"Hey," said Leo, catching my attention.
"Hi," I replied, wondering why he had approached me.
"Uhm... I noticed you struggled a lot in that match. If you want, I can help train you," he said, smiling.
Looking around, I noticed that all eyes were on me. It was clear that people were confused about the number one student in our year talking to one of the weakest students.
"No thanks," I said as I walked away toward Sarah.
Sarah had also finished her match, though she had intentionally lost.
As I walked over to Sarah, she seemed to be giving me a strange look.
"Hey, why are you looking at me like that?" I asked, feeling confused.
"Oh, nothing. I just wanted to ask about the skill you were using," she replied.
I quickly realized that I had used her grandpa's skill, and I didn't want to reveal that to her.
"Oh, it's nothing special," I replied, diverting the conversation.
"I heard Leo offer to train you. Why did you reject his offer?" Sarah asked, curious.
"No reason, I just don't want to get involved with him," I replied.
"Why?" she pressed.
"It's just... no reason," I said, trying to evade the question.
"You're pretty secretive, you know that," she remarked.
"Hey, everyone has their secrets," I said with a smile.
As the day went on, we attended various classes such as beast subjugation, history, math, and others. The school day ended at 5 pm, and Sarah and I went to the cafeteria.
On our way there, we were suddenly stopped by four guys, and I recognized one of them as Jeremy.
"Hey, you got lucky in that sparring match. How about a rematch?" he said, smirking.
As they surrounded us, Sarah retrieved her daggers from her storage ring. Although her main weapon was a bow, she was also skilled in close combat.
Since I didn't have a storage ring, I didn't have any weapons at hand.
"Damn it, if they all attack at once, I'll lose immediately, and Sarah can't use her full strength," I thought, realizing the disadvantage.
Just as they were about to attack, Leo and his friends arrived and quickly beat them up.
"Uhmm... Thanks," I said, about to walk away.
But before I could, Alissa angrily walked toward me.
"Hey! Why do you keep ignoring him? He's been nothing but nice to you, and yet you just ignore him. Honestly, I don't know why he's so interested in someone as weak as you," she scolded.
Caught off guard, I looked at Sarah for support, but she just stared back at me.
"Well, I guess I can't ignore the plot. It seems that no matter how hard I try to get away from the main characters, I will get dragged into it," I thought.
"First, tell me why he's so interested in me," I demanded.
As I said that, all eyes turned toward Leo. It seemed even his friends were curious about his intentions.
"Uhm... It's nothing. It's just a feeling that you'd make a good friend," Leo said.
"Bullshit. He probably got a quest from his system. There's no other explanation," I thought, skeptical of his answer.
"Fine. You want to go get lunch with us?" I asked.
"Sure," Leo replied, smiling.
As Leo, Ray, Amy, Alissa, Kayla, Sarah, and I walked to the cafeteria, all eyes were on us. I felt uncomfortable with so many people staring at me.
"Hey, aren't you guys uncomfortable with all the stares?" I asked, trying to ease my unease.
"Nah, you get used to them over time," Kayla reassured me.
I noticed that Sarah also seemed accustomed to the attention, as if the stares didn't bother her.
"She must be used to people paying attention to her since she's a princess," I thought.
Upon reaching the cafeteria, we engaged in a great conversation. After finishing our meal, we went our separate ways and returned to our rooms.
Entering my room, I quickly took a shower and laid down in bed. Countless thoughts raced through my mind.
"I have to get stronger quickly now that I'm stuck with the main characters. The first arc is starting in about a month," I contemplated.
"I'll probably train with Leo since he offered. Then, this weekend, I'll head to a dungeon," I planned.
***
Lessons for the day had just ended, and Ray, Leo, and the others headed to Leo's place for a spar.
Arriving at Leo's place, he put on a limiter that would restrict his power to F- rank.
We stood across from each other, getting ready for the match.
As the bell rang, signaling the start of the match, Leo immediately dashed toward me. I activated [Rulers Authority], causing him to freeze momentarily.
Seizing the opportunity, I swiftly moved toward him, preparing to slash at his neck. However, he quickly blocked my attack and pushed me back with his sword.
As I stumbled back, my balance slightly off, he took advantage and performed an overhead slash. I managed to block it, but I could feel myself being pushed backward.
Dodging his next attack, I mustered all the force I could and pushed him away. Before I could react, he activated [Air Walk] and appeared behind me. In an instant, I felt his sword at the back of my neck.
I had lost.
"Well done," Leo complimented.
"What do you mean 'well done'? I could tell you were holding back," I retorted.
"Well, you made me use a skill I hadn't planned on using against you. That's quite an accomplishment," he explained, his smile unwavering.
Just as I thought the match was over, he handed me a stamina potion.
"What's this for?" I asked, puzzled.
"Well, that was only the first round. You still have to fight against Ray, Amy, Alissa, and Kayla," he replied, grinning.
"Shit, are they trying to kill me?" I thought, realizing the challenging battles that awaited me.
***
Leaving Leo's place and heading to my own room, my body ached all over, and I felt mentally drained. Despite the stamina and health potions I had consumed, fatigue still clung to me.
As I collapsed into bed, exhaustion consuming me, my Z watch suddenly blared loudly, jolting me awake. Glancing at the time, I realized it was only 6 am.
I noticed a missed call from Leo. We had exchanged contact information the previous day.
Curiosity piqued, I answered the call.
"Hey, wake up! We're outside your room. We're going for a jog. Everyone is here, including Sarah. So hurry up," Leo urged.
Groaning, I dragged myself out of bed, opened the door, and was greeted by Leo, Alissa, Amy, Kayla, and Sarah, all dressed in jogging clothes.
"Damn, don't they ever sleep? Why are they here so early?" I wondered.
"Let's go," Leo said, pulling me along.
"Hey, wait! I still need to change and eat breakfast," I protested.
Since I didn't have time to go to the
cafeteria, I attempted to make my own meal, but Sarah quickly intervened, chucking my burnt toast and eggs into the bin.
"You're not eating that junk. I'll make you some proper food," she offered kindly.
Impressed by her cooking skills, I quickly ate, got changed, and joined them for the jog.