The passion of youth can sometimes be quite moving.

Every single teacher present was an Alpha, and as Alphas, it was inevitable that they had teamed up with Omegas.

They had all long since grown used to it.

But now, Zoe Pierce had declared she wanted to be a teammate others could count on, and she had personally joined the training. Even if it was just physical conditioning, it was enough to make people take notice.

At the very least, after hearing this, none of the teachers offered any more words of dissuasion.

"It’s great to be young," one teacher couldn’t help but sigh.

They had long since lost that kind of youthful vigor.

Truly, Zoe Pierce had shattered their preconceived notions.

So, all the teachers silently became spectators, watching to see just how long Zoe Pierce could persevere.

Even if she only kept it up for a day or two, they would still approve of her actions.

But right up until the Plunder War began, Zoe Pierce silently trailed behind the others every day. She went from walking through the entire ten laps to being able to manage a light jog for the whole distance.

The progress was small, but she stuck with it.

Just as she had said, it was enough to make the teachers look at her in a new light.

As a result, Zoe Pierce started noticing at mealtimes that the teachers around her were looking at her with a certain fondness.

’She wasn’t mistaken. It was definitely a look of pity and affection.’

"Zoe, try this drink I brought. If you like it, I’ll get you a few more cans."

The speaker was the female teacher who had taken away Erin Xavier’s half-brother, Sheldon Xavier.

Zoe Pierce blinked. Seeing that this wasn’t the first time she had been given a drink, she thanked her sincerely, "Thank you, ma’am."

Her face was so endearing that the person "feeding" her felt their mood lift just looking at her.

The female teacher left with a smile, leaving only Miles Sherman and the others watching the scene, somewhat accustomed to it by now.

"Sometimes, I really think you’ve slipped the teachers some kind of potion," Erin Xavier said, clicking his tongue and shaking his head. Zoe Pierce’s standing in the teachers’ eyes now far surpassed their own.

Although he also felt that Zoe Pierce was doing a good job sometimes, the difference in attitude was just too obvious.

In all this time, the rest of them hadn’t received a single thing from the teachers.

On the contrary, they had even gotten a lecture, reminding them to never forget that Zoe Pierce was an Omega.

Even if she was training voluntarily, they should know their limits and not push things too far.

Erin Xavier couldn’t bring himself to laugh.

’He didn’t know what they had done that was considered ’going too far.’’

Even Miles Sherman, the team captain who was supposedly the most reliable in the teachers’ eyes, had been nagged a couple of times.

No one had ever expected Zoe Pierce to win the teachers’ favor like this.

Zoe Pierce was the one who felt the most helpless. ’I thought this was just what a normal teammate was supposed to do. How did I end up becoming some rare panda of an Omega?’

Under the twin pressures of external expectations and her own drive, Zoe Pierce could only continue to work hard.

Whether it was spiritual power training or physical training on the track, she pushed herself to her body’s absolute limit every time before ending her day’s regimen.

After eating their energy bars, the group headed back to the field, ready to start a new day of training.

The teachers had given them an estimated time: first thing tomorrow morning, Zoe Pierce and her team would be deployed back into the mountain range.

So today was their last day to make use of the field and the Psionic Training Room.

After warming up, the group began their running drills.

A squad that had been brought out of the forest by the teachers saw people running laps around the field from a distance.

Someone with sharp eyes immediately recognized Miles Sherman and his team.

"No way, sir. Miles Sherman’s team got eliminated too?"

He should have kept his mouth shut. The moment he spoke, the others in his squad looked up and sighed in disbelief. "Who could be so capable as to eliminate all four of them?"

They automatically ignored Zoe Pierce, the Omega.

After all, if all the Alphas were eliminated, there was obviously only one fate for the Omega.

The teacher found their assumption amusing and said irritably, "What are you thinking? They were specially brought out due to special circumstances. They’re going back to participate in the Plunder War tomorrow."

"I knew it. Since when did our academy have someone that incredible?" the person who first recognized Miles Sherman’s team sighed.

Another, more curious student asked, "Sir, what special circumstances?"

"Tell us."

’Anything that would make the academy bend the rules must be a big deal.’

Their squad hadn’t encountered the teachers on duty exploring the cave in the forest, so they were completely in the dark about everything.

The male teacher shot him a look. "Alright, that’s classified. All of you better watch yourselves. I wonder if you even have enough credits to cover this deduction."

Someone couldn’t help but start wailing.

The earlier you were eliminated from the Plunder War, the fewer credits you’d get from this joint examination. You’d have to make up for the deficit with electives or other academy courses.

It sounded hopeless.

The male teacher led them across the field, got them settled on the Hovercar, and then got off to speak with the other teachers.

「Inside the Hovercar.」

Just then, the gossipy student from before spoke up again. "Hey, hey, hey, I just saw that Omega running with them. What’s going on?"

"Is this some new way Miles Sherman and his team came up with to torture people?"

"Tch. I just want to know what that Omega did this time. She’s actually pretty good-looking."

"Getting on the bad side of tough nuts like Chase Shaw and Erin Xavier is just asking for trouble..."

The students whispered among themselves. Those who had been eliminated were to be gathered and sent back to the academy once a day. Once there, they could choose to go home or stay on campus.

The academy would also set up special classrooms each day to livestream the joint examination, and students could decide whether or not to watch.

As they were talking, a teacher led another squad over.

At first, the two squads were quiet for a moment, but then someone spoke up, "Did you guys see that? Miles Sherman’s team is forcing that Omega to run."

"Yeah, I saw. That Omega has it so rough."

"Don’t jump to conclusions. What if there’s another reason?"

"What reason would make an Omega run voluntarily?" He turned to the Omega on his own squad. "Would you?"

That Omega immediately shook their head. Just participating in this joint examination was hard enough; who would go looking for extra trouble?

"See? She must have been forced..."

"And does anyone know why their squad is here in the first place?"

"..."

The chatter inside the Hovercar was lively. Outside, the teachers couldn’t help but shake their heads. "They’re all so full of energy."

’Gossiping about all sorts of nonsense.’

But they also had the feeling of being the only sober ones in a crowd of drunks.

’Zoe Pierce wasn’t being forced at all; she was doing it completely voluntarily!’

’Where else could you find such a good kid?’

"Alright, the dean was just here." The teacher standing guard by the Hovercar dropped a bombshell.

The dean of the Federal Military Academy was a man who was rarely ever seen. Besides his position at the academy, he also held a nominal title in the military and only ever appeared at important events.

Even at last year’s joint examination, he had only shown up for the final award ceremony.

’Why was he here now?’