Chapter 198: Kiss Me Again

The next morning, the Ashard Estate was unusually quiet. At least, quiet by Ashard Estate standards. There were no alarms, no exploding training equipment, and no one screaming because Gromda had accidentally eaten something that belonged to someone else.

For the first time in what felt like ages, everyone was simply... resting.

Silas sat comfortably on one of the enormous sofas in the living room, dressed in a loose black morning robe. His pink hair was slightly messy, and his expression suggested that he had absolutely no intention of leaving the sofa anytime soon.

Yesterday had been exhausting, not merely physically.

Explaining why an S-Rank primordial monster was now walking around with them had been considerably more difficult.

The supervisors had arrived at Blackridge expecting to find a dangerous Mythical Entity. Instead, they found Echidna calmly standing beside Silas.

Naturally, they had panicked a lot, even to the point of drawing weapons. Several supervisors had nearly summoned reinforcements. Silas had eventually been forced to use Charm Reflex, but not to control anyone.

That would have created an entirely different problem.

Instead, he used it to suppress the immediate hostility in the room while calmly explaining everything that had happened.

It had taken nearly an hour.

Eventually, after reviewing the drone footage, the tournament records, the system’s mission data, and Silas’s explanation, the organizers reluctantly accepted the situation.

Echidna had been subdued, and most importantly, Silas had somehow managed to convince her to cooperate. That last part was what everyone found the most suspicious. Nobody understood it.

Silas wasn’t particularly interested in explaining, and Echidna certainly wasn’t helping.

Now, the next day, the entire situation already felt surreal. A massive television occupied the far wall of the living room. On it was the official broadcast of the Inter-Academy Selection Tournament. The City Qualifiers had ended, and the results for City A were being announced.

Silas lazily watched the screen. Beside him sat Chloe.

She had changed into comfortable home clothes and was quietly watching the broadcast with her usual expressionless face. Gromda sat between Silas’s legs on the floor. She had apparently decided that his lap was the most comfortable chair in existence.

Silas gently ran his fingers through her hair. Gromda’s eyes were half closed.

"Mmm..."

"Good?"

"Very."

Silas continued stroking her hair.

"You’re spoiled."

"Mate spoils."

"True."

Gromda smiled. On his other side sat Echidna, and she was having a crisis... Definitely not an existential crisis.

No.

She was trying to understand why she kept looking at Silas. Every few seconds, her golden eyes would drift toward him. She’d stare. Then quickly look away.

Then, after another few seconds, she’d glance at him again.

Silas noticed, but he didn’t say anything yet.

Echidna’s cheeks were slightly pink.

She was still wearing the loose clothes they had purchased for her after leaving Blackridge. They were simple, comfortable clothes that covered most of her body. The word here is most. She preferred to even walk naked.

If one ignored the horns, the golden beast eyes, the patches of dark fur, the scales, and the fact that she was a primordial monster capable of creating other monsters, she looked mostly human. She was perfectly extraordinary.

Silas glanced at her, and Echidna immediately looked at the television. He smiled. Chloe noticed.

"You keep looking at her."

Silas raised an eyebrow.

"She’s looking at me."

Echidna’s head snapped toward Chloe.

"I am not."

Chloe stared at her.

"You are."

"I was watching the giant mirror."

"You were watching Silas."

"I was watching the mirror."

"That mirror is over there."

Echidna slowly turned toward the screen.

"I knew that."

Silas laughed quietly, causing Echidna’s cheeks to become even redder.

"I don’t understand why everyone keeps making this strange."

Chloe’s expression remained flat.

"Because you’re acting strange."

"I am not."

Gromda opened one eye.

"Mate’s new girlfriend shy."

Echidna nearly choked.

"I am not his-!"

She stopped. Everyone looked at her. Echidna’s face turned bright red.

Silas grinned.

"This is entertaining."

"Don’t."

"You’re adorable when you’re embarrassed."

Echidna immediately looked away.

"Stop saying things like that."

"Why?"

"Because..."

She couldn’t finish. Silas chuckled and returned his attention to the television. The broadcast had moved to the official scoreboard. A presenter stood in front of a massive digital display.

"After three days of competition, and following the emergency termination of the City Qualifier stage, the official rankings for City A have been finalized."

The screen changed, and six academy logos appeared. Silas leaned forward slightly.

"Here we go."

Chloe nodded. Alpha, who had been sitting in another chair nearby, stretched his arms.

"I wonder where we were placed."

Silas looked at him.

"You mean where I carried you."

Alpha’s eye twitched.

"Don’t start."

"I haven’t started."

"You started yesterday."

"I don’t remember."

"You literally launched an A-Rank monster into another dimension."

"That was teamwork."

"You punched it."

"Teamwork."

Alpha sighed. The presenter continued.

"Due to the extraordinary circumstances surrounding the final day, the evaluation committee has reviewed objective completion, participant survival, monster cores acquired, territory control, combat performance, and academy cooperation."

Silas blinked.

"Academy cooperation?"

Chloe glanced at him.

"You worked with Argent Heights."

"Oh," Alpha smirked. "You’re probably getting bonus points for that."

Silas leaned back.

"Nice."

Echidna quietly glanced at him again. This time, Silas caught her, their eyes meeting. She immediately looked away.

The presenter spoke again.

"Sixth place..." The room became quieter. "Blackstone Academy."

The Blackstone logo appeared.

Silas nodded. "Expected."

"Fifth place... Aethercrest Academy."

"Fourth place... New Liberty Vanguard Academy."

Alpha whistled.

"Not bad."

Silas nodded.

"Third place..."

The presenter paused dramatically. Silas narrowed his eyes, while Chloe remained expressionless. Gromda continued enjoying her hair strokes.

Echidna leaned forward slightly.

"Argent Heights Academy."

Silas smiled.

"Leonard and his team."

The footage briefly showed Leonard Voss and several Argent Heights students. Silas remembered their battle. They had fought well, especially considering the circumstances.

"Second place..."

The entire room became silent. The presenter smiled.

"Ironwood Saints Academy."

The Ironwood Saints logo appeared. Alpha raised an eyebrow.

"So..." He slowly looked toward Silas.

Silas stared at the screen. There was only one academy left. The presenter turned toward the camera.

"And therefore..."

A dramatic pause.

"The first-place academy of the City A City Qualifiers is..."

The Valecrest logo appeared.

VALECREST COLLEGIATE GROUNDS.

Silas blinked. "Oh."

Alpha jumped up.

"YES!"

Chloe’s lips curved into the smallest smile. Silas leaned back into the sofa.

"Easy."

Alpha stared at him.

"Easy?!"

Silas shrugged.

"We survived."

"You fought an S-Rank!"

"Minor inconvenience."

"You nearly died!"

"Details."

Alpha opened his mouth, and closed it. He decided not to argue. The presenter continued explaining the scoring, but Silas’s attention drifted. He looked at Echidna.

She was staring at him again. This time, however, she didn’t look away. She stared directly into his eyes.

Silas raised an eyebrow. "Yes?"

Echidna swallowed. Her golden eyes flickered. She seemed to wrestle with something internally for several seconds.

Then, suddenly...

"Kiss me again."

The room died.