Daru's brows furrowed in utter displeasure.

He turned to look at his instructor, who didn't shy away and locked eyes with him for a moment before he shifted his attention back to Helen.

Since she's speaking in a straightforward manner, he will, too.

"No," Daru responded with a cold, decisive tone. "I've earned my spot in the Inter-class Representative Competition fair and square. I will not give it to someone I've defeated."

The secretary's gaze turned a notch colder.

"Oh, I'm not asking, Daru Finnley. I'm ordering you to give your spot to Lynn Pemberton."

"And what if I don't want to listen to such an unjust and unfair order?"

Helen chuckled, tilting her head slightly.

"Are you challenging me, young man? Do you think that you, an upstart with no background and an F-ranker to boot, will have any sort of chance?"

Daru was about to respond.

However, before he could, Talon cut in:

"Finnley, first of all, allow me to apologize for what's happening. I just want to explain to you why the academy has decided to give your participation slot to Lynn."

The instructor then paused for a while, allowing his student to process what he just said before continuing, despite the guilt in his heart.

"As you know, Lynn is an A-ranker, and as much as it is only fair for you to participate and have a chance at the rewards for the top 8 of the upcoming competition, it…*ahem*…would be a waste. I'll be blunt. The academy values students with higher-tier swords more than they would those with lower-tier ones, mostly because of long-proven ceilings. Once again, I apologize for having to say this, but her future is brighter than yours. Way brighter. And this is an irrefutable fact."

Daru didn't speak, coldly observing the faces of the two older individuals in front of him.

He understood that his instructor was probably only following orders.

The secretary, on the other hand, appeared as though she was enjoying herself.

Either way, Daru wasn't going to back down, especially since he believes he's in the right.

"Hmph." He snorted, unconvinced. "No matter what your reason is, I qualified fair and square and defeated this A-ranker with a way brighter future. All my classmates and even those from other classes witnessed my clean, honest victory. I will not give up my spot."

Daru would never give up the chance to fight the top-rankers.

Furthermore, he promised Cody and Iris a good, all-out match.

There were only reasons to challenge the academy's decision and none to just agree with them.

"Tch." Helen clicked her tongue in frustration. "Fine, I'll accept that you're a smart brat, Daru Finnley."

Daru's brows only furrowed deeper in confusion.

While he did not like being called dumb, as he believed he was not such a person, he did not take pride in being smart, either.

This was an unexpected compliment from the hateful secretary.

After a brief silence, Helen continued: "I'm busy, and you still have a class to attend, so let's not waste time. Tell me what you want. The in-realm rewards and the class representative slot would go to Lynn Pemberton; you get monetary compensation in Neo-Earth. Name your price."

To the secretary and instructor's disbelief and bewilderment, Daru suddenly stood up, sneering as he left the office:

"Hmph. You can keep your filthy money. The rewards and the participation slot I rightfully earned are mine."

Despite his anger, Daru still closed the door gently as his remaining patience allowed, leaving the despicable duo inside.

Watching him, Helen seethed for a few moments.

Then…

*BANG!*

She slammed her desk with her hands, breathing heavily while staring coldly at the door.

"The nerve of this lowly F-ranker…"

The secretary indulged in hatred for a while before turning to look at Talon.

Although she was angered to the high heavens at the defiance, she didn't allow her emotions to fully consume her.

"Talon," she called out, "Try to convince the brat first before we resort to harsher measures."

The instructor met her gaze and nodded with a heavy heart.

Helen confirmed that she was trusted by the busy principal to handle the matter, and he had even ensured to record the call for himself.

Yet, he couldn't help but feel uneasy about the whole thing.

Should he not have called that day and allowed things to proceed as they did?

***

Daru took a large, furious bite out of his grilled chicken leg, deep in thought.

He was more experienced now, and he knew that if the academy really wanted to, he wouldn't be able to join the Inter-class Representative Competition.

Daru then realized something strange in the next moment.

Since this was the case, why were they offering him compensation?

'Could it be that…'

He felt like he was about to touch upon something important.

Daru continued, working his mind to a great portion of its capabilities, finally coming up with an answer deduced after analyzing things deeply:

'Maybe they're not as bad as I thought they were?' He mused. 'Maybe they're only putting up a cold front but are really guilty deep inside?'

His instructor, for one, seemed to be such a case…

Ultimately, Daru shrugged the thoughts off. He shall ask Hailey for help if needed.

For now, he made himself clear, and he would never change his stance.

How would he have a valid reason to fight someone like Skylar, otherwise?

Placing all his used plates back in the tray and the tray at the appropriate station, Daru left the canteen, heart still a bit heavy.

He could still feel anger stirring in his heart every time he remembered the unfair treatment.

He earned the Class Representative position, so why should it be Lynn, whom he defeated, be the one to represent their class in the competition?

Daru eventually arrived at his room, preparing himself for his afternoon swordsmanship classes.

Iris found it rather strange that he didn't make it to their usual early-bird training.

He arrived only a few minutes earlier than Talon, who acted as though nothing had happened, even though Daru had been openly glaring at him.

The afternoon classes then proceeded and ended normally.

Agitated from having to listen to Talon's irritating voice and look at his contemptible face, Daru was only able to calm down after training for another two hours with Iris, utilizing what remained of his time in the realm that night to continue his journey back to the Crystal Hollows.

If there was something that would be able to completely get his mind off the unjust matter, it would be fighting swordspawns and grinding levels.

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