The instructor paused, allowing murmurs of curiosity and surprise to spread through the room. The cadets exchanged glances, trying to understand the reason behind the mentions. Hazuki, with a faint blush on her cheeks, glanced at Theo, who, as usual, seemed indifferent, though he was clearly paying attention to the instructor.
"You two managed to complete the task in record time, demonstrating good teamwork and efficiency. This is exactly the kind of performance we expect from the top cadets at Cube."
The public praise caused some faces in the room to harden with envy, while others seemed curious.
"I just wanted to say that I didn't do anything particularly important. Theo did all the work, so if anyone deserves praise here, it's him..."
Even the wolf she was tasked with eliminating took her longer to deal with, unlike Theo, who had handled the majority of the work.
"Cadet Hazuki, there were moments when you knew when to stop and when to act. Even if your contributions weren't as significant as Cadet Theo's, your choices were intelligent and demonstrated good judgment."
Replied the instructor in a firm and encouraging tone.
Hazuki, who had listened quietly, lowered her head slightly and spoke after understanding what Instructor Kim Soohyuk meant.
"Understood, Instructor. Thank you."
The entire room watched the exchange, some cadets now seeming more intrigued by Hazuki's humility.
Nayun, who was sitting next to Theo, shot him a suspicious look, crossing her arms with an expression that said, "You're better than I thought."
"Lucky you, huh, Theo."
She whispered, trying to hide the sting of competitiveness in her voice.
"Now, let's move on to the overall results."
Continued the instructor, gesturing to activate the projector on the podium.
On the screen, the names of the cadets were displayed alongside their scores. The atmosphere in the room grew tense as the students quickly tried to locate their names.
[Team 1 - Total time: 26 minutes and 38 seconds.
[Team 2 - Total time: 40 minutes and 26 seconds.
[Team 3 - Total time: 52 minutes and 18 seconds.
[Team 4 - Total time: 45 minutes and 10 seconds.
[Team 5 - Total time: 44 minutes and 08 seconds.
[Team 6 - Total time: 32 minutes and 39 seconds.
[Team 8 - Total time: 36 minutes and 47 seconds.
[Team 10 - Total time: 06 minutes and 34 seconds.
Nayun exclaimed, leaning forward as she saw that Theo had come out ahead of her.
"You got first place?"
Theo replied casually, though there was a subtle glint of satisfaction in his eyes.
Yeonha, on the other hand, had an expression of disbelief and frustration.
Disbelief because she never imagined Theo would actually take first place, thus winning the bet they had made.
And frustration because she ended up one position behind Nayun.
'Wow! A simple piece of advice was enough to make her jump ten positions.'
Theo, who saw Yeonha's new position, could only be surprised. He truly hadn't expected that stubborn girl to listen to his words and end up in the top ten.
"Drones recorded everything. They will be sent to your smartwatches, so analyze why you were fast or slow, your team's compatibility, and how you can improve for next time. This will be part of your grades."
Kim Soohyuk gave a lengthy statement before dismissing the students and leaving.
"Nayun and Yeonha, are you planning to go to lunch now?"
With the class over, there was no reason or need to stay in the room, so I invited both of them to lunch. Even though I didn't need to do it, habits, once ingrained, are hard to break.
"Uh!? No, I'm heading back to my dorm."
Yeonha immediately declined. She planned to use this free afternoon to analyze her performance in the test and maybe take a look at the other cadets' tests once the videos were available.
"Well, I'd like to, Theo, but I'll pass this time. I'm thinking of doing some training."
Nayun was holding herself back from bombarding Theo with questions. If she hadn't already planned to train in the gravity room, there would've been no problem having lunch with him.
"Alright! I'll go alone then! See you tomorrow."
Darn it, I forgot they're not like me, who doesn't need to train and study constantly to have a good life at Cube.
"I'll message you later, Theo."
As I prepared to leave, Nayun added a few words.
"Sure, I'll be waiting... Oh! I almost forgot."
As I took my first steps to leave, something came to mind. I turned back to Yeonha and Nayun.
"Yeonha, the victory is mine."
Yeonha's eyes widened, irritated by my provocation.
"I-I know, you don't need to remind me."
She muttered, clearly annoyed.
"What?! You two made a bet?"
"I'm heading out. The girl next to you can fill you in on the details. Bye!"
Before Nayun could press further, I left the room, though not without feeling Yeonha's furious gaze burning into my back.
As I walked out the door with a slightly disappointed expression at having to eat alone, a certain someone appeared, seemingly heading to the same place as me.
"Hey, Suho! Did they abandon you too?"
Kim Suho laughed, his characteristic warm smile on his face.
"Hah! I guess so. Yeonghan is helping the instructor with some things."
"Tough life for our class president."
"Anyway, congrats on first place, Theo. What you and Hazuki did was quite impressive."
"Thanks! And congrats to your team too."
After a peaceful meal with Suho, where we talked about the challenges of the test and what to expect from the upcoming ones, we parted ways.
"I'm going to do some training before resting. See you later, Theo."
"See you, Suho. Don't overdo it with the training, alright?"
With a light smile, he went on his way, while I decided to use the rest of my free day to relax. Even though Cube's intense routine didn't affect me the same way it did the other cadets, moments gave me the chance to reflect and, more importantly, plan my next steps.
I left the cafeteria and headed to Cube's park, a tranquil space surrounded by trees and well-maintained gardens. It was the perfect place to clear my mind. I chose a bench under the shade of a tree and sat down, watching the other cadetes passing by, some chatting with friends, others jogging, and a few just trying to socialize.
I sighed, letting my body relax.
"Peaceful life, huh."
I thought, closing my eyes for a moment.
But, of course, peace at Cube never lasted long.
"Excuse me, may I sit here?"
I opened my eyes at the sound of the polite and formal voice.
In front of me stood Rachel Elizabeth Louise, the heiress princess of the Royal Guild from England.
Although this was the first time we had come face to face, I already knew her, both from the original story and from our brief time at Cube. It was impossible to ignore someone like her, not just because of her position as the Royal Guild's heiress, but because of the presence she exuded, not to mention her appearance, which was no less striking than Nayun's or Yeonha's.
Her long, silky golden hair caught the sunlight filtering through the trees, creating an almost magical glow. Her blue eyes, though serene, had a depth that reminded one of quiet nights spent reflecting on the weight of responsibilities. Her expression was calm, almost neutral, but I knew that behind that impeccable facade was a person struggling to balance the crushing expectations of her guild with her own desires.
The Cube uniform fit her perfectly. Rachel exuded a natural elegance, as if every movement she made was planned to convey calm authority and grace. Her uniform was immaculate, tailored perfectly to her slender frame and always upright posture. She seemed untouchable, someone destined to be admired from a distance.
I replied, gesturing to the empty space beside me.
She sat down gracefully, maintaining the impeccable posture that seemed natural to her. Neither of us spoke, and the silence was filled only by the sound of the wind rustling through the leaves.
From the corner of my eye, I noticed her taking a deep breath, closing her eyes, clearly savoring the brief moment of silence.
At this point in the story, there wasn't much information about this girl, as she only started to appear more prominently later on.
'Speaking of which... This week is when the Djinn attack on the National Museum of Weapons happens, and it's also the day that Co-author finally makes his appearance.'
Actually, he had already appeared before, but it was this week that Hajin would realize the chaos the Co-author would bring to his life.
I sighed and leaned back on the bench, letting my thoughts wander.
'I guess I'll have to go check it out... Who knows if things won't be different... After all, I exist now.'
It wouldn't be surprising if the world's difficulty underwent drastic changes to try to balance out my power.
'I just hope it's all in my head...'