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Walking towards the crystal with regal grace, Angelica placed her hands on it without waiting for Winchester\'s instructions or even closing her eyes to concentrate.

Moments after her touch, the crystal began to glow with an intensity far surpassing that of the other students. A powerful wind enveloped the platform, and a radiant blue aura surrounded Angelica.

This phenomenon persisted for several minutes until a number finally appeared beside the crystal.

Winchester scrutinized the number on the crystal with a look of puzzlement.

Clearing his throat, he spoke.

"Uhm... Angelica has awakened a Grade Four Lightning Control mutant ability."

The announcement elicited gasps of astonishment from the crowd. Angelica\'s eyes widened in disbelief.

"What do you mean, Lightning Control? There must be a mistake. My entire family are ice mutant ability users. How could my ability be different?" Angelica demanded, her voice tinged with frustration.

Despite awakening the highest-grade ability seen that day, Angelica was dissatisfied with the type of ability she had received.

"Sorry, Angelica, but there is no mistake," Winchester replied calmly.

"It can\'t be! It\'s impossible!" Angelica insisted, her voice rising in anger. "There must have been a mistake! Let me try again!"

"It is not possible to repeat the awakening process," Winchester countered. "You have awakened your ability, which is Lightning Control. If you doubt it, you can test it yourself." He then summoned her skill slot and extended it towards her.

Angelica stared at the metallic belt with four glowing bars for a moment before accepting it. Strapping it around her waist, she felt raw energy surge through her body, invigorating her.

Taking a battle stance, Angelica extended her palms backward, took a deep breath, and then thrust her hands forward. A vivid purple lightning bolt shot from her hands, streaking toward the students below the platform.

The students erupted in panic as they saw the lightning charging toward them. At the last moment, Moses stomped his foot on the ground, raising a makeshift wall that intercepted the lightning and shielded them from harm.

After successfully blocking the lightning, Moses sighed with relief and lowered the wall.

Angelica stood in stunned silence, unable to comprehend that she was not an ice ability user but a lightning user. Her mind was flooded with thoughts about how her father would react.

"Don\'t be too hard on yourself, Angelica. I\'ve seen similar situations before. There was a family known for fire-bending abilities, but their son awakened with wind abilities. Perhaps there were circumstances unknown to us, like an infidelity, which might explain the difference," Winchester said softly.

Angelica\'s face flushed with anger as she turned her gaze toward Winchester.

"My mother would never betray my father!" Angelica retorted, her face red with indignation.

"That\'s one possible explanation. Either your mother had an affair or you might be adopted. Once you graduate next year, you might uncover more about your origins," Winchester asserted.

Angelica clenched her fists, electric sparks gathering around them, and, fuming with rage, she stormed off the platform. Unlike the other students, Angelica left the compound immediately and headed straight to her dorm room.

"Let\'s proceed! Only a few students remain!" Winchester declared, resuming the call of names.

As the names were called, each student approached the platform to awaken their abilities. Most achieved decent grades, eliciting joy, while those with lower grades cried in despair.

Finally, Winchester called out, "Silas Griswold! Please step forward!"

Silas, who had remained silent and kept his gaze fixed on the floor, lifted his eyes toward the raised platform. He walked toward it, trying to keep his expression calm despite his racing heart. The other students glanced at him with curiosity and surprise, some noting that his face was unfamiliar.

"Is it just me, or does that guy look like he\'s new here?" one student whispered.

Although Silas had joined the academy on the same day as the others, he had kept to himself, avoiding interactions and relishing his solitude.

He stepped onto the raised platform and stood before the crystal.

"I\'ll give it my best shot," Silas thought.

He placed his hands on the crystal and closed his eyes, focusing intently on awakening a high-grade mutant ability. He knew that achieving at least a Grade 3 would significantly brighten his future. With a Grade 3 ability, he could join a prestigious guild, earn a substantial amount of Tokens, and secure a comfortable and peaceful life.

Conversely, if he were to awaken a lower-grade ability, his future would likely be bleak. In the current world, strength dictates status—the strong rule while the weak are relegated to insignificance.

Silas stood there for several minutes, hands pressed firmly against the massive crystal, his eyes tightly shut. The surrounding students, including Winchester who stood beside him, wore puzzled expressions.

"Why is it taking so long for him to make the crystal glow?" a student called out from the crowd, and murmurs of agreement followed. Typically, it took no more than five minutes for the crystal to react, but twenty minutes had passed with no sign of a glow from Silas.

Winchester moved closer to Silas and whispered softly, "Concentrate, boy."

