"Stop."
The group of four girls and three boys slowly turned to me. The tall boy with red hair, who I assumed was the leader, fixed his blue eyes, contrasting with his hair, on me and frowned.
"What do you want? I hope you have no intention of playing the hero?"
The boy shifted his eyes from me to my chest and looked at my name badge. Then he suddenly burst out laughing.
"You're second to last and you're going up against seven people? Do you really think I believe those stupid rumors, huh?"
The boy approached me step by step, but I didn't take my eyes off him.
"Speak the fuck up! Are you frozen?!"
The redhead raised his fist and swung at me, but it was so wasteful and aimless that I simply dodged it.
He raised his eyebrows in surprise and I let out a deep sigh.
Do you have any idea what hell I've been going through with Professor Calvin for a month? If you did, you would have pity on your face, not bewilderment.
Ignoring his surprise, I pointed my finger at the girl they were bullying.
"Ripped clothes and obvious bruises. From that alone, you can infer harassment, direct damage to personal property, and non-duel injury within the academy... On top of that, you attacked me when I did nothing to you."
I tried to talk him out of bullying without getting into a fight, but things didn't go the way I thought they would.
"So what?!"
The boy lunged at me again with a nasty smile on his face. Just like before, it was a rather slow attack according to Professor Calvin, but this time I didn't dodge his attack.
His fist landed directly on my face, and all my teeth chattered, but I managed to resist the attack only by taking two steps backward.
"You are weak! And you dare to threaten me!"
The boy and his friends behind him kept smiling.
"Believe me, you shouldn't do that."
He laughed again, thinking what I said was funny, and then he kicked me.
Just like before, I didn't defend the kick and took it directly on myself, so the boy kept shouting nonsense and hitting me.
I could see them laughing behind me, saying I was stupid or something, but I didn't give a shit about them and when the redhead stopped hitting me, his friends started joking around.
"He's just a loser, let him go, Leo."
One of the girls was even trying hard not to laugh.
While they were laughing, I slowly stood up and shook myself off.
"Huh? Can you still fucking stand up?"
The redhead approached me sarcastically, but before he could attack me again, I opened my watch and showed him the holographic screen.
"Recording... program?"
The boy suddenly stepped back in fear. As for me, I spoke nonchalantly.
"Fights are not forbidden inside the Academy. Everyone knows that, but unprovoked fights are still forbidden. On top of that, it looks like you've been harassing, bullying, and doing all sorts of things. I just told you the exact same thing and instead of denying me, you attacked me and backed up these accusations yourself."
I closed the recording program and opened my bank account, and the eighteen million wels in my account was laid bare. Everyone who had been mocking me until just now froze in place.
"I think you can understand what would happen if I got a battery report and bribed a little bit. You don't seem to have much of a background, but believe me, I have a pretty good backer. Do you think you can avoid expulsion? Even if what I say isn't true and nothing more than a bluff, can you risk it?"
I put my hand on his shoulder and placed my fingers specifically between his bones, using some of the mana in my body to strengthen my feet and arm.
"This is my first and last warning."
I put tremendous pressure on his shoulder with my hand and the boy suddenly knelt down.
Who knows, he might be able to resist. But after what I showed him, I don't think he would do it even if he wanted to.
"Don't ever show your face to me again."
I withdrew my hand and then looked at the group, all of them trembling with fear. Because if I gave the recordings to the academy, they too could be punished as stooges of the boy Leo.
"Get lost."
"Hiik!"
I used some more of my mana to create a strong gust of wind, and then they started to run away quickly because of the atmosphere.
They were so scared that they were all running in different directions.
I let out a deep sigh as I watched them from behind.
If I fought, I could somehow take the redhead hostage for underestimating me and teach them all a lesson they would never forget, but then there is the possibility that a bigger fish will come after them. So having direct evidence in my possession to make sure they don't even think about taking revenge on me is the best way to handle the situation.
After his friends had already abandoned him, Leo took one last look at me and the girl he had bullied. For a moment his eyebrows furrowed in disgust, but after a stern look I gave him, he left like his friends.
After taking a deep breath, I turned around and looked at the blue-eyed girl who had already stood up. She looked back at me, and then there was an awkward silence.
