The third time Professor Vance ignored my question, a line of text materialized in front of my eyes. One comment, glowing crimson, stood out from the rest. It was in that moment that I understood. I was the designated "evil rival" of this world, a character who didn't even have the right to ask the male lead a question. Once I learned the truth, I promptly transferred to a different class with a different teacher. Later, when I won the grand championship in the National Mech-Crafting Competition and became the newest Gold-Tier Artisan, Kaelen Vance appeared on stage with a bouquet of flowers, his eyes filled with a soft light. "Aria," he said, "if you ever have any professional questions, feel free to discuss them with me anytime." I offered him a distant smile. "My master is more than capable of answering any questions I might have, but thank you for the offer. You should probably use that time to comfort your dear Chloe. She looks like she’s about to cry." It seems that without the evil rival to drive the plot, the main characters’ halos just don’t shine as brightly, do they? 1 "Professor, I have a question. Why does this component assembly keep coming loose after I put it together?" It was the Q&A portion of Mech-Crafting, Section 7. I was the first to raise my hand, eager to ask Professor Kaelen Vance my question. He gave me a cursory glance before his eyes slid away, landing on Chloe, the girl in the row ahead of me who was currently dozing off. The moment his gaze touched her, his expression softened. He tapped her desk, his stern voice laced with an undercurrent of indulgence. "Chloe, do you have any questions?" I blinked, raising my hand a little higher. "Professor, I have a ques—" My words were cut short by a soft groan from Chloe. She stretched languidly, followed by a wide yawn, before asking in a daze, "What question? This component is so simple. Don't you know how to do it, Professor?" A wave of laughter rippled through the classroom. Kaelen sighed, a hint of exasperation in his tone. "Go back to sleep." "If there are no other questions," he announced, "that's all for today. Go to the materials lab and pick up one set of Kit #5 and one of Kit #6. Assemble them at home. I'll be checking them tomorrow." I shot to my feet. "Professor, I have a question—" It was as if he hadn't heard me. He glanced at Chloe, who was already slumped back over her desk, blowing little spit bubbles in her sleep, and then turned and walked out of the classroom. I sank back into my seat, a mixture of humiliation, frustration, and wounded pride churning in my stomach. Why did he always ignore me? Why did he pretend not to hear me every single time I tried to ask him something? If he treated everyone this way, I wouldn't be so upset. But it was so blatantly obvious that he favored Chloe. If she had a question, he would answer it with infinite patience. If she didn't, he would still proactively ask if she understood the material. We were all his students. Why the differential treatment? It made me burn with jealousy, and I couldn't help but resent her for it. Just as my glare was about to bore a hole through her back, several lines of text floated into view before my eyes. 2 I stared at the text, stunned. Male lead? Are they talking about Kaelen? My name is Aria. Since when was I a "goddamn snake"? And what budding romance? They’d only known each other for a week. Another comment, this one a conspicuous red, scrolled past, perfectly articulating my own thoughts. Exactly! That's exactly right! If you're going to be a teacher, you should treat all your students equally. Why should Chloe get special treatment? The floating lines of text provided the answer. Apparently, we were living in a novel, and I was the story's designated "evil rival." I was in love with Kaelen, and because I couldn't stand his affection for Chloe, I constantly targeted her. According to the comments, I was about to steal Chloe's materials to prevent her from finishing the assignment. But in a twist of fate, she would use the incomplete kit to create an even more powerful component, not only breaking the existing performance record for that part but also catching the eye of a legendary Master Artisan who would take her on as his final apprentice. Meanwhile, the component I was supposed to have stayed up all night perfecting wouldn't even be deemed worthy of testing before being tossed into the recycling bin. By now, we had all collected our materials. Students who weren't eating at the school cafeteria were free to go home. Chloe casually tossed her kit onto her desk, patted her stomach, and smacked her lips a few times before nudging her deskmate. "Nyx, wanna grab lunch at the cafeteria?" Her deskmate, Nyx, was a cool, aloof girl who preferred to be alone. I had tried to be friendly with her a few times before, but she’d been completely unresponsive. Yet, after knowing Chloe for less than a week, she was like a different person. Her icy gaze melted instantly. Though her expression remained neutral, her tone was soft. "Yeah." The comments started scrolling again. I was, in fact, having a bit of a meltdown. I came from a wealthy family, raised as the apple of my parents' eye. I had everything I could ever want. Because of my status, I was always surrounded by "friends." I couldn't say how many of them were genuine, but they all fell over themselves to