The next two days passed quickly.
Too quickly.
Thursday blurred into Friday, and by the time West realized it, it was almost weekend again.
The system chimed.
> [Quest Completed]
Objective: Acquire five phone numbers of girls with romantic partners]
West stopped walking.
The hallway around him buzzed with voices and footsteps as lockers slammed open and shut, but for a brief moment, it all faded into the background.
He had done it and even exceeded.
Five was required but be got six due to his newly acquired popularity.
The system responded immediately.
> [Rewards Granted]
Cuck Points +50
All Sub Stats +3
Skill Upgrade: Adrenal Control — Level Increased]
West exhaled sharply.
His heart thudded hard in his chest from something dangerously close to exhilaration.
He opened the interface mid-stride and the translucent blue panels aligned neatly before his eyes as he continued walking.
---
[SYSTEM STATUS UPDATE]
Host: West Einstein
Age: 18
Tier: 0 — Dormant
Awakening Status: Locked
Affinity: 2%
Reputation: None
Available Menus:
SHOP
QUEST PANEL
INVENTORY
SKILLS
(( Adrenal Control - Lv.2 ))
Cuck Points (CP): 115
---
[Sub Stats]
Strength: 12
Speed: 13
Agility: 12
Seduction: 12
Confidence: 14
Charm: 11
Aura: 11
Mental Resilience: 11
Stamina: 12
---
[Skill: Adrenal Control]
Rank: Level 2
Duration: 90 seconds
Cooldown: 24 hours
Enhancement Effect: Adds 13 Points to all substats.
---
West stared at the numbers as he walked.
One hundred and fifteen Cuck Points...
That was more than enough.
More than he had imagined having this soon.
His fingers curled slowly.
Tier 1…
The thought alone made his pulse quicken.
Awakening wasn't just power.
It was legitimacy.
It meant no one could casually put their hands on him again.
No one could force him to kneel.
No one could treat him like disposable trash.
West's lips curved faintly. 'I can do it now.'
The system didn't push him or urge him.
The option sat there, waiting. It was completely up to him to become an awakened and if he didn't want to, he could simply keep increasing his substats.
As he rounded the corner of the hallway, someone stepped into his path.
Thump~
A soft collision between them caused books to fly into the air.
West reacted instantly.
His hand shot out as pages fluttered and covers spun while the books fell.
Swwhiii~
He caught every single book mid-air, moving smoothly with his fingers adjusting naturally as he stacked them neatly atop his palm.
He looked up and Lena stood frozen in front of him.
Her eyes were wide and her lips parted slightly.
For a second, neither of them spoke.
West handed the books back to her calmly.
"Be careful," he said.
His voice was neutral and detached.
Nothing like the boy she remembered.
Lena accepted the stack with trembling hands.
"…Thanks," she whispered.
West nodded once and stepped past her without looking back.
But Lena did.
She stood there, staring at his retreating back with her heart pounding painfully against her ribs.
How…?
How could someone change so much in just two weeks?
His posture was different...
His presence was more defining...
The way he moved so confidently...
He wasn't the West she had left behind.
And that realization hurt more than she expected.
As West walked away, something else caught his attention.
He had noticed red markings around her wrists.
She tried to hide them by shifting her sleeves down, but she was not fast enough.
West noticed at the time and now remembering it... he paused internally.
"Huh."
He scoffed quietly.
"None of my business."
He didn't slow down or turn.
He had already learned what happened when he involved himself in other people's messes.
Behind him, Lena stood motionless long after he was gone.
For the rest of the day, she couldn't focus.
Her mind replayed the moment over and over.
The way he caught the books.
The way he spoke without emotion.
The way he walked away without hesitation.
"Did I make a mistake?"
She shook her head.
"No," she whispered to herself. "He's still unawakened."
That thought comforted her... briefly.
But it didn't silence the ache in her chest.
---
Elsewhere —
Night fell over the city.
Far from the lights of schools and cafés, deep within a restricted industrial district, a group of men knelt in perfect formation.
They all wore matching crimson jackets with flaming chain tattoos etched into their necks.
This was the Iron Chain gang. A street level gang.
At the front stood a man who made everyone else look small.
He was six-foot-seven, broad as a wall with muscle hardened thick shoulders. His presence alone bent the atmosphere around him and his face looked like it was carved from the spirit of violence.
This was Magnus Vire, the boss of Iron Chain.
"Boss!" the kneeling men shouted in unison.
Magnus turned slowly and nodded sharply.
"Up."
They rose instantly.
Magnus walked forward, causing the sound of boots to echo softly as he stopped before an 18 year old youngster.
Raze Calder.
"Aren't you supposed to be bringing in the new kid?" Magnus asked calmly. "The one set for initiation and awakened martial arts allocation?"
Raze lowered his head slightly.
"Yes, boss," he said. "But that kid is unworthy."
Magnus's eyes narrowed.
"Explain."
Raze spoke carefully, recounting everything.
The school...
Caleb's transformation...
The punch that led to his defeat...
"And then," Raze concluded, "the kid walked away. We can't have trash awakened ruining the reputation of the gang."
Magnus was silent for a long moment.
Then he said, "Why not bring in the one who defeated him?"
Raze hesitated.
"…Because he's unawakened."
The words landed like a bomb.
Magnus turned sharply.
"…What?"
Raze met his gaze steadily. "I'm sure. No branch activation. No aura. No awakening fluctuation."
Magnus's eyes gleamed dangerously.
"That's impossible," he said. "An unawakened cannot defeat an awakened. Either you were mistaken… or that kid is hiding something."
He turned away with hands clasped behind his back.
Then displayed a predatory smile.
"That boy," Magnus said, "has potential."
Everyone leaned forward unconsciously.
"For him to defeat another tier one awakened without so much as activating his branch, he must possess multiple branches," Magnus continued.
Murmurs rippled through the group.
Multiple branches.
At that age?
That was monstrous potential.
Magnus looked back at Raze.
"You must do what it takes," he said calmly, "to make him join."
Raze bowed deeply.
"Yes, boss."
Magnus's gaze lifted toward the distant city lights.
"Our gang must become number one in Misty High City..."
---