Another peaceful day...

In front of Diana, there stood a handsome boy with blonde hair. It was the same Hector from Smith's combat class earlier.

Currently, he was eyeing Diana with hint of disdain.

"I walked across an interesting fight earlier… Tsk, who knew a mere C-class can cause a noble to be defeated…"

Hector's mocking smile further evoked the agony in Diana.

"You… Wait…! That's not what happ-"

Diana felt the urge to explain her defeat, but no words came out.

She herself was wondering whether it was really the C-rank's fault she failed or if it was just the lack of firepower she brought.

Finally, she gritted her teeth and glared back at Hector.

"This has nothing to do with the Dunland family! Get lost!"

All of a sudden, Hector's expression turned cold. He took a step closer to Diana and said, "I was going to provide your family a method to deal with Sylvia… But with your hostile attitude, I'm afraid you plan on breaking the alliance your brother is trying to set up."

A bead of sweat rolled down Diana's forehead at the mention of her brother.

"That's…"

"Should I inform your brother about your intentions?"

"No, that's not what I meant…"

Diana's disregard for Hector diminished. One of the last things she wanted to do was mess up another one of her brother's plans, which was the secret alliance he was setting up with the Dunland family.

"Good then… Now, do you want to hear what I have in mind?"

"No… This has nothing to do with our alliance… Just mind your business!"

With these words, Diana took quick strides away from the scene.

She figured she needed to calm down and reflect on today's events. There should be more opportunities in the future to deal with Sylvia after all.

There was also no particular need to involve any outsiders in this matter at all.

In the meantime, Hector gazed at Diana's receding back for a long moment.

"The downfall of Sylvia's family is already set-in stone… I'll make sure to reap the benefits."

Hector muttered to himself, numerous plans forming in his mind.

**

A day later…

I was walking towards the academy's dining hall in the company of Wang. We had just finished our first set of classes and decided to get lunch.

When we had arrived at the spacious hall to grab a bite, a few mutters and stares were immediately directed towards us.

The stares from the students from the second years were especially hostile, as though we had insulted their honor or something.

It surely was an amusing sight to witness…

"Oh, so the rumors were true…"

"Yup, I can't believe that group is so blatantly ignoring the hierarchy here."

"Also, who knows if the second-years will deal with them? I heard they're trying to find someone named Zero though…"

Similar words were spoken at many tables. While Wang had found it to be mildly annoying initially, he had gotten used to it really quick and treated them like air.

It was probably because he thought there to be no consequences.

On the other hand, a quizzical smile had formed on my face.

It was really interesting to me that the rumors of the man named Zero had already started reaching the ears of the student body.

I couldn't stop now though since the levelling up addiction had already gotten to me. It truly felt like a pity if I was forced to pause.

'Just being a little careful would do the trick, right?'

Just as I was deep in thought to myself, Wang turned to me and said, "Let's go grab an empty table over there…!"

"Oh, wait…" I shook my head and added, "I had messaged Sylvia earlier… She said she's here too and seated at another corner. Let's go there."

Wang's nose wrinkled as he followed me, murmuring quietly to himself. "Since when did you get so close with her, huh?"

We both quickly found the very noticeable Sylvia who was sitting by herself.

There was no one around her, since her S-rank had already scared of most people.

I waved at her and took a seat across her, Wang joining as well. Before we could begin our lunch, I heard a voice call out from the distance.

"S-Soren…"

I turned my glance to witness the pretty and flustered face of Mika. She was holding her plate of food and looked to be hesitating on whether to walk towards us.

'Oh, yeah… I had messaged her earlier too.'

"Mika, what are you doing there…? Come join us!"

Hearing my words, Mika heaved a sigh of relief and quickly came over to me. At the same time, when Mika was taking a seat next to me, the shoulders of both Wang and Sylvia had tensed up.

They were still able to say a "Hey" to Mika though.

At the same time, I had decided to act oblivious to Sylvia's warnings. If there was something really up, I believed I would be able to handle it in time.

"So, how're you doing, Mika?"

"Good…"

"That's great to hear. I was worried about your terrible roommates returning, you know?"

