The Anomaly Beyond The System

Chapter 180: Wait... so they’re unawakened?

The moment Lucian and Seraphina stepped out of the Association building, quite a few people instinctively turned their heads, watching their departing backs as they quietly murmured among themselves.

"Hey, Lily."

Lily, who had still been lost in her own thoughts, was snapped back to reality by the voice.

She turned slightly, only to find two men standing before the counter. Their clothes looked slightly worn, while crude-looking weapons hung from their waists, making it obvious they were awakened who had already entered dungeons a few times.

"What is it?"

Her voice came out calm and professional, no longer carrying even the slightest trace of the awkwardness she had shown while speaking to Lucian.

Her colleagues noticed the difference almost immediately, and couldn’t help but curse her inwardly—while some didn’t even bother hiding it.

"Who were those two costume designers?" one of the men asked curiously as he leaned against the glass counter, trying to imitate the same posture Lucian had just used moments ago.

But completely opposite to his expectations—

Lily’s eyes narrowed ever so slightly.

"Why—"

She stopped herself midway before letting out a slow breath.

"I don’t know."

She couldn’t really curse at him or snap at him in this place, no matter how annoying an awakened might get.

Not only were they generally stronger than ordinary unawakened people like her, but more importantly...

She couldn’t afford to lose the only stable job she had finally managed to get.

With famine spreading, resources growing scarce, and countless people struggling to survive, being an unawakened person without any connections...

That was a surefire way to end up in poverty.

And she had no interest in begging outside like the countless other beggars.

"Pfft... did he seriously just try copying that man’s pose?"

"At least look at your own face first."

The surrounding people immediately burst into laughter.

The man’s face turned red with embarrassment.

He immediately turned around and glared at everyone behind him.

A few people stopped laughing—while most simply didn’t care.

After all, he had gained a bit of fame for clearing a handful of F-rank dungeons, and while that made him better than complete beginners...

It wasn’t nearly enough to intimidate everyone present.

His partner could do nothing but sigh helplessly, since he was the one who had thrown away his own respect through his actions.

"Can’t you just tell us why those two came here?" he quickly changed the subject, turning back toward Lily, who let out a faint exhale.

"They came to register for an Awakened ID."

Both men blinked.

Then the first man’s brows slowly furrowed.

"Wait... so they’re unawakened? They came here to register for the Awakening Exam or something?"

"Maybe they came here from somewhere outside?" his partner suggested thoughtfully.

"Didn’t you take a good look at their faces? They looked more like foreigners."

"Came from where exactly? The rubble?"

The first man snorted before another thought slowly began forming in his head.

His gaze shifted back toward Lily.

She had already moved on from the conversation and returned to her paperwork, acting as though none of them existed.

"Wait a second, Lily."

"What?"

This time, her voice came out noticeably harsher, since she already had enough work piled up on her desk even without people constantly interrupting her.

The man, however, merely smiled slightly before speaking again.

"What do you think? Do you think that guy is really awakened?"

Lily’s brows knitted together.

"How would I know? You are the awakened here.

You have those supernatural abilities, not me."

Without waiting for another question, she calmly picked up the glasses resting on the table and put them on before returning to her files.

The quiet sound of her pen scribbling across the papers soon filled the counter.

Almost all of her colleagues had also returned to their own work.

The awakened man blinked twice before turning toward his companion.

"What now?" the other man asked quietly.

He didn’t say anything for several long seconds.

Then...

"Let’s go."

Without another word, he turned around and walked away, his partner quietly following behind him.

Lily briefly lifted her eyes from the files, watching the two men leave...

Then, she quietly returned to her work.

***

Lucian and Seraphina continued walking through the streets toward the address Lily had given them.

Many pedestrians still couldn’t help glancing their way. Even among the countless civilians moving along the streets, the pair stood out far too much to ignore.

"That place is a bit far from here," Lucian muttered after checking the hotel’s location on the phone.

They could simply take a cab from here, or perhaps even a bus, since public transportation still seemed to be functioning from what he had seen so far.

Though compared to before the apocalypse, there were barely any vehicles on the roads anymore, making the streets appear strangely empty.

Without saying another word, Lucian quietly walked into a narrow alley.

