Veil of Rivalry

Chapter 5

Today might be the worst day I've had at school. It all started earlier in the morning when I encountered someone—the Secretary of Drakonscreach Student Council.

He seemed ready to give me a warning but changed his mind upon hearing my name. Instead, he simply advised me to get to class and stop lurking around others' territories.

The rest of the day wasn't any better. Each class required me to introduce myself because the professors didn't know me. My patience grew thin as paper with each repeated introduction.

Smiling through my irritation, I concealed my short temper while answering the same questions about my name and hobbies.

By 1:30 PM, the scorching sun made it feel like I'd burn if I stayed in the middle of the ground too long. My next class was Practical Applications, scheduled from 1:30 to 3:00 PM at the Outdoor Activity Area.

I was wearing a breathable, sleeveless athletic tank top in a lighter shade of blue with reflective stripes for visibility. For the bottom, a pair of black compression leggings designed for high-intensity workouts.

Completing the outfit were my athletic shoes and a fitness tracker for monitoring performance. The professor announced that our first activity would be running, but with a twist—we had to run a distance based on a draw from a secured opaque box.

Watching the first few students draw, I noted that they were picking rolled papers. Hesitant, I reached in and drew a paper myself. "300 meters" was what I saw at first, which seemed manageable. But upon fully unrolling it, I read the complete challenge: "300 meters in 45 seconds." I was skeptical about its possibility.

Observing my peers, I saw mixed reactions—some were pleased, others disappointed, and a few indifferent. I stretched up a bit, preparing myself. I tied my handkerchief on my arm since I had no pocket to put it in. Though I am not a good runner, I figured it was worth a shot.

When I finished, my time was 00:43:84—not my best, but acceptable, I guessed. The professor's feedback was straightforward: "Needs a lot of improvement." I took it as a goal to strive towards.

We had several other exercises throughout the session, and I completed most of them. Towards the end, the professor approached me. "I don't know if you're doing this on purpose or if you really are just barely passing each test. I'll keep an eye on you, Ms. Roxanne." I couldn't figure out if it was a threat or something deeper.

Actually, I don't know either. I was just following the task and didn't seem to care about being the best. I was barely trying. I believe that trying hard will only get me to nothing but exhaustion. It's not like my life depends on this activity.

After the professor left, I went out to buy some water. On my way to the cafeteria, I happened to pass by the bulletin board. Multiple students from our family were gathered there. I wondered what was going on, so I walked closer.

"Regetta, really? That seems so hard coming from its name." "It's extremely hard, especially when you can't row." So, they were talking about the team task that is to be done on the weekends. Even I was wondering about that, but I concluded that Regetta had to do something with boats then.

I listened to what there was to listen to, then continued walking to the cafeteria to get my drink. My next class would be Mental Agility Training from 3:30 to 5:00 PM. I still had time, so I went to the library. In this institute, schools are different. Each family has a facility where they can learn and improve. I noticed this while observing people around me.

It seems like different families encounter one another when there are tasks to do and that is needed to be done with other families. It feels like one place but with five dimensions. I also noticed the difference in infrastructures of each family.