My intense gaze lingered on Mika, causing her to turn her head down with a red tinge on her cheeks. Soon she gathered some courage and took out a notebook from her bag.

"Soren… I… I took notes!'

"Ah, that…"

I casually took the notebook from her and flipped through the pages. Her notes were neatly written and concise to the point; I could not help but nod in approval.

Due to Mika, I would not have to put much effort in many of my classes anymore.

In that moment, I noticed that Mika's eyes were flashing with expectations. It was like she was waiting for something good as she looked at me.

'Hmm, does she want me to reward her or something…? I guess she deserves some praise for the job.'

I moved my hand and gently stroked Mika's hair.

"Thank you, Mika…"

"Hic… I-It was no problem."

Instead of resisting my touch, Mika positioned her head to make it more comfortable for my hand. A sense of pleasure and accomplishment was visible on her face.

From the sidelines, Wang smiled knowingly and even smirked at the nearby Sylvia.

His mouth was forming the words 'I told you so…'

Sylvia, who witnessed the same scene with a small frown, was then reminded of her conversation with Wang. Her lips pursed together as she wondered if Mika was really trying to get with Soren.

Right then, I had turned to Sylvia and moved the notes closer to her.

"Oh… Why don't you make a copy of these notes first?"

"Huh, me?"

"Yeah… Just return them tomorrow."

Besides me, Mika's mouth twitched as she saw me handing over her notes. Even her eyes were somewhat turning moist.

'Does she not like Sylvia or something?'

In the meantime, after a short pause, Sylvia snorted and crossed her arms.

"Why would I need them? I'm not an idiot like you."

"What? I've seen your notes… and I feel like you really need this too."

Despite my good intentions, Sylvia just bared her teeth at me. "Are you trying to say I'm an idiot?!"

'Yes, I am…'

Black lines began to form on my forehead.

The non-combat theory classes were almost all knock-off classes that all students would find easy to ace. There were only a few unique students like Sylvia who found them hard for whatever reason.

If not for her ridiculously high S-rank, there was a good chance that no guilds would accept her after finding her basic knowledge to be a true liability.

Before I could argue further with Sylvia, Wang sensed the mood and interjected.

"Hahaha… So, how was your first combat class yesterday…?"

I put away Mika's notes in my bag then took a deep breath. I figured what I was trying to do was pointless.

Next, I turned to Wang and replied, "Hmm, we didn't do much yet… But Mr. Smith was ridiculously strong! I still don't understand how he easily suppressed everyone in the class."

Instantly, a mocking voice came from Sylvia's side.

"Of course, he easily suppressed us… You don't even know he is an evolved human?"

"An evolved human…?"

My eyes widened as I tried to go through my fragmented memories for answers. The more I remembered, the more surprised I grew.

Evolved humans were rare humans who had gone through awakening twice. In the process, their bodies and abilities became significantly stronger, making the powers of other normal humans seem akin to the power of ants.

These evolved humans were so rare that despite human population growing back to a little more than a billion after the war, there were only a few thousand of them.

Even a S-rank user would more often fail than succeed on their attempts to reach such heights.

While I was thinking to myself, Wang took note of my cluelessness and began to speak.

Over the last few days, he had realized that my common knowledge was often lacking for some odd reasons.

"Kuhum… Evolved humans are the epitome of what human potential looks like. Both the Roland and my own Feng family also have one such person. After all, not all evolved humans are part of noble families, but all noble families are founded by evolved humans…"

"But no way…! Why is someone like that teaching here?"

"Hmm, yes… Mr. Smith is an odd one for choosing to instruct here rather than be part of the upper echelons of the Alliance."

While I was thinking more to myself, all of a sudden, the entire canteen seemed to quiet down. The loud chitter-chatter of the students was turning into hushed murmurs.

Noticing the obvious change of atmosphere, my head turned towards the entrance of the dining hall.

From there, I saw a group of stoic and strong looking students entering.

They were all wearing the second-year black badges and, more importantly, heading towards our table.

Many of the students watching gulped but kept their eyes wide open in anticipation.

It looked to everyone that a good show was about to follow…