039 Problem Students - Part 3 - Mark’s POV

  Professor Collins’s css ended without much fanfare. His subject, Survival & Field Operations, was a cinch for me. The guy’s a decent instructor, but when it comes to hiding, well… I’ve had years of practice.

  We were pying a version of hide and seek in the academy’s training forest. Professor Collins had scattered the css around and told us to stay hidden or get “captured.” Easy enough. I’d been under a thick yer of mud and half-buried in a patch of mossy groves for the past hour. My ESP wasn’t exactly combat-focused, but for stealth and misdirection? I was untouchable.

  I heard footsteps crunching through the underbrush. Voices followed.

  “Mark! Where are you?” That was Anna’s voice.

  “Come on, css is over!” Hannah called.

  Tom’s heavier footsteps were slower, more deliberate. “Professor Collins said we’re done! Get out here already!”

  I stayed still, half-submerged in the mud. No way css was over this early. It wasn’t even lunch yet. Was it?

  My smart watch was missing—I’d taken it off before going into the exercis—and I wasn’t exactly about to fish through wet dirt to find it. The watch was new, too. Mom had gotten it for me after my st watch got smashed during sparring.

  The voices faded as Anna, Hannah, and Tom wandered past my hiding spot. I waited for the crunch of their steps to disappear completely before crawling out from under the mud. The cool air bit into my skin as I peeled off the leafy cover I’d used for camoufge.

  A quick jog through the forest trail, and I made it back to the boy’s locker room in about five minutes. My gym tracksuit was caked with dirt and sweat, and there was no way I was sitting through the rest of the day like that. I hit the showers, rinsing off the mud and grime while trying not to think too hard about how many other guys had used this stall today.

  A few minutes ter, I was back in my bck uniform, freshly changed and considerably less gross. The gym tracksuit was stuffed into a pstic bag I’d deal with ter.

  By the time I got back to the training grounds, Professor Collins was standing at the edge of the clearing, arms crossed as he delivered his closing remarks. He had that serious, vaguely disappointed look he always wore when half the css had underperformed. Which was often.

  “…and that concludes today’s lesson,” Professor Collins said, his gravelly voice cutting through the post-training chatter. “Some of you demonstrated basic survival instincts. Most of you… did not.” His eyes skimmed across the crowd. “Next time, try not to make enough noise to wake the dead.”

  Greg chuckled somewhere in the back. Elena gave him a withering gre, but he just smiled wider.

  “Dismissed,” Professor Collins said.

  The css began to scatter, students talking among themselves as they gathered their gear. I was about to head toward the locker room again when Anna caught up with me, looking a little annoyed.

  “You really didn’t hear us?” she asked, frowning.

  “I heard you.”

  Anna gave me a look. “Then why didn’t you come out?”

  “Didn’t trust it,” I shrugged.

  Anna rolled her eyes. “Of course you didn’t.”

  “Hey, I was right,” I pointed out.

  She sighed. “Next time, just trust that we aren’t setting you up, okay?”

  “Maybe.”

  She narrowed her eyes at me but didn’t press it.

  Tom wandered by and shot me a thumbs-up. “Nice hiding spot, man. Hannah practically walked over you.”

  “I aim to please,” I said.

  Hannah herself was a few steps behind, her arms crossed. “We’re supposed to be a team, you know,” she huffed.

  “Yeah, sure.”

  She scowled. “Next time, don’t make us come looking for you.”

  “I’ll consider it.”

  Hannah shook her head and walked off, muttering something under her breath about antisocial weirdos.

  Anna had been on the seeker side earlier, so I knew exactly who to avoid. Her strategy was decent—she had a good sense for tracking—but once you know someone's rhythm, it's easy to slip out of their grasp. Especially when stealth was basically my thing.

  Speaking of seekers…

  “Where’s Mirai?” I asked Anna as we headed toward the building.

  Anna shrugged. “No idea. She was supposed to be a seeker too.”

  That was odd. Mirai wasn’t the type to sck off during a survival drill. But before I could think too hard about it, there was a rustling from the treeline.

  Mirai stumbled out of the forest, her face absolutely caked with dirt. Her uniform was a disaster—mud sptters on her skirt, her white blouse stained a faint green from grass, and her knee socks were wrecked.

  Some of the other seekers had worn their gym tracksuits for the drill. Mirai, though… not so much.

  Anna raised an eyebrow. “What happened to you?”

  Mirai gave a shaky ugh, brushing dirt from her sleeves. “I, um… don’t have a tracksuit yet.”

