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Chapter 115 - Chapter 112: The gaze

All eyes turned to the Heart Class, who were cheering and celebrating like mad.

Dane's gaze lingered thoughtfully on Yuna. Even the aloof Crown Prince had his eyes on her, though for what reason, no one could quite say.

Come to think of it… Dane realized he'd never actually seen Yuna fight. The only impression he had of her was the persistent image of someone weak and fragile. But now… he wasn't so sure. Was she feigning weakness all along? Hiding her true strength? Never assume without all the information.

Elsewhere, Alaster and Enyo narrowed their eyes at the Heart Class, suspicious and probing—trying to single someone out from the bunch. But despite their scrutiny, they came up empty-handed.

Then, striding out of the domain and heading straight toward her, Austin approached Yuna with casual confidence. He reached out and gave her hair a gentle ruffle.

"Congratulations on first place."

Yuna shook her head slightly, muttering, "Don't bring it up. It was awful."

Lowering her voice, she leaned closer and whispered, "We were transported straight to the top floor by some hidden mechanism or whatever. The place was crawling with Bogs, and then some sentient thing decided to lock onto us when we tried to sneak around. It was a mess."

Austin's hand slipped into hers without warning, his voice low and remorseful. "I'm sorry I wasn't there to protect you."

Yuna stiffened slightly at the contact, but didn't pull away. Austin had a habit of holding her hand like this. Ignoring the familiar warmth in her palm, she simply rolled her eyes and gave his head a light rap with her free hand.

"Don't be so dramatic. It's not like we're magically linked and can teleport to each other."

"That's true," he replied with a faint smile.

But in his mind, he added silently: Not yet.

Once he get his natal sword, he'd bind a spiritual contract with her—using the sword as the anchor point. Then, they really would be linked.

"Oh, right!" the Principal's voice suddenly rang out, cutting through the murmuring crowd and the sharp, scrutinizing gazes aimed at the Heart Class. "There was supposed to be that inter-class exam, wasn't there? Ah, but I've already had my fun—so let's cancel it!" she declared with a playful wink.

Yuna's mouth twitched, and so did a good number of students around her.

"With that out of the way… the overall first place goes to—drumroll please—HEART CLASSSSS!!!" the Principal cheered dramatically. "As for second and third place… who cares? People only remember the first! I mean, I sure don't remember who came in second or third! Hahahaha!"

A collective sigh rose from the crowd as Professor Veyne stepped forward, gently pulling the childish-looking Principal aside with a tired gait.

"Second place goes to Club Class, and third to Diamond Class," he announced, far more composed. "Please note that rankings were based on overall team performance rather than individual achievements. For the individual rankings: First place goes to Alaric Kaelar, second to Dane Lethiferous, and third to Enyo Alaster. The full top ten rankings are available on the board."

He gave a small nod of approval. "Well done, Cards. Keep striving for improvement."

A wave of excitement surged through the students as they hurried over to the ranking board. Curious glances began to shift increasingly toward the Heart Class as names were revealed.

Celeste, Theo, and Cerise had secured the 4th, 5th, and 6th places respectively. Austin landed in 8th place, while Scilla just barely made the cut at 9th. The 10th rank belonged to someone Yuna didn't recognize.

Still, the Heart Class had far exceeded expectations—securing multiple top spots and the overall first-place victory.

Especially in what was meant to be a competition more than just an exam.

Now that the domain challenge had ended, the students were itching to see footage from the Heart Class's fight in the first-rank, low-tier domain, but the footage was not to be showcased. And the inter-class exam, which could have showcased their combat in real-time had been casually scrapped.

Damn it.

"Oh! One more thing!" the Principal called out mischievously, still being nudged away by a weary Professor Veyne. "Let's give a big round of applause to Yuna of the Heart Class! She single-handedly raised her classmates' strength—just like a true leader!"

A heavy silence descended.

All eyes turned, searching for Yuna—only to catch a glimpse of her sprinting away without hesitation, vanishing before the Principal could even finish her congratulations.

Her hunch had been spot on.

Even from far away, she could still hear the Principal's loud voice thanks to her annoyingly sharp hearing.

....

With the exam finally over, Yuna lay contentedly in her bed, drifting into sleep with the hope of dreaming something beautiful—completely unaware of the dangerous attention she had narrowly escaped.

Far away, across the stretch of time and space, a screen flickered—displaying the peaceful image of Yuna fast asleep.

Yeon Ra sat before it, popping popcorn into her mouth with a satisfied smile, enjoying even the simple sight of Yuna sleeping. After all, it was her lone channel.

However, the dimension stone embedded in Yuna's chest began to glow faintly. It was reacting to the accumulated power it had absorbed.

From the abyss, something ancient stirred.

A divine presence—an immense gaze—threatened to fall upon the stone, pressure leaking forth from the barely opened 'eyes' of a deity. The oppressive weight of that attention seeped through reality itself.

"Tsk."

Yuna, blissfully asleep, didn't stir—even as a low ringing began in her ears.

[Player Yeon Ra has activated 'Veil from the Prying Eyes of the Deity' on her Lone Channel: Yuna]

The moment the skill activated, the divine gaze—searching, curious, on the verge of fully landing—snapped shut and vanished. As though it had never been real. As though it had only been a phantom.

But Yeon Ra knew better.

The screen displaying Yuna's peaceful sleep began to flicker, static building as the signal weakened—until, with a sharp crackle, it went dark.

Yeon Ra's cheerful expression vanished. Her features turned cold and emotionless.

"…Those bitches and their damn @#$DYR%$^^&&TT."

A barrage of curses spilled from her lips like venom.

Her once expressive, lively face became eerily robotic, her voice flat and monotone.

Then, just as suddenly, her face twisted—exaggerated, almost grotesquely animated. Far too expressive. Borderline deranged.

In a singsong tone laced with all emotions and none, she said, "If only we didn't waste the probability shielding her! Ooooh~ we could have seen the EXCITING show of her confronting a deity~!"

Her face twitched again, returning to mechanical blankness. "Not strong enough."

And once more—snap!—a twisted change, another voice overlapping the first: "There will NEVER be strong enough! We must FIGHT! FIGHT for it!"

Another shift.

"It's our lone channel. It doesn't hurt to indulge her a little… Since she chose us."

"Hehe~ True, true~ Yuna Yuna chose us… her loyal sponsor~ Who else would pamper her if not me? Hehehehe~ Though… sob sob… we used what little probability we had left... now there's nothing left to watch... I want to die… Ahahahahahahaha!!"

A cold voice overrode it. "We can't die."

Another breakdown. "SOB SOB SOB… Yuna Yuna… please collect more probability… wu wu wu… so lonely… so so lonely…"

...

In distant lands and across hidden corners of the world, certain people paused—

Their heads tilted skyward, eyes narrowing as a subtle pressure passed overhead.

A shift.

A ripple in the air.

An invisible, suffocating weight.

"The gaze of the divine…" someone whispered, voice trembling with reverence.

But not all looked up with awe.

Some wore grim expressions—scholars, sages, cultivators who had touched upon the fundamental truths of existence.

They had glimpsed the underpinnings of the world, deciphered fragments of higher law.

And they knew—

Divinity did not equate to benevolence.

Not every god was worth worshipping.

At the Evigheden Academy, the staff too felt it.

From the terrace, Principal Lilith Noir looked toward the sky, her red eyes glowing faintly.

Her lips curled in distaste.

"Nosy things," she spat, venom dripping from every word.

Around her, the other teachers stood in silence.

None echoed her daring curse, but their gazes were equally grim, equally cold.

They knew what it meant when a god turned its eye toward their world.

And they were not pleased.

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