Chapter 159| The Moment of Truth

Chapter 159: Chapter 159| The Moment of Truth

Thursday, Zane found out what winning cost.

Everywhere he went, somebody looked at him. A second year nodded on the stairs like they’d been introduced. Two girls from 1-B stopped talking when he passed the water station and started up again the second he turned the corner. Ryan’s friends took the long way around him in the corridor.

His ribs had healed overnight. His head hadn’t. Every time someone’s eyes landed on him, he saw the sphere folding the light inward, and the one second where he’d had nothing in his hands.

『 System Note: The host has become a minor celebrity. 』

’Don’t.’

『 The system noticed the smile. 』

He wiped it off his face.

_ _

Dex found him at lunch, dropped into the chair opposite, and stole a fry before his tray hit the table.

"Eleven autographs," Dex said. "I told you."

"Nobody asked for an autograph."

"They asked me to ask you. Same thing." He chewed, then squinted. "You’ve got a face."

"Stop saying that."

"A different one." Dex leaned back and studied him. "Last week was tired-and-plotting. This is the one where somebody told you a secret and you’re not allowed to tell me."

"I have a sore shoulder."

"That’s what people with secrets say."

"You slept through three alarms on Tuesday," Zane said.

"Strategic."

"It was snoring."

"Strategic snoring." Dex stole another fry and pointed it at him. "Keep your secret. I’ll find out. I always do."

Zane pushed the tray an inch toward him and let him have the rest.

_ _

Instructor Mori caught him outside the lecture hall at two.

She had her tablet against her chest and her lab coat hanging open over a fitted black top. She stopped in front of him like someone who had already worked out how the conversation ended.

"Calloway," Mori said. "Your suit. I want it in my office by Monday."

"Something wrong with it?" Zane asked, one eyebrow lifting as he glanced at the tablet in her hands.

"It had a scorch line across the left sleeve. A stress fracture in the palm panel." She tilted her head. "You looked like someone running minimal output, but the damage I saw on the video doesn’t match that."

Zane’s eyebrow twitched. "Video?"

"Instructor Vael caught a glimpse of it and showed me the footage of the duel." Mori tapped the tablet against her arm. "Your output looked more pronounced than before. You’ve improved, Zane."

Zane smiled and shrugged. "A man’s got to do what he has to do."

"Mm." Her mouth curved. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "Maybe it’s a technical error on my side. I’ll fix a few reinforcements and it’ll come back like new." Her tone dropped half a notch. "But don’t damage the suit again, or the repair comes out of your personal funds. Extra."

"Whoa." Zane’s smile faltered. "That sounds scary."

"It’s meant to."

『 System Note: The suit was likely built when the host had C-rank output. The old weave may be breaking down under B-rank load. Reinforcement should help. 』

’Good to know,’ Zane thought.

"Thanks, Instructor Mori," he said. "I appreciate it."

She gave a small smile, the kind that didn’t reach her eyes but didn’t quite miss them either.

"Just like your dad," she said. "I see."

Her heels clicked away down the corridor. Zane stayed where he was, watching the white coat disappear around the corner.

_ _

Zane skipped the last lecture and went to the training grounds.

It had been a while since he’d done a proper session out there, longer than he liked admitting. He wanted to stretch out a little, maybe free the stress from yesterday’s bout.

Zane got there a little after four. The sun sat low over the dormitory roof and the field was nearly empty, just two second years jogging the outer track and a lone figure on the pad in the far corner.

Maren.

He slowed. She usually trained at dawn, and he hadn’t expected to find her out here this late. Zane crossed the grass with a raised eyebrow, and she watched him come with her arms crossed and her hair tied back, the same look she’d given the bruise on his ribs at the infirmary.

"You’re supposed to be resting," Maren said.

"I rested," Zane replied. "What are you doing here? You train in the morning."

"I wanted to see if you’d show up." She shrugged, a little too casually. "Apparently I was right."

"For one night," she added.

"That’s a full night," Zane said. ’See if I’ll show up, that’s a bit diabolical between’. Zane thought.

"It’s a minimum." She sighed and uncrossed her arms. "You’ll do light drills only. If you pull something, I’m telling the medic you ignored me."

"Deal," Zane said.

They ran parallel for a while. Her bursts were sharp and clean. His were slower, careful, and every few minutes he caught her glancing sideways to check his breathing. Neither of them said anything about it.

"Nil’s been weird," Maren said, mid-sequence.

Zane’s rep stalled for half a beat. "Weird how?"

"Quiet." Maren cut her activation at nine seconds and straightened. "She texted me three times today and every message was one word. She’s never sends one word. Last week she sent a paragraph about a sandwich."

"Maybe she’s tired."

"Maybe." Maren frowned at the far fence. "She keeps asking what time my session is tomorrow."

"Your session?"

"The late one in Arena Two. I told her I’d be there until ten." She shook her head. "It’s nothing. Forget it."

’Ohh seems interesting’. Zane was in thoughts and went back to his reps and kept his eyes on the wall.

’Could I be the reason or it’s prolly coincidence?. Nah obviously coincidence.’

Nobody answered that, not even the system, which he subconsciously awaited its reply.

They stayed until the light went orange. Maren picked up her bag first, and at the edge of the pad she hesitated.

"You’d tell me if something was wrong," she said. "Right?"

"Yeah," Zane replied.

She studied him a second longer than she needed to. Then she nodded once and walked off toward the dorms.

He stood alone on the grass with his palm still pressed to the wall, feeling like a man who’d just lied with a straight face and a clean conscience, and had no idea how that was possible.

_ _

At five, on the way back to his dorm, a message came through from an unknown number.

Tomorrow. Eight. Behind the second-year girls’ dorm, third green door on the left. Don’t get caught.

No name. No emoji. Just the text and a full stop.

He stopped at the bottom of the dormitory steps and read it three times.

’She’s serious about this,’ he thought.

『 System Note: The host’s pulse is elevated. 』

’It’s the stairs.’

『 You have not climbed any stairs. 』

He deleted the message and climbed them.

’And this location sounds strange,’ he thought. ’Am I supposed to go inside the girls’ dorm, or somewhere around it? Maybe I’ll find out tomorrow.’

Upstairs, his communicator buzzed again.

Nyx: Saturday still stands. Bring a better excuse than "lucky."

He typed: I wasn’t going to say lucky.

Nyx: You were.

He put the phone away without answering, because she was right.

Dex was already on his bed with a bag of chips and his laptop propped on his knees. He didn’t look up.

"Told you," Dex said, not looking up from his laptop. "Always with a Secret face."

Zane went to his bed, lay down ignoring dex and stared at the ceiling.

"Not going to say anything?". Dex probed."okay goodnight".

The vent wheezed. The laptop clicked. Somewhere beyond the wall, a door slammed and somebody laughed.

Tomorrow, he thought. Eight. The moment of truth.

Zane threw his blanket over himself.

He tried to sleep but ended up staring at the ceiling a little longer.