After three long hours of waiting, another student finally emerged from the obstacle course.
Kris, who had been observing the exit, recognized the person, it was Miguel.
Miguel spotted the group and approached them with a smug grin. "What? Surprised I finished the course, you loser?"
Necho scoffed, unimpressed. "What are you talking about? Look at the screen! we finished it three hours ago."
Miguel's eyes darted to the screen in disbelief, his mouth hanging open. He was speechless for a moment before regaining his composure.
"You must have cheated."
Thursday who heard that, he folded his sleeve he wanted to give this piece of trash a lesson.
"Why I outta"
He Balled up his fist, but before he could do anything he was stopped by Kris.
"It's not worth it guys." Kris said calmly.
Miguel heard Kris and strutted confidently toward him.
When he was close enough, he leaned in slightly, lowering his voice to a near whisper, ensuring only Kris could hear,
"Thanks for leaving those marks, Kris. I got through the maze a lot faster because of it."
Miguel recalled how, upon reaching the maze, he had been worried about getting lost.
But his dark-type Data Beast had made it easier for him to navigate, allowing it to teleport through shadows before the maze doors could shut.
Though lost for a while, he eventually came across a faint hand mark.
Initially thinking it was placed there by Sir Ahmed, he compared his hand to it and realized it belonged to a younger person.
That's when it clicked, it had to be Kris.
Since he hadn't seen Kris throughout the course, it meant Kris had been ahead of him the whole time.
His suspicions were confirmed when he exited the course and saw Kris smiling knowingly at him.
"Anytime," Kris replied coolly, his tone casual as if he didn't intended that to happen.
The two then quickly separated, but Miguel quickly shifted back to his usual antagonistic demeanor.
He glared at Kris, keeping up appearances.
"I'll be expecting you at the same place," he said menacingly, though the real message was,
'Will you be watching the series later?'
Kris, unfazed, played along.
"Why should I?" he shot back, but the hidden meaning was clear:
'I can't, I have plans later.'
The tension between them seemed suffocating, but in reality, they were both putting on a show.
Belle, however, was oblivious to the hidden exchange and mistook their interaction for something more serious.
She stepped forward, anger flashing in her eyes.
"Don't you dare bully my Kris!" she snapped, positioning herself between them, glaring at Miguel.
Miguel glanced down at Belle, instantly recalling the book incident.
Without thinking, he took a step back, caught off guard by her presence.
"So, you're letting your girlfriend fight your battles now?" he sneered, trying to regain his composure.
Belle's face turned bright red at the word girlfriend.
She quickly covered her face with her hands, blushing furiously.
"W-What are you talking about? Not yet… but soon!" she stammered, unable to hide her embarrassment.
Selina, watching her friend's shamelessness unfold, shook her head in disbelief.
'She's not even trying to hide her feelings anymore,' Selina thought.
Miguel raised an eyebrow, first at Belle and then at Kris, his expression curious.
'I can't believe he got her that fast. Whatever he did must've been pretty effective,' he mused, still baffled by how quickly Kris got the girl of his dreams.
Suddenly, the ground rumbled beneath their feet as the obstacle course suddenly dissolved, vanishing into thin air like it had never existed.
"Attention!" Sir Ahmed's commanding voice echoed through the auditorium, silencing the students instantly.
"Congratulations to the students who persevered. I'm proud of all of you. For those who didn't make it, you have two more weeks to prepare again," Sir Ahmed's gaze swept across the crowd, his tone both encouraging and authoritative.
"We will have a one-hour break. Get your lunch and be back on time. Dismissed."
The auditorium doors swung open, and students began filing out, Kris's group walking together, still laughing and chatting about the earlier exchange with Miguel.
Chansey, with a mischievous grin, couldn't resist teasing Belle. "Looks like someone's got overboard and confessed their feelings today. But you're not even official yet, and there are plenty of girls waiting for their shot at Kris."
Belle's face flushed again, but she maintained stoic.
