Chapter 2

2144 Words
In just one week, the Discipline Department had deducted countless points, and the new students, unfamiliar with the rules, suffered quite a bit. As for the older students, they could be divided into two groups. One group strictly adhered to the school rules, ensuring they never gave the Discipline Department any reason to deduct their points, fiercely protecting their academic standing. The other group constantly sought to break the rules but never dared to go too far, knowing that getting expelled was irreversible. So, they would commit minor infractions while participating in various school competitions to earn back the points they lost—both timid and audacious at the same time. “Mira has always had a strong following among that second group,” a male student said enthusiastically to a classmate who was bent over, tidying his bed. Alec Donald, whose hands and feet had not fully healed, was slower than others at making his bed. Once he finished folding his blanket, he straightened up and stared at his roommate. “Mira is the top-ranked student on the Red List at St. Darcy Military Academy, and you’re calling her timid?” “That’s not what I meant,” Peter replied with a good-natured smile. “Haven’t you heard? Last year, during both semesters, she earned enough points within the first month to cover all the deductions from the Discipline Department and the teachers. Then she skipped classes for the rest of the semester, only returning for the final exams.” Alec was momentarily taken aback. “How did she earn those points?” He had lost fifteen points at the school gate last time, leaving him with just five. He hadn’t dared to make any moves since. “There’s a Challenge Hall in the school. You can earn a few points in small matches or hundreds to thousands in the big ones,” Peter explained, leaning in closer and lowering his voice. “On her first day at the academy, Mira went straight to the Challenge Hall and targeted the top ten on the Red List and the Alpha rankings. She won every match, taking all the points that the senior students had saved up, leaving them with only their starting points.” Excitement flared in Alec’s eyes. Clearly intrigued by the idea of the Challenge Hall, he immediately turned and headed out. "Where are you going?" Peter asked, following behind. "A challenge!" "Are you fully recovered?" While the new students were still getting familiar with the campus, the senior students had already started their formal classes. Before class began, the teacher glanced around the classroom, his gaze landing on a student in the back row. "Next month, elective courses will begin. I hope some of you don't think that just because you found loopholes in your credits for two semesters, you can continue to set this trend. Let me tell you, the administration is already discussing ways to reform the credit system." "Why doesn't he just say your name?" Tom, with his hands lazily crossed behind his head, leaned against the wall and said to Mira, who was sitting next to him. Mira, holding a pen between her fingers, tapped it on the desk, showing no intention of responding to Tom. Her gaze was fixed on the person sitting in the front row, whose back was straight. Her eyes followed the clean, slender nape of his neck downwards, along his black military uniform. Even though everyone was wearing the same uniform, she felt that the one he was wearing seemed blacker, more striking. It took her a moment to realize that it was his exposed skin on the back of his neck that appeared unusually white. Further down, there wasn't much to see, as it was blocked by the desk in front. Mira, feeling a bit bored, retracted her gaze and tilted her head to ask, "Isn't his coming-of-age ceremony approaching?" "Who?" Tom responded instinctively. It wasn't until he noticed who Mira was looking at that he realized, "Robert? His coming-of-age ceremony is on the 28th of this month. The Morgan family will definitely make it a grand event, but..." Tom added with a hint of schadenfreude, "He's about to come of age, but he still hasn't differentiated. Doesn't the Morgan family feel a bit guilty throwing such a big celebration?" "He hasn't even differentiated yet and he managed to kick Ryan out. What's there to feel guilty about?" Mira glanced at the pen between her fingers before setting it down with her other hand. "You're not even at school, yet you know quite a lot," Tom muttered under his breath. Ryan was the former head of the Discipline Department, ranked third on the Red List and second on the Alpha List, just ahead of Tom. He rarely managed the department himself, and before Robert took over, the Discipline Department was in chaos. "This class will end here. Some students would do well to be more restrained," the teacher said, giving a final warning before leaving. After the teacher left, the students began to disperse as well, many of them discussing the elective courses that would start early next month. As Robert finished packing his things and stood up to leave, someone blocked his path. His black military uniform was perfectly tailored, each button fastened neatly, leaving only a small part of his neck exposed, the skin up close appearing coldly pale and delicate. "What did you give me for my coming-of-age ceremony?" Mira asked, standing in front of Robert, raising an eyebrow as she looked him over. "I hear yours is coming up soon. I should return the favor." Robert's gaze was icy. "Anything." With that, he stepped around Mira and left the classroom. Tom, who had followed behind, watched Robert's departing figure and remarked, "The Frost Army just finished snatching a year's worth of military equipment from the Seventeenth Army yesterday, and now you two are facing off. But what did he give you last year?" "I don't know," Mira said, reaching into her pocket and feeling the cigarette case, her expression thoughtful. "I haven't seen the coming-of-age gift yet." ... The new students at the military academy were eagerly awaiting the rumored challenge, hoping to witness Mira's strength. Yet, two weeks into the semester, the challenge arena remained silent. "I heard Mira