บท 15: The Attack

Six hours early...

After Caleb left the centre hall like everyone else, instead of visiting one of the fancy departments, he decided to explore the area outside the building. Just like Max, Caleb was surprised to find that he was the only student outside.

He examined the other buildings on the school premises and decided to take a stroll within the area. He even came across the outdoor training site that Sergeant Beckett had mentioned during their group tour.

While Caleb was in the outdoor training site, three guys approached him. At first, they were friendly, but Caleb's act of not speaking to strangers began to irritate them.

"Take all his points and let's get the hell out of here," one of the boys named Dax said to the others. It was clear that Dax was in charge.

Ronin and Sayer complied with his command. Sayer held Caleb in place while Ronin reached for Caleb's hand to transfer his points.

"Let me go, you creeps!" Caleb exclaimed as he continued to struggle against Ronin and Sayer.

Caleb attempted to fight back even though he knew he was a plain user. He summoned enough strength and landed a punch on Ronin's face, who lost hold of his hand for a brief moment.

"Damn you son of a bitch!" Ronin muttered and struck Caleb hard in retaliation. Caleb crumpled to the floor, clutching his belly.

But that didn't stop the second-year students from taking Caleb's points. Sayer restrained Caleb once more, while Ronin continued to drain his points. Realizing he wasn't strong enough to fight back, Caleb stopped resisting and allowed them to take away his ponts.

As the dust settled, the second-year students made their way towards their own part of the school premises. However, the helpless Caleb couldn't hold back his anger and yelled harsh words.

"Hey scumbags! You're all a bunch of losers and assholes!" He continued shouting until he had their full attention.

Caleb had a plan to dash back to the building as they approached, but he didn't know there were four second-year students all along. The fourth one had been invincible all this while.

The fourth student, Gary Kason, had an invisibility power. Using his invisibility, Gary quickly reached Caleb and prevented his escape before the others could catch up.

When the rest of the students arrived, Dax gave another order. "Sayer, do your thing."

"What? Are you sure?" Sayer questioned, aware of the danger of his power.

"I said do it!" Dax yelled. "We need to send a message to the others, and he's volunteered to be our example."

"Blake told us not to hurt anyone," Ronin mumbled.

Dax turned his gaze to Ronin and slapped him so hard that Ronin's lip was injured. Seeing this, Sayer decided to comply with Dax's order.

He opened his hands, palms facing the ground, and various weapons materialized out of thin air, mostly swords and knives.

"Are you sure about this?" Sayer asked one more time.

"Do it, you prick! This guy called us losers. You think we should just let it slide? What does that make us?" Dax snapped.

With his eyes closed, Sayer unleashed the weapons on Caleb. They pierced him from all angles, but Sayer was careful not to cause severe harm or target vital organs.

After ten minutes of torture, Dax decided to release Caleb.

"Run, never look back. When you see anyone with a navy blue suit, transfer your points and head the other way," said Dax, who had the same formidable build as James, Max's roommate.

Caleb managed to stand on his feet and quickly ran down to the library, which was closer to the entrance of the building.

Presently at the hospital...

"What! They did all that to you?" Max exclaimed as Caleb recounted the ordeal. "What is the school going to do about it?" He questioned Lyris.

She remained silent for a moment, staring at the tap in her hand. Then, she raised her head and said, "The school authorities will take care of it."

Max became suspicious of Lyris's behavior when he asked about the school's response on the matter.

Caleb was now strong enough to stand on his feet. Few minutes after regaining consciousness, his suit began to glow green, indicating his complete healing. However, Caleb had a troubling question for the young doctor.

"Do you know who this Blake guy is?" Caleb asked Lyris. "I think he's their boss or something," he added.

"Trust me, you don't want to know," Lyris replied before walking away.

Max and Caleb left the hospital hall, deep in conversation, as they made their way back to their room. Caleb felt compelled to express his gratitude to Max for getting him to the school hospital in time.

"Thanks, Max," Caleb said with sincerity, "I really appreciate your help."

Max smiled warmly. "Hey, no problem at all. What are friends for, right?" he replied.

Caleb chuckled. "Yeah, I guess we're friends now."

The two of them continued chatting as they made their way back to their room. As they approached their room, little did they know that they were in for another surprise. When the room door slid open, they were startled to find James standing there, staring at them.

"Dude, you scared me," Max exclaimed.

"Yeah, seriously, man." Caleb echoed Max's sentiment.

James, still appearing a bit angry, he shifted his gaze to Caleb, surprised by the comment. "So now you're talking," he remarked, a hint of amusement in his voice.

Caleb shrugged, his lips curling into a small grin. "Well, can't stay quiet forever, right?"

However, James quickly redirected the conversation, curiosity getting the best of him. "Where have you guys been?" he inquired.

Max briefly disclose Caleb's encounter with the second-year students and how they messed him up. As he recounted the story, James's expression grew darker, his anger evident.

"I swear," James seethed, "I'll get revenge on those assholes. They should've picked on someone their own size."

Intrigued by James's protective and determined demeanor, Max and Caleb wondered why he was so angry about the second-year attack on Caleb.

"Why do you care so much, James?" Caleb muttered.

James smirked and replied, "we're roomies now boys. We've to protect and stand up for each other, right?"

Intrigued by James's protective attitude, Max was curious to know more about him, so he decided to use his remaining experience points to inspect James.

[Inspection In Use]

< Name: James Carter >

< AR: B1 >

< Ability: Telekinesis > (Second Upgrade on Telekinesis ability)

< Age: 19 >

Max now understood why James was so confident about seeking revenge. He had heard stories about Telekinesis users being formidable, and James happened to hold a B1 rank. They discussed more, and their bond began to strengthen.

The next day...

Dax and the boys who attacked Caleb were roommates, while Gary, the invincible one, shared a room with Blake. He briefed Blake about the events from the previous day, how Dax treated a first-year student.

Blake was furious, but not because of the attack on Caleb, but because Dax had defied his orders. Blake felt it was necessary to remind Dax of who was truly in charge.

"Deliver this message to Dax as his punishment," Blake instructed Gary."