Keeping up with classes at the Secondary Institute was manageable. Evan had to dust off knowledge he had long forgotten, but the regular courses were within his reach. The real headache came from subjects unique to Nova Terra, such as Basic Monster Knowledge and Tower History. His classmates had spent years on them while he was starting from scratch. He had read plenty of stories about Gates and Awakeners, yet none had bothered to explain monster anatomy or what ordinary people were supposed to do when monsters appeared.
With the System refusing to help, he would have to memorize everything the hard way and work out how the original Evan had behaved at the same time. That worried him far more than the classes did. Should Reid notice anything off, the questions would start. And if Evan's suspicion was right and Reid really was Reuel, then "my little brother got replaced by another soul" sounded uncomfortably close to demonic possession. Evan had no wish to receive the Legendary Demon Hunter's exorcism firsthand.
Neglecting his schoolwork was not an option either. The report cards and completed assignments he had found painted the original Evan as an excellent student, and a sudden slide in grades would be hard to explain. He pinched the bridge of his nose.
"What has you looking so miserable today?" the girl at the next desk whispered.
Her long, straight hair was held back by a headband, and her eyes were light brown. Glittering polish covered her neatly trimmed nails. Her name tag reminded him who she was: Zhao Yuyan. Judging by the messages on his phone, the two were close friends.
"It's nothing," Evan said.
"I don't buy that." Yuyan tilted her head. "Is your brother fussing over you again about today's study trip to the Outskirts?"
Evan stiffened. A study trip? Neither the timetable he had checked before leaving home nor the calendar app on his phone had said a word about the Outskirts.
A knot formed in his stomach. In transmigration stories, routine events had a terrible track record. School excursions, festivals, entrance exams... they always seemed to spiral into disaster. He had no evidence the same would happen here, yet the dread settled in anyway.
Could he refuse to go? Probably not. Skipping a school trip without a convincing reason would draw attention from teachers and classmates, and worse, from Reid. The original Evan would likely have gone without complaint. With no better option, Evan braced himself and hoped that whatever catastrophe awaited him would at least be kind enough to leave him alive.
Classes ended at eleven, and the students gathered outside to board the waiting bus. At first glance it looked like any other bus, but once Evan climbed aboard, the thick seams along its exterior panels and the seats bolted firmly to the floor told a different story. The solid construction eased his nerves a little. If something attacked them on the road, at least they wouldn't die immediately.
Evan took the aisle seat, since it gave him the best chance of a quick escape if anything went wrong. Yuyan settled into the window seat beside him, and a dark-skinned boy with short curls took the middle. His name tag read Marcus Reed, another of the original Evan's friends.
"Dang," Marcus groaned. "Couldn't they have skipped the morning classes today? We could've spent way more time outside."
Yuyan rolled her eyes. "For someone whose grades are barely staying out of the red, you should spend more time in class."
"It's not my fault the lessons are boring."
"Being a student-athlete isn't an excuse to slack off."
Evan stayed out of the banter. The two bickered too smoothly for this to be their first round. The bus filled quickly, and once everyone was seated, the doors hissed shut. It pulled away from the school and merged onto the freeway. Nova Terra stretched beneath the Tower Barrier, divided into twenty-two Districts. He and Reid lived in District 20, one of the outer residential zones.
Travel between Districts was never straightforward. Security checkpoints and traffic control could turn even short trips into hours, depending on which way a person was headed. Leaving the Districts was easier than entering the Tower's barrier, and school transport usually faced lighter inspections. Fortunately, today's ride was smooth.
The Tower's protective ward came into view as the bus rolled on, a wall of seamless material that ringed the Districts and climbed hundreds of meters into the sky. Yet that was only the portion the naked eye could see. The full barrier reached far higher and formed a protective dome overhead, one that appeared only when an attack came.
Traffic funneled into a checkpoint ahead. The bus took a dedicated lane and stopped beneath a canopy lit by floodlights. A guard boarded and moved down the aisle, scanning each passenger with a handheld device that gave off low beeps. Outside, another guard spoke with the driver and reviewed data on a tablet before giving a brief nod. Moments later the gate lifted, and the bus rolled through, leaving District 20 behind for the Outskirts beyond the wall.
Evan had expected something closer to a slum, but the reality was different. Mid-rise buildings of gray concrete and tinted glass lined the streets. Cables and pipes ran along the building fronts and under the elevated walkways, clamped in bundles. Shops were wedged between apartment blocks, and the sidewalks were crowded. What held his attention was how many people carried weapons in the open. Inside the barrier, only authorized individuals were allowed to.
The bus stopped at a nearby Outer Zone Security Station, and the students stepped out to find a man waiting for them, well over six feet tall, with broad shoulders and thick muscle. A bushy ginger beard hid much of his face. A blade was strapped across his back, pouches hung from both legs, and light armor plates covered his torso and shoulders.
"Welcome, students, welcome!" the man said. "My name is Harlan McBride. I am a C-rank Awakener who will be your tour guide today. Nice to meet you!"
