[Lock, class A-25, Friday 4:45 P.M.]

Sitting in my usual seat, I listened attentively to the class lecture.

Or at least I tried...

Despite the fact that two weeks had passed since the Hollberg incident, the classroom's atmosphere wasn't as lively as it was back before the incident.

Glancing at the classroom, I could see why...

Almost a quarter of the students that used to sit around me were now gone.

Despite not knowing many people, I found out, a couple of days after the incident, that Evan and Cassandra were part of the people that had died during the incident.

...the same two people that were part of my group.

In spite of the fact that I didn't know them that well, the fact that two people I was acquainted with had died went to show how tragic those events were.

Literally, anyone could've died that night...

"Alright, that marks the end of the lecture"

Snapping me out my thought was the engineering professor's charming voice. Just like before, throughout the whole time I had stayed in the lock, she was the only professor that didn't pay special attention to lineage or rank.

Whenever I asked her questions regarding the lecture she would always patiently and calmly explain what I didn't understand.

Therefore, although I didn't necessarily understand what she was teaching, I didn't hate this class.

Right after the lecture ended and the professor left the classroom, everyone remained seated.

That was because we still had to have our end-of-week tutor time. This was a small session we had every Friday and it was where Donna, our tutor, would spend the last remaining fifteen minutes of the day to share any announcements that have been made by the school.

-Clank!

Right on cue, entering the classroom, Donna made her way towards the podium. Walking, as though the wind was blowing, each of her steps caused a thin purple undulation of magic power to spread across the classroom.

Instantly the whole room fell silent. The pressure that emanated from her body caused everyone to stop whatever they were doing.

It was evident that she wasn't in the best of moods, and everyone could feel it.

Arriving in front of the podium, Donna staked a few papers on the table before clicking her tongue and dismissing them.

Sighing, Donna looked at the classroom and spoke.

"Alright, as most of you can probably tell, I'm not in the best of moods"

Raising two fingers she said

"I have two announcements for you guys today..."

"One, there will be a rank readjustment, and that wi'”"

Right after she finished the first half of her sentence before she could continue speaking, disrupting her speech were whispers that resounded throughout the whole classroom.

"...rank readjustments?"

"It isn't even the midterms..."

"What's going on?"

-Smack!

"Quiet!"

Smacking her hand on the podium, a small shockwave swept through the classroom. As if a strong gust of wind had appeared, everyone was pushed back onto their seats. I included.

As a result of her action, the hair I spent two minutes styling this morning was now a mess.

...great

A couple of seconds after smacking the podium, Donna continued.

"If some of you are confused as to why your ranks are being readjusted...the answer is simple. It's because there's now less of you"

"For better or for worse, we have to readjust your ranking according to academy protocols"

Placing both hands on the podium, Donna's eyes swept through the classroom before she said

"So please be quiet and wait for me to finish announcing the new rankings before announcing the second announcement"

-Nod

Under Donna's piercing stare, everyone could only helplessly nod their head in agreement.

Seeing everyone nod, a trace of a smile appeared on Donna's face.

"Alright, here are the new rankings..."

Tapping onto her tablet, Donna quickly read through a long list of names.

"Kevin Voss, still rank 1"

"Melissa Hall, still rank 2"

.

.

.

"Troy Dereks moves up a rank and is now rank 17"

.

.

.

"Edward smith moves up five ranks from 739 to 734"

.

.

.

Pausing slightly, a slight frown appeared on Donna's brows. It was so subtle that only by paying close attention would anyone have been able to notice it.

"Lastly, Ren Dover moves up a total of 200 ranks and is now rank 1550"

As soon as my name and rank were announced, I felt multiple eyes staring in my direction.

Feigning ignorance, I tried my best to keep a stoic face. With what had happened in Hollberg, I had already expected this to happen.

...There was no use denying the fact that I had now caught the interest of a few important individuals. Though I didn't like the attention, there was no use crying over spilled milk.

I also wanted to point out that the fact that my rank rising by 200 ranks may have contributed to adding a couple of extra stares.

...

With Donna finally announcing my name, the rank adjustment came to an end. Following that, she cleared her voice and once again spoke. Though her voice was sweet, her tone was cold.

