[Sumire POV]

 

“It’s okay, Fern, I’ll treat you today~!” Erika turned to Akira, “How about you and Sumire? Have you guys saved up some points?”

I didn’t really want to go that badly, but regardless, I had to talk with Giselle.

Sigh.

“I actually have some on in a little while. So I’ll pass.”

I made my way to Giselle’s room.

 

*

 

Travelling back over to the girls’ dormitory area, I found myself walking through the uncomfortably rosy smell of the air purifiers which seemed to be all over the hallways. They didn’t have them in the boys’ dormitory which automatically made them more pleasant. Still, I was probably more familiar with them than I should’ve been, considering I’ve been frequenting Akira’s room so much.

Making my way through the silent hallways, with only the echoey sound of my own footsteps, I arrived at room #42.

Giselle opened the door.

“Took you long enough, Sumire.”

Giselle Nguyen—the only other girl from the 3^rd generation who could stand beside me. She was always cold and distant, befitting her long, snow-white hair.

“I was a little preoccupied.”

“With that boyfriend of yours again?”

Haa~, boyfriend, what a distant concept.

“I just like to hang around smart people, that’s all.”

“Akira Kumagawa, was it? I hardly heard about him from the higher-ups of the project.”

“I guess he wasn’t that popular.”

She was staring down at me with her ice-cold eyes.

“So why do you stick around him like a dog on a leach.”

“I just see his potential.”

As we talked, she subtly gestured for me to enter her room. All the lights in her room were on, highlighting the dorm in a bright white tone. I saw that she had bought one of the couches from the commercial centre, which would’ve been quite expensive.

She sat on her bed, so I took a seat on the special couch.

“I didn’t think you were the type of person to splurge on furniture, Giselle.”

“I use it only for interpersonal reasons. As you can see, the guest always sits on it.”

“Was that really worth it?”

“It’s an investment. I use it to help me get more underlings.”

A weird-looking couch being justified as a device for social interactions—maybe it was a bit of a stretch to call it an investment. Regardless, I can see that she was taking my advice to heart from the previous day.

She put down her phone.

“Sumire, I’m going to challenge caste one now.”

“Ah, you’ve already made it into caste two?”

“Yeah, the special exam certainly helped clear some people.”

“That’s good.”

“Still, it’s going to be hard to maintain my spot in caste one without more underlings. I just can’t seem to get the same number of points as those up there are.”

“How many followers do you have?”

“You mean underlings? I’ve got seven right now.”

Underlings. Followers. Same thing. They were all just pretentious ways of saying ‘people that have no real will of their own’. They were just trading their points for protection and guidance—two things that you could easily work out on your own.

“Is there a reason you called for me right now, Giselle?”

“Yes, I want your help.”

“With what, exactly?”

“I want training. Hand-to-hand combat, no one’s better than you at that.”

Ah, I figured she was going to ask for that.

“Once I’m in caste one, I’ll help you get in as well, Sumire. They have privileges that other students don’t have,” she continued.

I didn’t really need help to get in.

But still, it would be convenient to have a scout in caste one. She’d definitely serve as a very useful proxy.

“You’ll report everything back to me, alright?”

“Ah, but don’t try to use me as a tool, Sumire. I know you love to do that. We’re on even ground. Don’t forget, we’re both Outcomes—of the Ideal Human Project.”

Well, maybe that was a bit presumptuous of me. I couldn’t look down on her too much—that’d be counterproductive.

“Aha~, sure, I’ll help you, for now, Giselle.”

“I’m glad we could come to an agreement.”

It was hardly an agreement.

 

DUEL

Duel request from Giselle Nguyen

Stakes: None

[Accept] [Deny]

 

I’ll help you, for now, Giselle.

 

*

 

「You may begin.」

“You wanted me to help you with your hand-to-hand combat, right?”

“Yes, that’s what I’d like.”

I raised my arms.

“Then we’ll do this without abilities.”

“Works for me.”

…

Giselle was definitely no newcomer when it came to fighting. No Outcome was an amateur at combat. Martial arts and body toning were forced upon us from as early as we could walk.

Still, there would obviously be clear differences between people.

Giselle grabbed my arm.

I planted my foot on the ground and twisted my body around.

Judo. Krav Maga. Jiu Jitsu. Boxing. Karate—I knew them all.

But that didn’t matter.

Regardless of what styles you knew and what techniques you mastered. When we fought at our levels, strength was the most important element.

Unless you were one of the smartest of the 1^st generation, most fights came down to strength and utilising what you’ve learnt. Even for us, it was impossible to perfectly counter the others’ techniques in the heat of the moment—although maybe it was theoretically possible for some people.

“Shit.”

Giselle cried out as her back was pinned against the ground.

Hooking her leg around my back, she tried to break out of my lock. But despite, leveraging her entire body weight, she couldn’t pull me off.

“You’re way too strong, Sumire. This isn’t fair.”

“Life isn’t fair, Giselle.”

Her body went limp as she sighed.

“Alright, I give. Still, I was doing alright until you got me down to the ground.”

“Try to stay on your feet then.”

“I’ll keep that in mind. I might pick my abilities with that thought.”

“Who are you going to challenge anyway?”

“Well, from the information I’ve gotten, the 77^th-ranked Kamura Tsukamichi seems to be the easiest to beat.”