Triangle Academy, Class A1. Friday.
I stared at the board, pretending to follow the lecture.
Today's topic was magical energy theory — core density, circulation efficiency, capacity conversion.
One of the few subjects I couldn't fake completely.
The public challenge system had opened two days ago. The ranking board was active. Names were shifting constantly.
Lucas secured 7th overall.
Seven.
Just below the S-Class monsters.
And me?
I hadn't fought once.
Not because I was afraid.
Because the moment I revealed how my skill truly worked, people would start asking questions.
What's the trigger?
Why didn't we see it before?
What's the limit?
Curiosity was far more dangerous than hostility.
I wasn't ready for that scrutiny.
Around me, Class A buzzed even mid-lecture.
Lucas was surrounded again.
Whispers. Questions. Invitations. Subtle tests.
And somehow he answered them all without missing a single line of explanation from the teacher.
"Convenient protagonist brain…" I muttered internally.
He glanced at a page once and remembered it forever.
Effortless retention.
Plot-blessed perception.
I clenched my pen slightly.
Being special must be exhausting.
"Alright," the teacher said. "That's all for today."
The moment he left, half the class swarmed Lucas.
The other half pretended not to.
I slipped out quietly.
E-Level
It had been two days.
Two days since I last saw Maya.
I'd given her space intentionally.
Didn't want dependence forming.
Didn't want her orbiting me.
But now—
something felt wrong.
I descended toward E-level.
The air changed subtly the deeper you went into the building.
Less polished.
Less observed.
More… predatory.
I stopped outside Class E.
If the bullying hadn't stopped—
If retaliation happened—
I pushed the door open.
The smell hit first.
Cheap cleaner.
Sweat.
Anxiety.
Students near the front froze the moment they saw my uniform stripe.
Good.
I scanned the room.
A boy wrapped head to toe in bandages caught my attention immediately.
Only his eyes and nose visible.
Blaze had done his job thoroughly.
My gaze kept moving.
Row one.
Row two.
No Maya.
My chest tightened.
Row three—
No.
Then—
Back row.
Laughter.
Soft, almost unsure.
A redhead covering her mouth while giggling.
Maya.
I exhaled slowly.
Relief hit harder than I expected.
A girl clinging to her arm leaned forward eagerly.
"So what's a Class A dorm like? Is it really nicer?"
"Yes, you're the only one who's seen it!" another chimed in.
Maya fidgeted, clearly struggling.
"Do I answer… or not…?"
I walked forward and sat across from her.
"So you make new friends and forget about me?"
Every head snapped toward us.
Maya jumped to her feet.
"W-what are you doing here!?"
Her friends began slowly withdrawing, eyes wide.
I stood.
"You didn't come yesterday. I was worried."
Her cheeks turned bright red instantly.
Behind her—
Whispers.
"They're definitely together—"
"Lovebirds—"
Maya went pale.
She grabbed my sleeve.
"O-outside. Now."
She dragged me out into the hallway.
Behind us, someone called:
"See you later, lovebirds!"
Silence.
Maya released my arm like it burned her.
"A-Are you insane!?" she hissed, pacing. "I just got rid of the rumor that I slept with you!"
I blinked.
"…You what?"
"I worked for two days to bury it!" she continued, flustered beyond belief. "And now everyone's going to start it again because you show up like that—"
I waited.
She eventually noticed I wasn't reacting.
"…Are you done?" I asked.
She deflated.
"…Yes."
"I handled the source," I said calmly. "Rumors won't escalate."
She paused.
Processing.
Then I stepped closer.
"But answer me something."
Her shoulders tensed.
"Are you ashamed of me?"
Her eyes widened instantly.
I stepped just close enough that she had to look up at me.
She swallowed hard.
"N-no! I just—"
Her back brushed lightly against the wall.
Her entire face turned red.
I stepped back deliberately.
Teasing achieved.
Focus restored.
"How's training?" I asked.
She straightened quickly.
"I'm at 110 magic energy now."
I frowned.
"No. With your circulation speed, you should've surpassed that in one day."
Her confidence wavered.
Then she raised her hand.
A deep navy-blue glow formed around her fingers.
My breath caught.
"…Metaphysical energy."
She nodded proudly.
"I evolved my core."
Silence.
The first core evolution usually required saturating your capacity completely.
Compressing.
Reshaping.
Most students hit that threshold around 600 magic energy.
Maya did it at barely over a hundred.
That wasn't normal.
That was inheritance.
Power that understood itself.
Her glow faded, sinking back into her skin.
"Is that why you didn't come?" I asked.
"Yes," she admitted. "I felt I was close to the limit. I didn't want to interrupt the breakthrough."
I sighed.
"Next time, tell me. I thought someone retaliated."
She looked genuinely guilty.
"…Sorry. I forgot how this… having someone worry about you thing works."
That disarmed me more than the core evolution.
She wasn't being strategic.
She was being honest.
"Alright," I said lightly. "Now we accelerate."
She tilted her head.
"Accelerate what?"
"Everything."
"First question — how many merits do you have?"
She checked her ID.
"510."
Good.
"You didn't waste them."
I showed mine.
"1,600."
Her eyes widened slightly.
"That's 2,110 total."
"…Do you need my merits?" she asked.
"Yeah," I admitted. "Temporarily."
"You can have them."
No hesitation.
No bargaining.
Just trust.
I stared at her for a second.
"You're reckless."
She smiled faintly.
"Maybe."
I took her card.
Then laced my fingers through hers and tugged lightly.
"Since we're aligned— let's go."
She squeaked.
"Wait—where are we going!?"
She glanced back once.
Her new friends were peeking from the classroom door.
Whispering.
Giggling.
Maya sighed in defeat.
"First," I said, "the merit shop."
She swallowed.
"And then?"
I grinned.
"Then we leave the Triangle."
Her eyes widened.
"Leave? Are you crazy!?"
"Relax," I said.
"We're just going off-campus."
Pause.
"Illegally."
She stared at me.
And for the first time since I met her—
Instead of fear—
She looked excited.