please me. I had never been the one to initiate friendship. Except with Kaelen and Nyx. And, of course, they were the only two who treated me with disdain, while both giving Chloe their special attention. How could I not be furious? Watching them walk out, I grit my teeth and shot a look at Chloe's materials on her desk. Just as they reached the door, Nyx paused. "You're just going to leave your kit on the desk like that? Is that safe?" Chloe stuck out her tongue. "What could happen? Come on, let's go, I'm starving." The comments were a flurry of warnings. Steal it? My pride would never allow me to stoop so low. So I just gave the kit one last glance, then turned and left the classroom. I'd like to see how someone who slept through the entire class could possibly do a hundred times better than me. 3 "You see this part here? It's a sliding component. You have to push this in first, then lock the piece below it into place. That should do it." Professor Finch, the instructor for Section 1 of Mech-Crafting, patiently answered my question. It clicked instantly. I reassembled the part according to his instructions, and it worked perfectly. "Thank you, Professor Finch!" I beamed. He waved a hand dismissively. "A lot of people miss that little detail and fail the assembly. The fact that you noticed it on your first try is already very impressive." I lifted my chin proudly. I was, after all, the top-ranked student in the Mech-Crafting department. That wasn't just an empty title. Although, according to the comments, I wouldn't be number one for long. My grades were apparently about to plummet... because after Chloe became a Master's apprentice, I was supposed to become so consumed with jealousy that I'd spend all my time trying to sabotage her instead of improving my own skills. As if, I thought. I wasn't stupid enough to waste my time trying to frame her. Getting obsessed with a man with questionable professional ethics and targeting a talented female peer over him? Was I insane? Speaking of which, how did she create a component with better performance? Could it be that the assembly didn't actually require all these parts? With that question in mind, I started disassembling the component I had just put together. Professor Finch looked puzzled. "That was a solid assembly. It would have definitely tested above 90% performance. Why are you taking it apart?" Mechs were graded on a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being the lowest. Each grade was further divided into low, mid, and high tiers. The same went for their components. A component needed to test at over 80% performance to be usable. Below 85% was low-grade, 85% to 90% was mid-grade, and above 90% was high-grade. The Kit #6 we received today was for a Tier-2 component. The current market record for its performance was 96.8%. But the version Chloe was supposed to create would reach a staggering 98.91%. I don't deny that geniuses exist. But I was considered a genius too. If she could do it, so could I. I pressed my lips together. "I want to see if I can make it even better." A look of admiration crossed Professor Finch's face. "I like your spirit. That's excellent." Then, his tone grew a little wistful. "Why did you have to transfer to Section 7? With your grades, Section 1 is a much better fit for you." I was originally a student in Section 1. The only reason I transferred was because of Kaelen Vance. Three years ago, my parents and I were on vacation when our ship was hijacked by interstellar pirates. It was Kaelen, a mech pilot at the time, who led the team that rescued us. He was everything I'd ever imagined a hero to be. I idolized him. As I got older, that idolization blossomed into a crush. When school started a week ago, I learned that he had taken a teaching position in Section 7. I immediately applied for a transfer, just to be closer to him. It had only been a week, and the rose-tinted glasses didn't just crack; they shattered. "You're right, Professor Finch," I said. "Section 1 is a better fit. Can I... can I apply to transfer back?" 4 Professor Finch's eyes lit up. He immediately pulled open a drawer and started rummaging for an application form. "Of course, you can! Anytime! You just keep working on your component. I'll fill out the paperwork for you!" Watching him furiously scribbling away, I couldn't help but smile. Whatever those comments said, I had no intention of playing a supporting role in someone else's story. I didn't care how their plot unfolded. My goal had always been the same: to become a Gold-Tier Artisan. ... I didn't sleep at all that night. I assembled and disassembled the two kits over and over, my hands blistering, until I finally discovered a new method. As dawn broke, I headed to the academy with dark circles under my eyes, carrying my newly assembled components to find Professor Finch for testing. When he saw the pile of unused parts I had left over, his jaw nearly hit the floor. He immediately took me to the testing lab and placed my component in the analysis chamber. Three seconds later, a set of numbers lit up the display... 