The academy courtyard was bathed in the soft glow of the afternoon sun, its golden rays filtering through the leaves of the ancient oak trees that lined the perimeter. The air was warm, carrying the faint scent of blooming flowers and the distant hum of students chatting as they moved between classes. Cain stretched lazily, his arms reaching toward the sky as he let out a long, exaggerated yawn. He was trying to enjoy the rare moment of peace, but the weight of Valeria's gaze bore down on him like a storm cloud on the horizon.
She wasn't attacking. Not yet. But her presence was impossible to ignore. Valeria was always there, lurking in the shadows, her piercing eyes fixed on him with an intensity that made his skin crawl. From rooftops, from behind trees, from the darkest corners of the courtyard she watched. Always watching.
Cain sighed, running a hand through his messy hair. "Does she think she's subtle?" he muttered under his breath, his voice laced with exasperation.
Selene, who had been leaning against a nearby tree with her arms crossed, smirked. "You did tell her to wait," she reminded him, her tone dripping with amusement.
Cain groaned, shooting her a glare. "I was being sarcastic."
Selene shrugged, her smirk widening. "I was not."
Before Cain could retort, a voice cut through the air, cold and sharp like a blade. "I am here to observe."
Cain jumped, his heart skipping a beat as he spun around to find Valeria standing right behind him. How she had managed to get so close without him noticing was beyond him. Selene raised an eyebrow, clearly entertained by the situation. "You're getting sloppy," she teased.
Cain glared at her, then at Valeria. "She's literally an assassin," he said, as if that explained everything.
Valeria crossed her arms, her expression unreadable. "I am here to observe," she repeated, her voice calm but firm.
Cain blinked, his confusion evident. "Observe what?"
Valeria's gaze didn't waver. "What made you so… different."
There was a pause, the weight of her words hanging in the air. Selene's smirk widened, her eyes sparkling with mischief. "Oh, this is gonna be fun," she said, clearly enjoying Cain's discomfort.
Cain sighed, running a hand down his face. "I feel like my life is a joke."
"It is," Selene and Valeria said in unison, their voices overlapping perfectly.
Cain groaned, throwing his hands up in defeat. "I give up."
The training grounds were a stark contrast to the tranquility of the courtyard. The air here was charged with energy, the sound of clashing weapons and shouted commands echoing off the stone walls. Selene dragged Cain by the arm, her grip firm despite his protests. Valeria followed silently, her presence like a shadow that refused to be shaken.
"Should I be worried?" Cain asked, his tone half-joking, half-serious.
Selene smiled innocently, though the glint in her eyes suggested otherwise. "Nope. Just a little… test."
Cain groaned, trying to pull away. "No thanks."
But Selene wasn't having it. She snapped her fingers, and a system alert popped up in front of Cain, its glowing text impossible to ignore.
[New Event: "Research Subject No.1 – The Tyrant's Potential!"]
Cain stared at the notification, then at Selene, his expression a mix of disbelief and annoyance. "Did you just trigger a system event?" he asked, his voice rising in pitch.
Selene winked. "You should thank me."
Cain sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I really, really shouldn't."
Before he could say more, Selene vanished in a blur of motion. Cain barely had time to react before a blast of force sent him skidding backward, his boots digging into the dirt as he struggled to keep his balance. "OH COME ON!" he shouted, his voice echoing across the training grounds.
Valeria watched from the sidelines, her arms crossed and her expression unimpressed. "…Pathetic," she muttered under her breath.
Cain shot her a glare, his frustration evident. "I AM TRYING TO BE NORMAL."
Selene's laughter rang out, light and carefree. "And failing spectacularly."
Cain dodged the next strike, his movements clumsy but effective. He stumbled, barely managing to keep his footing as Selene pressed her attack. But then, something clicked. His body moved on its own, his instincts flaring to life. He twisted, dodged, countered, his movements becoming fluid and precise.
Valeria's eyes narrowed, her focus sharpening as she watched. Selene grinned, her attacks growing more intense. "…So it's still in you," she said, her voice filled with satisfaction.
Cain didn't answer. He was too busy trying not to die.
The fight ended when Cain collapsed, his chest heaving as he struggled to catch his breath. A system notification appeared, its text glowing ominously.
[System Notice: "Survival Rate: 30%"]
Cain flipped off the air, his frustration boiling over. "Screw you, System."
Selene snickered, clearly enjoying his misery. Valeria, however, remained silent. She watched Cain with a critical eye, her thoughts a mystery. He should have been fierce. He should have fought with ruthless precision. But instead, he complained. He dodged instead of attacking, groaned instead of strategizing, joked instead of killing.
And yet.
In those fleeting moments, she saw it. The instincts. The precision. The power. Beneath the laziness and the jokes, the Tyrant was still there. He just… wasn't embracing it.
"You are a disgrace," Valeria said, her voice cold and cutting.
Cain sighed, his shoulders slumping. "Finally, someone said it."
Valeria hesitated, caught off guard by his response. He didn't deny it. He didn't resist. He just accepted it with a grin, as if he had long since made peace with the fact. And for some reason, that bothered her.
"I will be watching," she said, her tone firm.
She turned and walked away, her footsteps silent against the dirt. Selene leaned down, patting Cain on the head as he groaned into the ground. "I think she likes you," she teased.
Cain's response was muffled by the dirt. "I hate my life."
Selene chuckled, her voice light and carefree. "There, there."
And as the sun dipped below the horizon, casting long shadows across the training grounds, Cain couldn't help but wonder how much worse his life was about to get.