Awakening The Only SSS-Rank Class! Now Even Dragons Obey Me Chapter 4: Your Still My Crybaby

Gentle rays of sunlight filtered through the eastern window of the hospital room, playfully skipping over the crisp white sheets and onto Daniel's ashen face.

The sharp scent of alcohol mixed with disinfectants hung in the atmosphere. Liana, her face etched with concern and her eyes red from a sleepless night, dragged the chair nearer and clasped her son's hands tightly.

Only moments earlier, representatives from the Awakened Organization had departed, followed by the doctors who checked on Daniel once more.

"Daniel! You almost gave us a heart attack, kid!" Her tone trembled, though she fought to keep it steady. "Do you have any idea what went down last night? I was sure I'd be picking out a burial plot!"

Daniel managed a weak smile. Pain pulsed from the injury at his side, causing him to wince.

"Mom... I barely escaped death myself. Can we ease into this a bit?"

In the room's corner, Alice lounged on the sofa, her expression a mix of irritation and exhaustion.

"If Mom doesn't finish you off, the Awakened Organization sure will! Regular folks don't mess with monsters like that!"

"I mean, come on, the way you spoke—like some undead cleric or whatever. I nearly had a panic attack!" She propped herself up partially and tossed in a mocking edge,

"Where did you pick up that kind of speech anyway?"

Liana's eyes grew wide, brimming with anxiety and care as she gazed at Daniel.

"What? Undead cleric? Lord help us... Why couldn't you get a standard class like mage or warrior?!" she exclaimed in distress.

She refused to let her son's path mirror her husband's tragic end.

"I'm a priest! You know, the kind who heals and revives folks! Sort of a holy type!" Daniel cleared his throat, aiming for a relaxed yet confident vibe.

"Mom, come on, it's really no big deal."

"You seem more like a priest handling his own burial service," Alice arched a brow and chuckled softly.

"That joke fell flat," Daniel shot her a glance.

"Hmph, it was hilarious," Alice inflated her cheeks.

Liana folded her arms and began her lecture, but Alice leaped to her feet abruptly.

"Hold on! I've got news that'll shut down Mom's scolding!"

Daniel eyed her with doubt.

"If it's just more silliness, I'd prefer to skip it."

"No, dummy!" Alice scowled, shifting to a grave tone. "The Fallen Sun Guild reached out. They set a time for my test and said if your brother awakened as well, bring him too."

Liana released a heavy exhale.

"Guild stuff? Absolutely not! It's way too early! Let's hold off till he's completely better... he's only a boy!" she burst out, laced with terror and gravity.

Painful recollections she wished to bury resurfaced in her thoughts.

Hadn't this been the precise sequence that befell her husband?

"Mom, I'm 18 now..." Daniel drew in a steadying breath and replied evenly.

"You'll always be my little scaredy-cat who feared the shadows!" Liana declared with flair, pressing a hand to her chest.

Daniel grinned faintly, yet Alice's face had shifted. A burden seemed to press on her conscience.

"Daniel... back on that street... when you stared down those beasts... your gaze... it wasn't you at all." She dropped her eyes and murmured softly, dropping the humor.

Daniel caught his breath. A deep throb stirred within his mind.

"How could you speak that way? Priests don't behave like that! It terrified me. I mean... are you truly a priest?" Alice pressed on.

That day lingered in her memory. She'd believed nothing topped the horror of a dimensional rift... yet her brother's actions did.

The mere recollection still chilled her.

"Believe me, Alice... I'm a priest, just as I claimed." Daniel's gaze lingered on her briefly. Then he offered a serene yet icy stare.

He let out a sigh. In truth, he grasped his sister's emotions well.

Yet, it wasn't his doing. During that instant, his body had slipped from his grasp.

Even so, Alice held firm. Her words softened further.

"Those abilities, that demeanor... all the fury and dread... No ordinary priest pulls that off."

"As I keep saying, nothing to fear there. It was pure rush, I got swept up in the moment..." Daniel chuckled lightly.

Quietude draped over them. Their mother remained silent. She'd always disliked Awakened matters, but fate had targeted her kin.

What choice did she have but to back her children?

Moments passed, and the pair exited the room. A thick quietness enveloped the space like a shroud.

Daniel found himself solitary.

The sun's glow gradually yielded to the encroaching dusk shadows. Nurses' steps echoed distantly in the corridor. He propped himself up slightly and peered outside.

The world appeared ordinary. But within him... chaos reigned.

Only the day before, he'd lacked any gifts. Yet now, out of nowhere, he possessed a Transcendent Class, possibly the sole one ever known.

"Open my panel," he murmured, lifting a finger to trace lightly in the empty air.