  Anna’s mouth curled into a smile, and she started ughing. “That’s your excuse?”

  Greg, who looked just as filthy, was leaning casually against a tree. He was wearing a tracksuit, of course—it was stained with mud, but the difference between him and Mirai was obvious. Greg was smirking.

  “You’re such an idiot,” Greg said, pointing at Mirai and grinning like a maniac.

  Mirai flushed, her cheeks turning pink beneath the dirt. “It’s not my fault!”

  “Sure it’s not,” Greg teased. “You’re lucky Professor Collins didn’t fail you on principle.”

  Anna’s ugh cut off abruptly. “Greg, shut up.”

  Greg just ughed harder. “What? I’m just saying what everyone’s thinking.”

  “Then stop thinking,” Anna snapped.

  Greg winked at her. “Can’t stop perfection, babe.”

  Anna’s hand curled into a fist.

  Greg wisely took a step back.

  Before Anna could escate things, another figure emerged from the forest.

  Elena.

  Her uniform was just as much of a mess as Mirai’s—skirt streaked with mud, blouse rumpled, and her hair a little windblown. She was scowling, eyes narrowed beneath golden bangs.

  But unlike Mirai, Elena made it look… intentional.

  Anna leaned toward me and whispered, “She didn’t wear a tracksuit because, let me guess—”

  “She’s too elegant for that,” I finished.

  “Exactly.”

  Elena’s gaze swept the clearing, cold and calcuting as always. Her eyes locked onto Greg, who was still grinning like an idiot.

  Greg’s expression lit up as he nudged Karl, who was standing nearby with his arms crossed and looking particurly annoyed.

  “Hey, Karl!” Greg said, patting Karl’s back. “Looks like we’ve got a pair of potted pnts that need repnting!”

  Karl’s scowl deepened. His eyes flicked toward Greg’s hand on his shoulder, then toward Elena and Mirai. He didn’t say anything, but the look he shot Greg could have set the forest on fire.

  “Touch me again and you’ll lose that hand,” Karl muttered.

  Greg’s smirk widened. “Kinky.”

  Karl looked about two seconds away from decking him.

  Elena sighed and adjusted her skirt with a flick of her wrist. “You’re disgusting.”

  Greg shrugged. “Takes one to know one.”

  Elena’s gre sharpened.

  “Okay, let’s not start a fight,” I cut in. “Save it for the sparring grounds.”

  Greg gave me a toothy grin. “Mark’s right. We should py nice.”

  Karl’s eyes darkened. “You don’t know the meaning of the word.”

  Greg’s smile widened. “I think you’re starting to like me, Karl.”

  Karl’s hand curled into a fist. I watched his knuckles whiten.

  Yeah, this was going to get messy fast.

  “Karl,” Mirai said brightly, “let’s talk.”

  Karl’s scowl deepened. “About what?”

  Mirai turned to me, brushing a lock of hair behind her ear. “We should have lunch together. What do you think, Mark?”

  I raised an eyebrow. “Sure.”

  Karl’s lip curled. “I don’t give a fuck.”

  Mirai smiled sweetly. “It’s about Professor Merrick’s subject. And the team-ups.”

  Karl didn’t say anything, but his jaw tightened.

  Anna perked up. “Team-ups, huh? I wonder what the other teams are going to be like.”

  Peter, who had been sitting nearby, leaned back on his hands. “I’d want John on my team.”

  Greg’s smile sharpened. “Me too.”

  Anna shot him a look. “Seriously?”

  Greg shrugged, all innocent smiles. “What? John’s solid.”

  The others gave him a weird look.

  John, who had been sitting off to the side, pushed his mask up slightly so it rested on the top of his head. His orange hair was slightly damp from sweat. He shrugged. “Can’t. I already have a team.”

  Anna blinked. “You do?”

  John nodded. “Professor Merrick talked to me about it. Said he had pns for me.”

  Greg leaned forward, eyes glinting. “What kind of pns?”

  John’s expression remained neutral. “Can’t say.”

  “Cryptic,” Greg said approvingly.

  “Suspicious,” Karl muttered.

  John smiled faintly, then lowered his mask back into pce.

  When the others started talking among themselves, I stood and stretched. “I’ll meet you outside,” I told Mirai.

  She nodded, brushing dirt from her skirt.

  I left the training grounds and stood outside the building. The afternoon sun was low in the sky, casting a pale orange hue over the courtyard. A soft breeze carried the faint scent of grass and dirt.

  Eventually, Mirai and Karl emerged from the building. Karl looked about as thrilled as someone being led to an execution.

