My bracelet buzzed.
[Congratulations. You have earned + 13 Points]
A notification followed right after.
‘Thirteen points, not bad.’
This was a good score for defeating a junior-ranked creature. Not only that, but the team’s chemistry was impeccable.
I could now see why Jacob didn’t want Linus on the team.
‘He definitely didn’t reject him because he hated him. He really can put down his arrogance when it matters.’
The more I knew this cadet, the more I liked him.
“I can put down my arrogance, but can you…?”
“Hm?”
Overhearing a certain voice, I raised my head, and a pair of eyes locked in my direction. Seeing his expression, the corner of my lips pulled up. He didn’t look mad, but just disappointed. It was a funny sight to witness.
‘…How cute.’
Could my decision be due to arrogance?
Was letting Linus be the team leader the wrong decision? I turned to stare in his direction. Even thought my expression didn’t change, with just one look in his direction and I could see he was struggling.
Linus’s face was pale and staring at his group, his mouth opened and closed in an attempt to say something, but nobody gave him a shred of attention. He looked pitiful.
Linus found himself closing his mouth shortly after. He seemed to have given up on saying anything.
That’s when I started thinking about Jacob’s words again.
‘Yeah, it’s possible that he’s right.’
Given what I had seen, the correct decision would be to make Jacob the team captain again.
It would made sense if I did that considering Linus’s meltdown.
But I wasn’t going to do that.
Turning to look in Jacob’s direction, I shook my head.
“I can’t.”
My arrogance knows no bounds.
I knew I was right.
***
The entire event was supposed to last half a day. The cadets would usually be given more time, but considering the current situation within the Mirror Dimension, it was best if they kept things short.
They didn’t want to expose the cadets to any unnecessary risks.
An hour into the task, different teams appeared at the top of the leaderboard, each overtaking the other within minutes of appearing at the top. This persisted until the second hour when the leaderboards started to set and a true leader emerged.
By the third hour, the gap between the top three teams and the rest started to widen.
The respective teams were;
Team [4]–> 72 Points.
Team [7]–> 68 Points.
Team [18]–> 66 Points.
The three teams were neck and neck with one another. While there was a six-point difference between the first and third spots, it wasn’t hard to overcome the gap.
Following the top three teams, the remaining teams were lagging behind by quite a lot of
“As expected, this is disappointing.”
Overlooking the entire situation from the start, Professor Lambart shook his head, the disappointment evident on his face.
“Their coordination and movement is perfect. There’s hardly any flaws that I can comment on, and yet…”
The Professor closed his eyes and shook his head once more. Turning his head, he looked at the other Professor present.
He didn’t say any words, but the meaning behind his gaze was clear.
Professor Heart could only force out a bitter smiler.
“This isn’t entirely Julien’s fault. If Jacob wanted to he could’ve taken the leadership back. Julien is merely a guardian. If Jacob wants to, he can ignore his commands.”
“That would be the same as making the Summit Leader your enemy. I’m sure you understand best how the politics within the Academy works. With the exception of Elizabeth and Aoife, there’s not that many cadets that can oppose Julien. If he wills it, he can destroy the future of anyone he wants.”
“But would Julien really do that? He may be arrogant but he wouldn’t stoop to such levels?”
Professor Lambart raised his glasses and glanced in Heart’s direction. His expression seemed to say, ‘Did you really just say that?’
“After what I’ve seen today, I can more or less figure out his general attitude towards those beneath him. He is arrogant and is blinded by it. I wouldn’t care if his arrogance just applied to himself, but now he’s directly interfering with the lower cadets. That’s not something I can take lying down.”
Finished saying his piece, the Professor grabbed his coat in preparation for leaving, alarming the other Professor who hastily moved towards him.
“Wait, what are you planning on doing?!”
“What else? I’m going to be reporting this incident to the higher-ups. At least, I can’t hav—”
The Professor suddenly stopped. As his head flicked back, his expression changed when he stared at a specific window.
“Good, god.”
He hastily moved to the projection and enlarged the image. Upon witnessing the scene within
it, his expression changed abruptly.
“Not good…”
***
[Congratulations. You have earned + 3 Points]
Amell glanced at his bracelet and then the total team score; 36. Upon seeing the number
displayed, his expression subtly changed.
‘The team is currently ranked in the middle of the charts.’
While this wasn’t necessarily bad, considering how time was running out and the team’s composition, Amell couldn’t help but turn in Julien’s direction.
