The Anomaly's Path

The room held its breath as my left hand shot toward her collar.

Morgana’s eyes did not widen in fear. She was a Transcendent. A sudden move from a student was not enough to make her lose her calm. Instead, her head leaned back just a bit, her free hand coming up fast to push my wrist away before my fingers could touch her jacket.

She thought I was going for a touch. She thought I was trying to grab her badge or her buttons. She didn’t expect me to entirely stop caring about my hand.

Got you, I thought.

With my right fist still held in her grip, I did not try to pull back. I did the opposite. I stepped right into her space, twisting my body and throwing all my weight into her chest. At the same time, I used my Space affinity — not to hit her, but to mess with the space under my own feet.

The ground under us did not crack. The space holding my feet just squeezed together, pulling me down and forward at a strange, ugly angle. It was not a fighting move. It was a clumsy trip.

Because she was holding my right fist so tight, my sudden drop pulled her forward with me. For just a split second, her perfect balance — the steady footing that every Transcendent relies on, was broken by her own grip.

”What—” Morgana muttered, her brow furrowing as she felt her weight shift forward.

I did not waste the moment. My left hand, which she was about to push away, stopped trying to hit her. As I fell into her space, my arm wrapped around her body, my fingers grabbing the thick grey fabric of her jacket to hold on.

It looked messy. To the class watching, it did not look like a fancy noble move. It looked like a wild, desperate tackle.

”Fuck it,” I hissed under my breath.

With my body pressed against hers, I used every bit of strength left in my sore ribs to twist us both. My left leg hooked behind her ankle, and I used the pull of the squeezed space to drag us both toward the stone floor.

Two seconds.

Morgana’s eyes flashed with sudden understanding. She realized I was not trying to land a clean, proper hit. I was playing a numbers game. I just needed one part of my skin to touch any part of her before the clock hit zero.

A full body crash counted.

Her body went stiff as she tried to push me away with her power, but we were already too close. The space around my body was bending the air between us, slowing down her burst of power by just a tiny bit.

One second.

We hit the ground together.

Bam!

A cloud of dust burst up as our bodies slammed into the stone. My back hit the ground hard, knocking the air out of my lungs. My vision blurred as my ribs screamed in pain. But I didn’t let go. My left hand was still firmly gripping her jacket, and my shoulder was pressed tight against hers.

A sharp, high sound rang through the quiet room, coming from our wristbands.

Beep!

The timer hit zero.

The dust slowly settled. The whole room was so quiet you could hear the students breathing. No one moved. No one breathed.

For a long five seconds, we just lay there on the stone.

”...Well,” Morgana’s voice broke the silence. It was low, right next to my ear, and completely calm. ”That was really ugly.”

Slowly, she let go of my fist and stood up, brushing the dirt off her pants with a casual wave. She looked down at me, lying flat on my back, gasping for air. A slow, wide smile spread across her face.

”But a touch is a touch,” she said, her voice echoing through the cavern.

Ding!

[ASTRA NET SYSTEM — UPDATE]

Merit Points (MT): 100,000

Credit Points: 5,000 (+5,000 Evaluation Reward)

Class Points: 500

_

A loud gasp went through the students behind us.

Some were cheering like we’d already won the semester, some were staring at their watches like the numbers might vanish if they blinked, and a few of the quieter ones were looking at me like I’d just grown a second head — or finally figured out why the platinum badge wasn’t just for show.

Great. Now they expect me to do this every day, I thought, suppressing a groan. I really should have stayed in bed.

Then the silence broke.

”He... he actually did it?”

”Holy shit, we aren’t in the negative points!”

”The Primus actually dragged a Transcendent onto the floor!”

”Hahaha! Oh my god, Leo!” Roan’s loud laugh cut through the noise as he walked toward me, a big grin on his face. He reached down and grabbed my hand, pulling me to my feet.

”That was the ugliest, most un-noble thing I have ever seen! You literally tackled the teacher! Fuck you, man, that should have been me! I would have looked way cooler!”

”Shut up, bastard,” I wheezed, rolling onto my side and slowly pushing myself up with his help. Every muscle in my body felt like it was on fire. My bloodline was already working, soaking up the pain, but it still hurt like hell.

God damn it, I thought, spitting a bit of blood onto the floor. I won the points, but at what cost? If every class is going to be this hard, I will be dead before mid-terms.

Alice was standing a few feet away, her arms crossed over her chest. Her jaw was clamped shut so hard it looked like it might break. She stared at the ”+500 Class Points” on her own watch, then looked at me with angry, mixed feelings in her eyes.

”That was the stupidest thing I’ve ever seen,” she said, her voice flat but not as sharp as before. ”You looked like a desperate stray dog down there. Next month, when the challenge system opens, don’t expect to win with tricks like that.”

I could hear the real complaint underneath: I wanted to be the one to do it. I wanted to prove myself.

Ugh, these competitive bastards. Whatever, let her be mad.

I didn’t bother looking at her as I walked past to pick up my sword. I wiped the dust off the sheath, a small, tired smile tugging at my lips.

”A win is a win, Alice,” I said, my voice quiet but clear enough for her to hear. ”The points are in the account. If you want to complain about how we got them, do it while you are using the good training rooms I just bought for all of us.”

Her face turned bright red, her fists clenching so hard her knuckles turned white, but she couldn’t say a damn thing back.

Hehe. Shutting her up was more satisfying than it should have been. I really was a petty bastard.

Worth it.

”Don’t get used to celebrating, idiots,” Morgana snapped, her tone turning icy again as she faced the crowd.

”That was just a warmup to see if you were worth my time. Now that I know you’re not completely pathetic, the real hell begins. Pick up your sword or whatever weapon you use and line up. Your first practical drill starts right now.”