043 Team Ups - Part 3 - Mirai‘s POV

  Merrick cpped his hands together, calling attention back to him. "Alright, next match."

  The students groaned. Some were still recovering from the st set of fights, but Merrick was unmoved. He adjusted his messy tie, exhaling like he was running on two hours of sleep and too much caffeine.

  "Same rules," he continued. "Round robin. First one to touch the ground with their hand loses. If five minutes pass without a clear winner, both contenders lose. Simple enough?"

  No one answered.

  "Good." Merrick gestured to the new teams. "Team C, Team D, step forward."

  Team CElena (Shadow Demon Summoner/Tamer?)Fiona (Gravitakinesis)Greg (That Cheater)Matt (??? ESP, some kind of wolf shapeshifting, but not using it)Anna (Accuracy and thread conjuration ESP, but surprisingly stubborn)

  Team DRon (Absent)Hannah (Geokinesis)Tom (Aerokinesis)Sarah (Super Speed)Clint (Enhanced Durability)Lo (Partial transformation– Mostly Compins)

  Since Ron was absent, Team D got a small disadvantage. However, there one advantage was they probably had more cohesion than Team C. It was already obvious that Team C was a mess.

  Elena and Greg were arguing before the match even started.

  "Let me go first," Greg said, flipping a cactus keychain in his hands like a coin.

  Elena scowled. "You're insufferable. I’ll go first."

  "Hey, hey," Greg smirked. "No need to be so aggressive. You know, I kinda like—"

  Elena punched him in the shoulder before he could finish.

  Merrick ignored them.

  Matt, meanwhile, was just standing awkwardly at the edge of the group, looking like he was thinking about leaving.

  As for Team D? They weren’t doing much better.

  Sarah was trying to corral them together. "Okay, okay, let’s just focus—"

  Lo sighed, flipping her hair. "Does it matter? We don’t have a pn, and I don’t even want to be here."

  Tom yawned, barely listening. Clint was just cracking his knuckles, uninterested in strategy.

  Sarah sighed. Yeah, no unity here either.

  Merrick looked unimpressed. "First match. Elena vs. Hannah. Step forward."

  Match One – Elena vs. Hannah

  The two girls faced off, stepping into the ring.

  Hannah had geokinesis, meaning she could manipute stone and earth. Elena, on the other hand, had a literal shadow demon that she could summon.

  So, yeah. This was a little one-sided.

  "Fight," Merrick announced.

  Hannah stomped the ground. The arena rumbled, and spikes of stone shot toward Elena.

  Elena didn’t move.

  A dark shadow swirled beneath her feet. Her demon rose from it like an ink-bck specter, glowing eyes fixed on Hannah.

  The stone spikes stopped mid-air.

  Then—they shattered.

  Hannah cursed, trying to pull up another wave of rock—

  The shadow demon lunged.

  It engulfed Hannah in a twisting mass of darkness. A moment ter, she was on the ground, her hand pressed against the floor.

  Merrick nodded. "Winner—Elena."

  Hannah groaned.

  Match Two – Greg vs. Tom

  Greg sauntered forward, flipping that stupid cactus keychain.

  Tom followed, looking completely uninterested.

  "Begin," Merrick announced.

  For five minutes, Greg danced around, dodging. He barely attacked, just moving in ways that made it really hard for Tom to nd a hit.

  Tom finally won with a st-second wind bst that knocked Greg’s foot out from under him.

  But…

  Something felt off.

  I narrowed my eyes. The way Greg moved felt deliberate. And the way Tom hesitated before knocking him down?

  Yeah.

  This was staged.

  Merrick didn’t comment. He just nodded. "Winner—Tom."

  Greg grinned as he walked back to his team.

  I had a bad feeling about that.

  Match Three – Lo vs. Anna

  I cheered for Anna.

  Lo compined the entire time.

  Anna kicked her in the shin.

  Lo compined harder.

  Anna kicked her again.

  Lo fell.

  Merrick sighed. "Winner—Anna."

  Lo sat on the ground, nursing her bruised leg. "I swear, that was illegal."

  "Nope," Merrick said ftly.

  I gave Anna a thumbs-up.

  Match Four – Matt vs. Clint

  So this was pretty obvious, no? Guy Who Won’t Use His ESP vs. Walking Brick Wall?

  Clint cracked his knuckles, stepping forward. "I’ll end this quick."

  Matt… sighed.

  He looked completely unmotivated.

  The fight started, and—yeah, it was over fast.

  Matt threw some weak punches. Clint barely flinched. Then, Clint tackled him, and Matt hit the ground.

