1. Headlines and Whispers
Less than a day passed before footage of Shaun's trial leaked.
The Authority, naturally — "classified event," "internal breach," "unauthorized data release." But once something touched the net, it spread like wildfire.
"UNREGISTERED S-RANK POTENTIAL FOUND IN INDIA!"
"THE 'GOLD FLAME' AWAKENER SHATTERS AUTHORITY TEST CHAMBER!"
"IS THE NEXT SSS HUNTER ALREADY HERE?"
Screens everywhere replayed the same handful of seconds — the boy with fire in his blood, wings bursting from his back, eyes blazing like stars.
Some referred to him as a savior.
Some referred to him as a threat.
Shaun referred to it as a nightmare playing on every damn news broadcast.
He sat by himself in the dormitory lounge, hood over his head, as the screen yowled more gossip. His tea remained untouched, steam rising and dissolving like smoke.
"Shaun Miller," the anchor's voice intoned, "is currently undergoing assessment by the Global Awakener Authority for possible recruitment into Rank-A elite units—"
He shut it down. Quiet descended, heavy as fog.
Reina slipped in quietly, a tiny paper bag clutched in her hand. "They're reporting your power level readings have topped even registered A-ranks," she said quietly, trying not to sound too awed. "You know what that implies?"
He groaned. "That I'm gonna get more people calling at my door?"
"Exactly."
She slipped the bag into his hand. Inside were hot buns.
"Eat before you get recruited," she threw in with a playful smile.
He laughed in spite of himself.
For a fleeting moment, he was himself once more.
But it didn't last.
A gentle chime resonated through the dorm.
An approaching visitor.
Reina scowled. "Nobody outside the Authority should have clearance—"
She never got to say the rest.
The dorm door slid open. Three men stepped in, each dressed in tailored black suits with subtle red embroidery on their cuffs — a guild insignia.
Shaun knew it at once.
The Crimson Vultures.
2. The Offer
The man in the center grinned as he approached — tall, sharp-eyed, with silver streaks in his hair that didn't age him, but seasoned. His voice was as smooth as oil over water.
"Mr. Shaun Miller," he said, remaining a few feet away. "Quite the spectacle you staged in the Resonance Hall."
Shaun stood up straight, wary. "Who are you?"
The man's smile widened. "Ah, my manners. I'm Lucian Harlow, representative of the Crimson Vultures Guild. Perhaps you've heard of us?"
"Yeah," Shaun said flatly. "You're ranked #9 worldwide. Known for… diplomacy."
He didn't mention the rumors — assassinations, smuggling, black ops contracts. The kind of "diplomacy" that left bodies behind.
Lucian chuckled. "We prefer the term results-oriented."
Reina stepped forward immediately. "This area is under Authority control. External guilds have no right to—"
Lucian raised a hand. "Relax, Ms. Reina. I'm here on peaceful terms. We're simply offering young Shaun an opportunity."
He refocused on Shaun. "You're strong. Stronger than you know. But the Authority?" His voice was heavy with contempt. "They'll break you, train you until you shatter. Use you until you're nothing but a gun that salutes and dies."
Shaun remained silent. His fists clenched at his sides.
Lucian stepped closer. "We can do better than that. Freedom. Prosperity. Self-determination. No endless watching, no missions you don't want. You'll live your own life, on your own terms."
He pushed a slender black card along the table. A red insignia pulsed softly on its surface.
"Consider it," Lucian said, turning away. "Before the Authority makes the choice for you."
Reina's scowl could have softened steel. "He's not going to join anyone."
Lucian smiled again, unfazed. "We'll see. Some fires can't be contained."
And then they were gone, like shadows fading into the air.
3. The Choice That Wasn't One
Days passed, but the card remained — resting on Shaun's desk like a silent temptation.
Everywhere he went, whispers followed him.
Some stared with awe.
Some with fear.
Others with greed.
Even in the halls of the Authority, all this changed. People addressed him differently now — more politely, more cautiously, as if he were liable to detonate at any moment if they uttered the wrong words.
Training grew harder.
His body learned.
But something wasn't right.
