As Hadal and I walked toward the cafeteria, we couldn't stop talking about the fight. It had been too intense—too unreal—not to replay every second of it.
"Did you see the way she countered him?" Hadal said, shaking his head in disbelief. "That was insane."
Before I could respond, the smell hit me.
Fresh pastries. Spices from food I couldn't even name. Grilled meat, baked bread—flavors from all over the world blending into one overwhelming wave.
Cafeteria was definitely the wrong word.
This was a food court.
"Let's grab pizza—it's actually pretty good," Hadal said, already walking ahead with confidence.
Since he clearly knew his way around, I followed.
When we reached the pizza section, something immediately stood out.
The divide.
Flow users moved freely past the lines, barely stopping as they were served almost instantly. On the other side, they sat in a cleaner, more spacious seating area—separated, elevated.
The rest of us queued like normal.
I frowned.
It wasn't that it affected me directly—but something about it felt… off.
"I can tell you're staring," Hadal said with a sigh. "Go on—guess who set it up."
"The SRF?" I said.
He nodded.
Of course.
With Captain Kinga tied to them, it made sense they held power here—but this?
This was just petty.
After getting our food, we decided to sit at a crowded table. If we were going to survive here, we needed to start making connections.
Conversation came easily at first.
Too easily.
Which is why I decided to stir things up.
"Hey," I said casually, taking a bite of pizza, "did you guys know my friend here likes Rose Mensah?"
I pointed at Hadal.
The reaction was instant.
Everyone froze.
Then slowly turned to him like he'd just confessed to a crime.
"Dude… she's a flow user."
"They're basically in a different world."
"You're setting yourself up for heartbreak."
Hadal didn't flinch.
If anything, he looked amused.
He leaned back, crossing his arms with a smug grin.
"Of course you'd all say that," he said. "You don't know the full story."
That got their attention.
"What story?"
He paused for effect.
Then—
"She touched my shoulder."
Silence.
I stared at him.
That was it?
"That's it?" I said flatly.
"In an affectionate way," he added quickly.
The table exploded.
People leaned in, grabbing his shoulders, demanding details like their lives depended on it.
I didn't know whether to laugh or question everyone's sanity.
Still… by the end of it, Hadal had gained a surprising amount of attention.
Later, he checked his phone.
"Ten friend requests," he said proudly.
"There weren't even ten people at the table," I pointed out.
"Word travels fast," he replied.
I leaned closer and lowered my voice.
"You're not actually going to explain what happened, are you?"
He scoffed.
"Absolutely not. What happens between me and my Rose stays between me and my Rose."
I shook my head.
This guy was unbelievable.
"Speaking of which…" Hadal said, pulling out his phone. "Time to add her."
He opened V-Chat.
Then froze.
"Wait… guys—look at this."
He turned the screen toward us.
"Captain Kinga just started a livestream."
My stomach tightened.
Right after losing?
That didn't make sense.
Unless—
This wasn't about recovering.
It was about pride.
Kinga appeared on screen, his expression calm—but his eyes burning.
"As you all probably know," he began, "I lost the fight."
The chat exploded.
"I gave it everything. My blessing is superior… so I have no excuse."
I frowned.
That wasn't like him.
"But here's something you didn't know."
My chest tightened.
"I allowed a student from a lesser course to craft part of my armour."
No.
There was no way—
"That same student sabotaged me."
The words hit like a punch to the gut.
"The armour didn't protect me—it made me weaker."
The table fell silent.
"That," Kinga continued coldly, "is the only reason someone like Rose Mensah could fight me evenly."
My fists clenched.
He wasn't just blaming me.
He was dragging her down too.
"So," he said, leaning closer to the camera, "I will reclaim my honour."
A pause.
"If you're watching this…"
My heartbeat quickened.
"You won't know when."
The room felt smaller.
"You won't know where."
I couldn't breathe.
"But I will find you."
The stream cut.
No one spoke for a moment.
Then one of the students turned to us.
"You guys are in engineering, right?"
We nodded.
"You should apologise. Both of you. Maybe your whole class should. If you do it now… you might calm him down."
I shook my head.
"That won't work."
This wasn't about reason anymore.
This was personal.
The bell rang.
As we left the cafeteria, my thoughts spiraled.
What was he going to do?
Who was he going to send?
Would he come himself?
"Yo," Hadal said, catching up to me. "We should head back to the dorms. Staying out in the open isn't smart."
He wasn't wrong.
"Yeah," I said. "Let's go."
We stopped by a small shop near the cafeteria and grabbed snacks—neither of us saying much.
Hours later, we were back in the dorm.
We tried to distract ourselves—watching random clips, eating junk food, anything to ignore the tension hanging over us.
But it never really went away.
Eventually, exhaustion won.
I lay on my bed.
Hadal crashed on the couch.
Silence filled the room.
Then—
Buzz.
My eyes snapped open.
A message.
Muscle Head Hightop Group:
Meet us outside. Dorm car park. Orders from Kinga.
My stomach dropped.
So this was it.
If I stayed, they'd come in.
And Hadal…
He had nothing to do with this.
I couldn't let him get dragged into it.
Quietly, I got up.
I put on my coat. My shoes.
Then, after a moment of hesitation…
I grabbed a kitchen knife.
Just in case.
I glanced back.
Hadal was still asleep.
Good.
Better this way.
I took a deep breath and opened the door.
The cold night air hit my face as I stepped outside.
"No backing out now," I whispered.
And I walked toward the car park.