Chapter 259: Conspiracy? Danger?

While Silas was preparing to complete, possibly, his most dangerous mission ever, some people were also reviewing his "doings" on videotapes. And honestly... Silas was fucked up.

The first video was of him fighting the chicken during the Rift Break. Silas Ashard was known to have awakened as an S-Rank with a Thread Manipulation ability. That shouldn’t have made it bad, but one detail changed everything.

Silas had summoned powerful glowing pink arrows from a portal. No matter how the concept surrounding S-Ranks depicted them to be, this was something logical.

Thread Manipulation didn’t mean Arrow Summoning.

It just wasn’t possible in a normal sense, or even in the abnormal existence of S-Ranks.

The next video was of his fight with Echidna, which was very destructive, to say the least. In that fight, he had used a variety of skills relating to threads... at least they could tell. At the same time, there were some he’d used that made no actual sense...

For example, he used a wing in the battle.

First of all, Silas was known to be a human. Secondly, his ability had no relation to a monster or an animal. Say he’s an S-Rank, and he has all that illogical stuff S-Ranks have... if there were to be a relation to a monster or something, considering his ability, it should have been a spider, not a freaking bird or something. No spider has wings...

And not forgetting, he had even summoned a kind of projection of an orc during his battle with the chicken.

The next video was of his battle with the eyeball. The screen paused on Silas standing over the massive A-Rank entity. A researcher leaned forward.

"Play it again."

The footage resumed.

Silas kicked the enormous eyeball across the battlefield, causing it to fly through the air, strike the ground, bounce over a ruined structure, and roll across the dirt like an actual football.

The researcher blinked. "Why?"

Nobody answered as the footage continued.

Silas sprinted after the creature and kicked the eyeball again, and the impact sent a shockwave across the battlefield.

The officials watching the footage remained silent.

"Is he... playing with it?" One of them slowly lowered his pen.

The researcher checked the readings.

"That appears to be the case."

"That is an A-Rank entity."

"Yes."

"An A-Rank entity."

"Yes."

"And he is kicking it."

"Yes."

"Like a ball."

"That is what the footage suggests."

The next section of the video showed Silas suddenly moving faster than his previous physical limits should have allowed. His movements became sharper, while his acceleration increased without any visible alteration to his physique.

There was no thread reinforcement around his limbs, no visible energy flow- his body performed beyond what it had demonstrated moments earlier.

A technician paused the footage.

"His physical output just increased."

"How?"

"We do not know."

"Could it be an enhancement connected to his awakening?"

"Possibly."

"Connected to threads?"

The technician hesitated.

"No."

The footage resumed.

Silas twisted around an attack from the eyeball, his body bending at an impossible angle, almost as if his bones had become flexible. He avoided a strike by less than an inch, spun around, and drove his fist into the creature’s surface.

The blow created a deep depression, causing the eyeball to scream.

A different official rubbed his forehead.

"His strength is inconsistent."

"That is normal for awakened individuals."

"No, it is not."

The official pointed at the screen.

"He was previously recorded struggling against weaker monsters. Now he is physically overpowering an A-Rank entity."

"His awakening may have developed."

"During the fight?"

"Yes."

"That is not an explanation."

"It is the only one we have."

The video continued.

Silas suddenly produced two short, curved blades which had not been visible in his hands before. The blades had just appeared.

The researcher immediately paused the recording.

"Where did those come from?"

The room became quiet again.

The weapon analysis began. The blades were identified as A-Rank. Their structure was abnormal. Their edges were serrated, their tips curved inward, and their material contained traces of a beast-derived substance.

One official frowned.

"Did he carry those into the tower?"

"No."

"Was he given them by the system?"

The technician looked at him.

"The tower’s equipment records show no weapon distribution."

"Then where did they come from?" 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ

Nobody could answer that. The footage resumed.

At one point, he was dragged across the ground for several meters, but instead of releasing the weapon, he laughed and pulled himself closer.

The researcher stared at the screen.

"Why is he enjoying this?"

"Psychological instability?"

"Do not speculate."

"Then what should I call it?"

The screen suddenly changed to a close-up of Silas’s final attack. He pulled his fist back, the energy around his body changing. A pressure filled the battlefield, causing the air to become heavy.

The eyeball attempted to retreat, but it failed, as if locked in place by something. Silas punched it, and the footage ended.

