Webnovel's Extra: Reincarnated With a Copy Ability-Chapter 173: Small Decisions

The pressure didn’t spike.

It spread.

By the next morning, nothing looked different. The same halls, same routines, same noise drifting through open doors. If someone had walked in without context, they wouldn’t have noticed anything at all.

Lucas noticed everything.

He caught himself doing it before he even reached the training wing. A student ahead of him slowed at a corner to let someone pass. Not out of politeness. Timing. Awareness. They were choosing how they were seen, even in something that small.

Lucas shook his head lightly.

"Yeah, this is getting annoying."

Raisel walked beside him, hands at his sides.

"You’re adjusting."

"I don’t want to adjust to this," Lucas muttered.

"You already are."

Lucas didn’t argue.

Training didn’t start with the grid.

That was the first difference.

Instead, Halvors stood at the center of the hall, arms folded behind his back, waiting for the last few students to filter in. He didn’t look irritated. He didn’t look anything at all.

Just still.

Lucas slowed as he stepped inside.

"That’s new."

Arden glanced toward the center.

"Yes."

Dreyden didn’t comment. 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

They moved into position along the outer ring with the rest of the class. Conversations died out without being told to. The quiet felt heavier than usual, like everyone was waiting for a rule that hadn’t been given yet.

Halvors let the silence sit.

Then he spoke.

"Pair off."

No explanation.

No context.

Just that.

Lucas blinked.

"That’s it?"

Raisel had already stepped away, scanning the room. Arden moved without hesitation.

Lucas sighed.

"Of course."

He turned, eyes moving across the hall until they landed on someone a few paces away. A mid-tier student. Solid posture. No obvious tells.

Good enough.

"You," Lucas said, nodding once.

The other student hesitated for a fraction of a second before stepping forward.

"Alright."

They took position in an open section of the floor.

Lucas rolled his shoulders.

"So... we sparring, or—"

"Begin."

Halvors didn’t raise his voice.

He didn’t need to.

The first exchange was clean.

Lucas stepped in, testing distance, throwing a controlled strike to gauge reaction speed. His partner responded well, deflecting and shifting to the side instead of retreating.

Not bad.

Lucas adjusted, increasing pressure slightly. The other student kept up, though Lucas could feel the hesitation under the surface. Not in movement. In decision.

He pressed once more.

The hesitation showed.

Just a flicker.

Lucas capitalized, redirecting the opening and forcing a reset in positioning.

They separated.

Lucas exhaled.

"Relax," he said. "You’re thinking too much."

The other student frowned slightly.

"We’re being evaluated."

Lucas shrugged.

"So?"

"So it matters."

Lucas tilted his head.

"It always mattered."

"That’s different."

Lucas didn’t answer right away.

Because it wasn’t.

Not really.

"Then stop treating it like it’s different," he said finally. "You’ll just slow yourself down."

The other student didn’t look convinced.

They moved again.

The second exchange went worse.

Not for Lucas.

For the rhythm.

The other student committed too early, expecting Lucas to repeat the previous sequence. Lucas didn’t. He shifted angle mid-step, forcing the exchange into something less predictable.

The response came late.

Lucas stopped just short of completing the strike.

"Reset."

The word slipped out without thinking.

His partner nodded, stepping back.

Lucas rolled his wrist once.

"You’re trying to read ahead," he said. "Don’t."

"How else am I supposed to keep up?"

Lucas gave a short laugh.

"You don’t. You react."

"That’s slower."

Lucas shook his head.

"Only if you’re wrong."

Around them, the hall filled with the sound of movement. Not loud. Controlled. Pairs working through exchanges with varying levels of success.

Some pushed too hard, turning it into a contest.

Others stayed too cautious, barely engaging at all.

Lucas noticed both.

Neither worked.

He stepped forward again.

"Alright," he said. "One more."

This time, he didn’t lead.

He waited.

The other student hesitated, just long enough to decide whether to take the initiative.

Then they moved.

Faster than before.

Cleaner.

