Chapter 12: Chapter 11: Trouble/Sensation
[After taking a cold and refreshing shower]
I came out of the bathroom and was heading toward my room when I found my sister there.
"What are you doing taking a shower in the evening? " she asked, her face lit up with a mischievous grin. "Didn't you take one just 3 hours ago? Are you going on a date?"
I sighed, rubbing my temples. "Sigh. What do you need?"
"Nothing much," she said, shrugging with a playful glint in her eyes, "just a treat and some help with a science project."
"What are you talking about? A treat is fine, but a project? Isn't the final exam around the corner? Who does a science project at this time? Tell me what happened." I raised an eyebrow.
She looked a bit hesitant before explaining, "The thing is, there's a science fair competition in our neighborhood, and they're offering some great prizes for the winners."
"And what prizes are you talking about?" I asked, genuinely curious despite my exhaustion.
"Like, four tickets to Disneyland," she said, her face glowing with anticipation.
"And who is going to take you there?" I asked, crossing my arms and raising an eyebrow.
"You, of course," she said with a smile that was full of hope.
"When is the final date?" I asked, feeling a sense of dread.
Her face brightened as she saw the wheels turning in my head. "That means you're helping me!" she exclaimed, her eyes sparkling.
"Yay!" she shouted, throwing her arms around me in a tight hug. Her excitement was palpable, and I couldn't help but smile at her joy.
I felt a genuine smile spread across my face. Seeing her so excited made the hassle worth it. "Alright, let's get started then. What's the project about?"
She pulled back, beaming with excitement. "I haven't thought about it much yet, but I was thinking about renewable energy! We have to create a model that shows how solar panels can be used to power everyday items. I've already got some ideas, but I need your help to put it all together."
I nodded, feeling a mix of relief and anticipation. "Sounds like a fun challenge. Let's make this project amazing and win those Disneyland tickets!"
She squealed with delight and grabbed my hand, pulling me toward the workspace she'd set up. Despite the late hour, the looming exam and the stress form the Tower of Trials, it was moments like these that made everything worthwhile.
As we reached the workspace, I could see the excitement in her eyes. She had laid out a variety of materials: cardboard, plastic tubing, small solar panels, and an assortment of wires and lights. It was clear she'd been preparing for this for a while.
"Okay," I said, rolling up my sleeves. "Let's start by planning out what we need to do. Do you have a design in mind?"
[Time Skip: Next Day]
It was now the next day, and my sister and I had been brainstorming half the night about the solar project. It was a school day.
I got up pretty late this morning due to the stress of the tower and the late-night science project, but I somehow still made it to my classes on time.
When I entered the class, there was an unusual amount of chatter going around. The class always became noisy when there was no teacher present, but today something felt different—it was like everyone was extra loud. I looked at my two best friends, who were also engrossed in their chatting.
Thinking about what was actually happening, I went over to them.
"Morning, Joe, Kyle," I said, my voice laced with confusion. "What the hell is happening here today? The class looks unusually loud. Why?"
"Don't you know, dude?" Joe said with a smirk. "And here I thought you were serious about climbing the tower."
"Yeah, you should keep yourself updated if you're thinking about climbing the tower," Kyle added, his tone matter-of-fact.
"Now tell me what happened to make this level of noise," I said, feeling a bit irritate.
"Someone yesterday made history," Kyle said, his face showing excitement.
"Yeah, someone got a new rank on the Tower's first floor. Before, people didn't even know it was possible to get a better ranking than S," Joe said, his eyes wide with amazement.
I started sweating, feeling a cold rush of anxiety. Are they talking about the S+ rating I got yesterday?
"Why are you sweating, dude? Are you afraid now to climb the tower?"
"No, nothing like that," I said, trying to stay calm. "Just had a hard day at home. Nothing else."
""So listen, yesterday evening the post came into circulation," Kyle said, pulling out his phone and showing me a post. [A New Star Has Entered the Tower, Breaking All Records with S+ Rating]
"And after that, it exploded. Countless articles came into circulation confirming this claim. There was a new name on the leaderboard of the Tower of Trials' first-floor challenge: 'Shadow,' and still, no one knows who this Shadow guy is," Kyle continued, his eyes wide with awe.
"Even people are paying to find out his identity," Joe added
"And people are paying thousands of dollars for the strategy to achieve an S+ rating," Kyle said, shaking his head in amazement.
Hearing this, I was shocked. I didn't know I had caused such a stir just by attempting one floor of the tower.
"And no one knows who he is or which country he's from" kyle said
From the back of the room, someone commented with a skeptical tone, "It could be just a fluke. He must have gotten lucky."
"Lucky or not, he still got an S+ rank, and people are ready to pay money to buy the guide for it," Joe said, his eyes gleaming with money.
"Let's leave it there. There's no point in talking further. By the way, Alex, did you attempt the tower?" Kyle asked, shifting the topic.
"No, I didn't. I'm still not prepared. What about you, Kyle? You had your 18th birthday," I said, trying to shift the focus away from the shock of my unintended fame.
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ImagineFiction Creation is hard, cheer me up!
I might miss a day or two for the upload. The 12th chapter is complete; I just need to work on its editing. I have a busy day tomorrow with some college project to finish.
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