Chapter 67: Tears of the Ice Snow [3]

laine and I were, of course, the ones who came forward to write the answer.

This was the first time I had seen her so close since we met in the alley of the lower district.

At that time, I was a bit shocked by the words 'Will you go away?', but now I know.

What kind of bad relationship she has with Max.

Of course, resolving the thread of that bad relationship was an important issue. There was no second year student who could be as helpful as her. Both in terms of ability and personality.

The thought of being betrayed by her, who falls into the category of 'good person' so openly, is something that those who have played the game would not even imagine.

It means she is a person you can trust.

However.

Even such a person becomes the very embodiment of a cold city woman only in front of that Max guy.

Cold eyes. It was worth exchanging a word of formal greeting, but she did not open her mouth.

As expected, I casually threw the first word.

"Let's have the best match that suits the end."

A troublemaker who throws a word to the top student about having a great competition.

Usually, even a passing dog would not look at such a scene.

But not now. Because everyone has seen what kind of miracle has brought us here so far.

Elaine, having heard those words, just stared at me without an answer.

I couldn't tell what she was thinking, but her gaze seemed to pierce through me. I calmly received that gaze. Because there is no one who can read minds anyway.

"Okay "

Eventually, she answered briefly. To think she would even answer that Max like that, she's indeed a good person.

"Here you go."

The teaching assistant handed each of us a pen.

It was a magic pen that could write in the air.

It seemed to mean that we should write the answer with it. We stood apart at a distance as guided by the teaching assistants.

Even so, cheating was entirely possible, but no one would be crazy enough to cheat while everyone was watching with their eyes wide open.

"You have one minute."

Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh.

As soon as the teaching assistant finished speaking, Elaine began writing the solution in the air at a fast pace.

She was the most frightening in the examination room. Because if there is such a kid around, the others get intimidated and become anxious, increasing the likelihood that they won't be able to perform to their full potential.

But I am different. Because I have something to rely on.

'Listen properly. Properly, properly.'

Riviera, emphasizing over and over again in case I heard wrong and she couldn't drink the tears of Frost.

Ah, my ears hurt. The teaching assistants and the other team members looked dumbfounded as if they saw a performance.

Huh? Look at this guy, not stuttering?

Has his mental already run away?

As I glared at him, his true intentions soon emerged.

"It's not something to brag about, but my family has a history as a martial house, and we have our own techniques for removing bad energy. Of course, it's a time consuming and labor intensive task, so only the direct bloodline can benefit from it. So I'm fine... Ack!"

Get lost, you tactless guy. I body checked his shoulder. That's why you get your position taken away by your younger sibling.

No. Is this guy doing this on purpose?

"No, no, it's absolutely not."

As if reading my eyes, he desperately shook his head, saying it was absolutely not.

"Hmm."

I decided to let it go. If this guy had been normal, he wouldn't have lost the head of the family position to his younger sibling, right?

So this guy is not normal. He's a pitiful guy, so let's just let it go.

"Huhuhu."

Ah, you startled me.

Riviera was standing right behind me, letting out an unpleasant laugh with only her mouth smiling. Of course, she seems to think that's a natural smile, but

"What?"

"Well done."

It was the first compliment I heard from her. It feels strange to receive such praise from a named boss. And with that, What does this praise mean?

There's no need to think about it. She is 100% confident in her answer.

That means...

'Could there be two answers?

If that's the case, then the current situation is explained. As I thought that, I saw Elaine.

'Hmm?'

Her expression was peculiar. She seemed calm as usual, but there was a feeling that she was forcibly hiding confusion. She blinked faster than usual and slightly bit the tip of her mouth.

I didn't miss that small change.

Because I know her too well, separate from the current messed up relationship, I could tell.

She is currently flustered.

But why?

As I thought that, I noticed her gaze was directed at our answer. The fact that she was flustered after seeing Riviera's answer.

'Is this it?'

I don't know what's going on, but judging by Elaine's reaction, the correct answer was on this side. Could it be that the flow has changed, and the last question has changed? It wasn't supposed to be a change that could have such an effect.

Anyway, there was only one way to find out.

"Everyone worked hard. Now, let's start the evaluation."