"We'll see about that."
Chansey's teasing didn't stop there, as she turned her attention toward Selina, who had been quietly observing the conversation. Noticing Chansey's gaze, Selina quickly looked away, her expression unreadable.
The group continued walking, their banter filling the hallway.
Cillian, who had been patiently waiting for Kris, couldn't help but smile as he noticed Kris surrounded by other students, laughing and chatting.
Overcome with emotion, Cillian discreetly covered his mouth, his eyes glistening.
It was a rare sight of Kris, relaxed and smiling with his friends.
Unable to resist, Cillian took out his phone, snapping a picture of Kris, mid-laugh, while walking with the group.
He quickly sent it to the group chat titled "Kris <3", which consisted of the maids, the guards, and even the Masters, who were the group's admins.
Almost immediately, his phone blew up with notifications, but he tucked it away, ignoring the pings as Kris approached.
"Hey! Kris! How was the Data Beast Examination?" Cillian called out, waving with a grin as Kris neared.
Kris smiled back. "Oh, Cillian, were you waiting for me?"
Thursday, overhearing the exchange, leaned over to Necho, curiosity piqued.
"Is that the Student Body President, Cillian?"
Necho nodded. "Yeah, that's him. Cillian's been watching over Kris for years now, but this is the first time I've seen them actually talk to each other."
Selina, listening in on the conversation, perked up, her attention fully on Cillian and Kris.
'So, Kris and Cillian must be old friends… but something must've happened. An argument? That's probably why Kris was ignoring him before. And now, after Kris's amnesia, they're reconnecting. But I bet Cillian can't be trusted,'
she thought, her eyes narrowing as she glared at Cillian's back.
Cillian, still engaged in conversation with Kris, suddenly felt a strange sensation—a sharp, invisible tension prickling the back of his neck, as if someone was staring daggers at him.
He turned around, scanning the area, but no one seemed to be paying attention.
"Must be my imagination," he mumbled to himself, shaking off the feeling.
Cillian leaned over to Kris, whispering with a playful grin,
"Young Master Kris, is the girl beside you Belle?"
Kris nodded, slightly embarrassed.
"Yeah, We sorted the misunderstanding during the exam, and now... we're friends."
Belle noticed them talking about her and smiled warmly at Kris, before turning her attention to Cillian. She reached out her hand.
"Hi, I'm Belle. So, how did you become friends with my Kris?"
Kris scratched his head, his thoughts confused. 'Why did she say that?'
Cillian, however, was completely taken aback by Belle's words.
'My Kris?' he thought, dumbfounded.
'Oh boy, wait till the whole house hears this... especially the Masters!' It took him a moment to compose himself.
With a sly smile, he responded, "I'm his cousin. We grew up near each other."
"Really??" Belle's eyes sparkled with curiosity.
"Do you have baby pictures of Kris?"
At her question, the surrounding group, intrigued by the possibility, leaned in, eager to hear more.
"I have tons! What age do you want to see?" Cillian asked confidently, as if this moment had been his destiny all along.
Everyone heard this they can't wait to see the cute baby Kris with excitement.
Kris, clearly embarrassed, covered his face, groaning, "Cillian… don't."
Seeing the situation getting out of control, Kris quickly changed tactics.
"Let's go, everyone! We've got limited time. Let's head to the canteen and eat, we need the energy!"
Without waiting for a response, he grabbed Belle's hand and began dragging the group in the direction of the canteen.
He glanced back at Cillian and, with a smirk, added, "How about you go handle your duties, Mr. President?"
Cillian was caught off guard by Kris's sudden shift, slumping to the ground dramatically, seeing them left him there as they walk away.
He covered his mouth, overcome with emotion.
"Young Master has grown so much… He has so many friends now, and a beautiful girlfriend, too! I must inform everyone! especially the Masters!" His voice was filled with pride, though a hint of excitement.
Kris rolled his eyes at Cillian's theatrics, but deep down, he couldn't help but smile.