Chapter 27: Obsessed With Him
The students were quickly divided into smaller groups, each assigned to a different section of the training grounds before being led toward the starting field.
Ethan silently followed behind his group with a dead expression.
Seriously...
He had already had enough of this assessment, and it hadn’t even officially begun yet.
Mr stood before them with a stopwatch in one hand before sweeping his gaze across every student present.
"Now that you’ve all been divided into groups, listen carefully because I’m only going to explain this once."
The chatter immediately died down.
"The assessment will not begin directly with the obstacle course. Instead, every group will first complete a long-distance race. However, this is not simply a warm-up."
He paused briefly before continuing.
"The moment a student crosses the finish line, they are to proceed immediately into the obstacle course. You will not wait for the rest of your group, nor will the obstacle course wait for you." The instructor lifted the stopwatch. "From the moment the very first student enters the obstacle course, a one-hour countdown will begin."
That single sentence immediately made everyone tense.
"If you choose to conserve your stamina by running too slowly, understand that the timer will continue counting down while you’re still on the track. Should you fail to complete every obstacle before the one-hour limit expires..."
His expression became completely indifferent.
"...you automatically fail the assessment."
Silence followed.
Even Ethan was completely silent.
Oh...
Now that explanation made much more sense.
A small sigh of relief escaped him.
At least they weren’t all being thrown into the obstacle course simultaneously. If everyone started at different times, then he’d have the chance to observe the earlier students while he was still running. Watching how they handled each obstacle would at least give him some idea of what awaited him instead of charging in blindly.
Okay...
That wasn’t completely hopeless.
Almost immediately, the instructor raised the whistle to his lips.
A sharp blast echoed across the field.
"RUN!"
Like arrows released from their bows, dozens of students exploded forward at incredible speed, kicking up clouds of dust behind them as they sprinted toward the distant finish line.
Some sprinted as though their lives depended on it.
Others maintained a steady rhythm.
A small number lagged behind...
Either because they lacked the physical ability...
Or...
Because they simply weren’t in any hurry.
Like Ethan.
Ethan deliberately kept a balanced pace.
Not so fast that he would arrive too early without understanding the obstacle course...
Yet not so slow that he would waste too much of his precious one-hour limit.
It was the safest option. Perfect one even.
Untill hesuddenly sensed another presence matching his pace beside him.
Frowning he turned his head only for his expression to sour instantly when he recognized the face.
His expression instantly soured.
Drey.
The very same Drey who was supposed to be running with the Sentinel assessment group.
Apparently...
Rules simply didn’t apply to certain people.
It was also the same Drey he had spent the past several days successfully avoiding.
Ethan honestly didn’t know why the man was here.
More importantly...
He didn’t want to know.
So he did what he did best.
He ignored him completely and continued focusing on the race as though nobody had appeared beside him.
If Drey wasn’t going to speak, then Ethan certainly wasn’t interested in starting a conversation either.
Drey continued running beside him, effortlessly matching Ethan’s moderate pace without the slightest hint of fatigue. When he realized Ethan genuinely had no intention of acknowledging him, he frowned. "What are you doing?"
Ethan didn’t even bother looking at him.
Drey frowned even harder. "Are you ignoring me?"
That finally earned him a glance.
Ethan looked at him as though the answer should have been painfully obvious.
"Have you forgotten your own words already?" he asked flatly. "You’re the one who ended things between us and very clearly told me to stay away from you. Coincidentally, I also happen to want to stay away from you, so what’s the problem? Please leave me alone and let me run in peace... otherwise I might actually start believing you’re obsessed with me."
Why couldn’t this guy simply let him live in peace?
Was that really too much to ask?
Drey clicked his tongue in response "You must be incredibly bold to think I’m obsessed with you, Ethan."
"Good."
Ethan nodded immediately.
"That’s even better. Since you’re definitely not obsessed with me, then please, Lord Drey, kindly leave this insignificant F-Rank Guide alone."
He even made a small dismissive gesture with one hand before returning his attention to the road.
Drey, however, wasn’t finished.
"I will," he replied calmly, "right after you explain why you were standing outside my dorm room a few days ago. He smirked before continuing "If we’re talking about obsession...Wouldn’t that make you the obsessed one? Chasing me down to my room!"
Ethan nearly stumbled his heart skipping a beat. How had this bastard known?
He hadn’t even knocked on the door.
Then again...
This was Drey.
A powerful Sentinel whose perception far exceeded ordinary people.
Maybe he’d sensed someone standing outside his room all along.
Still...
There was absolutely no way Ethan was admitting it.
He scoffed dramatically.
"Oh please," he said with complete confidence. "Don’t tell me your obsession has gotten so bad that you’re imagining me standing outside your room because that definitely only happened inside your head."
He didn’t even give Drey time to respond.
"And besides, why would I come looking for you in the first place? Don’t bother me again. Thank you."
With those words, Ethan immediately increased his pace.
Not enough to exhaust himself but just enough to put some much-needed distance between them.
He knew perfectly well that Drey could catch up whenever he wanted.
Thankfully...
For once, the man seemed to remember he possessed at least one functioning brain cell and finally slowed down, returning toward the Sentinel group instead of continuing after Ethan.
Peace.
Finally.
Ethan silently thanked every deity willing to listen. By the time he approached the finish line, the sounds coming from the obstacle course had already reached him.
Students shouted in frustration.
Some were tangled inside glowing Spirit Threads.
Others tumbled helplessly from the Gravity Pillars before being forced to begin all over again.
Occasionally, someone would be blasted backward by a Spiritual Barrage projectile, landing flat on the ground as laughter and sympathetic groans erupted from nearby spectators.
...It looked every bit as horrifying as he’d imagined.
Just as Ethan crossed the finish line, another familiar voice rang out across the field.
"You good-for-nothing!"
Ethan didn’t even need to turn around. He already knew who it was.
Sir Alex.
The very same instructor who had deliberately paired him with Drey during the compatibility assessment.
Standing beside the other instructors, Sir Alex folded his arms before glaring directly at Ethan.
"How can you possibly run this slowly?" he barked loudly enough for everyone nearby to hear. "Don’t even think about using your F-Rank as an excuse because your fellow F-Rank students crossed this finish line long before you did!"
Ethan stared at him in complete disbelief.
...And how exactly was that working out for them?
He casually glanced toward the obstacle course again. And like before almost every student he saw was still currently suffering.
Ethan slowly turned back toward Sir Alex.
...And this was somehow better?
He wisely decided not to ask that question aloud. Instead, he ignored the instructor entirely.
Stepping past the starting line of the obstacle course, Ethan fixed his eyes on the glowing maze waiting before him. He inhaled deeply, slowly releasing the breath in an attempt to steady his racing heart before quietly muttering to himself,
"...Alright."
"Here goes nothing."