5 "Who took Chloe's materials? If you come forward now, I'll overlook it. But if I have to find out who it was..." I was five minutes late for class. As I reached the door, I heard Kaelen's cold, stern voice. "Then I can assure you, this academy will not tolerate a student with such poor moral character." What was going on? Chloe's materials were missing after all? I scanned the room. Chloe looked completely unbothered. Nyx was her usual stoic self. The other students just looked confused. The comments were scrolling by in a frenzy. I rolled my eyes. I didn't steal anything. Why would I delete the footage? "Professor," I called out from the doorway. Kaelen narrowed his eyes at me, not inviting me in. "Chloe's materials are missing. Did you know about this?" I nodded. "I do now. You just said so." He let out a knowing "Oh." His tone was infuriating. "And what are your thoughts on the matter?" His expression, his tone... it was a clear accusation. "They're missing, so you find them. What other thoughts could I have? If you don't know how to do that, Professor, I can help you pull the security footage." My defiant attitude seemed to take him by surprise. He frowned. "Whoever was bold enough to steal them wouldn't be stupid enough to leave the security footage behind." "Speaking of which," he added, his eyes fixed on me, "why are you so late today? What were you doing?" He might as well have just announced to the whole class that I was late because I was busy tampering with the evidence. Sure enough, his words made every student in the room turn to look at me with suspicion. The scrolling comments were just as annoying. I ignored him, walked straight into the classroom, and went to my seat. "What I do is my own business. I don't need to report to you." "And another thing," I added, "even if the footage was deleted, I can recover it. Just because you can't do something, Professor Vance, doesn't mean I can't. Don't worry, I'll be sure to get 'your Chloe' the justice she deserves." Then, right in front of everyone, I made a call. "Dad, a student in my class had something stolen. Could you have someone pull the security footage for me?" After I hung up, Chloe turned to look at me, a dismissive expression on her face. "Aria, you don't have to go to all that trouble. The materials are gone, so be it. I'll just get another set and redo the assignment. I just hope the professor can give me a little more time." So this time, she had lost all her materials. She clasped her hands together, batted her eyelashes playfully at Kaelen, and pouted. "Please?" Kaelen chuckled. "You. You just don't care about anything, do you? But this is more serious than just a missing kit." I cut him off. "The components we build are all sent for official collection. We can't be even one set short." The materials we used were supplied directly by a mech factory, and our finished components were sent straight to that same factory for use. "At its simplest, this is about missing materials. But on a larger scale, this affects the academy's partnership and trust with the factory. This matter must be thoroughly investigated!" There was another reason I wanted a full investigation. My father was on the academy's board of directors, and the factory we partnered with was owned by my mother. What was stolen was, essentially, my family's property. Of course I was going to find it. I was going to slap the truth in the faces of every single person who had doubted me. With a direct order from a board member, it took less than half an hour for the Dean of Students to arrive at Section 7 with security and the surveillance footage. Halfway through the video, I couldn't help but laugh. "Chloe, is this what you call 'missing'?" The security footage was crystal clear. After lunch, she had returned to the classroom, picked up her kit, and left with it. She still had it when she walked out of the academy gates. The Dean, being the resourceful man he was, had even managed to obtain footage from outside the campus. It showed Chloe boarding a maglev train and traveling to a mech parts factory where she worked part-time. At the factory entrance, she ran into a gray-haired man who was wiping tears from his eyes. He was a worker there who had lost a component kit he’d taken home to assemble. Mech materials were expensive, and he was terrified of having to pay for it and losing his job. When Chloe learned he had lost a Kit #6, her kind heart took over, and she gave him her own. With the truth revealed, Chloe hung her head in embarrassment. After a moment, she looked up, a strained smile on her face. "If I miss one assignment, the worst that happens is I get a bad grade. But that man is the sole provider for his entire family. If he lost his job, how would they survive?" "I admit I shouldn't have given away the materials," she said, tears starting to well in her eyes, "but when I saw how desperate he was, I just couldn't bear it..." I snorted. "I have no problem with you doing a good deed. But you shouldn't do it with things that don't belong to you, and you certainly shouldn't lie about it being stolen. If we didn't have this video, your lie would have branded every single person in this class as a potential thief." "You couldn't bear to see that man get fired, but you could bear to see us carry the weight of a crime we didn't commit?" Chloe sobbed her apologies. "It was my fault. I have no excuse. I'll pay for the materials myself, as compensation to the academy." I scoffed. "You should pay for it. It was..." Kaelen cut me off, his voice cold. "Chloe was just being kind. Is it a crime to do a good deed now? That's enough, Aria. Stop wasting everyone's time." His words made me laugh out loud. "The ones wasting everyone's time are you and Chloe, aren't they? One of you lies about being robbed, and the other suspends class to play detective for her. And now you're trying to pin the blame on me? Professor Vance, try not to be such a hypocrite." My retort left him with a thunderous expression and her with a pale, stricken face. Whatever lingering admiration I had for him was now completely gone. I had planned to stay for the rest of the class, but now I couldn't stand to be in the room for another second. I gathered my things and headed for the door. "Class is in session! Where do you think you're going?" Kaelen demanded. 