Seraphina, despite feeling slightly confused by the sudden detour, simply followed him without asking anything.

"Why did you lie about your rank?" she suddenly asked while walking beside him.

Lucian stopped mid-step before turning back toward her.

"If I told them my real rank, I wouldn’t be able to enter dungeons together with you.

They only allow awakened of the dungeon’s rank or one rank above to enter."

Seraphina frowned slightly, not fully understanding.

Noticing the confusion in her eyes, Lucian calmly elaborated.

"Take this as an example.

They only allow F Rank awakened to enter... along with E Rank awakened—one rank higher than the dungeon itself, since the dungeon boss is usually one rank above the dungeon’s rank."

He paused briefly.

"If I revealed my actual rank, it would probably cause quite an uproar too, considering that almost everyone inside that building was only F rank."

Hearing the explanation, Seraphina slowly nodded in understanding.

"But... how did you know all that?" she asked, tilting her head slightly.

"Kanna told me," Lucian quickly answered.

Meanwhile...

Inside his shadow, Kanna was completely confused, since she was certain she had never explained anything like that.

Well... she hadn’t even talked much to him aside from explaining a few things to both him and Seraphina.

In truth...

It had been Akasha who had warned Lucian not to reveal his true rank and had explained everything regarding all of this.

And even though Lucian personally didn’t like this—no, hated hiding his strength...

He couldn’t allow his other mother to enter dangerous dungeons alone.

After briefly glancing around the empty alley, Lucian was just about to step forward—

But then—

"Master Lucian..."

Kanna’s calm voice echoed quietly as her figure slowly emerged from the darkness beneath his feet.

For a brief moment, Lucian thought she was going to question him about using her name as an excuse.

Instead—

"Lying about your rank wouldn’t work very well."

"Hm?"

Lucian let out a small, puzzled sound.

"Why?"

"The higher positions within the Association most probably have artifacts capable of determining an awakened’s exact rank.

And even if you try to suppress your mana and presence... it won’t make any difference."

Lucian blinked.

"How did they get something like that? Was the world always this advanced...?

Or was I staying under a rock this whole time?"

Seeing his genuine curiosity and the faint sparkle in his eyes, Kanna immediately answered.

"Witches."

"Oh..."

Even though she had only spoken a single word, he instantly understood.

Of course, it was the work of those magicians.

Kanna couldn’t help but find his disappointed expression slightly... very slightly... cute.

Her face, however, remained completely expressionless.

But despite what she had just told him, Lucian didn’t appear particularly worried, which only made her even more confused.

"You don’t have to worry about that," he answered simply.

Kanna inwardly frowned.

’You can help me, right?’ Lucian silently asked inside his mind.

Almost instantly—

[I can... you don’t have to worry about that.] Akasha’s voice echoed in his mind, reassuring him.

After all, why else would she have told him to lie about his rank if she didn’t already have a solution prepared?

’It seems you aren’t that useless after all.’

Hearing his remark, Akasha couldn’t help but let out a quiet snicker inside his mind.

Lucian merely shook his head faintly before turning back toward Seraphina.

"Mom."

A small smile slowly spread across his face before widening.

"This time... don’t bite your tongue again."

Before she could react—

He smoothly lifted her into a princess carry once more.

Even though she was caught off guard, Seraphina didn’t say a single word, not wanting to repeat the same mistake as before.

Although...

Being carried like this still made her feel just a little embarrassed.

She was supposed to be his mother.

She was supposed to be the one lifting him—though she couldn’t exactly do that anymore, since he was no longer a child.

’But still...!’

Beside them, Kanna quietly sank back into his shadow.

Seeing his mother keeping her lips tightly shut this time, Lucian couldn’t help but let out a faint chuckle.

His body lowered ever so slightly.

Then—

His figure shot upward.

Without making even the slightest sound, he was already crossing from one rooftop to another with astonishing speed.

Completely unnoticed by the people below, he continued making his way toward the hotel.

Held securely in his arms, Seraphina quietly watched the scenery flash past beneath them.

Feeling the cool wind brushing gently across her face, she couldn’t help but feel a small, childlike sense of excitement blooming within her heart.