, as if saying, "Go for it, Champ!"

Principal Theodore could only sigh in defeat, clear his throat, and move on to the next agenda.

"Finally, I would like all of us to congratulate one of our students. I am sure most of you have already gotten a hint as to who the person is. We almost lost him, honestly. But, thankfully, the Evaluation Team came to our rescue, and we managed to secure him for the good of the academy, City A, and New Liberty as a whole. This person is none other than Mr. Silas Ashard, the newly awakened S-Rank of Valecrest Collegiate Grounds, City A, and New Liberty."

There was a certain oxymoronic statement, "Loud Silence." That was exactly what was going on. After the headmaster’s short yet long announcement of Silas’s new identity, no one clapped. Well, someone tried to, but stopped out of shyness. The shock was too powerful that disbelief would be an understatement to what they were feeling. Was the apocalypse finally upon them? Was this a dream? Just how could this happen?!

Most were already expecting Silas to be expelled, and after not seeing him in class or mostly on campus in the past few days, they thought the expulsion had happened. That was what they expected to hear, despite seeing his name in the list of awakened participants for the outing.

"I know most of you are shocked. We all are, but this calls for a celebration, rather than silence. Congratulations once again to Mr. Silas Ashard. We are proud of you," Theodore ended his talk, looking like a man who had just seen his wife being dominated by a fat dude.

Proud of you? Celebration? That was the last thing running in his mind. He was exhausted mentally, physically, spiritually, conceptually, psychologically, physiologically, and every other "cally" available in existence. But it was no one’s fault. Silas was the last person they thought would awaken, and that, too, as an S-Rank, but that was the reality now.

This was the perfect face-slapping moment.

The silence lingered for several long seconds.

Then whispers erupted throughout the assembly hall.

"What?"

"An S-Rank?"

"Silas?"

"Pinky?"

"No way..."

The reactions came from every corner of the hall. Many of them had seen the announcement on the academy platform, yet hearing it officially confirmed by the principal felt entirely different. It made the reality unavoidable. Silas Ashard was an S-Rank. The same Silas they had mocked and ignored.

Meanwhile, Silas sat comfortably in his seat, with a smile on his face, enough to make anyone looking at him feel uncomfortable. Beside him, Chloe lowered her head slightly, trying to avoid the countless gazes directed their way. It didn’t help. Everyone kept staring.

Theodore quickly moved on before the situation became any more awkward. The selected participants were announced one after another. Thirty unawakened students, ten awakened students, and four instructors. Names flashed across the large screen behind the stage.

After several final instructions, the gathering was dismissed. A few hours later, two academy buses rolled out of Valecrest’s front gates. The atmosphere inside was considerably different from previous outings. Normally, the awakened students would chat loudly, boast about previous outings, or discuss possible awakenings. Today? Every few minutes, someone would glance toward a certain seat. Silas, the newly confirmed S-Rank, and the academy’s newest monster. Technically, he was a monster earlier. Nothing much had changed.

The boy sat near a window, appearing completely uninterested in the attention. Chloe occupied the seat beside him. Occasionally, they exchanged a few words. The sight alone caused several students to become jealous. Some of Chloe’s admirers looked particularly depressed.

The journey lasted nearly two hours. As the city gradually disappeared behind them, the scenery changed. The roads became wider, while security became tighter. Military checkpoints appeared more frequently, and high walls surrounded certain sections of land. Armed patrols could be seen moving around.

This wasn’t unusual. They were approaching Rift Territory. Eventually, the buses slowed to a stop, and the students immediately pressed themselves against the windows. They saw it, and many forgot how to breathe.

A massive yellow tear hung in reality itself. A Yellow Rift.