He stood next to him without much of an expression. He just kept his gaze on the cadets who were scrabbling around, trying to figure out how to defeat the monsters in front of them.
Amell took this chance to speak,
“… Wouldn’t it be best if we changed the leader of their team? At the rate they are going, they
won’t ever have a chance at the top spot.”
“I can see that.”
Julien’s calmness left Amell unsettled. He was obviously agreeing, but…?
“I’m not going to change it.”
“Why?”
It was fairly obvious from what Amell observed that the team was doing badly because the current leader couldn’t handle the situation.
The moment the other member, Jacob, took over, everything started flowing smoothly and
the team’s coordination felt terrifying.
It was at a level where Amell found himself impressed. Such geniuses were hard to come by
even in his Empire.
‘No, not quite…’
The real genius was the one leading all of them.
He seemed to know every little detail about his teammate’s skills and habits. He knew how to
navigate through their flaws to make them stand out.
So…
Why? Why was Julien suppressing such an individual?
‘It can’t be that he really just wants to make his brother stand out, right?’
Amell’s expression subtly changed.
‘Preposterous. He may be arrogant, but surely he’s not this overbearing right?’
Amell thought he knew Julien enough with what he had seen. He thought he wouldn’t let his
personal feelings affect his judgment.
He wasn’t like that. How could he…?
And yet…
The evidence was right before his very eyes.
“They’re going to be fine.”
Julien continued to refuse to acknowledge his own faults, leading to the situation worsening
with each hour that passed.
At the rate things were going, Amell was afraid that Julien’s stubbornness was going to lead to the team’s low ranking which didn’t reflect their true worth.
Even though Amell was a transfer student and wasn’t in a position to interfere, this sight still
annoyed him.
He had seen many cases when bad leadership led to the demise of many promising and
talented people.
In Julien’s case, his nepotism was going to lead to a similar situation.
Therefore, even though he didn’t want to interfere, a part of him made him open his mouth to
speak up on the situation.
“Don’t bother saying anything. I know what I’m doing.”
“?”
You clearly don’t.
Amell was about to say such thoughts when Julien spoke over him.
“I know you’re Leon’s brother.”
|| ||
Amell felt his words fade out of his mouth.
With wide eyes, he looked at Julien, his mouth opening and closing in repeated motions. He
simply didn’t know what to say.
How…?
“I can more or less guess why you’ve decided to come to the Academy. You’re probably trying
to get closer to Leon before breaking the news to him.”
Julien’s voice sounded definitive. As though his hypothesis wasn’t wrong-which it wasn’t-
even though he knew nothing about their plan. While it wasn’t too hard to guess, the fact that
he still knew was shocking to Amell.
He wasn’t even sure Aoife knew. And she was the Princess of the Empire.
So how…?
How did he know?
“I won’t interfere in your matters, however, I’d like it if you also don’t interfere in mine.”
As Julien’s last words reached his ears, Amell raised his head and swallowed his saliva. His
throat felt strangely dry.
Then, shifting his attention towards the group in the distance which was currently on the verge of defeating another monster, he nodded his head.
“Okay…”
He pursed his lips.
“Ok-!!”
Rumble-! Rumble-!
At that moment, a tremor rippled through their surroundings. The nearby trees thrashed
vigorously, and the entire land quivered visibly.
“What in the…”
“What’s going on?”
The cadet’s panicked voice echoed through the surroundings.
“Be alert!”
With no time to pay attention to the director, Jacob warned the others as he tried to keep his
footing in check. In the midst of the violent tremors, Linus, Jessica, Sophia, and Rick fought to
maintain their footing, desperately trying to withstand the relentless force that threatened to topple them.
…and it was then that it happened.
Swoooosh-!
In the distance, an enormous brown pillar emerged, piercing the night and stretching towards
the sky. It stood tall and thick, emanating a profound sense of dread that caused Jacob’s heart to race with anxiety.
With just one gaze Jacob understood something, and just as his mouth parted open, the solid
pillar started to morph. It gradually split apart, fragmenting into eight distinct pillars, unveiling an imposing form nestled within their midst.
A massive body emerged and bristly hairs sprouted from every joint and back. All sharp enough to resemble swords.
Within the shroud of the night, eight crimson eyes radiated an otherworldly glow. They
pierced through the darkness with intensity as they fixed their gaze on Jacob and the others.
Jacob’s heart sank at the gaze, but despite it all, he was still able to utter a few words.
“That…”
For he knew the beast that was right before him. “T-terror ranked beast. Mother of all spiders.”