Rin glanced at Ethan before following his line of sight. The moment his eyes landed on Leon, his expression shifted slightly. Leaning closer, he lowered his voice and whispered, "It’s Drey’s right-hand guide... Leon. You should know him, right?"
Ethan shook his head without hesitation. To him he didn’t know Leon, nor did he care to. As far as he was concerned, the man wasn’t worth remembering. The only thing he knew was that ever since seeing Leon standing beside Drey, the bastard had somehow made it his life’s mission to make Ethan’s life a living hell.
"I guess you could say so," Ethan replied flatly. "He hates me, and I hate him just as much. Now that he’s seen me, we’re likely in deep trouble."
As though confirming Ethan’s words, Leon was already making his way toward them with an infuriating smile plastered across his face.
Despite the uneasiness stirring inside him, Ethan forced himself to remain calm. His shoulders stayed relaxed, his expression composed, and not even the slightest hint of fear reached his face. There was no way in hell he was going to let this bastard think he’d won.
Leon eventually stopped directly in front of them, folding his arms across his chest as his gaze swept over the two of them with open disdain. "Well, Ethan," he drawled, the smugness dripping from every word, "I must commend your courage. What the hell are you both doing inside an S-class dorm without permission?"
Rin frowned immediately, his expression filled with unconcealed contempt. "And who exactly are you to question us, huh?"
Leon chuckled softly before tilting his head. "I should be asking you that. Who are you?" His gaze lazily swept over Rin before returning to Ethan. "Then again, there’s no need. Anyone hanging around Ethan is probably just another good-for-nothing like him."
That did it.
Rin’s temper flared instantly. "What did you just—"
With an irritated click of his tongue, he slammed his tray onto the nearest table and took a step forward, clearly intending to settle things with his fists instead of words.
Ethan reacted immediately.
He reached out and caught Rin by the arm before he could move any farther. "Don’t waste your time on him," Ethan said calmly. "I’ll handle him."
Rin hesitated before reluctantly stepping back, though the murderous glare he directed at Leon promised he wasn’t letting this go so easily.
Ethan slowly shifted his attention back to Leon, "What’s your deal?" he began folding his own arms. "Are you the dorm’s security guard now? Who exactly gave you permission to interrogate people? Or is being annoying and completely fucking useless part of your official duties too?"
His words landed like a slap.
Leon’s expression darkened almost instantly. "In case you don’t know," he replied through gritted teeth, "I don’t need to be a security guard to make sure academy rules are followed. You’re standing inside a high-ranking dorm without permission. That’s already against the rules."
"And who told you we don’t have permission?" Rin shot back without missing a beat.
Causing Ethan to nearly choke on his own saliva. He slowly turned toward his best friend.
Okay...
That definitely wasn’t part of the plan.
The hole Rin was digging was becoming deeper by the second, but there was no way Ethan was about to contradict him now and make him look foolish.
Leon let out a mocking scoff. "Permission?" he repeated with obvious disbelief. "From who exactly? I’d really love to know whose influence you’re relying on this time... or whose bed you’re climbing into."
That was the final straw.
Ethan took one step forward, his eyes narrowing dangerously. "Are we obligated to tell you that?" he asked coldly. "Who the fuck do you think you are? Some kind of God?"
His sudden outburst caught everyone off guard. His voice wasn’t loud, but every single word landed with enough force to make the surrounding students glance in their direction.
Even Rin stared at Ethan in complete disbelief.
Since when...
Since when had Ethan become this sharp-tongued? Ever since he returned to the academy, everything about his best friend had felt... different.
His confidence.
His attitude.
Even the way he carried himself.
If Rin wasn’t sure that soul-swapping was impossible, he might genuinely have believed the person standing before him wasn’t the same Ethan he’d grown up with.
Meanwhile, Leon found himself speechless for the first time in a long while. He actually didn’t have an answer to Ethan’s question.
Still unwilling to lose face, he forced himself to straighten his shoulders before speaking again. "Fine," he sneered. "You’re not obligated to tell me, right? Then you can explain yourselves to the academy authorities after I report both your asses. Let’s see how confident you are then."
He fixed his eyes on Ethan, silently waiting for him to panic, apologize, or beg.
Instead...
Ethan simply shrugged. "Okay," he replied indifferently. "Go ahead then."
Leon blinked and for a brief second, his mind completely stopped working.
He...
He was actually telling him to report them?
Was Ethan bluffing?
Or...
Did they genuinely have permission from someone?
"You..." Leon frowned deeply. "What do you mean, go ahead? I’ll give you one last chance. Apologize now, and I’ll consider letting both of you off the hook."
Ethan didn’t even bother answering. He merely spared Leon one dismissive glance before turning toward Rin.
"Let’s go."
Without another word, the two of them walked straight past Leon, leaving him standing alone in the middle of the cafeteria, caught somewhere between fury and confusion.
Meanwhile, the walk back toward their respective dormitories was considerably quieter. Outwardly, Ethan maintained the same calm expression he’d worn inside the cafeteria.
Inwardly...
He was praying.
Please...
Please let that arrogant idiot think we actually had permission.
Although anger and stubbornness had gotten the better of him earlier, Ethan wasn’t stupid enough to underestimate the consequences he knew this academy valued hierarchy above almost everything else. To them, allowing lower-ranked students to freely enter the living quarters of higher-ranked students was practically an insult to the academy’s order.
The punishment...
Could very well be expulsion.
Ethan let out a long sigh. "Well..." he muttered inwardly. "We’ll just have to wait and see tomorrow."
Eventually, Rin arrived outside his own dormitory building.
"I’ll see you tomorrow," Ethan said, raising a hand in farewell.
Rin returned the gesture, but even as he did, he continued staring at Ethan with the same thoughtful, scrutinizing expression he’d worn ever since they left the cafeteria.
Ethan noticed it but the thing was that he simply didn’t have the energy to think about it. Right now, all he wanted was to return to his room, finally eat the food they’d risked so much to get, take a proper shower, and collapse onto his bed.
Tomorrow...
Tomorrow he would deal with whatever disaster awaited him. If he somehow wasn’t expelled, then his next destination would be the academy library. He needed to learn everything he could about Guides, spiritual power, and the fastest way to increase his rank.
After returning to his room, Ethan quickly followed through with his plans. He ate every last bite of his now lukewarm meal without leaving a single grain behind, washed away the exhaustion of the day with a quick shower, and threw himself onto the creaking bed.
Sleep claimed him almost instantly.
The next morning, however, he didn’t even need the broken alarm clock to wake him.
Bang!
Bang!!
Bang!!!
Violent pounding echoed through his already barely hanging door, making the entire frame shake as though it would fall apart at any second. Before Ethan could even sit upright, an all-too-familiar voice shouted frantically from outside.
"Wake up, you sleepyhead! That bastard really reported us... and now we’re both being summoned by the principal!"