I BORROW HIS PAIN

6

CHAPTER 6: RANKING POSITION SYSTEM

The very first time Commodore joined Lady Monique in the pantry, students were shocked and gossiping about his presence. Commodore remained calm and quiet. He wasn’t a taciturn person, yet he felt no need to speak.

"Don’t mind them, Commodore. Let’s eat!" Lady Monique offered, opening her lunch box. "Oh! You have biscuits, too."

Commodore shared his food. "Hearst always gives me his food. He says I'm always hungry. How can I eat if the mask I wear isn’t allowed to be removed, my lady? I could buy food, but I don’t want to."

Lady Monique laughed. "That’s it, Monsieur! I’m also hungry, so let me eat first. Then we can check the bulletin results and find out the final rankings."

Commodore nodded. He watched every student at the tables, noticing that they were still gossiping about him. Despite Mr. Nero’s prior announcement about his arrival, the students couldn’t contain their curiosity.

Meanwhile, Tryton and Sheldon were already arguing in line. "Stop playing with my food, Sheldon! Whatever I put on my tray doesn’t concern you!" Tryton snapped, clearly upset.

"Don't be so loud, Tryton. Are you mad? Sorry," Sheldon chuckled, tapping Tryton’s shoulder. "It was just a joke."

Frustrated, Tryton threw his tray down and gave Sheldon an uppercut. "What a joke, Sheldon!"

The queue was disrupted as the two scuffled. "You’re always so childish, Sheldon!"

"And you always make me feel gullible with all your analysis! You belittle my intelligence!" Sheldon shot back, landing a punch on Tryton.

Just then, Ardent Shark arrived to intervene. "Don’t make a mess here. Stop fighting, both of you," he said calmly. But they continued, so he pulled Tryton aside and whispered, "Your sister is in danger."

"In the infirmary? Commodore Hadson is the suspect?" Tryton looked shocked, but he knew he had to see his sister.

In the infirmary, Lady Serene Ivans changed into a new dress provided by Nurse Tin. "This dress is new, Nurse Tin."

"A Monsieur brought it," the nurse replied.

"Did you see him?"

"No, but he wore an expensive white tuxedo," Nurse Tin said.

Serene thought of Commodore Hadson, remembering how he had saved her in the pool while wearing his stainless steel mask. She couldn’t clearly recall his face but was sure he wasn’t the monster Tryton made him out to be.

"Hey! How are you, Serene?" Tryton asked, worry etched on his face as he finally reached the infirmary.

"I’m alright. Commodore saved me."

"Seriously? I thought he pushed you. He’s... a bit odd, you know."

"We don’t really know him, Tryton. Don’t jump to conclusions; it might drive you mad," Serene replied.

Just then, Ardent and Sheldon arrived, with Sheldon nursing a severe pain in his head and chest. "My mom is going to be furious," he groaned.

Tryton rolled his eyes. "If you’d manage your stubbornness, I wouldn’t have had to give you that uppercut."

"Sorry, Tryton. But it’s hard to breathe."

"You still have asthma, huh? I forgot. I’ll call my driver to take us to the hospital," Tryton said.

"Are you sure? Or are you trying to end my life?" Sheldon chuckled. "Actually, I wanted to see the final rankings."

"Sorry, but I’m going home," Ardent interjected. "I know I’m not first."