Groups had been assigned faster than I could protest, which—considering I didn't exactly volunteer for anything—was probably for the best. I found myself in a corner of the room with a small cluster of students, each exuding exactly the amount of confidence—or overconfidence—that royals from these cliché novels would.
Luna, naturally, had been deposited right beside me, grinning like a cat who'd just discovered a new way to unroll a ball of yarn. "This is it, Eli! Time to dazzle—or destroy," she whispered. I suspected both options were on the table.
I stole a glance at her. What is it with her nicknames and formality these days? I painfully groaned, trying to make sense of it.
Eli... Elisha... Lady Belmont?
Whatever. She can call me anything she pleases. I think we have already gone passed that point, regardless.
Across from me was Tobias, arms crossed, head tilted in that lazy, "I'm too cool to care" way, though his eyes sparkled with amusement at my presence. I would certainly get into conflict with him if I gave him the wrong impression.
Kyla Marris, glasses slipping down the bridge of her nose, was already scribbling notes faster than any human should be allowed to. She didn't even glance up at me. Clearly, she had internalized the "adapt or die" mantra.
And then there was a new player I hadn't noticed before: a boy with ink-dark hair and sharp hazel eyes, leaning casually against the table. His name was Riven Solace. He smirked faintly at our little corner, like he already knew my "act like a fool" tactic.
Or, in second thought, maybe he really did just perceive me as a fool.
Ouch...
"Your assignment is simple," the teacher began, voice sharp. "Each group must secure control of these provinces on the map while anticipating the other groups' moves. The group with the most sustainable control after three turns wins. Begin."
Immediately, everyone erupted into murmurs, plotting alliances and threats, drawing arrows and circles with quick precision. My turn to shine—or crash and burn.
Before me, and the others in my group as well, sat a large interactive map placed on the table, which changed in real time to movements that other groups made.
Sheesh. Not even my old world had such technology... Or maybe the mobile phone would be the closest to it, I suppose...
I leaned back in my chair, letting Luna twitch with the device with curiosity beside me. "Right," I murmured. This was a fantastic start. A regressor, a childish royal named Luna, and three others whose personalities conflict with each other all sat in unison, with the goal of the assignment being that the last group standing wins.
What could go wrong?
I studied my group as the map glowed beneath our hands. Provinces lit up with shifting borders, and tiny markers indicated troop movements. Tobias was already tilting forward, tapping his fingers on the table with that lazy grin of his, like he could take a nap and still win.
"You know," he drawled, "you don't look like someone who's actually going to care about this."
I shot him a look, one eyebrow raised. "And you look like someone who's going to get bored halfway through and blame the rest of us."
He smirked. "Fair."
Kyla Marris finally glanced up from her furious note-taking, pushing her glasses back into place. "We need a strategy, not comedy. If we split forces too thin, we're done before the first turn finishes."
I let her go on while I narrowed my gaze on the map. Then there was Riven Solace, leaning on the table with that casual, calculating air, muttering something under his breath as if he had just discovered the meaning of atoms. I caught "predictable" and "chaos," though I couldn't tell if he meant it about us or the rest of the class.
Luna, of course, was bouncing slightly in her chair, whispering excitedly, "I say we form alliances. Temporary ones. Hit them with a twist later on the turns. That sounds fun, doesn't it?"
I groaned quietly. Fun? Sure, if fun included getting stabbed in the back strategically.
Tobias chuckled at the idea that Luna brought, his eyes tearing. "That sounds like a wonderful idea, actually. Let's do that!"
This was not good. If Luna and Tobias's influencing each other leads to more of this stupidity, then I have to do something.
I decided to propose something simpler, just to track back before we destroy ourselves, before our enemies do it for us.
"We divide the provinces based on difficulty. Tobias, you handle the front lines. Kyla, fortify resources. Luna, gather intelligence—listen to chatter. And Riven…" I stopped for a moment, thinking of something to give him.
"You and I will monitor everything else."
Riven tilted his head, eyes narrowing. "Everything else? That just sounds like something you made up to not spend any further energy."
Before the rest of the group could input their rather unnecessary opinion. A sharp, flickering red light washed over our faces as an enemy army breached through our western wall.
The first round was already coming to an end!?
"Okay, there is no time for debating anymore!" I abruptly stated, putting my hand out. "Let us just get done with this, and at least not get a failing grade."
Riven smirked faintly, which I took as acceptance. Tobias, unsurprisingly, yawned but gave a lazy nod. Kyla muttered something about efficiency and began furiously noting troop allocations. Luna clasped her hands together, practically vibrating with excitement.
The map blinked. Other groups made their moves—sudden alliances, aggressive expansions, even a few reckless advances that practically begged for counterattacks. Tobias leaned forward at last, eyes sharp for the first time. "Looks like the western border is about to fall completely. We can push there, but our most assured victory is with the entire army, but it's risky."
"How about we go for a vote?" I interjected. In accordance with my words, I raised my hand automatically. "I vote for risk. Having played our hand this late, we have nothing to lose."
Luna's eyes sparkled. "Yes! Chaos! Now, you understand!"
Kyla thought for a moment. "There is nothing to understand about chaos. You either plan or you fail."
"Exactly," I said, hiding a growing smile. "We'll win or fail… spectacularly."
This was becoming surprisingly fun.
Tobias blinked at me. "Wait… are you actually serious?"
"Yes, yes, I am."
Riven finally spoke. "Fine. We'll do it your way—for now. But if anyone screws this up, I'm keeping a list."
As we did our parts, I couldn't help but glance around the room. Other groups were already jostling for advantage. The last remaining seconds ran down of the turn, as the map had now turned blue.
The first turn had now ended.
We had pushed off the invaders, luckily, who we came to know to be the red team.
The map shifted again, indicating the beginning of the second round. Provinces lit up in new colors, armies advanced and retreated, and the first skirmish markers appeared. Tobias grinned suddenly, leaning toward the map. "Well… at least the southern border's about to get interesting."
Luna squealed quietly. "I love interesting."
I sighed and rubbed my temple. "Just… let's survive the second turn. Then we can see what's left standing on the final turn."