Chapter 27: First Day High

Words : 1088 Updated : Sep 10th, 2025

Chapter 27: First Day High The dorm room was fine. But for D-29, it looked like a gloomy place where the lights flickered weakly as if hanging on to dear life. After absorbing as much data as possible from the host's terminal, D-29 learned about drama. The little system couldn't help but supply additional details to the grieving Host. Luca wasn't even sprawled on the bed. By now, he was sprawled on the floor. In reality, he had been plastered on the wall and slumped on the bed as he waited all day for news about his double. But nothing came. And Luca was now on the floor thinking about his pitiful life. Ideally, he would have checked the status of the online store after the sold-out products were shipped, but Luca couldn't muster the willpower to do so after realizing that he had no way to contact anyone from the Duchy. That was probably because the original Luca didn't need it. He wouldn't be able to contact anyone with his constitution anyway. "Host, it is already past curfew. Maybe you ought to rest for tomorrow morning." Luca wanted to cry, and he definitely wanted to scream. But he wouldn't be able to explain his problem to anyone if somebody asked. He couldn't exactly go up to tell them that, 'Hey, I actually planned on running away.' For a time, he was actually optimistic. He even bought a change of clothes and prepared an apology for getting the double into the Combat Division. But now, his apology would serve no one but himself. Luca wondered how they could abandon him like this! "Host, what if something went wrong? You said that from the snippets of memories you have, everyone seemed diligent with their work. Even the double didn't play around unless necessary." He didn't like the idea, but his few memories confirmed that. So, for a time, he was confident that they would come. But it was already midnight, and classes would start in a few hours. "Maybe we could find a way to contact the Duchy. Hopefully, they have an explanation for this?" Luca had no choice but to listen to D-29. All the poor guy could do was wrap himself in the blanket and hope for the best tomorrow. __ The school alarm blared at 5:30 AM. And Luca begrudgingly pulled himself together. It didn't take long for him to run through his morning preparations. As someone who had been imprisoned, his rituals weren't exactly noble-material. But the other students wouldn't be able to imagine that. Luca walked to the Training hall with a heavy heart. To the passersby, he just looked mysterious and dazzling. His somber and unapproachable aura made him look like an ethereal presence. The original Luca was like a porcelain doll, with several servants attending to him since he lost his ability to function. So, it was no wonder he looked like he went to the spa daily. (Because he really did) D-29 noted the reactions of the people around its Host, who just ignored everyone to wallow in his melancholy. Luca garnered different opinions without meaning to. There were many hidden admirers but there were more naysayers who wondered how someone so delicate could place in the Top 4 of the Combat Division's Assessment exam. The fruit vendor wasn't privy to this because he hid in his hole after the exam, only coming out to deliver and pick up his online orders. So, Luca had no idea that his achievements were shared all over the school. The problem was how it was sometimes explained. Since his methods were unconventional, Luca couldn't shake the people's idea that he had somehow cheated. Only those who were powerful enough could see his actual strategy, and those people were the ones who wouldn't bother to gossip. And this was on top of his existing reputation. While he was lucky that Ollie didn't mind and was still insisting on being his sworn brother, Ollie wouldn't be able to stay with him in class. They were in different divisions and could only see each other during breaks. And frankly, Luca was trying to avoid being seen with Ollie so that he wouldn't accidentally tarnish the reputation of some innocent guy. Luca sighed as he neared the Training hall. He was already so tired, and the classes hadn't even started yet. What more later? __ Luca decided that he needed to tape his mouth somehow. He never should've asked about worsening conditions. Heck, he shouldn't have thought about it at all. "Keep up!" Bellowed Instructor Falco after blowing his whistle. From the moment the Instructor hauled all of them for warm-up exercises, Luca had been dazed. This... How could this be warm-up exercises?! Luca long expected physically taxing classes, but if this was the warm-up then what about the actual class?! The first item on the list was to run twenty laps. That was scary, but it sounded familiar, so Luca could only swear in his heart. But Luca wanted to raise the white flag when he learned they would be running across a gravitational field. He wanted to quit. He was a Guide! A Guide! Even now, he was a small Fruit Vendor who sold apples for a living. What kind of nightmare was this?! D-29 felt a pang of pity in its non-existent heart but could only console the Host. Luca even looked around, trying to see if his reaction was normal. And it seemed like he wasn't the only one surprised by the gravitational field. Most of the regular students looked surprised at hearing that. But not his actual classmates. He was in Class A with about thirty other people. But only four of them had golden badges. And of the 30 people next to him, Luca was the only one who was having an existential crisis. Of course, that would be the case because Class A was the creme of the crop, and most of these students were hand-trained well and hard while they were junior military academy students. As for Luca, he didn't go to school. The one who took private lessons was his double. But he wouldn't know that—not for a while. So, the heavily disadvantaged student could only keep a tally of things that aggrieved him and began to run like the other students.

Chapter 27: First Day High

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