A loud crash echoed through the classroom, catching everyone's attention.
"MUAHAHAHA! Tremble before my power!" the voice laughed.
The culprit was only one person: Victoria Quijano. Lloyd had recognized her the moment he walked into class—her appearance was impossible to miss.
Golden hair that faded into copper at the ends, bright golden eyes, and, well... let's just say she had a very noticeable figure.
He knew it was better not to mess with Victoria. But somehow, she ended up getting interested in him.
"Hey, you're going too far," said another voice. Anastasia shot Victoria a sharp glare, cold energy radiating around her.
"MUAHAHAHA!" the blonde laughed again, hands on her hips "So you wanna fight me too? Fine! I can take you both!"
"Is that so?" Anastasia's gaze grew colder, frost spreading over the nearby surfaces.
"Of course!" Victoria crossed her arms proudly.
"Tsk, they're really noisy."
"T-this isn't good."
"Two princesses fighting? Interesting."
Voices mixed again, but then one stood out.
"That's it? Damn, how disappointing."
Everyone turned to look at Lloyd, who was standing there completely unharmed.
"Aaaa why the hell did I say that? Damn it, now she's gonna keep going."
Lloyd didn't get it—his survival instincts screamed at him to shut up—but honestly, he'd been bored with life long before coming to this world.
Even when he felt danger, it was... exciting. And deep down, he kinda liked it.
"Huh? Qué demonios?" The girl turned to Lloyd in confusion—he was totally fine.
"Did she just say que demonios'? That's new. I remember she was from a kingdom called Castilla—the equivalent of Spain here—but I don't think the novel ever mentioned her speaking Spanish."
"Well, looks like I didn't have to worry after all," said Anastasia, the corners of her lips curving into a faint smile.
"Wait—is that pride? Don't tell me the ice queen's starting to melt for me."
"Keronaus!" Victoria shouted, another bolt of lightning shooting from her fingers toward Lloyd. But again, nothing. He was still perfectly fine.
"Imposible… Keronaus! Keronaus! Keronaus!"
Lightning after lightning, yet none of them did a thing to him.
The reason was simple: Lloyd had used his {artificial aura}, the one he'd developed before, and given it insulating properties.
Basically, he'd removed its ability to conduct electricity.
Since his {causeless effects} acted like normal matter—or rather, however Lloyd wanted them to act—his aura couldn't conduct electricity. So he subtracted that property, creating what he called "negative conduction".
In other words, his aura now repelled electricity, dispersing it into the air.
"Well, I think that's enough, right?" Lloyd asked, sounding bored.
Victoria growled.
"Pfft" Anastasia let out a small laugh, mocking her.
"Hah, seems like Caupolicán wasn't the only fraud here," said the blond.
Victoria's eyes widened—not a good sign.
"Shit… maybe I shouldn't have added fuel to the fire."
Lloyd thought, and his fears were quickly confirmed—Victoria's eyes darkened, electricity crackling around her.
"Fuck, I don't think an insulator's gonna save me this time."
If he used an insulator again, the energy would just turn into heat. He needed a new plan.
This time, there were no words. Victoria simply pointed her finger at Lloyd, and his hair stood on end.
"This is bad…"
A roar, then a blinding flash of light.
"That damn bitch…"
Victoria had boosted the power of her lightning, and Lloyd had to react fast. He changed the surface of his aura to make it a superconductor—removing its resistance to electricity.
That way, the lightning passed through without turning into heat, running straight from him into the platform below. The platform spread the current over a wider area, reducing the damage.
Cracks formed beneath Lloyd's feet, but that was it.
"You are beginning to annoy me," said Anastasia, her aura spreading again, even stronger this time.
"Seriously, is that useless woman really that weak? Didn't she place third in the entrance exam? What a joke. She can't even hurt some nobody like him. Pathetic."
"Goldilocks is starting to get on my nerves... let's see how he handles a lightning storm like that!"
"I see this class is way weaker than I expected. No wonder some random nobody made it into Class Alpha if half of you are trash" added Oscar.
"Hmph. Truly pathetic. Though I guess I shouldn't have expected any of you to be on my level" said a red-haired guy.
"My head's starting to hurt…"
Lloyd thought, glancing at Victoria. She stood there with her head down and her fists clenched.
"Fuck! This is bad. Is she really gonna keep going?"
"Now that I think about it, that guy's name is Lloyd, right? Hey, you're Lloyd Noir, aren't you?" asked the blond again.
His name was Arthur—one of Reinhart's few friends in the novel. Both were twisted in their own ways, which probably explained why they got along.
"So what if I am?" Lloyd replied, irritation clear in his voice.
"Seriously? HAHAHA! Weren't you the one who got the worst score on the exam? That's pathetic! How the hell did you beat two Alpha students?" the blond mocked.
"He cheated, obviously" added Oscar.
"Should I just punch these bastards? …No, better to ignore them."
"Yeah, I cheated, you got me," Lloyd said, walking back to his seat, this time far from Anastasia. "Used some artifact or something. It's not that Class Alpha's weak, I just don't belong here. My dad's rich, he bought me a few items to boost my stats." Lloyd pulled out his phone, trying to make his story sound more believable. "See, this e-..."
His face went pale when he saw it—his phone was completely fried.