  Merrick rubbed his temples. "Winner—Clint."

  Matt just walked off without a word.

  Match Five – Fiona vs. Sarah

  Sarah zipped across the field immediately, turning into a blur.

  Fiona didn’t move.

  Instead, she just raised a hand.

  The air around Sarah shifted.

  Suddenly, Sarah tripped over nothing.

  Fiona smirked.

  Sarah tried to get up—and tripped again.

  Then again.

  Then again.

  Fiona wasn’t stopping time or anything. She was just altering Sarah’s sense of bance.

  Sarah tried to brute-force her way through it—but one more misstep sent her face-first into the ground.

  Merrick barely looked up. "Winner—Fiona."

  Final ScoreTeam C: 3 WinsTeam D: 2 Wins

  Team C won by a single match.

  Some students cheered. Others looked relieved it was over.

  I just crossed my arms, still thinking about Greg’s match.

  Yeah. That was staged.

  Which meant Greg was up to something again.

  Professor Merrick adjusted his tie—well, attempted to. It was still loose, still messy, still adding to the overall image of a man who lived off caffeine and spite.

  "That concludes today’s session," he said, rubbing his temples like dealing with us had drained his st bit of patience. "Reflect on your performance. Some of you need to improve. Some of you need to touch grass. I won’t say which category you belong to."

  There were a few muttered compints, but no one challenged him.

  "Dismissed."

  And that was that.

  The rest of the school day? Dull.

  General subjects were the usual mix of barely paying attention and staring at the clock. Math, history, ESP theory—it all blurred together. After the intense sparring matches, sitting still and listening to lectures felt torturous.

  At least today, we didn’t have Combat Css II.

  Which meant early dismissal.

  Which meant freedom.

  By the time csses ended, I was practically floating out of the building.

  Mark and I walked together, making our way toward the park where I left my bicycle. The air was cool, the sky tinged with the warm hues of a setting sun.

  It was a peaceful moment.

  Until—

  A figure stood waiting by the park entrance.

  Karl.

  Arms crossed. Scowl deeper than usual. The kind of stormy expression that made it look like he was about to either pick a fight or deliver a dramatic monologue.

  His sharp eyes flicked between me and Mark.

  "So the rumor was true."

  Mark tensed slightly beside me. "...What rumor?"

  Karl exhaled through his nose, like he’d been holding back frustration for hours. "That you two were together."

  What.

  What?!

  I stared at him, blinking rapidly. "Wait—together? What are you—?"

  Karl gave me a ft look. "You should’ve just told me you had a boyfriend already."

  What.

  "I wouldn’t have embarrassed myself by asking you out," he added, voice tight with irritation.

  WHAT.

  My brain short-circuited. My mouth opened, but no words came out.

  Mark blinked. "...Huh."

  Karl scoffed, running a hand through his hair like this was somehow my fault. "You could’ve just said something instead of letting me find out through gossip."

  I finally managed to speak. "W-Wait! It’s not like that!"

  Karl narrowed his eyes. "Really? Because it sure looks like it."

  I frantically waved my hands. "We’re not—! I mean—! Mark isn’t—!"

  Mark, the traitor, just watched with amusement.

  Karl still didn’t look convinced.

  This was a disaster.

  I was still frantically trying to untangle Karl’s misunderstanding when I decided to do the only logical thing—change the subject.

  I cleared my throat. "A-Anyway! What did you even want?"

  Karl’s expression didn’t ease up, but at least he seemed willing to drop the topic. He crossed his arms, the tension in his posture shifting into something else—something calcuted.

  "It’s about the team-building activity," he said. "I have an idea."

  I frowned. "What kind of idea?"

  Mark gave him a wary look. "The way you’re saying that... it sounds dangerous."

  Karl’s lips curled into a smirk. "That’s because it is."

  Oh no.

  I sighed. "You could’ve just waited until tomorrow to talk about this, you know."

  Karl shrugged. "Nah. No point in waiting."

  "Alright, then." I raised an eyebrow. "When were you pnning to do it?"

  Karl reached into a bag slung over his shoulder and pulled out a set of clothes—still neatly folded in their original pstic.

  And then—he tossed them at us.

  I barely caught mine before it smacked me in the face.

  "What—?" I unfolded it slightly, my stomach dropping as I took in the details.

  The fabric was white. Crisp. Formal.

  Mark, already inspecting his, narrowed his eyes. "...This is the uniform of the Second Years from the White Tiger building."

  Wait.

  What?!