  “Come on,” Mirai said brightly, no longer with a messy uniform. She probably had a spare.

  Karl didn’t resist exactly—but he also didn’t look particurly interested in cooperating.

  “We’re going this way,” I said, pointing toward the rooftop staircase.

  Karl’s eyes narrowed. “Why the rooftop?”

  “Because it’s quiet,” I said.

  “Because it’s our spot,” Mirai added with a smile.

  Karl sighed, but he didn’t protest as we climbed the stairs. He could have left if he wanted to—but he didn’t.

  When we reached the rooftop, Mirai sat cross-legged on the ground. I leaned back against the railing, while Karl stood stiffly near the edge, arms crossed. His red hair was tousled from the wind, and his sharp blue eyes were focused on the horizon.

  Mirai rummaged through her bag and pulled out a bento box. “I’ve got extra, if you want some.”

  Karl gnced at her. “No.”

  “Suit yourself.” Mirai opened the box, revealing neatly packed rice balls and fried chicken.

  I pulled out a convenience store sandwich from my bag and unwrapped it. “I think I got the better deal.” I didn’t have time to pack up my lunch, so sandwhich it was.

  Mirai grinned. “I made this myself.”

  Karl snorted. “Expins a lot.”

  Mirai’s smile didn’t waver. “Don’t worry. I won’t offer you any.”

  Karl didn’t respond, but he sat down, legs stretched out in front of him.

  Greg’s words earlier stuck with me. John already had a team. That was… unusual. And Merrick personally set it up? That meant it was important.

  “You think Merrick’s pnning something with John?” I asked.

  Mirai hummed thoughtfully. “Probably.”

  Karl’s gaze sharpened. “Merrick’s always pnning something.”

  Mirai handed me a rice ball. I took it without thinking and bit into it. It was surprisingly good.

  “Yeah,” I said. “But why John?”

  Mirai nudged my arm as I finished the st bite of my sandwich.

  “You should eat more,” she said, her tone light but insistent. “A sandwich isn’t enough.”

  I raised an eyebrow. “It’s fine.”

  She smiled knowingly and opened her bento box again. “I brought extra.”

  I hesitated. “I don’t have utensils.”

  Mirai pulled out a spare pair of chopsticks from her bag with a flourish. “Problem solved.”

  “…Convenient,” I muttered, but I took them anyway.

  She pushed the bento toward me. “You shared your side dishes with me st time. Now we’re even.”

  I picked up a piece of fried chicken and popped it into my mouth. It was good—better than I expected. Mirai’s cooking had improved.

  Beside us, Karl was sitting with his arms crossed, looking vaguely pissed off. His scowl deepened as Mirai handed me another rice ball.

  Mirai noticed. “What’s the problem?”

  Karl scoffed. “Nothing.”

  “You’re gring,” I said.

  Karl’s sharp blue eyes fshed toward me, then toward Mirai. “Just wondering how long I have to sit here before I start growing moss.”

  Mirai’s smile didn’t falter. “Do you feel like a third wheel?”

  Karl’s jaw tightened. “Maybe.”

  Mirai tilted her head. “That’s funny. Because I don’t remember inviting you. You came on your own.”

  Karl’s lip curled into something almost resembling a smile. “I don’t remember agreeing to a team lunch. Stop twisting your words, that isn’t… like you…”

  “You didn’t,” I said. “We dragged you here.”

  Karl scoffed. “Exactly.”

  Mirai closed her bento box and leaned forward slightly. “So. What do you think about doing some team-building activities?”

  Karl’s gaze sharpened. “What?”

  “We’re going to be on the same team for Professor Merrick’s css,” Mirai said cheerfully. “It makes sense to work on our coordination, right?”

  Karl’s brow furrowed. He didn’t respond immediately, which was already unusual.

  I expected him to sh out or make a snide remark, but instead… he looked thoughtful.

  Mirai’s smile widened. “Come on, it’ll be fun.”

  Karl’s gaze darkened. “Fun?”

  “Or productive,” Mirai amended.

  Karl’s mouth twisted into a nasty smile. “Alright.”

  Mirai blinked. “…Alright?”

  Karl’s smile widened. “I’m willing to cooperate.”

  Mirai’s eyes lit up. “Really?”

  Karl’s smile sharpened. “But I get to decide the activity.”

  I frowned. “That doesn’t sound like teamwork.”

  Karl’s grin turned feral. “Oh, but it will be. You’ll see.”

  Mirai gnced at me. I sighed. This was going to be a problem.

  Just what did Karl have in mind?