POV – Professors:
"How is this possible?"
"She hasn't even awakened her first Soul, and her aura is already this strong."
"What is happening this year? Normally, there's one or two geniuses per generation, but this year three have already awakened—and one of them is a complete monster."
"And the envoy of the Sun Church hasn't even awakened yet. If he also turns out to be a genius, this will undoubtedly be the greatest year since the founding of the Academy."
POV – Dex:
'Why?'
'Even if I met her and she turned out different from the game, this doesn't make sense!'
'And what's with that subclass 'Ruler of Lust,' and those wings she just grew?!'
While Dex muttered, Selene stepped down from the platform with slow grace, stopping at the side of the staircase where students ascended.
The students, seeing her remain by the steps, felt relief—as if the "terrifying demon" would now keep her distance.
Vice-director Dorian, noticing the princess had stepped aside, resumed the flow of the rituals.
"Cadet Dex ThunderBird, please come forward and perform your Awakening."
Still lost in thought over what happened with Selene, Dex was pulled back to reality by Dorian's commanding voice.
He rose and made his way toward the altars.
The students gasped in shock.
"Isn't that the boy she was clinging to just moments ago?"
"They're awakening one after the other?"
"ThunderBird…!!!"
"Could he be the younger brother of the second-year genius?!"
The murmurs spread quickly through the hall, but they were silenced just as swiftly by Dorian's sharp gaze.
When Dex reached the steps to the platform, he saw her—Selene, waiting at the side.
"Why didn't you go back to our seats?" he asked.
She pointed to her wings. "If I had, I probably would've bumped into someone. But… do you think they're beautiful?"
Dex looked at her wings and could only answer one thing. "Yes."
She gave him the happiest smile in the world and kissed his cheek.
"Good luck!!"
That simple gesture of affection erased any doubts Dex had. He advanced toward the stage without hesitation.
From the top of the platform, he could see everyone, and they could see him. Even as the center of attention, he felt no fear.
He might have been an extra who never appeared in the game, but he had someone who believed in him—and that was enough.
Dorian, seeing him ready, gave a small nod to begin.
Dex approached the pedestal without hesitation. He placed his hand on the Awakening Orb—
And hell began.
POV – Second-Year Student:
'Could he be the bastard Marcus always mentioned?'
'I remember him saying his useless brother would enter the academy by the end of the year, during one of the student council's sessions.'
The blonde-haired, green-eyed girl, watching from afar, finally saw his face clearly.
'Well, he forgot to mention his brother is more handsome than him, she thought, observing with her enhanced vision.'
'Could it be the vampire princess fell for his pretty face?'
Dex pressed his hand against the orb.
Seconds passed. Nothing happened. No instant reaction, unlike all the awakenings before him.
'So he really is the useless one Marcus claimed?'
But as if answering her thought—chaos descended upon the world.
Crack!!
The orb fractured, releasing something ancient.
Everyone in the academy felt it—students, professors, even the headmaster himself. The very air split apart as two forces clashed. Black lightning of pure aura surged through the academy, annihilating the sacred energy that lingered.
That raging darkness, scattered throughout the academy, condensed above him—forming a crown. Entirely black, opaque, and dreadful.
The crown slowly descended from the heavens, resting upon Dex's head. The instant it touched, it melted into liquid shadow, wrapping him in a cocoon. The overwhelming aura vanished in an instant.
The cocoon dissolved swiftly, revealing him.
Calm. Unshaken. Eyes closed. No expression on his face.
The students who remained conscious after the storm stared in terror. All but one. For the first time in her life, she felt envy. Not envy of his power—but envy of the red-haired girl who, somehow, possessed him.
POV – Dex (Before the Chaos):
Upon touching the orb, the mark that had once been draconian revealed itself through a new darkness.
The Embryonic System is evolving into the System of the Ruler of Sins.
The host's soul and body will be enhanced to endure and adapt to the powers of the Crown of Sins.
The cocoon protecting Dex shattered, revealing him once more.
He slowly opened his eyes to the audience. Where once they were purple, they now matched the crown—completely black, surrounded by a faint orange glow. They looked like black holes.
Dex stretched his body, testing the changes that had reshaped him.
He glanced at the crowd of students and realized many had collapsed unconscious. Then he turned to the vice-director.
"What is my subclass?"
Dorian, unaffected by the aura, still looked stunned. The boy had unleashed an aura strong enough to rival a sixth-soul knight, even without restraint.
'We'll have to postpone the rest of the awakenings… thankfully, only a few remain.'
He turned his gaze to the magical tablet that recorded Classes and Subclasses.
'What subclass could this monster have awakened into?'
______________________________________
Awakening Classifier
Name: Dex ThunderBird
Class: Knight
Subclass: Ruler of Sins
______________________________________
"Dex ThunderBird has awakened as a Knight of the Subclass Ruler of Sins."
Dex, hearing his Class and Subclass, grew thoughtful.
'What am I, really?'
'The Usurper.'
'What do you mean by that, Echidna?'
'Among mortals of this world and demons of the underworld, you alone are the one he feared.'
'After all, you carry within you the power of his former master—the very power he devoured in his uncontrollable greed.'