"Hey, did you hear that Class A has almost every student in the top 50?"
"Yeah. I went to their class and checked .... bro, the aura there is different."
"And not just that, nine stars are in that class. Isn't that too unfair?"
"Really unfair. Our class has one too but-"
The students gossiping at the back looked ahead. Felix was sitting at the first bench in the third row, beside the window, reading a book. He chose this one because from here he could see only the professor's face.
'The middle would be more optimal, but it's taken already.'
As more students entered the room, a frown appeared on their face once they saw Felix.
'At least don't make it obvious.'
Their gazes were too uncomfortable. After all, he was a human, but he couldn't blame them. He also would be disappointed to be in a class with a person like him.
Even though most students didn't like how the nine stars were in the same class, no one complained about the academy's board. Mainly because of the assigning process of the academy. Once 1500 students were chosen, the professors used a magic device used for the last 500 years that, once fed the data of the students, would assign them to different classes.
Every professor, the headmaster, and even some heads of noble families gathered during this for supervision, in case someone tried to change anything.
But this time everyone gathered decided to do the selection process once again. The class distribution was too biassed. However, the results didn't change. So they had to settle with this.
Some wanted this to be manual and not dependent on the magic device, but the headmaster and the professor didn't want to go against Arcadia's tradition.
'It's not their fault or the fault of the device.'
Felix knew it was because of Lim, and he understood why. It was a lot easier to introduce characters and build bonds between them, if they were all in the same place.
But this meant the other class would stand no chance. Any competition between the classes would always be dominated by Class A.
Soon, the class was filled. The chatter and gossip of the students annoyed Felix a bit, but he couldn't tell anyone to shut up. He could, but that would make him even more unbearable.
The clock struck 9 am, and a professor entered the class. Everyone stopped talking. The steps of the professor filled the room.
He walked towards the podium, set his notes aside, and looked at the students.
"Good morning everyone."
The student stood up and greeted the professor back.
"Good morning Professor Vincent."
Every student knew who he was. They had their backs straight and made sure their voice was clear. They knew how strict this man was when it came to discipline.
"I will be your homeroom teacher for this year."
Everyone was glad to have him as the homeroom teacher. Not only was he one of the best professors, but the students of his class always praised his mentoring abilities. Though none had the guts to say the hell he put them through.
Vincent turned towards the blackboard and wrote with his chalk.
[Fundamentals of Mana.]
He was getting straight to the point without wasting any time.
"Let's start the class."
******
Behind Sector X were Felix and Lim, standing at the back of Nexus. Both of them had been called here once the classes were over.
"Do you actually remember what to say?"
Felix asked. Seeing how out-of-place Lim looked, he couldn't help but worry.
"Yeah."
Lim had to remember, Otherwise things are going to be harder for him than Felix.
Both stood there without speaking anymore and a woman in a butler's outfit approached them. She said nothing and showed them an emblem. A sword with a snake coiled around it. And the way it shone and how the snake seemed alive made it legit.
Without saying anything, she handed them a blindfold, and both wore it. With her magic, she made a string, tied it to their wrist and guided them.
"We are sorry for having to treat you this way. But I hope you understand the ordeal of the situation."
What happened was a big deal. Someone had gone past Arcadia's defence, got inside Nexus, locked the door, made a barrier, almost killed three students, and disappeared in plain sight.
The Academy needed answers. Jade was already interrogated. Tyson was in no state to be talking, and these two were there from the start.
Lim heard nothing as they were being guided. Only the mana on his wrist was sensible. Everything else seemed non-existent.
All he heard in the end was a door open as they walked inside.
"Take off your blindfolds."
Lim took off his blindfold. For a second, he had to close his eyes again because of how bright the room was.
Once he adjusted, he looked around the room. It was the whitest room he had seen, blank as a sheet of paper. Only the two chairs and the table between were grey.
Felix wasn't with him anymore, like he had guessed. Again, the door opened, and a man entered the room. He wore a black shirt and black pants.
Professor Vincent ran his finger through his hair and looked at Lim with his cold eyes.
'I had made him to be like this but this is really suffocating.'
"Have a seat."
Vincent said as he placed a paper and pen on the table.
Lim sat on the cold chair and looked at Vincent. Those eyes still made him shiver, but he didn't look away. He had to be convincing.
Vincent also sat in front of him and placed his hands on the table.
"How are you feeling?"
Lim rolled his shoulders and touched his ribs.
"Not the best, but just enough to walk around."
Vincent had a dark expression. For a student to be in this state, was because of them. Not entirely their fault, but still they had a duty to protect the students.
"Me and the academy apologise for whatever has happened. This has happened because of our own negligence and weakness."
Lim didn't refute that. Maybe this could be stopped if they were more tight with their security.
"Any problem you have with those injuries, please do not hesitate to ask the academy. We will use any of our resources to help you."