6 I turned to face him, my voice dripping with sarcasm. "I can't afford to take your class, Professor. You should focus on teaching 'your Chloe.'" His face darkened. "Do you think this class is a place you can just come and go as you please? Do you think your family owns this academy?" I rolled my eyes. "As a matter of fact, yes. They do." He froze, about to say something else, but I had already turned and walked out. Whatever saccharine, exclusive love story they wanted to play out, I wanted no part of it. I had better things to do than waste my time on petty jealousy. Like assembling more components. Back in Section 1, I noticed that once I was away from the main characters, the floating comments disappeared. My life returned to its normal trajectory. And, because I hadn't stolen Chloe's materials, the plot had changed. She hadn't been able to create that record-breaking component with a performance of 98.92%. But I had. My Kit #5 component tested at 99.36%, and my Kit #6 at 98.98%—both higher than her original record. I had thought that when these results were announced, the Gold-Tier Artisan, Master Valerius, might take me on as his apprentice, just as he was supposed to have done with Chloe. I was wrong. He never appeared, just as the original plot dictated. Without any interaction with the main characters, the comments remained gone. The days flew by in a blur of assembling and disassembling parts, and soon, it was time for the first-year final exams. The exam was designed by Master Valerius himself, and according to inside sources, he planned to choose one first-year student to be his final apprentice. I wanted to be that apprentice. So I practiced relentlessly, barely eating or sleeping, hoping he would notice me. What I didn't know then was that some roles exist solely for the main character. No matter how hard a supporting character tries, it's useless. The exam was scheduled for the afternoon. I couldn't be bothered to go home for lunch, so I went to the cafeteria with a classmate. The moment I walked in, I saw Chloe. She was sitting with Nyx, her hair in a high ponytail, her face flushed with a healthy glow. The floating comments told me that she and Kaelen, through a series of entanglements, were now living together. They were in the honeymoon phase of their relationship, though they had to pretend to be just a normal teacher and student at the academy. I looked at the pink, bubbly blessings and envious comments on the feed and felt nothing. She saw me too and quickly looked away, offering Nyx a wry smile. "The difference between the rich and the poor really is huge. What they spend on one meal on the second floor is my entire month's salary. There are less than thirty steps between the first and second floors, but the difference in status is a world apart." "I'm glad I have you with me," she added. "Otherwise, as the only poor person in this academy, I'd be all alone." Nyx comforted her. "Don't sell yourself short. You're much more capable than them. They all rely on their parents and families. You're the only one who earns everything with your own two hands. In that respect, you're stronger than any of them." My classmate heard this and was about to explode. "Who do you think you're—" I quickly grabbed her arm. "She's not wrong. We're not adults yet. Isn't it normal to rely on our parents?" My classmate blinked, her mouth twitching. "Well... I guess so." I pulled her toward the stairs. "So what's there to be angry about? Let's go eat. We have an exam this afternoon." The old me would have blown up at those words. But the comments had told me what was supposed to happen. We were supposed to get into an argument, and because my group was larger, we would bully them mercilessly, even forcing them to eat food mixed with garbage. Kaelen would then swoop in and rescue them. Afterward, Chloe would tearfully challenge me in the middle of the cafeteria, declaring that if she beat me in the exam, I would have to publicly apologize. If she lost, she would drop out of the academy. Her courage, her defiance in the face of power, would make Kaelen fall for her even harder. It would also attract the attention of the story's secondary male lead—my older brother, Adrian. And all of this would be witnessed by Master Valerius and the other masters from the second-floor dining area. Before the exam even began, my friends and I would already be disqualified in their eyes. Chloe, on the other hand, would earn their admiration. So I stopped my friend. I wasn't about to engage in a self-destructive battle. What I didn't expect was that even though I did nothing, Chloe still challenged me.
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