"Stay back," Adam was doing his best to chase away the blood dogs and protect his family. Everyone was in a similar situation. Many had lost their lives at the hands of the beasts, and help was still far away. Adam struck one of the dogs on the head with his wooden sword. Gavin was also trying his best to protect his two little sisters. He couldn't find his mom and dad.
"Dante!" one of Gavin's sisters yelled as she pointed at Dante. They all looked at the boy, and something about him was different. They couldn't say what, but they knew Dante would be able to save them.
"Oh no," Dante muttered as the monsters turned their attention toward him. Though he couldn't remember his past life, his skills still remained. So for that very reason, he could use a fraction of his skills, and the fraction was enough to take care of the monsters. Dante picked up a crowbar from the ground. Normally, monsters from the gates couldn't be harmed by ordinary objects since they were magical creatures. But Dante was about to show the world something different. The monsters dashed toward Dante; he closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and felt in control. He held the crowbar with both hands like a sword. Everyone in town could see him, as they no longer had to fend off any of the monsters. The sun was about to set, and there he was alone, about to face the blood-sucking dogs with nothing but a crowbar.
The largest monster lunged first at Dante, its monstrous jaw gaping wide, and its blood-sucking tongue ready to suck the boy dry. With a swift desperate swing, Dante brought the crowbar down, striking the creature on its head. A howl of pain echoed through the town as the blood dog recoiled and died. Even though it was an E-rank gate, the fact that ordinary weapons could harm these monsters shocked everyone.
They all looked at the dog that had succumbed to its death as purple blood slipped out from its head. The rest of the dogs, seeing what happened, got more aggravated and bared their teeth at Dante. Not a single trace of fear could be seen in the boy's eyes. The other blood dogs began to circle him, one of them lunged at his leg, but he managed to sidestep just in time, using the crowbar to block the attack. Another leaped, snapping its jaws at Dante's throat. He narrowly evaded, feeling the hot breath of the creature graze his skin. Though he had once reached the pinnacle of swordsmanship, now he was only a boy with only his instincts. With the blood dogs attacking in a frenzy, Dante started swinging the crowbar around in a manner that was far from an amateur movement. He was fighting with the crowbar as if it were a sword, a blunt sword. He kept moving in a well-refined manner, which made him able to smash down the blood dogs.
His footwork, his swings, every movement he made showed a sophisticated skill set. The villagers, with their mouths open, watched as the boy, who was considered the weakest, faced off against hundreds of beasts that came through the gate. One of the dogs managed to reach Dante, and instantly stuck its tongue out to suck the boy. Before it could succeed in drawing any blood from Dante, he grabbed the tongue and swung the dog around, smashing it against many of its kind until its tongue was torn off.
"Look at him move," Adam muttered as he watched Dante doing the impossible. In Dante's quick movements, they could see his eyes flashing like he was shooting lasers.
"He is an awakener," Adam's father suddenly exclaimed. He had once served an S-rank awakener. His master was an S-rank swordmaster. Apart from elementals, there were other classes like swordmaster, healer, archer, and many others. Although these other classes were always looked down upon by the elementals, they were still a force to reckon with. This other class could never cause the destruction an elemental awakener could cause. An A-rank elemental awakener was equal to other S-rank awakeners.
"It is said a swordmaster can turn anything into a killing tool," Adam's father spoke with admiration.
The fight between Dante and the blood dogs started by sunset, and by the time it was night, Dante was standing triumphantly on a mountain of blood dog corpses. With only a few dogs remaining, they started to hesitate. Seizing this opportunity, Dante let out a fierce battle cry, sending more fear into the remaining dogs. Mrs. Joan couldn't believe what she was seeing. She followed after Dante when he ran out, but because the boy was a lot faster, by the time she arrived at the scene, Dante had killed a considerable number of blood dogs. She also heard Adam's father saying that the boy is an awakener. While Mrs. Joan was watching the scene, she was thinking of where she would take her son to hide again. Though the boy didn't show any elemental ability, she knew it would only be a matter of time before the boy revealed his full ability. The blood demon tried running back to the gate, but it was too late. The awakeners that were dispatched arrived at that moment and quickly took care of the remaining monsters.
"Wow," one of the awakeners said as they marveled at the scene before them.
Breathing heavily, Dante stood triumphantly atop the corpses of the blood dogs. His crowbar, now stained with dark ichor, was a symbol of his unyielding spirit and awakening.
"He faced monsters from the gate with only a crowbar and killed this many?" James, the leader of the group, said. He was an A-rank Archer user. Though taking care of the E-rank monsters was minuscule, and the number of the B-rank they sent was enough to kill all the monsters without sustaining any casualties. But none of them would be able to single-handedly do what Dante did.