"Keuumm...For the second announcement, due to recent unfortunate events, after long and arduous hours of talk, the higher-ups have finally have come to a unanimous decision to send the first years on a month-long break"

Just as she finished announcing, right before anyone could celebrate, Donna instantly poured cold water over them.

"But don't be too happy yet. After you return, there will be mid-term exams so more than a holiday this is a short break before mid-terms..."

Mourns and sighs resounded throughout the classroom as the students all became crestfallen at the announcement.

Well, out of all the people here I was probably the one that was the most depressed by the announcement.

With everything that went down these couple of months, I hadn't had time to focus on my school work.

The mid-terms consisted of two exams. The theoretical and the physical.

I wasn't worried about the physical exam since if I had to judge my strength, I was currently in the top 100. Maybe top 50 if I fought with my life on the line.

...but that didn't really matter. My goal was to one day reach the top 10. Being top 100 didn't really interest me in any way.

Rank aside, what I was most worried about was the theoretical department.

No matter how much I tried to study, I barely got any of the concepts they were talking about in classes.

Don't get me wrong, it's not that I was totally hopeless, it's just that for some of the stuff I had to learn, I had to go back and relearn things that were taught back when I was supposed to be in middle school.

With me training every day, I barely had enough time to study for the courses let alone study middle school courses.

After I agonized over the problem for a bit longer, I just threw it at the back of my mind.

As an experienced procrastinator, I was used to leaving problems till near the deadline.

"Alright, this is the end of the announcements. I hope to see you in a months time"

Seeing that she had already lost everyone's attention, Donna could only conclude tutor time ahead of schedule and dismiss everyone.

Packing up her stuff, she soon left the classroom.

-Clank!

Soon as Donna left, I too started packing up my stuff. Today was the last day I stayed in the lock for at least a month.

It was finally time to go home...

Although I had never met my parents in this world, I would always get messages from them. Be it for normal stuff or nagging. They would always make sure to text me once a day.

It was both annoying and heartwarming. Since my parent's death back in my previous world, never had I felt this much love from someone.

...I couldn't say I disliked this feeling.

"..hm?"

Feeling a shadow cast over where I was sitting, as I was getting ready to leave the classroom, passing the area where I was sitting, Kevin subtly nodded in my direction to which I responded in kind.

Not a lot changed between us.

Although I had talked to Kevin back on the rooftop, we weren't really friends.

We would occasionally greet each other whenever we met in the hallway, but that's just about how much our interactions amounted to.

'Casual acquaintances'

That's how I would describe our current relationship.

...and I liked it that way. No matter how much I liked him as a person, getting too close to him wouldn't do me any good. This was especially so since my interactions with him could lead to me getting swept into his conflicts and potentially changing the plotline.

Sometimes I wished I wasn't so stuck up on keeping the plotline consistent...

Sigh

Letting out a sigh, finished packing up, I went back to my dorm.

...

"This should be enough..."

Stretching my back, I clapped my hands in satisfaction.

Right now my bed was filled with things that I prepared for my month-long trip back home. From clothes to books, I decided to bring them all. Since the trip was going to be that long, I decided to just bring whatever I could bring.

With dimensional spaces being a thing, I didn't need to worry about carrying large bags with me.

-Vuam!

Tapping on my bracelet once, everything that was on my bed disappeared.

"I guess it's about time I hea'”"

-Ring! -Ring! -Ring!

Just as I was about to head out, my phone rang.

Looking at the caller ID, I picked up the call.

[Employer?]

"Yo smallsnake, did you get what I had asked of you last week?"

Hearing smallsnake's voice on the other side of the phone, holding onto the phone, I doubled checked to see if I forgot to bring anything before heading towards the entrance of my room.

[Yes, I got all the information that you requested]

Checking the time on my watch, with the aid of my shoulder, I pressed my phone to my ear and put on my shoes.

"Alright perfect, send it to me"

[...ehm]

Pausing for a slight second, smallsnake hesitated.

"Smallsnake?"

Noticing something odd about his pause, I frowned and held my phone with my hand.

[Employer, it's not really my place to say this but...]

"...but?"

Taking a deep breath, Smallsnake said

[Your parent's guild isn't doing well. No, in fact, they are in a terrible situation....]