There was a strange kind of silence that followed public humiliation.
It wasn’t the silence of an empty room or a quiet street in the middle of the night.
It was the silence that existed between people’s words—the pause before a conversation suddenly stopped when you walked into a room.
Aiden learned that silence before noon.
By the time the Awakening Ceremony ended, the internet had already done what it did best.
It had turned his life into entertainment.
#ClasslessHunter was trending across every major platform.
“The first Classless Awakening in recorded history!” “Was the Awakening Crystal defective?” “Imagine waiting eighteen years just to unlock unemployment.” That one had nearly eighty thousand likes.
“Well,” Aiden muttered, staring at his phone as he walked through the city, “at least they’re being creative.” He should have stopped reading the comments fifteen minutes ago.
He knew that.
Yet some deeply self-destructive part of him continued scrolling.
«Maybe he’s secretly an SS-Rank?» «Or maybe he’s just unlucky.» «I heard even farmers have Classes.» «Bro lost to agriculture.» He finally shoved the phone into his pocket.
Nope.
That was enough internet for one day.
New Haven looked exactly the same as it had yesterday.
Cars still moved through the streets.
Children still laughed.
Stores still opened their doors.
Somewhere in the distance, a Guild advertisement played across a holographic display.
The world hadn’t ended.
It was strange.
For eighteen years, he’d unconsciously believed today would change everything.
In a way, it had.
Just not in the direction he’d hoped.
His stomach chose that moment to remind him he hadn’t eaten since breakfast.
“At least one thing in my life still works.” “That’s debatable.” Aiden stopped walking.
Elena Frost stood beside a coffee stand, holding two paper cups.
“Shouldn’t you be celebrating your awakening?” He raised an eyebrow.
“You make it sound like I became an S-Rank.” “You got B-Rank Spirit Knight.” “A respectable B-Rank Spirit Knight.” “Still impressive.” She handed him one of the cups.
“It’s coffee.” “I can’t afford this.” “It’s not a loan.” “Good.
Because I have no intention of paying you back.” To his surprise, she laughed.
“You know, most people would be crying right now.” “I’m considering it.” “What’s stopping you?” He thought about it for a moment.
“I’ve had worse days.” That wasn’t entirely true.
This was probably somewhere in his top ten.
But admitting that felt too much like surrender.
They sat in silence for several minutes as people passed by.
Most didn’t recognize him.
The ones that did weren’t subtle about it.
“That’s him.” “The classless guy?” “I thought he’d be taller.” Aiden frowned.
“What does height have to do with anything?” Elena hid a smile behind her coffee cup.
Eventually, she stood.
“My family is expecting me.” “Congratulations, by the way.” “Thanks.” She hesitated.
“For what it’s worth, I don’t think this is the end of your story.” “That’s because you’re an optimist.” “No.” She smiled.
“That’s because Awakening Crystals don’t explode for ordinary people.” Before he could respond, she disappeared into the crowd.
He remained seated for another ten minutes.
Awakening Crystals don’t explode for ordinary people.
That was true.
In fact, according to every history book he’d ever read, Awakening Crystals didn’t explode at all.
By the time he reached Saint Aurora Orphanage, the children were waiting outside.
Apparently, news traveled faster than he did.
“Aiden!” Emma was the first to reach him.
“Did you really break the Awakening Crystal?” “That seems to be the popular theory.” “THAT’S SO COOL!” He blinked.
“Wait.
What?” “You broke a magical artifact in front of fifty thousand people!” “I’m not sure that’s something to be proud of.” “It absolutely is.” The other children quickly joined in.
“I heard you fought a dragon!” “Who told you that?” “Tommy.” “Tommy is a terrible source of information.” “I heard the Guild Masters were crying!” “Again, Tommy.” Mrs.
Palmer watched the chaos from the doorway with an amused expression.
“You’ve become quite famous.” “I preferred being anonymous.” “Nonsense.
Fame builds character.” “I think poverty already did that.” She laughed and ushered him inside.
Lunch was somehow both comforting and awkward.
No one mentioned the obvious.
Not at first.
Eventually, Mrs.
Palmer placed a hand over his.
“How are you really doing?” There it was.
The question everyone wanted to ask.
He considered lying.
“I’m…
not sure.” It was the truth.
He wasn’t devastated.
Not entirely.
Mostly, he felt hollow.
As though he’d spent his entire life preparing for a journey only to discover he was standing at a dead end.
“I kept thinking there’d be a moment,” he admitted quietly.
“What kind of moment?” “You know.
The one where everything suddenly makes sense.” Mrs.
Palmer smiled sadly.
“Life rarely gives us those.” He looked down at his plate.