"He is an S-rank swordmaster awakener." There was no doubt in James' voice. He was certain he had just discovered an S-rank awakener. With James and the reporters that arrived a few moments later, Mrs. Joan is now certain there would be no more hiding. Mrs. Joan cried as she gazed upon her son, who had successfully driven the blood dogs away and shown the world what he could do.
After that day, the town was filled with reporters and many academic professors who came to offer Dante an admission. Though S-rank swordmaster is not as powerful as an S-rank elemental awakener, they are still a force to reckon with, so many wanted to get Dante. An academy's influence increases with the number of S-rank awakeners they train. Though after graduation, awakeners are free to join whatever guild or become professors in any academy of their choice, or follow their own path, they will never forget their loyalty toward the academy.
"Dante is now a celebrity," Gavin said to Adam as they both stood outside watching the number of people gathered outside Dante's house. Most of them were professors from different academies, while some were reporters hoping to get an interview with the boy.
"Yes, who would have known the reason he avoids taking a weapon all this while was that he didn't want to show the monster he is." Adam couldn't come to terms with the fact that their once seemingly weak friend was such a force.
"Yes, I wonder why he passed out after the fierce fight?" Gavin asked.
"My dad said his young body couldn't handle so much power. He will be alright," Adam reassured.
Even the people who came couldn't speak to Dante, but they didn't dare to leave because they knew going back would mean missing out.
"Even Vida didn't get such attention?" Gavin said, and Mrs. Joan opened the door at that moment. Everyone instantly gathered around, hoping to be the first to speak to the boy. Mrs. Joan only opened the door because she knew that hiding was no longer an option. The boy was out in the world, so the only thing she could do was provide him with a way to protect himself.
"You must be the mother?" The first person said with a pleasing smile, like that of a salesman.
"I am certain he is fine," another asked with the same smile. Their faces were all filled with concern, but Mrs. Joan was not deceived; she knew it was a selfish concern. While everyone's attention was on Mrs. Joan, Dante appeared from behind. He didn't care about the people gathered; he looked past them to see the town. The damage was massive, but it was already being repaired. He caught sight of his friends, and he instantly went past the crowd to get to his friends.
"Adam, Gavin, thank God you are fine." He hugged them both. Adam and Gavin, seeing that Dante was still the same boy who cared greatly about their well-being, returned the hug.
"You surprised us," Adam said as he broke the hug.
"Yes, you amazed the whole town. Adam's father said you are an awakener. Seeing this many people all gathered for you shows that he was right."
Dante looked back and also noticed the people all looking at him. He had already spoken with his mother about them, and he knew he had a decision to make. He turned back to Gavin with a worried expression.
"What about your families?" He looked between Gavin and Adam. Gavin's face turned gloomy.
"My father didn't make it," he wiped away the tears before they could drop. He needed to be strong.
"I am sorry," Dante's expression saddened. "I should have come earlier."
Gavin scoffed. "We are all alive because of you. Don't be saddened by the ones that died; be glad for the people you saved."
"So, which academy will you be joining?" Adam asked. He had given up his dreams of becoming an awakener. After seeing the dangers associated with it, Adam decided it was better to live as an ordinary human.
"I am not sure yet." In truth, Dante wasn't even sure if he would be joining any. He didn't want to leave his ordinary life and plunge himself into a world of danger. Despite the luxurious life and fame that came with being an awakener, Dante loved his ordinary life more. But as much as he loved his ordinary life, the fear of not being able to protect it was starting to weigh him down.
"Hi, I am Sapphire, a professor of Bloom Academy," a beautiful lady approached Dante. They had given the young boy enough time to catch up with his friends, but now they had decided to make a move.
"Hi, I am Dante," the boy said with politeness. His politeness was surprising, as S-rankers were often filled with pride and a superior complex. But despite his politeness, there was a dignified aura around him.
"First, allow me to extend our gratitude for protecting this town," Sapphire curtsied.
"It is no big deal. I had the ability to do it, so I did," Dante answered with a shrug.
Before Sapphire could utter another word, they heard the whirling sound of a helicopter approaching. Everyone looked up and watched as the helicopter landed. Their eyes widened as they saw who arrived on the chopper.
"It's the Golden Lion Academy headmaster," one of the journalists muttered.
"Why does someone like him have to come?" another added.
"I don't know, but one thing is certain. With him here, the other academies have no chance."
Mrs. Joan's eyes widened as she saw the man walking towards Dante. Just like everyone, she was surprised to see the man, but her shock was because of something entirely different.
"How?" Mrs. Joan muttered as she watched one of the people she vowed to protect Dante from approached him.