Eternal Freedom's Ascension

Chapter 176: No plan, no strategy

Ariel didn’t raise his head. His hair fell over his face, hiding his expression from her.

His voice was as flat as usual.

"Yes. That level of attention would make me uncomfortable ."

Hazel’s expression darkened further, and she had the urge to curse loudly.

With this Special Evaluation being operated on luck, there was no strategy to use. She was only confident in a few of the selected students, but that was even depending on who they encountered as an opponent.

Looking at the golden-haired narcissist, Hazel asked inwardly. ’Is there anyone who can beat Sebastian in a 1v1?’

It didn’t seem so. The guy was just too brilliant and had great strength to back up his arrogance.

’Liam, Logan, Kiera, and some others should be fine. Hopefully.’

However...

The remaining students weren’t strong enough to make her confident in them.

’60,000 credits to buy a slot. But I can’t afford that at the moment.’

If she tried taking from her savings, she would surely go bankrupt in just a few days.

’What to do... what to do.. ?’

While she was thinking, Instructor Rina walked back into the class, then started the lesson of the day.

.........

The official announcement of the Luck Special Evaluation reached the first-year classes at the same time on Wednesday.

This was the first time a situation was presented with no visible strategy to win.

It was all dependent on luck.

This left many students uneasy—especially the students with average combat ability. The consequences also weighed on the mind of the students, as being in fourth or fifth place was deadly.

The loss of Class Rank Points was no joke.

In the end, the only thing the five classes could do was train harder and prepare their selected students for the undetermined battle ahead.

It was like when a surprise exam was announced, and the students were pressured to read their ignored notebooks.

On Thursday, after all lectures had ended, Hazel met with the twenty selected students from Class-E.

Well, nineteen students to be precise. After all, Sebastian had already disappeared from the group after dropping a narcissistic line.

With a solemn expression, Hazel climbed onto the stage and faced them all.

"I know you all are burdened right now with the responsibility of ensuring our class doesn’t rank last or fourth."

She spoke, her voice even.

"Honestly, I have no grand expectations for anyone here. But I do believe that if you take this seriously, you wouldn’t disappoint the class as a whole."

Listening to her, Jose quietly complained. "What class? I’m sure the others must be happy leaving the evaluation to us."

"Hey, don’t say that..." Logan tried to caution him, but couldn’t.

"What? I’m saying the truth. Look, who else is in this place with us? It’s just Hazel alone. And I’m sure she’s just here to give us some motivational bullshit and tell us not to lose."

Huffing, Jose crossed his arms with a displeased expression on his face.

The classroom fell silent, with everyone staring at Jose in surprise. They hadn’t expected him to actually speak that harshly.

"You..."

Logan was angry, but couldn’t refute him. Indeed, the burden was already on their shoulders, and no one seemed to care. Even Eric had returned to his room.

Hazel’s gaze turned cold, making Jose flinch when she turned to him.

"Motivational bullshit?" She repeated, her voice carrying an icy edge.

To everyone’s surprise, she nodded.

"Yes. I am offering you motivational bullshit. Which means I don’t want a rubbish result. Else, I might have to personally deal with you."

Her statement surprised them all, and they all turned to her in shock. She was... threatening him?

Liam looked on with a concerned gaze. "Hazel, I understand your anxiety and I think we can handle—"

"Enough."

Hazel cut him off coldly. With a cold expression, she spoke harshly.

"Don’t you all get it? If we fail in this evaluation and get our Class Rank Points deducted, then we’re treading a path to failure."

"The other classes are far stronger than you all, and you know it. Especially you, Jose. You’re one of the weakest students present in Class-E."

Immediately, the boy’s face turned black in shame. He wanted to retort, but no word came.

Hazel continued.

"This is going to be a game of luck and unless you all miraculously win your matches, the only good thing I see is third place. In fact, to be critical, I see us finishing dead last."

Her words finally struck a chord in their hearts, and the severity of the situation dawned upon them—again.

Covering her face with both hands, Hazel sighed in exasperation.

"There is nothing we can do about it and I don’t think cheating is possible. Therefore, do not even think about any solution other than training harder."

Lowering her hands, her brown eyes had a maddened glint in them.

"You are not allowed to lose."

.........

After the meeting with everyone, Hazel decided to visit a particular person one more time.

Knocking on the door, she was surprised to find it open.

"Were you expecting someone?"

She asked, stepping inside the room.

Kaiser sat in the chair, his posture relaxed.

"You." He said flatly. "Your meeting was a bit interesting."

Closing the door, she turned to him with her brows furrowed.

"What do you mean? You overheard us?"

Kaiser turned his chair and shrugged. "Something similar."

He tapped his phone which was placed on the desk, and a recording played out.

"...matches, the only good thing I see is third place. In fact, to be critical, I see us carrying dead last."

He paused the recording, then turned to her. There was a faint smile on his face.

Hazel clenched her fists, annoyed.

"So you have a mole within the class? What the hell?"

Kaiser didn’t answer that. Instead, he stood up and walked up to her.

Standing a few inches away, he raised a finger and flicked her forehead.

"Ah?!"

Stunned, she reflexively held her forehead in pain, an angered expression on her face.

"How dare you touch me?"