Chapter 78: Exploding Emotions
Several medical staff carefully approached Silas and the two girls. One, who seemed to be the leader, stepped forward and asked carefully. The boy in front of him looked like the devil with his reddish-pink hair from the blood, blood-soaked face, and those glowing pink eyes. He looked devilishly handsome and scarily beautiful. She couldn’t help but blush.
"Young man, can you stand?" She asked.
"Barely," Silas opened one eye, looked at her, and shook his head. He had been spent clean.
"I’ll take that as a no."
Several healers immediately began casting recovery abilities. Warm green light surrounded Silas, and some color returned to his face. Meanwhile, Gromda looked suspiciously at everyone surrounding her mate. She instinctively moved closer, but Silas gently patted her arm, sensing her tension.
"It’s okay. They’re friends."
Gromda relaxed immediately. That single action left dozens of veteran Hunters speechless.
"She listens like an actual companion," One of the Hunters couldn’t help muttering, "What exactly happened inside this rift?"
"You’ll need several days," Mr. Fatars laughed. "Maybe weeks to hear the whole story. Unfortunately, we lost one of the students."
He ended with a sad tone. One after another, the survivors crossed the white portal. The moment they emerged, cheers erupted, parents screamed, some crying in relief, while others collapsed in relief. Ambulances rushed forward, while reporters began shouting questions, camera flashes illuminating the area like lightning, but none of the rescued students paid attention. They were home... finally...
Silas stepped through the portal last, with Chloe and Gromda following beside him. The instant people saw the towering orc woman, panic swept through the crowd. Soldiers raised their weapons again, while parents screamed, and reporters stumbled backward. Mr. Fatars stepped through behind them and shouted enough for everyone to hear.
"Stand down! No one attacks! She is under the protection of Valecrest and under the command of our student..." He looked toward the exhausted pink-haired young man. "Silas Ashard."
The entire entrance plaza fell deathly silent as every camera, every pair of eyes, and every awakened present turned toward the young man who had entered a yellow Rift, and returned after conquering a blue rift. It was obvious from how he looked. Plus, news traveled fast. Valecrest and the authoritative leaders had managed to keep his identity a secret, but the moment Mr. Fatars told the army commander, the information no longer remained a secret. Not like Silas wanted to keep it a secret in the first place. This was solely on Valecrest’s side. But this reveal was also good.
As they made their way out, they heard a sharp screaming, followed by mournful cries. Silas turned to the source. A woman sat crying on the ground as she hugged a piece of clothing, while a man hugged her from behind, also weeping silently.
"David... just why? My only son! Why?!" The woman screamed in pain, causing the atmosphere to become grim. While most were celebrating, they were mourning their son. The painful part was that he was the only one who had died in the rift.
"What happened?" Silas muttered.
"Someone died. His name is David Gronsan," Mr. Fatars, who was standing nearby, said with a tired sigh. "He was eaten up by a bear monster."
"Did he wander off alone or what?"
"The monster overpowered his team... It was even a miracle that Sylvester got there in time, or we would’ve lost three more," Fatars answered. "You go and rest. I will go see the family. I will take responsibility. And... I’m sorry for all that I put you through. I understand if you still hold a grudge. I would do the same if I were in your position."
"This is not the time for that. I just want to sleep," Silas answered him and turned away.
’And of course... a blowjob wouldn’t be bad.’
Silas and the girls were making their way to find a place to sit under the guidance of one of the nurses and a few military personnel when they heard someone shout his name. They turned only to see a young woman with dark brown hair barreling toward them... him.
***
Anna didn’t stop. She didn’t care about the hundreds of cameras. She didn’t care about the soldiers or the Board of Valecrest. She didn’t even care that a seven-foot-tall orc woman was standing beside the man she loved. All she saw... was Silas.
"Silaaaas!"
The cry rang across the entire rescue site. Silas barely had enough strength to turn his head before a black blur crashed into him.
"Oof-"
His sentence never came as soft lips crashed into his. Anna wrapped both arms around his neck and kissed him with everything she had. It was desperate. She kissed him as though she were proving to herself that he was real, that he was alive, and that he had truly returned.
"Mmph...!" Silas’s eyes widened in shock.
Around them, it was complete utter silence as everyone stared at the two in shock. Every reporter forgot to press the shutter. The Board members looked as though lightning had struck them. Only the clicking of forgotten cameras broke the silence.
Anna finally pulled away, her beautiful face drenched in tears. She grabbed Silas by the collar with trembling hands.
"You idiot..." Her voice cracked. "You... You absolute idiot..."
"I thought..." Her voice disappeared. "I thought..."
Silas looked at her silently. The lively, confident Head Nurse of Valecrest had vanished. Standing before him was simply a woman who had spent every day believing she had lost the person she loved. Her knees finally gave out, but Silas caught her before she collapsed completely.
"I’m sorry."
"I hate you..." Anna buried her face into his shoulder.
"..."
"I hate you..."
"..."
"I missed you..."
"I know," Silas smiled tiredly.
"No," She shook her head furiously. "You don’t."
She looked up at him with swollen, red eyes.
"I couldn’t sleep. I couldn’t eat. I drank enough coffee to kill three people. I checked the Rift news every fifteen minutes. I prayed every night. I begged every god that exists. And then..." She laughed through tears. "You walk out looking like you fought an apocalypse."
Silas scratched his cheek awkwardly.
"Well, I kind of did."
Several students couldn’t help laughing despite themselves. The tension that had hung over the rescue area finally began to ease.
"AHEM!" An exaggerated cough echoed through the plaza, making everyone turn. Standing there was the principal himself, Theodore, his face twitching violently. Beside him, nearly every member of the Board wore expressions somewhere between horror and disbelief.
One elderly woman adjusted her glasses.
"Did... Did our Head Nurse just kiss a student?"
Another Board member slowly nodded.
"In front of..." He looked around. "...the entire country?"
The reporters suddenly woke up.
"TAKE THE PICTURES!"
"GET CLOSER!"
"THIS IS FRONT PAGE!"
Anna finally noticed the hundreds of cameras, and her face became red. She slowly buried her face back into Silas’s shoulder.
"I... Quit."
"What?" Silas blinked.
"I quit."
"You can’t quit because you kissed me."
"I can."
"You can’t."
"I absolutely can."
"You literally can’t."
"I kissed a student!"
"You kissed your boyfriend." His sentence made Anna freeze. She slowly lifted her head and asked, as she couldn’t believe her ears.
"Boyfriend?"
"Well... I mean... I thought we already crossed that stage."
Anna stared at him for several long seconds, then, to the demise or whatever... she kissed him again. When she stepped back, she wore the brightest smile anyone there had ever seen.
"You are absolutely impossible."
"I’ve been told."
Meanwhile, not far away, Gromda tilted her head and looked at Chloe.
"What happened?"
"She claimed him," Chloe stared blankly.
Gromda’s eyes widened in realization.
"Oh!" She nodded enthusiastically. "Good!"
Then, before anyone could react, she marched over, and the soldiers instantly panicked.
"THE ORC IS MOVING!"
"Weapons up!"
"Oh, for heaven’s sake..." Mr. Fatars sighed.
Before anyone could stop her, Gromda wrapped her arms around Silas and Anna together, into a giant bear hug. Several of Silas’s bones protested.
"Gromda..." Silas wheezed. "...can’t... breathe..."
"You safe," She smiled proudly. "Mate safe."