"Again," his trainer snapped. "Regulate your flow, not your feeling!"
Shaun was in the center of the training ring, power dancing around him in golden sparks. He pushed forward with his palm — the explosion went wide, igniting the wall.
"Too volatile!"
The instructor's call came out a third time. "Power is futile without control!"
Shaun gritted his teeth. Sweat ran down his neck. "I am trying!"
"Try harder."
He concentrated once more. The glow in his veins stabilized. Fire coalesced — but this time it was thin, sharp, disciplined.
Good. That's it.
He let it out — a flawless parabola cutting the dummy neatly in half.
The instructor nodded once. "Better."
Reina, observing from the sidelines, smiled weakly. But she could see the weariness in him — not physical, but emotional. The Authority wasn't caring for him any longer. They were honing him.
That evening, she discovered him sitting by himself once more.
Same place. Same quiet.
"Still thinking on Lucian's proposal?" she inquired softly.
Shaun didn't respond initially. Then: "I don't trust him. But… he is right about the Authority."
Reina let out a soft breath, sitting down next to him. "You think I haven't seen? They're rushing you too much. But fleeing isn't safer. The guilds wish to own you just as much."
"So what then?" He shifted towards her, whisper-quiet. "I just keep being their experiment?"
Her fingers brushed against his shoulder. "No. You keep getting stronger. Until no one can use you."
That struck deep.
And for the first time, he gave himself a small, hard smile.
4. The Test of Fire
A week went by, and Shaun's name was called again.
But this time, not for training.
For combat.
A Class-B ghoul outbreak had broken out outside Osaka — a containment failure in a dungeon. Civilian hostages. The Authority required an immediate neutralization team.
Reina was field lead.
Shaun was backup.
It was meant to be a procedural.
They arrived at midnight. It rained hard, pouring streets into rivers of thought. The wind carried the stench of rot and iron.
"Three signatures verified inside," Reina said, sweeping her scanner. "Low B-class. You cover the western block, I'll take east."
Shaun nodded, unsheathing his blade — Authority-issued carbonsteel.
His first actual mission.
The building towered before him, broken windows and dimmed lights.
He entered.
The instant he did, all his senses howled.
They're here.
Something burst out of the shadows — too quick, too sudden. Shaun's body reacted instinctively. His knife flashed, cutting through a ghoul's throat. Black blood jetted the walls.
But one more emerged from the rear. Then another.
Five, six, ten—
He turned, parrying claws, firing bursts in return. Each blow cleaner, more efficient than before.
But then he sensed it—an energy surge. Not B-class. A.
From the stairwell, a bigger ghoul stepped out, armored skin, mouth opening wide in a roar.
Shaun's eyes went wide. "Reina—!"
No response.
He sidestepped a swipe that crushed concrete, rolling out of the way. It was too powerful for regular suppression.
His chest ached — power waiting to be released.
Not here. Not now. Suppress it.
He deflected another blow, blade shaking under impact.
Then the ghoul attacked again. He flinched, but too late — claws tore across his shoulder, blood pooling immediately.
Agony awakened him.
He wrapped the monster's arm with his unharmed hand. Flame burst forth from his palm. Golden light consumed the beast, incinerating through bone and muscle until ash was all that was left.
Silence.
Shaun sank to one knee, gasping.
"Shaun!"
Reina's voice rang out as she burst in, soaked and gasping. "Are you—oh my god, you're bleeding—"
He chuckled weakly. "Guess I passed the test."
Her relief was instantaneous but roughened. "You overdid it. Again."
He shrugged. "Would've died otherwise."
"Still," she said, laying a hand across his wound. Her power surged — gentle blue light weaving the rent tissue together. "You can't keep using bursts of power. One day it'll incinerate you from the inside."
He caught her gaze. "Maybe. But that day isn't today."
5. Fame and Fire
The mission report was glowing.
The authorities commended his effectiveness. The video — once more leaked — depicted a young hunter rescuing civilians against impossible odds.
The internet made him an up-and-coming hero.
#GoldenFlame trended for three consecutive days.
Offers poured in — sponsorships, interviews, guild invitations.
