player POV-Chapter 44: After 3

About a week had passed since the trip, yet news of what happened spread through the academy like wildfire—far faster than we ever expected.

It reached the point where almost everyone knew something had occurred, and yet the full truth was never revealed. The academy merely announced that we had fallen into an ambush by the Atran Organization, without mentioning any real details of what actually happened.

The news itself wasn’t that shocking. Tragic incidents had always taken place at the academy, so the students limited themselves to curiosity and questions about what had happened there. None of us, however, were able to tell them anything, as the academy forced us to remain silent.

I was currently sitting in the middle of the classroom, staring straight ahead, completely lost in my thoughts...

I had believed that since I didn’t directly participate in the main storyline, nothing would change in the future.

I thought I had full control over my situation because I knew the future. That’s why I decided to help myself whenever I was in danger, while doing my best not to interfere with the story...

But I was wrong.

No matter how small the change is, once it begins, it cannot be stopped.

Even a single, simple change can cause massive alterations in what follows.

Take me as an example. I was never supposed to be on that trip in the first place, yet the moment I was selected, the number of monsters we were meant to face increased drastically—enough to wipe us all out.

I was truly naïve... I thought poisoning Fry would allow the trip to end without anyone dying. But reality was cruel—half of us died.

Fry shouldn’t have attacked that early. It caught me completely off guard, and the poison didn’t take effect until it was too late. Even though I kept repeating to myself that everything was fine, the truth was that I was deceiving myself.

I couldn’t deny what I had witnessed with my own eyes. I couldn’t ignore the fact that my very existence could change the future—even if I did nothing at all.

I needed to change the way I thought, radically...

But how?

It sounds easy when I talk about it, yet words are far easier than action.

I was so lost in my thoughts that a sound coming from the front startled me awake.

Clap Clap

"Please, quiet down a bit."

Signaling the class to calm down, Rina clapped her hands. Almost instantly, everyone stopped talking.

When I witnessed the silence that followed a single clap from Rina, I couldn’t help but feel amazed.

Her influence over the class was overwhelming—so imposing it inspired fear.

With just a few words and a single clap, she shut down the entire scene, as if time itself obeyed her command.

When I saw how everyone fell silent from one clap alone, admiration filled me. Her control over the class was impressive; with minimal words and a single clap, she managed to command the entire room.

Perhaps it was due to the aura surrounding her... Or maybe because of her exceptional genius in Ania.

She had reached advanced stages in Ania and was nicknamed The Ice Witch for her extraordinary specialization in ice Ania.

"Today, we’ll be selecting the teams that will participate in an upcoming test."

How foolish of me... I had forgotten this was supposed to happen.

I had been so distracted by recent events that I completely forgot about the test.

I don’t want to take it...

"Each of you will come to the front and take a number."

Rina didn’t pay attention to what I was going through—or perhaps she didn’t notice at all.

"I’ll call your names one by one, in ascending order."

Her calm voice continued without pause.

"You’ll take one number. The number determines the team you’ll take the test with next week. Students with the same number will be on the same team. Let’s begin... Zion Steel."

When Zion heard his name, he stood up and headed toward Rina.

"Here, take a number and return to your seat."

"Yes."

At Rina’s instruction, Zion reached into the box and took a ticket.

Immediately, everyone’s attention was drawn to him.

They were all curious about his number. As the top-ranked student, being paired with him guaranteed success.

Seeing everyone’s reaction, I couldn’t mock them... because I wished for the same thing.

Zion looked at his number and stayed silent for a few seconds before returning to his seat.

I felt a deep sense of disappointment... damn you, why not just tell us the number? Or are you trying to look cool?

"Next, Lina Taylor."

Lina stepped onto the platform and took her number.

After a quick glance, she returned to her seat. The gazes directed at her were just as intense as they had been with Zion.

I clenched my hair in frustration—why won’t they say their numbers? Do they really think this makes them look cool?

Someone might say I’m overreacting, especially since I know what happens in the game—but honestly, I had forgotten which numbers they took.

"Next, Silvar Lucrez."

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.

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"Next, Rion Taylor."

Finally... after a long wait, boredom washed over me.

Everyone had already taken their numbers, yet no one announced theirs. Everyone simply followed Zion’s lead.

I felt eyes watching me from the front. When I looked in that direction, I saw Zion staring at me with a terrifying gaze.

I smiled awkwardly and waved my hand, hoping he’d look away—but my actions didn’t seem to affect him at all.

Please, stop staring at me... you’re scaring me...

I struggled to ignore him.

"Take your number and return to your seat."

Rina said calmly.

I reached my hand into the box and took my number. The moment my hand went in, I felt a vast space inside—far larger than the box’s external size. With slight difficulty, I reached deeper, and within seconds, something touched my palm. I pulled my hand out and retrieved my number.