Chapter 746: You Think Too Highly Of Yourself (1)
Lucia took a moment before mentioning the next rank.
It was not a long pause, but within the silence of the Eastern Grand Hall, it felt heavier than it should have. The lower half of the top ten had already been addressed, and now every student in the hall understood that the next name would mark the beginning of the top five.
Even the most exhausted students seemed to gather a little more awareness, their eyes shifting toward the magical screen above the stage and then back toward Lucia, waiting to see whose name would come first among the highest-ranked students of their year.
Lucia glanced down at her clipboard, her expression unreadable as the enchanted surface glowed faintly beneath her fingers. Then she tapped it once, causing the large magical screen above the stage to ripple before forming a new image.
"Rank five," Lucia announced clearly. "Chris Rature."
The moment the name left her mouth, the atmosphere among the students shifted.
It was not loud. No one dared make it loud with the Headmaster, Sir Kaelen, Sir Regulus, and the other authoritative figures watching from the stage. But the reaction was still there, moving across the second years like a silent wave. Some students exchanged surprised glances. Others looked toward Chris immediately.
A few had expressions that showed they did not care much either way, while others seemed quietly satisfied, as if the prince’s continued decline confirmed something they had already believed about him. There were also those who looked uncomfortable with the result, especially those who still respected Chris’s strength and believed his combat ability alone should have kept him higher.
Because this was not the first time.
Since returning to the academy after the war and the long break that followed, Chris Rature had declined in rank again.
Once could have been dismissed as circumstance. Twice was harder to ignore.
Chris stood among the crowd, his uniform damaged, his dark hair disheveled, and several healing marks visible along his face and arms. He looked exhausted, but not defeated in the same way some of the others did.