It was the next morning.

Supposedly, chaos was supposed to begin.

Sumire was already awake, looking down at me awkwardly as my eyes slowly adjusted to the light. It should’ve been impossible for her to get enough sleep—well, if she were a normal person, it would’ve been impossible. I looked up at her empty smile.

“Rise and shine, Akira~.”

However, the halls outside were silent.

I got up and made my way to the sink. I usually washed my face first thing in the morning, brushing my teeth too and all.

“Aren’t you even a little excited?”

I looked up a little.

“Not really.”

It would be expected that most people would simply lie low in their dorm rooms and sit the exam out until the end. There were no benefits to attacking others anyway. The best you could do was extort people for money or force them to join your clique.

If anything, this was a special exam for people to act on grudges.

Perhaps ones that have lasted since before the beginning of the school year~

Sumire hopped off of the table.

After a short moment of silence, she slid open our door.

“Why don’t we make this a little more fun?”

She ran her finger across the door frame. There was a subtle sliding sound as she traced the edge of the door. Scritch.

“What are you suggesting?”

“Nothing much, there’s a faulty tool of mine that needs to be disposed of. Come along, Akira.”

“Why me?”

“We do everything together, don’t we? Some may even say that we’re childhood friends, so obviously you should come along.”

Sigh.

Although, it’d be better to get annoying things out of the way early. It’d be better to lure those who want to challenge me out early, instead of waiting for them to knock on my door. It’d save the effort of having to fix up my room if things go wrong, anyway.

I began to put on my shoes.

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

“Anyways, don’t you think is a good opportunity to get some points?”

“It sounds like a lot of effort.”

She laughed a little.

“It doesn’t have to be~”

We began making our way through the halls, passing by the absolute silence that lay throughout. Not a single student was in sight, and there was hardly a sound, aside from our footprints.

“Which floor are we going to?” I asked.

“The 87th floor, I’ve got someone I need to talk to.”

“I didn’t realise you had friends.”

She sighed.

“I thought I made it pretty clear earlier. I’m disposing of a tool. Doesn’t that make sense to you, Akira? You’re pragmatic, aren’t you?”

There was a moment of silence.

I took out my phone and sent a text to Fern.

The elevator door opened. I followed behind Sumire as she approached one of the first rooms on the floor. Without a moment of hesitation, she raised her leg and kicked down the door. There was a loud crack as the wood tore against the frame.

After a moment, the lock fell off and the door swung open, with the wooden construction falling apart.

On the other side was a girl with snow-white hair.

She had a somewhat apathetic expression, however, the moment she saw Sumire, it gradually became solemn.

“What are you doing here, Sumire.”

“Just upholding my side of the deal, that’s all.”

“What deal?”

Sumire continued to walk toward her. The other girl raised her arms a little, standing on guard.

Suddenly, Sumire raised her leg.

The girl tried to block her kick but she was sent crashing to the ground. Her body slammed against the wall, causing a small dent to form.

“Sumire, I thought you knew how to make rational decisions. It’s not like you to act on your emotions like this,” the girl teased.

“Who says I’m acting on my emotions? This is perfectly rational. You’re a useless tool.”

The white-haired girl laughed a little.

Swiftly, she twisted her body around and grabbed Sumire by the ankle.

“Unlike the girl I just fought, you don’t have a higher pain tolerance than me. I lost to another Outcome, I don’t think that’s worth your judgement.”

As fast as she could, Sumire swung her leg, trying to shake the white-haired girl from her ankle.

“Giselle. Outcome or not, you lost. Isn’t that humiliating?”

Ah, I guess her name was Giselle.

“You would also lose to her, Sumire; your overconfidence is distasteful.”

Suddenly, both of them showed signs of pain. With a subtle wince, Sumire’s movements slowed down.

“That’s… not the only reason… confidence is the most important thing… that we Third Gens need to have…”

Sumire raised her arm.

Both of them seemed to be holding back from their full strength.

“There’s… no hope for you… after a loss like that… Giselle…”

I made my way toward them a little.

“So, what are you guys arguing about?”

All of a sudden, the two of them looked at me. It seemed that the pain-causing ability had been dispelled as well.

Ah. Was I not meant to be interfering like this?

Sumire smiled a little.

“We’ve just got a little misunderstanding. I’m just trying to clear that up with Giselle, Akira… actually, could you close your eyes for a little bit?”

Close my eyes?

With her arm in the arm, Sumire whispered something under her breath.

After a short moment, a huge monster spawned behind her body. Looking down at the white-haired girl, it protruded a powerful aura.

“This is the first and last time you’ll see my personal ability, Giselle.”

“What is that?”

The girl grabbed Sumire’s ankle again, however, this time, it seemed that Sumire wasn’t feeling any pain.

“That ability… you must have met its activation conditions before you came here… Sumire.”

“That’s a good deduction~ however, it’s over for you now that it’s activated.”

Sumire raised her leg again, this time, kicking Giselle right in the face. Saliva splattered across the ground as she tried to regain her breath.

“Deja…vu,” Giselle sighed.