The students greeted Harlan with varying degrees of enthusiasm. Evan swept his gaze over the station. The sky was bright and clear, nothing looked out of place, and no sound that resembled monster activity reached him.
Harlan led the group through the station next. According to the itinerary, today's trip was a Career Exposure Day meant to give students firsthand experience with jobs in the Outskirts. For years the government had been encouraging more people to work beyond the barrier, since expanding settlements needed workers and not just Awakeners.
Most Awakeners were willing to accept the risks, but non-Awakeners were another story. From what Evan knew, many who lived beyond the barrier did so because they couldn't afford to live inside it.
The bored faces around him suggested the presentation wasn't having much effect. Most students cared more about being out of class than about careers in the Outskirts.
Yuyan sighed as they trailed behind the group. "If only we could meet Junhao. That would've been more exciting."
"Why the heck would an S-rank be here?" Marcus said.
"Why not? One can dream, you know," Yuyan replied with a dreamy sigh.
Curious, Evan opened social media and searched for the Awakener they meant: Chen Junhao, an S-rank martial artist and one of the most recognizable young figures in Nova Terra. His short, wavy dark hair ended in a thin rat tail at the back, usually tied loosely during training. Bold eyebrows gave him a perpetually focused look even when he smiled, and in nearly every photo he wore the same easy grin. Yeah, he could see why Yuyan was a fan.
"Well, then I hope Selena is here," Marcus said.
"Why would the number one Awakener be here?" Yuyan asked.
"You think Junhao can be here but Selena can't?"
"Junhao is very close to his fans, okay? Selena, though? No way. She's such a workaholic!"
Before Evan could look up the name Selena, Harlan led them to the training ground, where several low-rank Awakeners were exercising. The yard sprawled across an open stretch behind the station's walls and steel fencing. Battered targets lined one side, and nearby, wooden practice posts stood beside weapon racks loaded with spears, swords, shields, and other training gear.
The weapons drew Evan's attention, and his hands twitched with the urge to grab one. He had no experience with any of them, but the study trip had left him uneasy, and a knife or something similar would have been comforting to have nearby if an incident broke out.
"Alright, so this is our training ground," Harlan said, sweeping a hand across the yard. "The Awakeners assigned here often train in this area. Though sometimes young Awakeners who have yet to gain their license also drop by to spar. Does anyone want to try to spar with me?"
Harlan picked up a wooden broadsword from the rack and shot a grin at the group of students. The teens traded glances. None of them were Awakeners, and though they got daily exercise and a few were budding athletes, the gap between them and an Awakener was wide.
Harlan read their hesitation. "Don't worry, I know how to hold back. There's no way I'll accidentally hurt you guys. If I did, it'd be my head on the chopping block. Hahaha!"
"Let me try then!" Marcus said, raising his hand.
Evan and Yuyan stared at him in disbelief, but Marcus was already bounding toward Harlan.
"Oh geez, that muscle head," Yuyan said, shaking her head. "Maybe it's a good thing he's not an Awakener, or he'd already be one of those battle-crazy types."
"But I thought you're a fan of Junhao?" Evan asked. A short stretch of internet sleuthing had been enough to show that Junhao was obsessed with fighting strong opponents. He often appeared in the Arena and accepted every casual match, even from lower-ranked Awakeners with the gall and madness to challenge an S-rank.
"Junhao is different, okay! He's doing it to protect the Skybreak Guild's reputation!" Yuyan shouted.
Spoken like a true fangirl. Evan gave her a dry look. He knew well enough how fans behaved, and it seemed not even an apocalypse could erase fangirls and brain rot.
When he turned back, Marcus and Harlan were still trading blows. Even without any fighting experience, Evan could tell Marcus had no chance of landing a hit. In many of the NovelBins he read, the strongest Awakeners received almost all the attention. He understood the fascination, but watching Harlan circle Marcus with such ease showed him how far ordinary people fell short of Awakeners. A C-rank like Harlan was still beyond anything a normal person could hope to match.
Harlan slipped another of Marcus's lunges and swung his sword overhead. As the wooden blade came down, Marcus shut his eyes on instinct, and a few students gasped. The strike stopped a centimeter from his head, then dropped in a gentle tap against his forehead.
"Great job, kiddo," Harlan said.
Marcus rubbed the back of his neck, sheepish. "Thanks…"
"You're the first kid that raised your hand to spar with me. I think that says a lot about your character, boy," Harlan said as he slapped Marcus on the back. "Alright, who else wants to try?"
The way the spar ended stirred more interest, and several students stepped forward. Evan weighed trying it too, since he might pick up some useful pointers. This was not like his old world, where the most dangerous thing you might encounter was a thief on your way home at night. There were monsters here, and if Evan decided to stay, picking up basic self-defense would be crucial.
A System window flashed open before him without warning, bearing a new message:
[The Curse of ■■■■■■ stirs.]