got a warning from the teacher, so she's not planning on earning credits and skipping classes anymore." "Really? She wouldn’t give in to a teacher’s words that easily, would she?" "Mira hasn’t been to the challenge arena at all this semester." The challenge hall was packed with people, buzzing with conversations—ninety percent of them about Mira. But soon, those voices faded as all eyes turned to the entrance: Mira had arrived. The brief moment of silence was quickly broken when she stepped in. The entire challenge hall erupted with excitement, everyone naturally assuming she was there to take on another grand challenge and rack up more credits. "I want to challenge you!" Before anyone could react, Alec stepped forward, standing in front of Mira, his eyes filled with intense excitement. Over the past few days, he had fought his way up from an initial score of 5 points to over 100, his confidence swelling immensely. "You?" Mira glanced at his left leg and right hand before suddenly smiling. "You're not worthy." "Worthy or not, you'll find out in the fight!" Alec tossed his points into the challenge pool and charged at her. Mira's smile hadn’t faded as she stepped back, easily dodging Alec's attack without even moving her hands. Seeing her retreat, Alec’s confidence soared. So, Mira wasn't as formidable as he thought... But then, his vision blurred, and pain exploded in his jaw—he nearly bit his tongue. Mira had raised her knee and struck him under the chin. "You!" A cold sweat ran down Alec’s back, his Alpha instincts screaming danger. But before he could retreat, Mira had already stepped forward and kicked his right leg, breaking it. Fury surged through Alec as he gritted his teeth and pushed himself up on his remaining leg, his hands clawing desperately at Mira, trying to bring her down. But just before she kicked him again, he heard her laugh, "You're still not qualified." And then, his left hand was stomped and broken. Mira glanced at the crowd. "I’m here to find someone. Don’t bother me." With that, she headed up to the second floor. Alec lay on the ground, slamming his remaining hand into the floor in frustration. From start to finish, Mira hadn’t moved her upper body; she had taken him down with just one leg. "Well, you’re the first," Peter remarked as he walked over to help Alec up. "Robert broke your left leg and right hand, and Mira broke your right leg and left hand." Alec: "..." "By the way, since you challenged without permission and Mira didn’t take your points," Peter patted Alec on the shoulder, "according to the rules of the challenge hall, all the points you earned here are now reset to zero." Alec: "..." "Classmate, it might be better if you understand the school’s rules before you act." **Second Floor, Boxing Room** As soon as Mira pushed open the door, a boxing glove was thrown at her. She raised her hand to catch it and stepped inside. "I need to talk to you." Tom looked up, tossed the other glove to the ground, and grabbed a towel to wipe the sweat off his face. "I thought someone else had come in. My comms unit just got smashed. What do you want?" "I need to visit the military equipment database," Mira said, tossing the glove back to him. "You're going, so go. Why do you need me to come along?" Tom laughed as he caught the glove, but when he noticed the look on her face, his expression turned serious. After a moment, he asked, "What do you mean?" Mira sat down. "The 28th is a good day." "...You’re planning to sneak in?" Tom stared at her. "Why not?" Mira tilted her head and looked at him. The boxing room fell silent, the only sound being their breathing. After a while, Tom suddenly asked, "Have you figured out what to give Robert as a gift?" Mira smiled. "I haven’t decided yet." Mira didn’t stay long in the boxing room before Tom sent her out. She didn’t mind and headed back to her dorm. The dorm room was empty, a single room assigned to her by the school. Not just her—every student who ranked in the top ten at the First Military Academy received a single room. Mira leaned against the wall and pulled out a cigarette from her pocket. She lit it and took a few drags. The rising smoke blurred her features. After a while, she took off her military uniform, revealing a large red stain on her white shirt. She unbuttoned her shirt, and the bandages around her abdomen were already soaked through. Tsk, troublesome. With the cigarette still in her mouth, Mira reached out to open a drawer and pulled out some fresh bandages. She then removed the soaked ones from her abdomen, revealing several deep, bone-deep wounds. She applied new medicine and replaced the bandages. Once she had changed into a clean uniform, Mira’s appearance returned to normal—except for the sweat on her forehead, she looked just as she always did. After spending some time in her dorm, Mira seemed to recall something. She finally stood up and made her way out of the school. The military academy only opened its gates on weekends; without a leave slip, no one could leave the premises. Mira, unwilling to bother with getting permission from a teacher, headed straight for the perimeter wall, planning to find a spot to climb over. Just as she reached the corner of the wall, about to make her escape, a cold voice sounded from behind her. "Climbing the wall to skip class—5 points deducted." Mira turned around and, unsurprisingly, saw Robert standing there, his amber eyes fixed on her. Robert walked toward her, closing the distance until they were only a few steps apart. He then added, "Smoking on campus—2 points deducted." "Did you see me smoking on campus?" Mira asked. "I smelled it," Robert replied. Suddenly, Mira stepped closer, leaning toward Robert. Just as their faces were about to touch, she tilted her head and whispered in his ear, "How do you know it’s not my pheromones?" Before Robert could react, Mira stepped back, turned around, and swiftly scaled the wall, leaving him with a parting remark: "Deduct the points if you want—I’ve got plenty." Robert stood there, staring at the ground, and muttered to himself, "I know it’s not."
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