After the Trial, everyone went their way and Rey had to return to his room.

He was allowed to roam the central Living Room, but since he preferred not to, he decided to simply remain inside.

No one could blame him.

Night soon fell, and as everyone was sleeping, a certain student couldn't sleep.

"Damnit…"

His eyes were wide open as he stared at the ceiling. Before long, he sat upright and clapped his hand over his face.

"I screwed up big time…" He murmured in the dark.

It was difficult to tell what kind of face this student was making, but it appeared to be a grimace.

'I never expected to be asked to make another testimony. It wasn't part of the plan…'

Yes, this was Adam Sanchez, and he was still going over the earlier events of the day.

… How he had been humiliated in front of everyone.

"I really fucked up!"

"Ahh… don't blame yourself too much." A voice suddenly echoed at the far corner of the room.

"Eep!"

Like a little child, Adam shrieked while jumping from his position.

The figure that greeted his eyes was in the form of a silhouette. They appeared to be in a hooded robe, covered from top to bottom.

No feature of theirs could be seen, but they were undoubtedly a person.

"You have to stop doing that! You startled me…"

Adam soon forgot his initial fear—or shock, as he called it in his mind—and gave a glare to the intruder who had seemingly come out of nowhere.

"Haha! I apologize. That wasn't very nice…"

The shadowy person stepped forward, and based on their slightly deep tone, they were clearly a guy.

"You don't need to beat yourself too hard, though. Who would have foreseen this outcome?"

Adam chuckled once he heard this from the silhouette before him.

"Who said I was blaming myself? You're the one who came up with the plan, so isn't it your fault for not planning this far ahead?"

As Adam stared hard at the shadow, he had a wide grin on his face. His grimace was gone, and his sense of superiority returned.

"I suppose you're right. That's a fair conclusion…" The shadow raised his hands in defeat.

"But let's focus less on the past, and more on the future, shall we?"

The person they had framed, Rey Skylar, had gotten less punishment than they would have liked, but the goal was still achieved.

"There's enough unrest now to move on to the next stage…"

Adam's grin was growing wider since he already knew what that meant.

"It'll soon be time for me to take over the class."

Once order broke down, and he consistently offered the perfect solution, his influence would grow. He only had to play both sides—the Nation, and his fellow students.

It was a fine plan.

"Thank you for the Sack of Monster Cores, by the way. I wouldn't have gone along with your plan if I didn't know you were so capable." Adam retorted with a snort.

He had been given a down payment of over 200 Monster Cores, which had a very high commercial value.

Once he sold it, he would have tons of money. Compared to his broke classmates, he had some insurance and financial freedom.

'Hehehe… hehe…' Adam chuckled within himself as he drowned in his own ecstatic wealth.

"It was nothing." The Shadow responded, sounding almost as amused as Adam.

"Where did you get so many Monster Cores, though? You're a fellow student, so you couldn't have gone out to get it."

Adam Sanchez didn't think any student would be foolish or skilled enough to escape the walls.

He had thought about it, but after seeing the security around, he decided against it. Instead, he was biding his time well for his chance.

'Sorry for accusing you for something you didn't do, Rey. But… a guy's gotta do what a guy's gotta do!'

Of course, Adam didn't feel the slightest bit sorry.

"I stole it." The silhouette interrupted his thoughts with a simple answer.

"Oh wow. You've got some gall stealing from the very people who are feeding us. But I can't say I dislike that. Hehehe…"

Adam didn't care much for the Royal Council or the entire United Human Alliance.

He simply wanted the power and influence he once had—and then, to enjoy this world and all it had to offer.

'I don't see any Dragons around here. And I'm sure these people have a shelter or something…'

All he had to do was gather enough people and food and he could probably establish a new nation somewhere.

'I wouldn't even mind signing a peace treaty with the Dragons…'

If he could gain control of his classmates—powerful Otherworlders that they were—he was sure he would have enough to bargain with.

'I don't want to think about it, but it's even possible I switch sides to the Dragon Race if they have a convincing deal…'

For now, though, Adam decided not to think too far ahead.

There was still the present to worry about.

"There is still one more issue we need to resolve before moving on to the second phase."

"Oh? What's that?"

"Eliminating the one true threat to our plan. Who do you think that is?"

Adam narrowed his eyes a little, thinking as hard as he could on the question. Only one face came to mind after his few seconds of thought.

"Adonis… right?"

"Correct! You really are brilliant, aren't you?"

"Hehe! There's no need to state the obvious."

Adam always knew he was smart. He just got low grades in school because he simply didn't want to put in the effort.

School… Training… all of those things were a drag to him, so he didn't really bother.

If he did, Adam was sure he would end up excelling more than the rest of his peers.

'I'm a genius, after all.'

It felt good that his partner could recognize that.

"In any case, we should move quickly." The voice from the darkness echoed in Adam's wars, causing his grin to stretch even further.

"It's time to eliminate Adonis once and for all."

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