“Everyone else got something.” “And?” “And I didn’t.” The room fell silent.
Finally, Mrs.
Palmer spoke.
“When I was twenty-three, I wanted to become a Hunter.” That caught him off guard.
“You did?” “Oh yes.
I thought I’d travel the world, slay monsters, and become incredibly wealthy.” “What happened?” “I became a mother to forty-three children instead.” He couldn’t help but smile.
“My point, dear, is that life has a habit of ignoring our plans.” “That doesn’t sound particularly encouraging.” “It’s not supposed to be.” Her expression softened.
“You’re eighteen.
Your story isn’t over because one crystal said so.” Later that evening, Aiden found himself helping Emma with her homework.
She stared at him suspiciously.
“Are you sad?” “No.” “You’re lying.” “I am.” She nodded.
“That’s okay.” “It is?” “Adults are weird when they’re sad.” He wasn’t sure how to respond to that.
After a moment, she held out a piece of paper.
“I drew you.” He accepted it carefully.
It depicted him wearing black armor with enormous wings while standing on top of what appeared to be an exploding mountain.
“Why am I on fire?” “Because heroes are always on fire.” “That doesn’t sound safe.” “You’ll figure it out.” Children really did live in a different world.
By the time he left the orphanage, the sun had begun to set.
He decided to walk home.
New Haven was beautiful at night.
The city lights reflected against the wet pavement while Gates stationed along the outer walls glowed faintly in the distance.
Humanity had spent forty years adapting.
Forty years building homes beneath the shadow of monsters.
Perhaps there was something admirable about that.
His phone buzzed.
UNKNOWN NUMBER.
“Hello?” “Mr.
Cross?” “That’s me.” “This is New Haven Hunter Association.” He stopped walking.
“Oh.” “We would like to invite you to our headquarters tomorrow morning.” “Why?” “I’m afraid I cannot disclose that information over the phone.” That wasn’t concerning at all.
“Is this because I exploded government property?” There was a pause.
“…Please arrive at nine o’clock.” The call ended.
“Well.” That couldn’t possibly mean anything good.
He had just started walking again when every light on the street suddenly flickered.
Once.
Twice.
Then darkness.
The city fell silent.
People emerged from nearby stores in confusion.
Power outages weren’t uncommon.
This felt different.
Aiden frowned.
Something was wrong.
He couldn’t explain how he knew.
He just did.
Then he heard it.
A heartbeat.
Slow.
Ancient.
Powerful.
THUMP.
The sound echoed inside his mind.
He froze.
THUMP.
“What…” The world around him seemed to fade for a brief moment.
And suddenly, he wasn’t standing in New Haven anymore.
He stood within an endless sea of darkness.
Countless golden eyes stared back at him from the void.
Each one larger than a building.
Each one impossibly ancient.
He couldn’t breathe.
Couldn’t move.
Couldn’t think.
A voice unlike anything he’d ever heard echoed through the darkness.
AT LAST.
The words carried the weight of centuries.
“Who are you?” Silence.
Then— I HAVE FOUND YOU.
Every instinct in his body screamed at him to run.
“I think you’ve got the wrong person.” IMPOSSIBLE.
“I assure you, that’s very possible.” YOU ARE MINE.
“That’s a deeply concerning sentence.” The eyes blinked simultaneously.
YOUR BODY SHALL BECOME MY VESSEL.
“Absolutely not.” YOUR SOUL SHALL— “No.” Silence.
“No?” “Did I stutter?” For the first time in thousands of years, the Primordial Chimera found itself confused.
No one had ever interrupted its declaration before.
“I don’t know who you are,” Aiden continued, “but today has been exhausting, and I’m really not in the mood to be possessed by an ancient evil.” ANCIENT…
EVIL?
“That’s usually the category beings with glowing eyes fall into.” The creature was silent for several seconds.
Then, unexpectedly— YOU ARE…
STRANGE.
“Thank you?” Before either could say anything else, the darkness shattered.
Aiden stumbled backward as the city returned around him.
The lights came back on.
People continued walking as if nothing had happened.
No one else appeared to have noticed.
He stood motionless in the middle of the sidewalk.
“…What.” His heart pounded in his chest.
Had he imagined that?
No.
No, he definitely hadn’t imagined that.
Somewhere beyond reality itself, the Primordial Chimera slowly closed its eyes.
The vessel had been found.
Soon, after thousands of years, it would finally be free.
And somewhere beneath the neon lights of New Haven, completely unaware of what awaited him, Aiden Cross looked up at the night sky and came to a single conclusion.
“Tomorrow is somehow going to be worse.” For once in his life— He was absolutely correct.