Silas nodded, redoubling his efforts to focus. Minutes continued to pass with no reaction from the crystal. Winchester sighed heavily and shook his head in disappointment.

"Silas Griswold has failed to awaken any mutant ability!" Winchester declared. Silas\'s eyes snapped open, and his heart raced at the announcement.

The students below could no longer contain their laughter. Some began to mock him openly, their jeers cutting through the air.

"I can\'t believe he even failed to awaken a Grade 1 ability!" a student exclaimed.

"His body must be so weak it couldn\'t even sustain a lower-grade ability?" another chimed in.

"What a weakling! He doesn\'t even deserve to breathe the same air as us!" a bully shouted.

Silas dropped to his knees, gripping his hair in frustration. His mind raced with anguish. "Why? Why? Why!" he screamed internally, pulling at his spiky orange hair. Tears welled up in his eyes, but he fought to keep them from falling, desperate to avoid further humiliation.

"No ability? Nothing at all?!" Silas muttered to himself in disbelief. He had feared awakening a lower-grade ability, and now he had failed to awaken any ability at all.

"Why me? What did I do wrong? I did exactly what everyone else did! I followed the rules! Why could I not awaken any ability?" Silas continued to agonize internally as he yanked at his hair, strands falling around him.

"Silas, please leave the platform so we can conclude the process," Winchester requested.

Silas remained on his knees for a few more minutes before he stood up, his gaze fixed on the floor. He slowly made his way down from the platform, enduring the mocking and laughter of his peers. Students with water abilities splashed water on his face, and those with earth abilities threw stones at him.

Finally, Silas returned to his designated spot, his head bowed in defeat. His mind was consumed with thoughts of the grim future that awaited him.

---

PRESENT DAY"

In the academy\'s backyard, two students leaned against the wall, smoke drifting from their mouths. One, dressed in a navy blue uniform, checked his wristwatch, irritation evident on his face.

"Why isn\'t he here yet?" Osborne muttered with a scowl. "He knows how furious I get when he\'s late, and he still chose to show up late."

As they stood there, the sound of approaching footsteps caught their attention. A frail-looking boy, his spiky orange hair covered in dust and part of his face dirtied, arrived at their location.

"Sorry I\'m late," Silas said, panting heavily. He had run from his dorm room to arrive on time.

Osborne glared at Silas and approached him.

"Sorry you\'re late?" Osborne spat, his voice dripping with anger. "You\'re ten minutes late and think saying \'sorry\' is enough?"

Silas\'s heart pounded at Osborne\'s words, and he swallowed hard.

"I was busy cleaning Anthony\'s room to earn a few Tokens and lost track of time," Silas explained, his gaze fixed on the floor.

"How many times have I warned you not to take other jobs while working for me, Griswold?!" Osborne\'s voice echoed through the deserted area, sending shivers down Silas\'s spine.

"I promise, it won\'t happen again," Silas pleaded, falling to his knees. Osborne, a Grade 3 Wind ability user, was formidable, and Silas knew defiance would be dangerous. With no mutant ability of his own, his only recourse was to beg for leniency.

"Sorry isn\'t enough!" Osborne retorted, grabbing Silas by the hair and pulling him to his feet. He then clenched his right fist and swung it at Silas\'s face.

The punch landed squarely, sending Silas sprawling backward with his cheek turning red and swollen.

Osborne walked toward Silas, who lay on the ground trying to recover.

"I\'ve warned you countless times, Silas! If you\'re even a second late again, I\'ll deal with you myself!" Osborne declared, kicking Silas\'s chest with all his might. Silas crashed into a nearby wall.

"Make sure this doesn\'t happen again," Osborne added before turning away and walking off with his entourage.

Silas lay there, blood trickling from his mouth, his face bruised and swollen. His life had deteriorated since the awakening ceremony. For the past two years, he had endured relentless bullying from peers with high-grade abilities.

"When will I finally be free from all this torment?" Silas wondered to himself as he picked himself up. He wiped the blood from his mouth with his sleeve before heading back to his dorm room.

Silas walked down the academy\'s dimly lit hallway until he reached his dorm. He pushed open the door and entered. The room was small, barely accommodating two beds and two wardrobes. He was alone now, his former roommate having left for the VIP area, claiming he couldn\'t share space with someone like Silas.

Silas stood for a moment, then removed his bloodstained uniform and threw it onto the second bed. He lay down on his back, staring at the ceiling. Thoughts of his bleak future and the torment he endured filled his mind.

Eventually, sleep overtook him, the harshness of his reality fading as he drifted into unconsciousness, holding on to a faint hope for a better future.