Chapter 60: The Return Of The Tyrant

I spent a year and a half preparing for his return, yet when David Lawrence walked through the classroom door, I felt a sharp chill run down my spine.

He was just as I remembered—tall, confident, his sharp blue eyes scanning the room like a predator surveying its territory. The moment he stepped in, the energy in the class shifted. Conversations died. Students turned their heads, instinctively drawn to his presence.

But what made my blood boil was when his eyes landed directly on me.

A slow, smug grin stretched across his lips as he addressed the class.

"Good morning, everyone," he said smoothly, his voice laced with amusement. "My name is David Lawrence. I've just transferred here, but I've heard a lot about this place—especially about one student in particular."

Murmurs spread across the room. Some students turned to each other in confusion.

David continued, his gaze never leaving mine.

"I'm talking about William Right."

I clenched my jaw. So, this is how he wants to play it.

"I've heard that he's supposed to be the smartest student here," David continued, his tone playful yet sharp. "I've even heard people say he's the best at everything. What an interesting coincidence…"

He smirked.

"Because I just happen to be the best at everything, too."

The classroom erupted into gasps and whispers.

"Did he just challenge William?!" someone whispered.

"Is this real? A battle between two geniuses?"

I exhaled slowly, keeping my face expressionless. He wanted attention. He wanted a reaction. I wouldn't give him the satisfaction.

I simply met his gaze, unflinching.

The teacher cleared her throat, breaking the tension. "Alright, Mr. Lawrence, please take your seat. We'll begin class now."

And, of course, the only empty seat was the one right next to me.

David strode over and sat down, his smirk never fading.

"Let's have some fun today, William," he whispered.

Fine. If it's a battle you want, it's a battle you'll get.

The first class was Statistics.

"Alright, class," the teacher announced. "Today, we'll be solving some probability problems. Let's see if our new student can keep up with the best in our school."

She meant me.

David flashed me a knowing look. Challenge accepted.

She wrote the problem on the board:

A game requires players to roll two six-sided dice. If they win when the sum is 7 or 11, what is the probability of winning?

I picked up my pen immediately.

Step by step, I broke it down:

The possible rolls of (7): (1,6), (2,5), (3,4), (4,3), (5,2), (6,1)→ 6 outcomes

The possible rolls of (11): (5,6), (6,5)→ 2 outcomes

Total winning outcomes: 6 + 2 = 8

Total possible rolls: 6 × 6 = 36

Probability of winning: 8/36 = 2/9 ≈ 22.22%

By the time I finished writing, David had also put down his pen.

We had finished at the exact same time.

The teacher walked over, checking our answers. Her eyebrows lifted.

"…Both correct."

Gasps filled the room.

The girls in the back of the classroom started whispering.

"Did you see how fast they did that?!"

"They're both so smart!"

A few even started cheering.

One girl giggled, "This is like watching a duel between two princes in a novel!"

Great. Now we're some kind of romantic fantasy rivalry?

David grinned. "I have to say, William. I'm impressed. You're actually keeping up with me."

I didn't respond. I wasn't done proving myself yet.

The next class was Calculus.

The teacher wrote a triple-integral problem on the board:

Evaluate the integral:

∭ (x² + y² + z²) dV, where the region is bounded by the sphere x² + y² + z² = 4.

I instantly recognized it as a spherical coordinates problem.

Convert to spherical coordinates. Set up the integral. Solve it step by step.

10 minutes later.

David and I put down our pens at the exact same moment.

More whispers. More gasps.

The teacher reviewed our answers, stunned.

"Perfect. Again."

The class erupted into cheers. Some students even started placing bets on who would win the next round.

David just smirked.

"Well, William," he said, his voice light but edged with something sharp. "Looks like this school finally got interesting."

I stared back. "Looks like it."

But beneath the surface, I wasn't just battling academically.

I was analyzing his every move. Every sentence. Every flicker in his expression.

David was planning something.

And I needed to figure out what.

Next was Poetry.

The teacher gave us five minutes to write a sonnet.

A sonnet. A 14-line poem with a strict rhyming scheme.

This wasn't just about intelligence. This was creativity.

I wrote mine in seconds:

Through time's cruel hands, the echoes call my name,

A love once bright now lost in endless night,

Her laughter fades, yet still I fan the flame,

A shadow chasing remnants of our light.

If fate were kind, we'd dance in golden hue,

Yet she has flown, beyond my reach she stays,

Yet in my heart, her presence lingers true,

A ghost that sings through endless, empty days.

So let the world erase what once had been,

Yet love remains, though buried deep within.

A sonnet about love lost to time. A bittersweet tragedy.

David?

His sonnet was different:

A king upon the board, his army slain,

A game he thought he ruled, yet was deceived,

Each sacrifice, a loss not felt in vain,

Yet in the end, 'twas he who was deceived.

A player thought to wield the guiding hand,

Yet strings unseen had moved his every choice,

The master falls, no crown left to command,

His final move, but echoes in the void.

A puppet king, a fate he did not see,

For all along, the game was played on thee.

A sonnet about a king playing chess, sacrificing every piece, only to realize he was the one being played.

A hidden message.

I met his gaze. He was taunting me.

The teacher looked between the two of us, stunned. "I… I've never seen anything like this before. Two students, perfectly equal in intelligence, reasoning, and creativity."

The class was silent.

Then, someone whispered:

"It's like watching two monsters go at it."

After class, David approached me.

"Let's talk," he said. "Alone."

I didn't trust him. But I knew I couldn't back down.

I had to see what he was up to.

I followed him to the sports field. The sun was beginning to set, casting long shadows over the stadium.

David stood in the center, hands in his pockets, smiling.

"Tell me, William," he said. "What do you think of today's little battle?"

I crossed my arms. "If you were trying to show off, you failed. You're still just a second-place student."

He chuckled. "Oh? But tell me this—if we're equal in every subject, who says I'm in second place?"

I narrowed my eyes. He had a point.

But before I could reply—

I heard movement.

The sound of dozens of footsteps.

I turned slightly. Shadows were closing in.

A hundred men.

Blades. Bats. Pipes. Tasers.

David grinned. "You're surprisingly calm, William. Did you really think I wouldn't find out?"

"Find out what?" I asked, my voice steady.

"That your system is still updating."

My heart pounded. How did he know?!

"Your abilities disappeared overnight," he continued. "The way you move, the way you react—it's different. Less perfect. Less… systemized."

I exhaled. Damn it.

"Doesn't matter," he said. "You're still the biggest threat to my plans. And since your system is offline… well, you don't stand a chance, do you?"

The men around me raised their weapons.

David smirked.

"Kill him."