  My head snapped up. "Karl—what do you want with the Second Years?"

  Karl grinned.

  A slow, sharp, predatory grin.

  "We’ll be picking a fight with them."

  "No," I said immediately.

  Karl tilted his head, as if amused by how fast I rejected the idea. "Really now? That’s your first instinct?"

  "Of course it is!" I snapped, gripping the White Tiger uniform like it was a cursed artifact. "Do you have any idea how much trouble we’ll get into for this?"

  Karl smirked. "That depends. If we don’t get caught, there’s no trouble at all."

  I gred. "That is a terrible way to look at things!"

  Karl chuckled, but then his expression turned serious. "Look, I’ll make you a deal. If you py along, I’ll listen and follow any decent strategy you come up with. I’ll even treat you as the leader for this one."

  That... gave me pause.

  I turned to Mark, hoping for backup, but—

  "What are you looking at me for?" he said, raising an eyebrow. "Don’t look at me, leader.”

  “Wait, I’m the leader of this group now?"

  Ugh.

  Karl’s gaze never left me. He was waiting—watching to see if I’d fold.

  I exhaled sharply, running through the potential consequences in my head.

  —If we got caught, we’d probably be facing disciplinary action. Best case scenario? A warning. Worst case? Suspension. Expulsion.

  —If we somehow pulled it off, we’d still be making enemies of the entire Second-Year division. There were some monsters among them. Older, stronger students who’d been in the Academy longer, with refined ESP abilities and actual experience.

  —Oh god. What if they held grudges? What if one of them was petty? I could see it now—uppercssmen shadowing us in hallways, waiting to get back at us for embarrassing them.

  —What if I ended up being beled as a delinquent just by association?! My reputation—!!

  —And why, why was I even considering this? This was Karl's ridiculous idea!

  I buried my face in my hands.

  "Ugh…"

  Reluctantly, I agreed.

  "Fine," I sighed, rubbing my temple. "Who are we picking a fight with?"

  Karl’s grin widened. "No takebacks."

  Before I could process what he meant, he clicked a pen twice.

  A horrible sense of foreboding crept up my spine.

  "What… was that?" I asked, slowly.

  Karl held up the pen smugly. "A recording device. I just captured you agreeing to this."

  My stomach dropped.

  Karl continued, "Now, if you back out, I’ll make sure everyone knows how untrustworthy you are. Your credibility with our cssmates? Tanked. And depending on how I phrase it, some might even start treating you like—oh, I don’t know—Greg?"

  I gasped. "You wouldn’t dare."

  Karl just smirked.

  Oh my god, he would.

  Before I could even start panicking, Mark stepped forward.

  There was no hesitation in his movements—just quiet, deliberate menace.

  "You do realize," Mark said, voice calm but cold, "that your threat holds no substance? Just form?"

  Karl’s smirk twitched.

  Mark continued, "What exactly are you threatening her with? That she agreed to this stupid idea? As if people wouldn’t take one look at you and assume you strong-armed her into it."

  I blinked. Oh. Oh. That… was a good point.

  "Besides," Mark added, crossing his arms, "if you really think this is bckmail material, then you’re not half as smart as you think you are. You’re just pin stupid."

  Karl’s eyelid twitched. "Oh yeah?"

  "Yeah."

  Karl's expression darkened. "Well then, Mark. If you’re so confident, maybe I’ll just spill your secrets instead."

  My breath hitched.

  For a moment, I actually felt the temperature drop.

  Mark didn’t even blink. Instead, he smiled.

  It wasn’t a nice smile. It was his I’m-ready-to-throw-hand-psychotic-exclusive-Mark -kind-of-smile. "Go ahead," Mark said casually. "I’m curious too. What secret do I have?"

  Silence.

  Karl’s jaw tightened.

  I frowned. "Karl… I didn’t think you’d stoop this low," I said honestly.

  Karl clicked his tongue in annoyance. "Tch. If you’re gonna be like that, forget it. I’ll find someone else."

  He turned to leave.

  I caught his arm.

  "We’ll do it," I said.

  Mark sighed loudly.

  Karl turned back, looking satisfied. "Good. We’re fighting a standard css."

  I frowned. "…Which one?"

  Karl shrugged. "Dunno the section code."

  My frown deepened. "What do you mean by 'section code' and standard css?"

  There was an awkward silence.

  Even Karl looked a little nervous under Mark’s scrutiny.

  Mark slowly turned to him, narrowing his eyes.

  "You want us to fight an entire css?"

  Karl looked away.

  "...Maybe."