Kapitel 27: The First Shift (5), Departure
Maximilian's head lifelessly rolled to the side, his body turning into particles of lights afterwards. He was disqualified from the test.
Natasha caught the [Large Full Recovery Potion] before it fell to the ground.
"I'll give this to Bruce, maybe he'll know what to do with it..."
She muttered underneath her breath, hiding it in her pockets temporarily. She glanced at the man from the top of the tree, feeling slightly guilty.
Bruce obviously wanted to rest, but unfortunately, he was forced to intervene once more for the sake of the team...
'Wait! Why am I feeling guilty towards him? That's wrong!'
Natasha put her hands in her cheek and shook her head. She put the thought in the back of her mind and picked up the Flurry Sword.
"Uh..."
Seeing this, Mikhail raised his fingers awkwardly.
Her gentle gaze stopped at him, making him gulp audibly. He gave a reluctant smile while Natasha was extremely confused.
'Is he waiting for something? He's like a puppy! Oh wait.'
"... That was excellent teamwork," Natasha smiled and reached out her hand. "Even if it was short, we're happy to cooperate with you, Mikhail."
Mikhail was stunned. "You know me?"
"Well, I memorized everyone's name and appearance in the artifact selection," Natasha nodded. "You're from Team 4, right?"
Mikhail was flattered, nodding repeatedly. "Yes, indeed."
Natasha saw that his gaze turned to the Flurry Sword, suddenly realizing something. It was obvious that Mikhail wanted the artifact.
And she didn't want to reject him outright either. He contributed a lot in the fight, taking down Team 9's three other members.
Moreover, since their team got a Blue Card, in a sense — both of the teams were now part of the Hiders group.
But still, this request wasn't for her to decide solely... She glanced at her teammates, asking for their opinions.
Penguin shrugged, smiling at them. "Sure, go ahead. I don't use a sword anyway... besides me and Noah didn't contribute anything to the battle."
"That's right," Noah nodded in agreement. "I also have the Broken Grimoire already, and I'm so horrible at using it. Even if I have the Flurry Sword, I'm certain I'm just going to waste it..."
Half of his words didn't even enter Natasha's ears. She looked up and called out to Bruce, raising her voice.
"Should we give it to them, Bruce?"
Bruce half-opened his eyes, lazily glancing at them from above. He seemed aloof and uncaring about the whole thing.
"Do whatever you want. I'm not going to use the sword either, and besides, whether they have one extra fancy sword or not... they won't be a threat to our team anyway."
Hearing that, Mikhail felt a pang on his pride. But he couldn't deny that either...
Whether it was Bruce's unknown power, Natasha's invincible prowess, and their two mysterious teammates... they stood no chance.
He was certain that Natasha alone could eliminate his entire team. Even if he was disgruntled about Bruce's bluntness, he couldn't deny the man was right.
After asking everyone's opinions, Natasha nodded and didn't think twice. She didn't use a sword either, so the artifact was useless to them.
"Here you go. But..."
Mikhail caught the Flurry Sword from the air. He looked at Natasha, who suddenly paused and showed him a gentle smile, in confusion.
"... Be careful who you point with that sword. "
A warning.
Despite being back to his human form, Mikhail felt a threat and a warning at the same time laced on her words.
He felt like—death—herself was daring him... He hurriedly shook his head and assured her with a worried expression.
"Of course, of course! Don't worry!"
Mikhail patted his chest. Of course he wasn't going to betray Natasha and her team! He wasn't stupid! He was more worried about them betraying him!
Natasha sighed in relief and turned around, walking back to her team. Mikhail did the same and grouped with his teammates.
***
After a short break, Mikhail and his teammates went to Natasha's spot and gave a deep bow to them.
"Thank you for helping us!"
Natasha waved her hand in dismissal. "It wasn't all me... Bruce also helped the most, I only did the killing blow."
Speaking of Bruce, the man was also the one to remind Mikhail that they could still save themselves.
The man also took his time to wake up to save him. Natasha's words weren't that exaggerated at all, the man did indeed help them a lot.
Mikhail gazed at Bruce, who was standing with his eyes closed, leaning against the three trunk. As if noticing his stare, the man opened his eyes.
"Thank you, brother."
"A deal is a deal," Bruce lazily said with a nod. "Just don't get too greedy again. We won't be coming to save the day or rescue you from stupidity."
Mikhail took his words at heart. This whole matter was caused by his greed—he learned his lesson, at the very least, he would be cautious next time.
"I guess we should part ways here... What are your plans?" He asked curiously.
Natasha answered him. "Well, we'll continue on ahead. We're not too worried about finding a safe spot yet."
With the [Gem of Blessing], and her teammates, it would be a waste to just find a safe spot and hide until the end of the test.
At the very least, with their abilities, they should aim for a top ranking in the exam. She didn't want to just pass, she also wanted to pass spectacularly.
Even if she didn't show it outwardly, her identity as the daughter of the Vice Dean put a lot of pressure in her...
She was expected to excel in her time in the academy.
Seeing her teammates confused looks, Natasha explained it to them with some embarrassment.
"I'm sorry, I haven't discussed it with all of you yet. I think now is the perfect time to talk about it... can you please go with my selfish request? I want to aim for a top ranking in this exam!"
She knew she was being selfish with this, but she still wanted to try... if they rejected, she can try on her own.
Feeling slightly nervous, she awaited for her teammates response.
"Hm, although I can't understand," Noah smiled at her brilliantly. "I'll follow any of your requests, even if you ask me to jump off a bridge. Only through your guidance can useless people like me reach some place in their life."
"Minus almost everything he said," Penguin sighed and smiled, reassuring her. "I agree with him. As the son of a famous person, I understand a little. Sure, I'll follow along."
Natasha's smile brightened, causing both of them to be rooted on the spot. They were blinded by the purity—innocent beauty of the smile.
But it wasn't over yet.
There was still the final boss... she cautiously glanced at Bruce, preparing for the worse.
"Go ahead."
To her surprise, Bruce didn't mind. Natasha's smiled brightened even more, she grabbed the man's arm and shook it.
"Thank you!"
Bruce was taken aback by her reaction. Hewas just thinking that he was a bit rude to her lately, and his prideful personality wouldn't allow him to apologize to her.
Taking this as an opportunity, he'll help her just this once and properly end their twisted awkward relationship...
Oh well, as long as she was happy.
Realizing her actions, Natasha immediately took back her hands and felt greatly embarrassed. She looked at everyone with a silent gaze.
For some reason, everyone couldn't help but feel a sense of apprehension.
"...Ehem, thank you again, Mikhail. Let's part ways here..."
Coughing awkwardly, Natasha averted her eyes and bid farewell to Team 4. She was too ashamed to look at their reactions.
After both of them bid farewell to each other, they parted ways.
AUTORENGEDANKEN 
Deathilim_609
Deathilim_609 i cannot write, physically and mentally. i got a pox virus and it's very itchy (it also appeared in a sensitive spot) very unlucky way to start the month
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