A New Path

Chapter Seven: A New Path 

The courtyard was silent. 

Then—clap… clap… clap… 

The slow, hesitant sound of applause echoed through the air. Students, teachers, and even the academy guards stood frozen, staring at Quinn with a mixture of shock, awe, and disbelief. 

Nobody spoke. Nobody moved. They had just witnessed something impossible. 

Quinn stood in the middle of it all, his expression blank as he flicked his wrist, shaking off the last remnants of blood from his knuckles. His robe remained spotless—just the way he wanted. 

"I don't like this," he muttered under his breath. The attention, the stares, the whispered conversations—it all felt wrong. 

Without wasting another second, Quinn crouched down and drove his hand into the chest of one of the fallen Possessed. His fingers wrapped around something solid and pulsing with faint energy. With a sharp tug, he pulled out a black, crystallized core. 

E-Rank. Decent enough to sell. 

He repeated the process with the others, his movements swift and efficient. The Possessed weren't going to need them anymore, and these cores were worth a good amount of money on the underground market. 

By the time he finished, murmurs had turned into loud whispers. Some students were taking out their phones, others were still too stunned to react. 

This is bad. 

Quinn exhaled sharply, stood up, and in a blur of motion—he was gone. 

The students blinked. 

"W-Wait—where did he—?" 

They looked around, confused. He had vanished before anyone could even register his movement. 

— 

By the time anyone realized what had happened, Quinn had already dashed through the academy's front gates. 

He moved like a phantom, weaving through the empty streets, his speed unmatched. In the next instant, he was beside his sister. 

Emily barely had time to react before she felt herself being lifted off the ground. 

"Q-Quinn?!" she yelped. 

"Hold on," he said simply. 

And then—*whoosh!* 

He bolted. 

The wind howled past Emily's ears, the scenery blurring as Quinn carried her effortlessly. Everything happened so fast that the academy was already far behind them before she could even process it. 

She didn't even know when they had left. 

It was only after Quinn slowed down, finally stopping in a quiet alley, that he gently put her down. 

Emily staggered slightly, still dazed. She turned to look at her brother, her mind racing. 

*What the hell just happened? 

For the longest moment, she just stood there, her breathing uneven, her thoughts scrambled. 

Then, finally, the words spilled out: 

"How… when… what the hell did I just see?" 

Quinn dusted off his sleeves, casually checking his clothes for any stains. When he was satisfied that his robe was still pristine, he glanced at his sister and smirked. 

"Well, it's simple," he said as if it were the most natural thing in the world. "I awakened." 

Emily's eyes widened. "*What?*" 

Quinn shrugged. "Happened about a week ago." 

"A week ago?!" she repeated, looking at him in disbelief. "Why didn't you tell me?" 

"I was going to," Quinn replied smoothly, "but I wanted to tell you when I officially became an Awakened Hunter." 

Emily stared at him for a long second before shaking her head with an exasperated smile. "So that's your plan, huh?" 

"Yep." 

Emily crossed her arms, her expression shifting into something more curious. "Okay… then tell me this—what type of power did you awaken?" Her eyes lit up with excitement. "Fire?" 

Quinn chuckled. "I don't know yet." 

She blinked. "Wait, what?" 

"I don't know yet," he repeated, stuffing his hands into his pockets. "But I am strong, you know." His lips curled into a confident smirk. "And I can protect you from the Possessed." 

Emily watched him for a moment before breaking into a warm smile. 

"…You idiot," she said softly, shaking her head. 

But there was no mistaking the pride in her eyes. 

With that, the two of them started walking home—side by side. 

Quinn and Emily walked in silence, the evening air cool against their skin. The city was quieter now, the chaos from earlier seeming like a distant memory.

As they stepped inside their apartment, Emily stretched her arms with a tired sigh. "I still can't believe what I saw today," she muttered, kicking off her shoes. "You fought those things like it was nothing."

Quinn smirked, shutting the door behind him. "Because it was nothing."

Emily rolled her eyes but couldn't hide her smile. "Cocky much?"

Before Quinn could respond, his phone buzzed in his pocket. He pulled it out and saw a message notification.

[Damien]: I should have texted you immediately after I left Grayditch, but I just reached Silvergate and I have gone to pursue my dream of becoming a strong awakened hunter when I become a strong Awakened Hunter and making a lot of money, I'll come back to help you friend.

Quinn stared at the message for a moment before letting out a small chuckle.

"Looks like he wasn't there when I fought those Possessed," he muttered.

Emily tilted her head. "Damien?"

"Yeah," Quinn replied, sliding his phone back into his pocket. "He finally made it out of this small city."

Emily smiled softly. "Good for him."

Quinn nodded, but deep down, he felt something else—determination. Jace was already on his way to becoming an Awakened Hunter, and now Quinn was too.

He had to get stronger.

Without another word, he headed to his room.

As soon as he closed the door behind him, a sudden ding rang in his ears.

A translucent blue screen popped up in front of him.

[System Notification]

[Unlocking ability completed]

[Ability unlocked: Gravity]

[Mana +5000]

Quinn's eyes widened in surprise.

"…Gravity?" he murmured, sitting on his bed. A slow grin spread across his face.

"What a nice ability."

Quinn leaned back against his bed, watching the glowing blue text hover in front of him. Before he could fully process what was happening, another notification appeared.

[System Notification]

[Basic and intermediate understanding of Gravity has been acquired.]

[Ability to perform basic and intermediate gravity magic acquired.]

A rush of foreign knowledge flooded into Quinn's mind. It wasn't overwhelming, but it felt strange—like he had suddenly remembered something he had never learned before.

He closed his eyes for a moment, focusing on the new awareness tingling through his body. He could feel it—the invisible force that weighed everything down, the natural pull that governed the world.

And now, he could control it.

His fingers twitched, and instinctively, he reached forward.

A pencil on his desk trembled.

Quinn narrowed his eyes.

Rise.

The pencil lifted off the desk, floating an inch above the surface. It wobbled slightly, as if uncertain, before slowly spinning in the air.

Quinn smirked.

Fall.

The pencil dropped instantly, landing with a small clack.

A chuckle escaped him. "This is gonna be fun."

Quinn leaned back against his bed, the dim glow of the system screen still hovering in his vision. His fingers drummed lightly against his knee as he let everything sink in. 

Awakened. Gravity magic. More mana than he ever thought possible. 

This was real. 

He exhaled slowly, his eyes shifting to the small black core he had taken from the Possessed earlier. He turned it over in his palm, watching the faint energy pulse inside. 

"Tomorrow, huh…" he muttered. 

He already had a plan. 

Step one: Go to The Awakened Guild Commission (AGC). 

Step two: Sell the cores of the Possessed he killed today. 

Step three: Register as an Awakened. 

Simple. Efficient. Direct. 

But as Quinn stared at the ceiling, a frown tugged at his lips. 

"Once I'm registered, I'll get my rank, my license, and my first official job offer. That's when things really start."