The morning sun filtered through the thin curtains of Reth's room, but the warmth felt different today. It didn't feel like a burden; it felt like a spotlight.
Reth sat up, his movements fluid and sharp. The [Basic CQC] integration from the night before had settled into his bones, making his frame feel denser, more capable. He looked at his hands—the knuckles were slightly more defined, the grip strength noticeably higher.
He dressed in his standard academy uniform, but it fit differently now. His shoulders filled out the fabric, and the "loser" slouch was gone, replaced by a cold, upright posture.
"Reth! Breakfast is ready! Don't make me come up there!"
The voice of his mother, Claire, drifted up the stairs. It was warm, familiar, and completely unaware of the dark games her son was playing with the city's most powerful families.
Reth headed downstairs. The smell of toasted bread and fried eggs filled the small kitchen. Claire was at the stove, her back turned, while Marie was already at the table, her eyes glued to her phone—likely scrolling through the academy forums.
"Morning," Reth said, his voice sounding deeper, more resonant.
Claire turned around, wiping her hands on her apron. She paused, squinting at him. "You are look even better than yesterday, Reth. Did you finally get a good night's sleep?"
"Something like that, Mom," Reth replied, sitting down and pulling a plate toward him.
Marie looked up from her phone, her eyes narrowing as she watched him eat. "He looks 'different' because he's dating a girl who drives a car worth more than our lives, Mom. Didn't you see the Mercedes yesterday?"
Claire's eyes widened, her spatula frozen in mid-air. "A Mercedes? Reth, what is she talking about? Who was that girl?"
Reth took a calm bite of his toast, his expression unreadable. To him, the $400 in his System wallet was more real than the breakfast in front of him.
"Just a classmate, Mom," Reth said smoothly. "She's the Class Rep. We're working on a... project together. She offered me a ride because we stayed late at the library."
"A project," Marie muttered, sliding her phone across the table to show a grainy photo of the white Mercedes parked right outside their house. "Is the 'project' called 'How to make every guy at academy want to kill my brother'?"
Reth didn't even look at the screen. He just kept eating, his mind already drifting toward the academy gates and the confrontation he knew was waiting for him.
Claire set a plate of eggs in front of him, but she didn't return to the stove. She leaned against the counter, her eyes tracing the new, sharp line of his jaw and the way he sat—no longer hunched over his food like he was trying to hide from the world.
"Reth," she said, her voice dropping the playful morning tone. "I don't care how expensive her car is. Families like the Vances... they don't play by the same rules we do."
Marie stopped scrolling, the kitchen suddenly falling into a heavy, expectant silence. Even she could feel the shift in the air.
"Just be careful," Claire continued, her hand resting briefly on his shoulder. "Girls like that, and families with that kind of money... they usually only bring people like us into their lives when they need someone to blame for something."
Reth paused, his fork hovering over his plate. He thought about the Vance family embezzlement files hidden in his cloud storage. He thought about the $400 in his System wallet and the Basic CQC humming in his nerves.
His mother was right—they were dangerous. But she didn't realize that her son was now the most dangerous thing in the equation.
"I know exactly what kind of people they are, Mom," Reth said, his voice flat and devoid of emotion. "Don't worry. I'm the one handling the 'project.' She's the one who has to keep up."
Reth had his hand on the front door handle when a low, expensive hum vibrated through the glass. It wasn't the rattling engine of a neighbor's car; it was the purr of a high-performance machine.
Marie let out a muffled gasp, diving back toward the window. "No way... Reth! She's here! The white Mercedes is back!"
Claire stood frozen by the table, her eyes wide as she watched the sleek, snow-white vehicle pull up to their cracked curb. Through the tinted windshield, the silhouette of Elena Vance was visible, her hands gripped tight on the steering wheel, looking straight ahead.
Reth felt a jolt of surprise, but he didn't let it reach his face. He checked his System—no notification had warned him of this. Elena was acting on her own, likely too terrified of the embezzlement files to let him out of her sight for even a second.
"I told you, Mom," Reth said, his voice dropping into that cold, boss-level tone as he opened the door. "It's a very important project."
He walked down the porch steps with a slow, deliberate stride, the [Basic CQC] making his movements look effortless. He didn't rush to the car like a grateful charity case; he walked like he was expecting her.
Elena didn't get out. She just leaned over and pushed the passenger door open, her face a mask of professional indifference, though her cheeks were tinged with a faint, frantic pink.
"Get in," she muttered, her voice barely audible over the hum of the engine. "We... we have things to discuss before we reach the gates."
Reth slid into the leather seat, the scent of her expensive perfume filling his lungs. He didn't say "thank you." He just pulled the door shut with a solid thud that echoed through the quiet neighborhood.
As they pulled away, Reth caught a glimpse of Marie and his mother staring from the porch, their faces a mix of awe and pure terror.
Elena gripped the steering wheel so hard her knuckles turned white, her eyes fixed strictly on the road ahead. The silence in the Mercedes was thick, broken only by the hum of the climate control and the frantic thumping of her own heart.
"Don't get the wrong idea," Elena snapped, her voice trembling slightly as she turned onto the main road. "The academy group chat is exploding. Everyone saw the photo from last night, and Mark is out for blood."
Reth leaned back, his eyes half-closed as he watched the familiar streets of his neighborhood blur past the tinted glass. He didn't even check his phone; the $400 in his System wallet was all the confirmation he needed that his influence was growing.
"He's going to jump you at the gates, Reth," she continued, her breathing becoming shallow as she stole a quick, desperate glance at his calm profile. "If I'm with you, he won't dare start a scene. I'm just protecting my investment... and the family secrets."
Reth didn't respond for a long moment, his indifference acting like a cold splash of water on her heated face. To him, her "protection" was just another logical move for a girl trying to bury her family's embezzlement crimes.
"I didn't ask for a bodyguard, Elena," Reth said, his voice a low, bored vibration that made her skin tingle. "But since you're here, make sure you park in the front row. I want Mark to see exactly who's opening the door for me."
Elena flinched, a strange mix of irritation and a fluttering, traitorous thrill rising in her chest. She hated how he commanded her, yet she found herself hitting the accelerator, eager to reach the academy just so she could stay by his side a few minutes longer.
The white Mercedes glided to a halt exactly in front of the main fountain, the engine cutting out with a soft, expensive sigh. The courtyard, usually buzzing with morning gossip, fell into a silence so heavy it felt like the air had been sucked out of the academy.
Mark took a step forward, his fists clenched, his face a distorted mask of jealousy and rage. He was surrounded by the academy's biggest athletes, all of them ready to crush the "nobody" who had dared to touch the Ice Queen.
But then, the driver's side door opened.
Elena Vance stepped out, her chin held high, her expression a perfect shield of cold, professional indifference. She didn't look at Mark; she didn't look at the crowd. She walked straight to the passenger side and pulled the door open.
Reth stepped out slowly, his movements fluid and precise thanks to the [Basic CQC] humming in his veins. He stood tall, his uniform crisp, his eyes locking onto Mark's with a boredom that was more insulting than a slap.
"Thanks for the ride, Elena," Reth said, his voice carrying through the silent courtyard like a crack of thunder.
Elena bit her lip, a faint, uncontrollable blush creeping up her neck as she nodded. "I'll... I'll see you in class, Reth."
She didn't move. She stood there by the open door, watching him as he began his walk toward the entrance. Mark was trembling, his social kingdom crumbling in real-time as the "Loser" walked right past him without even blinking.