Even #4 in the world Japanese guild Shinkai Vanguard invited him.
It was unheard of.
Foreign recruiting of a newly-ranked A-class, with elite accommodations, bonuses, and luxury treatment.
Reina gazed at the paper in shock. "They're offering you a 4BHK mansion in Tokyo, two cars, and $150 per mission with bonuses. That's outrageous."
Shaun blinked. "I mean… that's a lot of money."
"It's a trap," she cautioned.
But secretly, she knew — this was his opportunity to break out of the Authority's cage.
And he did.
6. A New Sky
Tokyo's skyline glimmered with the sun of evening as Shaun emerged onto his new balcony. Below, the city seemed to stretch on for miles — lights as constellations, the wind filled with sound and color.
For the first time since waking, he felt something new.
Freedom.
The Shinkai Vanguard Guild was kind to him — or at least pretended to be. He was greeted with applause, provided with roomy accommodations, shiny cars, and his own training facilities.
Even heaven had observers.
Even courtesy came with agreements.
The Guildmaster, a level-headed woman named Ayame Ren, greeted him in private on his first day.
"You've done the right thing, Shaun," she said, a voice as smooth as silk. "We don't enslave our people here. We let them shine."
Her smile didn't extend to her eyes.
"We demand loyalty," she went on. "Not obedience. You understand the difference."
He nodded. "Got it."
She gave him a black ID badge with gold markings:
Shinkai Vanguard – Rank B Hunter, Shaun Miller.
B-rank already.
His progress was meteoric.
7. The Fire Within
Weeks went by. Shaun trained harder than he ever had — now under true masters. He sparring every day, learning team strategies, and developing his healing powers until he could fix shattered bones in seconds.
His stats skyrocketed:
Speed: 60 km/h
Strength: Could bench 2000 kg
Healing radius: 25 meters
But even through advancements, something within him stirred — an energy pulse that felt… off. Darker.
Sometimes, in his dreams, he witnessed flames turn dark.
And whispers.
A voice that said, "More… let it burn…"
He'd wake drenched in sweat, heart pounding.
Was this the price of power?
8. The Letter
One evening, while reviewing mission files, Shaun received an encrypted message on his private terminal. No sender.
He opened it cautiously.
*"You think you're free, Golden Flame? You're not. The Guilds, the Authority — two sides of the same cage.
Meet me.
Midnight.
Tokyo Bay."*
He stared at the screen, jaw tightening.
Reina's voice came back to him: "You can't keep trusting the wrong people."
But something within him — curiosity, rage, perhaps fate — compelled him to leave.
9. The Night Meeting
Tokyo Bay glittered under the moon. Waves pounded the pier while Shaun stood, coat cinched tight against the cold.
Footsteps drew near.
Out of the shadows emerged a figure in a gray coat — face obscured by a hood.
You came," the stranger replied. The voice was warped but peaceful.
"Who are you?" Shaun insisted.
"Somebody who once trusted in the Authority. Before they began experimenting on us."
Shaun stood stock-still. "What?"
"They're not training awakeners, Shaun. They're mass-producing them. For combat."
His breath hitched. "That's not possible—"
The figure threw him a tiny metallic cube.
"Plug it into your Guild terminal. Look for yourself.
Before Shaun had time to respond, the figure disappeared into the darkness, as smoke in the wind.
He was left standing there, gazing at the glowing cube in his hand.
10. The Flame That Questions
At home, he hesitated — then plugged in the cube. Information spilled across his screen.
Unauthorized papers. Reports. Names.
Project Emberfall.
Human tests.
Failed resurrections.
Dead bodies marked "mana unstable."
Reina's name was on one of the lists — marked Subject Recovered.
His gut went cold.
It was all true.
The Authority was producing awakeners.
He leaned back in his chair, the screen's glow in his wide eyes.
All that he'd trusted in — the system, the mission, the training — broke like glass.
He balled his fists, veins pulsing softly gold once more.
"They used us," he breathed, rage shaking his voice. "All of us."
Outside, Tokyo's lights blazed bright — a city alive and unaware.
Inside, a new flame started to rise.
One not of power.
But of rebellion.