Jake got up very early to get ready and go to school, but he was surprised to find that there was no water in his shower.
No matter how hard he tried, the water wouldn't come out.
When he went downstairs and told his uncles about his problem, Roob chuckled under his breath.
"From today on, you won't have the right to the water I pay for. Nor to the food I bring to this table."
"What?"
Jake and Diane were surprised.
"I accepted you into this house when my younger sister kicked you out of hers for being trash, but that doesn't mean I'm going to give you everything for free," Roob continued eating as if what he was saying was the most normal thing in the world.
"Aren't you a talented martial artist? I think you can get your own food." He said with obvious mockery and sarcasm in his voice.
What's wrong with this guy? Jake wondered, bewildered.
He almost seemed envious of his own nephew.
When Roob left the house, Diane offered him to shower in her bathroom. Something that surprised Jake a lot was that Gwen also offered him to use hers.
Since he didn't want to use the same bathroom as Roob, he accepted Gwen's offer.
When Jake finished showering and changing, Gwen was waiting for him in the living room and handed him some keys.
"These are the keys to my room; you can come in and shower whenever you want." Without a doubt, Gwen's attitude and the way she treated him had changed a lot.
But since he needed it and didn't want to use Roob's bathroom, he was forced to accept them.
"Thank you."
"You're welcome."
...
Upon arriving at his classroom, Jake realized that somehow news about his fight from yesterday had gone viral among his classmates, who bombarded him with questions about it.
"That was awesome, bro," David approached him along with several of his classmates who praised and admired him.
"How did you do that? Several of those guys had your same life force, and Zeth even had greater strength than yours."
"Is it true?"
"Is it because of your spirit?"
"It wasn't a big deal," Jake decided to behave calmly and indifferently. "What I don't understand is why Zeth attacked me so suddenly."
"He's a bully; they never need a reason."
"That's right. But I heard the idiot is in love with Teresa; I don't think he can show his face after yesterday."
"Yeah, that's true."
Jake scratched his head irritably. All because of a stupid woman he didn't want to see.
When the teacher entered the classroom, everyone stopped crowding around him and focused on the class. But Jake couldn't concentrate, thinking about how to get money.
His second period was the special class.
The classroom was on the other side of the school, but Jake didn't mind, after all, he ran to school every day.
The special class only had about 40 students.
Jake looked at the nearest chair and took a seat. He wasn't particularly close to anyone, so he had no problem sitting in any seat he found.
With a quick glance, he could see Tristan, Damian, Sara, and Reese, and surprisingly, he also found his cousin Lana.
Everyone knew it was the special class, as they were the sensation every year.
Director Morgan entered the classroom and looked at each of the students.
"Being part of the special class is an honor for the few who are chosen," the director said very seriously. "This year, you will be the image of this school."
A hologram appeared next to the director, showing their names and faces.
"You will be ranked, and the higher you climb, the more resources you will receive."
"What kind of resources?" Jake asked, raising his hand.
The rest of the class looked at him as if he were an idiot.
The director just gestured, and a list of resources appeared in their retinas.
Soothing incense
Level 1 nutrient serum
Boneless Jujitsu
Military Fist
Dragon claws
Spectral sword
2 hours in the virtual chamber
Director's direct guide
Hypnotist's guide
Being hypnotized to enter deep sleep
All of these were great rewards. For example, the soothing incense, its scent calms the mind and spirit, increasing the chances of entering deep sleep.
There were martial arts that were very expensive and even had nutrient serums.
The list went on, but Jake preferred to give his full attention to the director. Seeing that he had his attention again, the director continued explaining the rules of the ranking, which could be summarized simply as... Fight.
The ranking was already formed in positions that the teachers and the director believed they deserved. If someone wanted to climb in the ranking and get better resources, they had to challenge the person above them and climb to the top.
Jake smiled ironically when he saw his name and photo.
Jake Hurkacs - Ranking 36
This is going to be a pain!
Only those from position 30 and above received resources.
"I know many of you won't be happy with your own position, so we'll go straight to the gym." The director stood up and left the classroom for the rest of the students to follow him.
The students who saw them started whispering and opened the school page. Images of the gym and the list of 40 students began to appear on the walls of the entire school.
"Listen carefully because I won't repeat myself. Everyone can challenge and be challenged once a day. Also, you can only challenge students who are above you." With that, the director made the image of Damian, ranking 40, appear on the screens.
"Who do you want to challenge, Damian?"