Nobody spoke for several seconds. Then someone asked the obvious question.

"What abilities did he use?"

The technician pulled up the analysis report.

"We identified several effects."

"List them."

The technician swallowed.

"First, he increased his physical strength beyond his previously recorded limit."

"Expected for an S-Rank."

"Perhaps. But the increase was not accompanied by any recognizable energy reinforcement."

"Continue."

"He also increased his movement speed and reaction time. His body responded to attacks before the attack had fully developed."

"Could be enhanced perception."

"Possibly."

"Next."

"He demonstrated abnormal flexibility and body control. His movement did not resemble normal human biomechanics."

"That is still within the range of certain awakened physiques."

"Then he created two A-Rank weapons without a visible summoning process."

The official’s expression tightened.

"That is not related to Thread Manipulation."

"No."

"Continue."

"He displayed an effect that forced the hostile entity to remain focused on him."

"Provocation?"

"Not exactly. The creature repeatedly attempted to flee, but its attention kept returning to Silas."

"Could he have manipulated its instincts?"

"We cannot confirm."

The technician changed the screen.

"He also appeared to increase the intensity of his attacks through emotional stimulation."

"Rage?"

"No. He was enjoying himself."

"That is not a scientific measurement."

"It is the closest description."

The official ignored that.

"What else?"

The technician hesitated.

"His final attack contained a form of pressure that interfered with the creature’s ability to escape."

"Threads?"

"No visible threads."

"Then what?"

"We do not know."

The report continued scrolling.

There were more inconsistencies.

Silas had endured attacks that should have broken his bones. He had continued fighting after being thrown through solid structures. He had demonstrated combat instincts far beyond what his previous records suggested.

He had used weapons he should not have possessed. He had increased his strength, speed, and physical performance without a clear energy source.

He had forced an A-Rank creature into a close-range battle, and he had killed it while treating the entire encounter like a game.

The official stared at the report.

"How many abilities does this boy have?"

"Unknown."

"He is registered as a Thread Manipulation user."

"Yes."

"Then why does his combat record look like a collection of unrelated awakenings?"

The researcher leaned back.

"That is the concern."

The screen displayed Silas’s official profile.

[NAME: SILAS ASHARD]

[AWAKENING: S-RANK]

[ABILITY: THREAD MANIPULATION][STATUS: STUDENT]

[THREAT ASSESSMENT: UNDER REVIEW]

One of the officials scoffed.

"Under review?"

The researcher looked at him.

"What would you prefer?"

"His ability is still Thread Manipulation. Everything else could be secondary effects."

"Could be."

"Then stop making it sound like he is some unknown entity."

The researcher said nothing. The official leaned forward.

"Humanity has dealt with strange S-Ranks before. Some have multiple abilities. Some have unusual physiques. Some possess monster traits. It is not unheard of."

"No," the researcher replied. "But this is different."

"How?"

The researcher rewound the footage.

"Most awakened individuals develop in one direction. Their abilities may branch, evolve, or gain secondary functions, but there is usually a pattern."

He pointed at Silas.

"This boy has no pattern."

The screen changed to show the glowing arrows, the enormous wing, the orc projection, the solar wings, the sunball, and every anomaly. The researcher looked around the room.

"His abilities do not seem to be growing from one source."

"Then what are they growing from?"

The footage suddenly glitched. For a brief moment, the image of Silas vanished. In its place appeared a distorted pink symbol, then the screen went black.

The technicians immediately began checking the equipment.

"What happened?"

"Signal interference."

"From the tower?"

"Possibly."

The official stood.

"Fix it."

The screen flickered once more. For less than a second, a message appeared.

[RECORDING ACCESS DETECTED]

Then it disappeared. Nobody noticed, except the researcher seated closest to the monitor.

"That was not tower interference."

"What?"

He stared at the blank screen.

"Nothing."

The official turned away.

"Regardless, Silas Ashard must be monitored from now on."

"Monitored?"

"Yes."

"After everything we have seen?"

The official glanced back. "What else do you suggest?"

The researcher looked at the frozen image of Silas and lowered his voice.

"I suggest we stop assuming he is the one being tested."

The official frowned.

"What does that mean?"

The researcher did not answer, because deep down, he had already concluded. The tower was testing the academies; the monsters were testing the students.

But Silas?

Silas seemed to be testing the world, and the worst part was that nobody knew what would happen when he finally decided to stop playing.