Lucas adjusted, meeting the strike head-on. The exchange flowed better this time. Not perfect, but less forced.

When it ended, they both stepped back.

Lucas nodded once.

"Better."

The other student exhaled.

"Yeah."

Halvors didn’t stop them.

He didn’t correct anyone.

He walked the floor slowly, watching each pair without comment. No interruptions. No feedback. Just observation.

Lucas caught his attention once.

A brief glance.

Nothing more.

But it was enough.

He felt it again.

That quiet pressure.

Not from the man himself.

From what the moment represented.

Lucas clicked his tongue softly.

"Still hate this."

The session lasted longer than usual.

No clear endpoint.

Just continuous movement until Halvors finally spoke again.

"Stop."

Everyone did.

Immediately.

"Switch partners."

Lucas blinked.

"...Of course."

The second pairing was worse.

Not because of skill.

Because of difference.

This one moved unpredictably. Not in a controlled way. In a way that suggested they didn’t fully understand their own timing yet.

Lucas adjusted on instinct, but it wasn’t smooth. The exchanges felt uneven, harder to read, harder to settle into.

He took a step back after the third clash.

"Wait."

The other student froze.

"What?"

Lucas frowned slightly.

"You’re not committing."

"I am."

"No," Lucas said. "You’re starting, then changing halfway."

"That’s adapting."

Lucas shook his head.

"That’s panicking."

The words came out sharper than he intended.

The other student stiffened.

Lucas exhaled.

"Look," he said, more evenly. "Pick something and follow through. If it’s wrong, fix it after. Not during."

They stared at him for a second.

Then nodded.

"Alright."

The next exchange improved.

Not by much.

But enough.

Lucas stepped back again, breathing steady.

"Better."

The other student gave a short nod.

"Yeah."

When Halvors finally ended the session, there was no speech.

No summary.

Just a single instruction.

"Leave."

Lucas wiped sweat from his neck as he headed toward the exit.

"That was... different."

Raisel walked beside him.

"Yes."

Lucas glanced at him.

"They’re not correcting anything."

"No."

Lucas frowned.

"So how are we supposed to know what we’re doing wrong?"

Raisel looked ahead.

"We don’t."

Lucas let out a quiet breath.

"Great."

The realization settled in as they stepped into the corridor.

This wasn’t about being taught.

It wasn’t even about being tested in a clear way.

It was about how they handled not knowing.

Lucas ran a hand through his hair.

"They’re watching how we adjust without feedback."

Dreyden nodded.

"Yes."

Lucas huffed.

"Of course they are."

They moved toward the courtyard again, the late afternoon light stretching across the walkways.

Students were already gathering, some talking through their sparring sessions, others replaying movements in the air.

Lucas leaned against the railing, looking out.

"You notice something?"

Arden stood beside him.

"What?"

Lucas gestured toward a pair arguing quietly near the center.

"They’re not arguing about who won."

Arden followed his gaze.

"They’re arguing about what they did wrong."

Lucas nodded.

"Yeah."

He let out a small breath.

"That’s new."

Dreyden watched the same scene from a few steps away.

The shift was subtle.

But it was there.

Focus had moved.

Not to results.

To decisions.

Small ones.

When to act.

When to wait.

When to commit.

Those moments mattered more now than any clean execution.

Because those were the moments people couldn’t fake.

Lucas pushed off the railing.

"So what now?"

He looked at Dreyden.

"No feedback. No clear rules. Just... keep going?"

Dreyden met his gaze.

"Yes."

Lucas stared at him for a second.

Then laughed under his breath.

"Yeah, that sounds about right."

He turned back toward the courtyard, watching the movement below.

Students thinking.

Adjusting.

Trying to get it right without being told what "right" even meant anymore.

Lucas exhaled slowly.

"Guess it comes down to this, then."

Raisel glanced at him.

"What?"

Lucas shrugged.

"Every small decision matters."

He looked back at the hall doors.

"And if you get enough of them wrong..."

He didn’t finish the sentence.

He didn’t need to.

Dreyden’s silence said the rest.