Mia looked at Raze with slight shock on her face. She didn't expect anything that he had said so far—not even in her wildest dreams would she think that Raze would try to manipulate her and everyone.
She stepped closer to Raze, her eyes carrying a cold seriousness. "Whatever games you are playing, I will not be a part of it, Raze," she said coldly, making her stance clear.
"It's not like you have a choice. If you want to stop me, the best chance would be to win the preliminary at all costs, because if you somehow don't become one of the top ten, there will be no one to stop me," Raze said, looking her right in the eye.
She clenched her fist and took a deep breath. "When the academy finds out what you want to do, there will be no sparing you," Mia said.
"You don't get it yet, do you, Mia? This is a game, and right now, you are nothing but a movable piece. Say anything, and your hero Alex loses it all.
And if I get expelled, well, that won't be the end for me, now would it? I still have to make you pay, right? And you see, that is the issue when it comes to attacking a former acquaintance. They know things that others don't—like the fact that your mother is sick."
When he said that, her eyes flashed with rage. She grabbed Raze by the collar and pulled him close. "If you do anything to my mother or try to, I'll make sure that I kill you," she said, her hands trembling, her voice shaking.
"You really do love your mother. What a good daughter. I won't do anything as long as I am in the academy, so think about your choices well before you make them," he said calmly and then slowly pried her fingers off his clothes.
Mia stared at him with wide eyes. She finally understood what game he was playing. He had created a small box for her and set her right in the middle, then he gave her all the information and locked her inside.
She had all the information to take him down, but if she dared to speak, he would ruin the lives of two people she cared about.
An expression of giving up showed on her face. Raze looked at that and smiled. "Good girl. Now you can quietly watch as the fun goes on," Raze said and walked away, leaving Mia standing there.
Mia stood in disbelief. Never in her life would she have thought that Raze would make her feel this way. Raze had always been smart, but he was also very impulsive, and he did things without thinking properly.
As Raze walked away, he was happy, knowing that he had secured a really good victory—not just because he got her to shut up, but because the longer she kept quiet about what he was doing, the more she implicated herself.
And the day that she finally snapped and told, the bomb would be bigger, and the impact of the truth would make her friends never trust her again. Slowly, they would make her an outcast.
She'd become desperate for their trust. She'd begin to do things that she would never have done before, and she'd become prone to making a huge mistake.
When she did make that mistake, her group would finally refuse to be with her. She'd become an outcast. If she found someone who accepted her quickly, she might find some solace.
But if time passed and no one accepted her, she'd slowly walk the path of depression and finally choose to end it all. And that's when Raze would show up.
Suddenly, the person that caused it all would appear, but now he would carry the visage of an angel, offering her a second chance, turning her into his slave entirely as she sought purpose.
"Don't think I won't have vengeance, Mia. I'll make sure that I bring you down to your knees, slowly and steadily," Raze said in a hushed tone as he walked away from the training yard.
As soon as he walked into the academic building, he felt a vibration in his pocket. It was his ID card. He immediately pulled it out without thinking and took a look at it.
The ID card was a specially made item that could project his points, important information, and other stuff.
When he looked at it, an information prompt was projected:
(This is a summon to Raze, the first-year student. You are to report to the headmaster's office in five minutes.)
Raze read it and let out a tired sigh. He had long known that he would get called soon. After all, his former self had basically thrown away his whole life to chase after Alex.
But Raze was not worried. He wasn't the same person. He would find a way to fix the issue. The headmaster's office was located on the upper floor of the academy building, so Raze had to head there.
He went up a flight of stairs, passing by students and teachers alike. Finally, he made it to the door that had a sign on it written Headmaster.
But like in any normal institution, this was not the headmaster's office. His office was inside this office, but the first thing that would be seen after opening the door would be the secretary.
Raze pushed the door open, and as expected, it was the secretary's office. It was a pretty simple office. It smelled of flowers, with a great rug on the floor. A long couch was set for people to wait, and opposite them was the secretary's table.
Behind the desk was a young lady. She was writing something down in a file. When she heard the door open and close, she looked up to see the person who had entered.
"I'm guessing that you are Raze. You can head in. The headmaster is already waiting for you," she said. She then went back to what she was doing.