The Bait Behind the Simulation

[Location: Nova Academy – Special Simulation Arena, Morning]

The morning air in the simulation arena felt colder than usual. A thin mist lingered over the training grounds, and the entire place felt like it was holding its breath.No laughter. No shouting. Only the sound of cadet boots tapping against the metal floor and the soft clinks of equipment being double-checked.

I stood in the middle of the field, wearing a training vest and an incomplete helmet—because, somehow, the locking strap had vanished. All around me, dozens of cadets from various classes had gathered. Today was the announcement of new team formations and a large-scale defense simulation.

Kael stood next to me, visibly more excited than usual."You hear? They said today's formations are randomized. All cadets from Rank F to B are mixed together!"

"That means my chance of being saved by an elite team just dropped," I muttered.

Ryn emerged from the crowd, holding a small tablet displaying the assigned team lists."Deren. Kael. We're in Team 9," he said. "And... we've got an extra member from the transfer class."

"Transfer?" I asked, instantly suspicious.Ryn showed the name on the screen. I skimmed through it—And stopped at one:Nayra A. (Observer Level Override)

I looked up at the sky."Dear God, can I move my birthday to tomorrow so I can skip today?"

[Location: Sealed Observation Room – 15 Minutes Before Simulation]

Clarice stared at the main monitor with a neutral expression, though her eyes were sharp as a data scalpel. On the screen, the simulation arena displayed the position of all teams, including Team 9, which was slowly moving through the western sector corridor.

The cadet markers appeared in standard colors—except for one.It blinked yellow, with a thin red ring constantly rotating around it.

Above the map, two system instructions flashed:

'Pattern Detection Mode: Active''Search Target: Deren-type Signature'

Clarice narrowed her eyes. She opened additional system layers, accessing logs readable only by Class One operators.Lines of old encryption code appeared. Code she recognized well—because it originated from someone who never wanted to be known.

"So they're using this simulation as a scanner now.Not for training...But for investigation," she muttered."And they really think they can trap him... just because he doesn't know?"

She slid the interface to the right, unlocking an emergency route—an unofficial bypass protocol, and a hidden override signal embedded discreetly by Eidolon last week.

"If this is a trap...Then we need to make sure he's not cornered.Or worse...Unaware that he's being watched."

Clarice tapped a special contact icon, activating a backup channel to a passive Eidolon unit disguised as a regular academy technician.The signal was sent—silent and ready to activate on command.

"The world might not be ready if Deren loses his patience," she whispered—more to herself than to anyone else in the room.

[Location: Simulation Arena – Session Begins]

Simulation initiated.Alarms blared, and a digital map appeared in every cadet's helmet HUD.Mission: Defend the central zone from a simulated Metavore invasion—and detect possible infiltration.

I looked left. Then right.Kael was already ready with a plasma-type training weapon.Ryn typed rapidly on the team's comms unit.And Nayra... stood silently behind us.

Her gaze wasn't that of a cadet.It was the gaze of someone evaluating everything.

"Don't stand out too much," I whispered to myself.Kael turned. "What?""Nothing. Let's move."

We began to advance.But far above the arena, inside a sealed observation room hidden from the public,another pair of eyes was watching us.

Eyes not just looking for test results...But for traces of a past that was supposed to stay buried.

And unfortunately—that trace was still stuck to my feet.