The night after the fight with Thomas was quiet.
The gym of Hostel 5 had mostly emptied out, but a small group remained inside one of the back rooms. A single yellow light hung from the ceiling, casting long shadows across the table where four people sat.
Akshat leaned back in his chair, his expression calm as always.
Across from him sat Thomas, now officially the leader of a hostel allied with him. Tae Jin stood near the wall with his arms crossed, still feeling the soreness from the fight earlier. Alexander sat beside Akshat, his laptop open as usual, the faint glow of the screen reflecting in his glasses.
For a moment, no one spoke.
Then Thomas finally broke the silence.
"So," he said, folding his arms. "You have Hostel 5 now."
Akshat nodded slightly. "But that alone won't mean much if you want to challenge Hostel 1."
Alexander tapped a few keys on his laptop.
"That's why we're here," he said calmly.
He turned the screen toward the others.
A digital map of the campus appeared, each hostel building marked clearly.
"Hostel 5 has joined us," Alexander continued. "Hostel 2, 3, and 4 are still undecided."
He paused for a second.
"But the next easiest target is Hostel 6."
Thomas leaned forward slightly.
"Hostel 6…" he muttered.
His expression became more serious.
"That place is a mess."
Tae Jin looked over. "What do you mean?"
Thomas sighed.
"Hostel 6 used to be strong years ago. Their fighters were respected across the campus."
He paused. "But things changed."
Alexander nodded slightly, clearly already aware of the situation.
"Internal conflict," Alexander said.
Thomas looked at him with mild surprise.
"You already know?"
Alexander gave a small shrug.
"I try to stay informed." He zoomed in on the hostel building displayed on the screen.
"Hostel 6 is currently divided into two groups."
He raised two fingers.
"Group one believes they should stay loyal to Hostel 1."
Tae Jin frowned slightly.
"Why?"
Thomas answered. "Fear."
He leaned back in his chair.
"Hostel 1 has controlled the campus for years. Some people think opposing them is suicide." Alexander raised his second finger.
"The other group wants to rebel."
Akshat finally spoke.
"And they're fighting each other."
Thomas nodded.
"Exactly."
Alexander continued explaining.
"The situation inside Hostel 6 is worse than that."
He pulled up another file.
"Most of the students there are weak."
Tae Jin raised an eyebrow.
"Weak?"
Alexander nodded.
"Academically focused students. Nerds. People who came to university to study, not fight."
Thomas snorted slightly.
"And the few strong guys they do have…"
He paused.
"…abuse their power."
Tae Jin's eyes narrowed.
"So they bully the weak ones."
Thomas nodded.
"Exactly."
For a moment, the room became quiet again.
Akshat tapped his fingers slowly on the table, thinking.
Then he spoke.
"If we walk in and try to take control…"
Alexander finished the sentence.
"…both factions will unite against us."
Thomas nodded.
"That's right."
Tae Jin leaned forward slightly.
"So what do we do?"
Alexander looked at Akshat.
Akshat's eyes were calm.
Then he said something unexpected.
"I'll go in."
The room went silent.
Tae Jin frowned.
"Go in where?"
Akshat looked directly at him.
"Hostel 6."
Thomas blinked.
"You mean as an attacker?"
Akshat shook his head.
"No."
His voice was calm.
"As a student."
Even Alexander paused typing for a moment.
Tae Jin stared at him.
"You're serious?"
Akshat nodded.
"I'm not well known inside Hostel 6."
Thomas rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
"That's actually true."
Akshat leaned forward slightly.
"If I enter quietly, they won't see me as a threat."
Alexander slowly closed his laptop.
Understanding was already forming in his mind.
"You want to infiltrate the hostel."
Akshat nodded.
"Exactly."
Tae Jin crossed his arms.
"And then what?"
Akshat answered simply.
"I gain the trust of the weak ones."
Thomas's eyes widened slightly.
"And the bullies?"
Akshat's expression didn't change.
"I deal with them."
The meaning behind those words was clear.
Tae Jin let out a small laugh.
"So basically…"
"…you're going to walk into a broken hostel and fix it by beating up the people causing the problem."
Akshat shrugged slightly.
"Something like that."
Thomas leaned back and stared at the ceiling for a moment.
Then he chuckled quietly.
"You're insane."
Akshat didn't respond.
But after a few seconds, Thomas nodded slowly.
"…but it might work."
Alexander reopened his laptop.
"If Akshat gains the trust of the weaker students, they'll start seeing him as a leader."
He paused.
"And if he defeats the bullies…"
Tae Jin finished the sentence.
"…the entire power structure collapses."
Alexander nodded.
"Exactly."
Thomas leaned forward again.
"You'll basically turn the whole hostel to your side."
Akshat stood up from his chair.
"That's the plan,during i handle the hostel 6's mess, make an alliance with hostel 2 at any cost."
Tae Jin pushed himself off the wall.
"From when do we start the plannings?"
Akshat walked toward the door.
His voice was calm but firm.
"Tomorrow, the plan will take time for perfect execution, Exams are near and the second year will be perfect to change my hostel."
As he stepped outside into the cool night air, the campus looked peaceful.
But inside one of the dorm buildings not far away…
Hostel 6 was slowly tearing itself apart.
And tomorrow— Someone new was about to walk straight into the middle of that chaos.
End of ch 34
To be continue...
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