Many unwanted gazes were focused on Elias, who had finally calmed down. He took a deep breath, reminding himself that this wasn't a friendly place.
He could see fear in the eyes of most of the youngsters, but beneath that fear, hostility was lurking. They were eager to strike him down, to see him fall.
For now, fear kept their hostility in check. But the moment that fear was overwhelmed, that hostility was going to consume him, just as it had consumed his world.
He had forgotten what kind of place this was. He was alone, both at home and outside. The only things keeping him going were his memories and a burning desire for revenge.
Even if he had to walk over the corpses of these people, he wasn't going to let them turn him into a stepping stone. He was not going to be used again.
As he made up his mind, he hid his real self behind a false facade. It was as if he had worn a mask of false emotions, not letting anyone see what was truly inside.
His gaze turned cold, and he looked at the sky. The huge beast in the sky, that had the body of a centipede had long since disappeared inside the clouds, with the lightning only intensifying.
Amidst the lightning, he saw something else appear high in the sky. This time, it wasn't the figure of a beast, or even a human.
It was an eye... A giant eye in the middle of the sky. Looking at it, he couldn't tell if it was a human eye or a beast.
The eye had dual pupils, one being pitch black and the other being pure white. Each pupil was looking in a different direction.
"The Awakening Ceremony begins." A voice appeared in everyone's head.
Many of the youngsters fainted from the voice alone, their minds overwhelmed. The hooded figures appeared again and teleported away with those who had lost consciousness.
The awakening ceremony had already ended for those who couldn't even remain conscious after hearing the voice.
Even Elias barely managed to keep his sanity when faced with the voice that sounded like the screeching of a banshee. It was a thousand times worse than someone scratching a rough board with their nails.
"Approach the pillar closest to you," the voice appeared again, being even worse this time.
Many tried to close their ears with their hands to protect themselves from the voice, but it was just as useless. The voice was appearing directly in their heads.
Even more people passed out, and just as before, they were dragged away from this place.
Meanwhile, the rest of the youngsters followed the voice and approached the heavenly pillars closest to them.
Elias also did the same, even though he was a bit disoriented because of the voice.
Many people were trying to approach the same pillar, but when they saw that Elias was approaching them they stopped midway and selected other pillars.
It was the same with other descendants of the high ranking families. Until the awakening ceremony was over, no one wanted to offend the big families, especially the Ashborn.
There were many pillars that were surrounded by more than ten youngsters. Fortunately, the pillars were wide enough that even if hundreds of them surrounded it, they couldn't cover a pillar.
There were only twenty or so pillars that were monopolized by individuals, with Elias being one.
Only when Elias was looking at the pillar from close, he could see that the pillar didn't have an even surface. There were some parts of the pillar that were sticking out, barely enough for a grip.
Elias suddenly had a really bad feeling about this.
In the stories, the awakening ceremony was simply placing their hands on a stone. Did they simply have to place their hands on the pillar? But then why was there this uneven surface like a path was being created to the top?
He really hoped that it was just a coincidence. He really hoped that the awakening ceremony wasn't what he was thinking. It wouldn't make sense!
"Start Climbing. The higher you can climb, the closer you shall be to the awakening!"
As if a fear coming true, the voice asked them to do exactly as he was worried about. This awakening ceremony had turned into a nightmare.
It would've been better if he had a stronger physique, but the boy he possessed was mostly starved, having barely any muscles. At this rate, could he even climb this pillar whose top couldn't even be seen?
Was he going to fail this Awakening Ceremony? Was this the reason he was barely fed anything at home? Because the Lady of the House knew what was going to happen in the Awakening Ceremony?
None of these questions mattered anymore. Even if he had to break his body, he had to climb the pillar. He had to receive a destructive class at any cost! He couldn't afford any less!
The other big family descendants had already started climbing. Some of them had even climbed a few meters within the first few seconds, as if they were in a race against time.
Elias also reached out his hand, finding grip in the shallow crevices of the pillar. The pillar was extremely cold, almost freezing. Still, for Elias, it was nowhere close to the cold that he had felt when holding the lifeless bodies of his family members.
He pulled himself up, his muscles almost screaming in protest. Years of neglect had weakened this body, and every movement took a lot of effort.
Above him, the pillar stretched endlessly into the storm clouds where the giant centipede had disappeared.
How high did they have to climb? What awaited them at the top? And what would happen to those who fell? He had no answers.
The only answer he knew was that he had to climb, even if his body fell apart. Everything he wanted, waited at the top of the pillar.
For the other youngsters, atop the pillar was their class that could help them rise in society. But for Elias, on the top of the pillar, was something that would help him destroy this society itself.
He gritted his teeth, ignoring the burning in his arms and the tremor in his legs.