Lim just nodded.
"And I would like to thank you for your efforts to save Holzberg Tyson. If not for you, a life would have been lost. "
Losing someone would be bad and, on top of that, a Star from a notable, noble family would cause Arcadia many issues.
'We save them from a lot of headaches.'
"The academy will reward you, and the Holzberg family will, too. But it will be done in a more private manner."
For what they accomplished, Arcadia and the Holzberg decided to reward the two. But they couldn't make it an event. After all, the whole incident had to be a secret.
Vincent's expression again turned dark
"If possible, we didn't want to have to do this to you. After all, you did, but we need to act as soon as possible."
"I understand."
Lim, too, wanted to know about who it was. As an author, it frustrated him to be clueless about his own story.
"Can you explain what happened after you entered Nexus?"
As Ian said, Lim noticed the button on the left earlobe glow .
'So they're communicating with each other. Just like Felix guessed '
Lim looked around. Wherever Felix was being interrogated, the other professor must have had the same device.
They were checking to see if what these two said matched. If not, then the interrogation could take some inhumane route, which the professor wanted to avoid as much as possible.
Lim smiled on the inside. What they were doing was necessary, but still treating someone who saved their ass- it didn't sit right with him.
Lim put his hand on the table. He shivered a little.
"Right after we entered-"
He explained how both of them fought the giant-rats and the woman, but he lied about one thing. His power.
His strength wasn't something that they should know. It was their trump card, after all. Like Felix planned, he was to take the most credit. Not for his sake, but for Lim's
"I see…. You guys fought bravely."
Vincent was impressed by the two and…. especially Felix. It shocked him as well to know these two survived something on this scale. But one thing bugged him and the other professors.
Why did Lim wait at the door? If Felix did it, they wouldn't have questioned it. He could have finished the test in two minutes, but the same wasn't for Lim, who wasn't even in the top 500.
"Felix must be a good friend of yours."
Lim shook his head.
"I can't say we are friends. We only met two days ago for the first time. Both of us were late during the opening ceremony, we talked with each other outside the garden. That was it."
"Oh."
Vincent wrote something on his note that Lim didn't dare to peek at. He asked again.
"I see. All of us wondered why you waited at the door at first? And once Felix entered, both of you started to talk. We assumed you to be friends."
Again he scrambled something down, and this time there was a layer of cold in his voice.
"Then what did you guys talk about when the time was limited?"
'There it is. Again…. that bastard, can he see the future or something?'
"Oh, that...It is a bit embarrassing to say, but I was scared. It was my first time and seeing people ranked higher than me leave with injuries and on stretches within a minute, made me anxious.."
Vincent nodded. It was valid to be scared. The test was meant to make them despair, so the students strived for growth in the future.
Lim continued speaking.
"But I still wanted to pass the test, and once Felix entered, I asked him if we could team up."
The rules of the test were not to steal other's prey, but it didn't say they couldn't work together.. In Fact Vincent created the test in such a way, so the students could know about teamwork. After all, no matter how strong you are, fighting alone in a dungeon was never easy, but no one figured it out.
"Did he accept your offer?"
Vincent asked.
"No."
Lim replied.
"But once the barrier appeared, both of us knew something was wrong. Once the giant-rats rushed in, we had no choice but to fight together."
The earpiece on Vincent's ear glowed again. The cold aura around him vanished because what the two were saying matched. Not word by word, cause that would make them even more suspicious.
After that, Vincent asked how they fought, and Lim's answer was simple.
"It was all Felix. He killed most of the rats. My spells only pushed them. Also, each time he swung his spear, a loud roar echoed. I don't know what that was, but it made me nauseous."
Lim acted to think for a moment and spoke again.
"Once the rats were killed, we heard someone screaming and knew it was Tyson, since he went before me. And after that, I don't remember much. The echo of Felix's power and the whole situation was too much and-"
Lim's body shook. He took in deep breaths and wiped the sweat on his forehead.
'I should become an actor.'
"You did good."
Vincent patted Lim's shoulder.
"Wait here. One of the staff will take you back."
Before Vincent left, he asked one last question.
"If you could run away without saving Tyson, would you have done so?"
Lim was surprised. It was a peculiar question, for someone of Vincent's character. To see him curious was new.
Lim thought about what he would do in such a situation and it didn't take him long to come up with an answer.
"If I could, honestly, I would run away without looking back."
"I see."
Vincent wasn't disappointed. This was the best action. Fighting a battle that cannot be won, for the cost of life, isn't worth it.
"But I couldn't say the same for Felix."
Lim said. He didn't know why he said that. But he just blurted out the thought.
"I don't know much about him, but one thing I know from a glance is that he has a good heart. He would fight for someone, not for praise or prize. Because it would be the right thing to do."