There are a lot of characters in the game with blue eyes and black hair, but I can't remember anyone like her…
My eyes automatically shifted to the name badge and I confirmed my thoughts.
<<------------------------------
Olivia Sue Gemma
#578
1-F
------------------------------>>
Just as I predicted, this girl is one of the extras in the game... And not a powerful one, judging by her ranking.
"Thank you."
The girl bowed slightly in thanks. If her expression hadn't changed, I might have thought she really appreciated me.
"You're welcome."
She straightened her posture after receiving my response. Without another word, she turned around and tried to walk away. I sighed and shouted, not letting her walk away.
"I guess you don't care too much about the rumors about you?"
The girl stopped, raised her eyebrows, and turned to me. She doesn't even realize how she looks...
I pointed my finger at her. With that, she looked down at herself and saw that her clothes were a mess.
"And it's freezing, aren't you cold?"
It's the night of September. It's impossible for her not to be cold in the middle of fall with no jacket and torn clothes.
I took off my jacket and threw it at her. She looked at it, then at me, but I turned away before she could hand it to me again.
"Building four, number eight hundred and seventeen. Give it back later."
Without waiting for her to say anything, I quickly left the area, taking one last look around once I was where no one could see me.
The moment I stopped holding back, my breathing quickened, my lungs finally released the pressure and started to work quickly. My heart literally started to race.
Since I wasn't sure of their level when I first saw them, I consumed a lot of my mana very quickly... And since my mana had increased a lot since the first day, I didn't expect to get so tired just from excessive mana consumption but… I was wrong again.
Well, the world wouldn't be like this if everyone turned from trash into diamonds in just one month of practice. I should be grateful even for my current situation...
I calmed my racing heart and slowly inhaled fresh air into my lungs. Then I realized something else.
Because I came out from the other side of the building, I'm staying in the opposite direction of the dormitories. The air is really freezing, and I don't have a jacket...
*******
When I finally entered my dorm room, I flopped down on my bed and took a deep breath.
In a single day, I had caught the spy, talked to Lucia, and saved a girl from bullying. As a result, I was deadly tired and wanted to sleep quickly...
I closed my eyes, not caring about the clothes I was wearing, but unfortunately, I was not allowed to sleep...
~beep
Sighing, I opened my watch and looked at the notification. Then a smile appeared on my face.
<<------------------------------
Spy: I reported what you asked for.
------------------------------>>
It looked a bit strange on the holographic screen because I had recorded the boy as 'Spy' but I didn't care too much about that.
<<------------------------------
You: Good, have you been given any orders?
Spy: No, they told me to keep doing what I was doing.
You: Then keep doing what you're doing. If they give you any direct orders, let me know directly.
------------------------------>>
I had nothing else to say, so I ignored the spy and closed my eyes again to sleep.
~beep
Ah... What now?
<<------------------------------
-) Study Group (3)
Adrian: Aiden, I couldn't help worrying when you suddenly left the classroom. You're okay, right?
------------------------------>>
Ah... your thoughtfulness brought tears to my eyes Adrian... But it was better not to ask me this at midnight, you could have waited for tomorrow.
<<------------------------------
Julian: Really! You're not dead, are you?
You: I'm fine, I just got a headache.
Adrian: Are you coming to school tomorrow?
Julian: Are you coming to school?
Adrian: I can give you my notes if you can't come.
Julian: I can give you my notes if you want.
------------------------------>>
Hahah... They truly have the same mindset.
<<------------------------------
You: It's a simple headache, nothing to stop me from coming to school, but I would feel better if I slept.
Adrian: Ah... Good night, get well soon.
Julian: Good night.
------------------------------>>
In this way, I closed my eyes again with a smile on my face.
~beep
Shit... Who the fuck is it again?
When I saw Clara's name on the messaging app, my anger vanished in an instant. An involuntary smile reappeared on my face, but it quickly faded again.
Right... There are people surrounding her even now. I... I'd better take care of this, but I can't do anything during the week. I'll have to wait for the weekend.
I talked to Clara for about half an hour. After that, I actually managed to fall asleep.