After Zhang Li arrived, I didn't waste words. I gave him a simple, humiliating command to polish my boots until he could see his bruised ego reflected in the leather. He complied, his hands trembling with a mixture of rage and fear. Once he was finished, and the other elites I had used as my living furniture were sufficiently broken, I released them. I watched them slink back toward their classroom spaces, then adjusted my royal silk jacket and headed toward the lunch center, moving with a calm, predatory grace as if nothing out of the ordinary had occurred.
The Lunch Center was a sprawling hub of glass and steel, vibrating with the chatter of thousands of students. I spotted Ria and Kael near the back, navigating the crowd with a tray of food and beverages toward a vacant seat. After collecting my own tray of random delicacies, I navigated the sea of red and blue uniforms and slid into the chair opposite them.
"Mind if I join you guys?" I asked, my voice cutting through their conversation.
"Hey, hello, Oliver Sensei!" they chirped in unison, their faces lighting up.
I winced, setting my tray down. "I would really appreciate it if you called me without the 'Sensei' part. It gives me the creeps."
Ria leaned in, her eyes wide with excitement. "Well, do you know that you've become the trending topic of the entire Academy today?"
"Umm... no?" I replied, taking a slow sip of my drink. In my mind, I was already calculating the fallout of my bully-hunting spree. I figured word of the elite-tier oppression had finally reached the upper echelons.
"No?!" Ria nearly fell off her seat in shock. "Oliver, you're becoming famous because you've been systematically crushing the elites as a mere E-Ranker. What the hell are you, Sensei?"
"Yeah," Kael added, his voice hushed and serious. "What the hell are you? Only someone at Tier-six should be capable of handling a Tier-seven like Marcus. Yet you're doing it with one star on your chest."
"Hmm... mph!" I cleared my throat, leaning back with a practiced air of nonchalance. "Well, you know, I'm just good with martial arts. It probably comes from experience—years of practice, you know? Applying the nebula technique alongside martial arts works perfectly to overwhelm people of higher ranks."
It was a blatant lie, of course. My experience spanned lifetimes, and my technique was divine, not just good.
"As expected of Sensei! Maybe we can try that combination too," Ria said, her eyes gleaming with ambition.
"No, no, no," I said quickly, waving a hand. "Don't try it. Applying the technique I taught you to martial arts without the proper foundation will only wear you out. It could only be done by an expert with decades of experience."
I felt a mental ping as the System chimed in.[Host is a master liar. The Nebula technique can actually be applied to martial arts to increase stamina and explosive power by 200%.]
Yeah, yeah, I know that. Now be quiet, I snapped back internally.
"Oh... okay," Ria replied, looking slightly disappointed but still respectful of my wisdom.
We spent the rest of the hour discussing mundane Academy matters, finishing our meal before heading out to the open fields to relax under the afternoon sun. I maintained my mask of calm, but I could feel the eyes of the student body on my back—some filled with fear, some with hope, and some with a dangerous curiosity.
.....
On the far side of the Academy, towering over the common grounds, stood the a large Chamber hall. This was the sanctuary of the Tier-nines, the living legends of Vanguard. Inside the high-ceilinged room, a figure stood motionless, one hand shoved into his pocket as he gazed through the floor-to-ceiling windows at the students below.
The figure was striking. He had spiky white hair that seemed to defy gravity, and an eye patch covered his right eye. His visible left eye featured a deep, piercing crimson pupil that looked like a drop of fresh blood. He wore a red-and-black jacket over a white inner t-shirt, the collars turned up in a sharp, rockstar style that partially obscured his face. A long gold chain dangled from his right pocket, clinking against his black jeans and dark combat boots.
Suddenly, a shadow flickered. A figure squatting in a ninja-like position high on the rafters disappeared in a blur of motion, reappearing instantly beside the white-haired boy.
"What's the problem, Ryan? Why do you look so gloomy?" the new figure asked.
"I told you to stop sneaking up on me like that, Sherach," Ryan replied, his voice a low, melodic rumble. He didn't turn his head. "And this has always been my expression."
Sherach smiled, closing his eyes as he leaned against the window frame. He was as vibrant as Ryan was stoic. "I still haven't figured out why you've been this gloomy ever since we first met. Are you bored, or just permanently tired?"
"None of the above," Ryan replied, unbothered, his crimson gaze fixed on a distant point on the north field.
"Hmph. Well, have you heard of the new kid? The one who has been hunting the bullies of the elite classes?"
Ryan's eyebrow twitched almost imperceptibly. "No. Never heard of such a kid."
"Oliver is the name," Sherach said, his voice trailing with excitement. "The last time I checked , he was only at Tier-one. Can you believe it? A Tier-one kid performing such feats."
"Not possible," Ryan replied. "No ordinary Tier-one can ever oppress a higher tier. It defies the laws of mana-vessels."
"Exactly! That's what makes him interesting. How about we go test him out?" Sherach asked, a mischievous glint in his eyes.
"Wouldn't it be a disgraceful thing for a Tier-nine individual to stoop to such a level? Oppressing a Tier-one is beneath us. I'm not interested," Ryan said, his focus returning to the scenery outside.
"Ryan, you're as boring as ever. Don't you know how to have some fun?" Sherach sighed, pushing off the wall. "Anyway, that motto doesn't apply to me. I'm still going to test him out to see if he's worth some attention."
Ryan didn't reply. His personality was a fortress of seriousness and gentle stoicism. Sherach sighed again, realizing he wouldn't get a rise out of his friend.
"Anyways, I'm leaving. Have a nice day, friend," Sherach said, vanishing in another blur of speed.
"That carefree guy..." Ryan scoffed softly once he was alone. He raised a hand, his fingers grazing the edge of his eye patch.
His mind drifted back to when he was fifteen. He recalled how he could have become a demi-god at a tender age, but his father—one of the elder gods—had refused to let him ascend. His father feared Ryan's right eye, a dangerous organ that possessed the power to harm the demi-gods themselves.
To protect the balance, his mother, also a demi-god, had crafted the eyepatch from high-quality ancient magic to seal the power away. She had promised him that he would regain his true status one day.
"One of these days, Ryan," her voice echoed in his memory.
A rare, faint smile touched Ryan's lips as he recalled his mother's warmth. He wasn't interested in a Tier-one kid, but as he looked down at the academy grounds, he wondered if the bully hunter was just another pawn in the game, or the player who would finally flip the board.