Blood spurted from the wound, and the girl was sent flying.

Her whole body was wracked with pain, and she rolled on the ground roughly.

’Ahh...’

Her ears were ringing, and her vision had become blurred. She couldn’t even form normal thoughts. Her mind was consumed by pain and the suffocating desire to not back down.

This was her trait—Unyielding Spirit—at work.

She gradually regained her senses, feeling the soothing comfort of her ability envelop her as she raised her head.

The automaton was already approaching, its steps slow and intimidating.

Hazel grunted, reaching for her weapon that was by her side.

She gripped the handle and tried to force herself up. Her ability was still activated, fueling her with more strength—or so she thought.

Suddenly, she collapsed. Like a puppet that had lost its strings, she felt her strength get sapped away.

’Wha...?’

Just like Kaiser predicted, her essence had run dry. With nothing to power it, her ability was forcefully shut down, denying her of any ethereal strength she could gain.

’Curse it...!’

Laid on the ground like a broken doll, she was completely helpless before the menacing automaton.

It walked towards her, then swung its sword.

Pa!

Its strike was halted, as its wrist had been grabbed by Kaiser, who had just stepped into the fray.

The automaton’s head slowly turned to him—measuring, gauging.

Before it could even release itself and attack him, he channeled cursed essence and spoke.

"Shut down."

The machine froze, and Kaiser felt its resistance disappear.

The lights in its eyes turned off, and it lowered its hand, becoming dormant.

Kaiser released its wrist, then glanced at Hazel.

"Not a word."

Despite being broken and battered, the black-haired girl still retained her aloof attitude.

Rolling his eyes, Kaiser reached out and dragged her by the collar, pulling her to her feet.

"What the-? Can’t you help me up properly?"

She attempted to hit his chest, but only ended up stressing her injured shoulder.

She winced, feeling the pain spread through her nerves. With her ability gone, there was nothing left to soothe the pain. 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

’Ugh...’

Grunting inwardly in displeasure, she had to lean against Kaiser as she struggled to stand on her own.

Resting his eyes on her black hair, Kaiser sighed.

"You really can’t stand on your own—ironic."

Hazel gritted her teeth, reining in the urge to attempt punching him again.

He was right. Her body ached severely, and her mind was almost consumed by pain. Her injuries were quite severe, after all.

"In that case, princess carry or a piggyback?"

"Huh?" Hazel looked up, startled. "W-what do you mean?"

For the first time, she looked unsettled.

Rolling his eyes, Kaiser answered. "Of course I’m carrying you to the infirmary. You don’t want to spend the whole day leaning on me, do you?"

Hearing the sarcastic undertone in his voice, Hazel was tempted to throw a punch. However, he was right. She needed to be treated—fast.

The only problem was his options. Both options made her feel... nervous.

’A princess carry? A piggyback?’

They were foreign contexts to her, and they felt improper.

"Since you can’t decide, I’ll do that for you."

Before she could protest, Kaiser grabbed her arm, then turned her.

Pain flared in her shoulder briefly, and the next thing she knew, she was on his back.

’This guy...!’

Instinctively, her legs crossed around his waist, and her arms locked around his neck.

The familiar posture reminded her of when her father used to carry her on his back as a kid.

Unaware of her melancholic thoughts, Kaiser placed his wrists beneath her knees and walked out of the training room.

To avoid embarrassing her, he decided to take her to the infirmary in the Training Facility instead of heading to the school infirmary.

’There shouldn’t be any acquaintances around, right?’

Unfortunately, she was wrong.

The moment they stepped out of the training room, they both locked eyes with Logan.

The boy had a towel around his neck, having just finished training too.

A myriad of expressions crossed his face in a few seconds. At first there was confusion, then recognition, then shock, and eventually a conflicted look.

Kaiser only paused briefly, then continued walking.

’Ugh...’

Hazel avoided the boy’s gaze, burying her face in Kaiser’s back and tightening her grip around his neck.

Kaiser felt a slight warmth against his back. It seemed the aloof girl had gotten embarrassed.

They quickly arrived at the infirmary where the medical staff bandaged her wounds, then asked them to wait for the healer.

Standing by her side as she lay on the bed, Kaiser observed the bandages curiously.

His gaze brushed past a detail on her body, and he was forced to remember a useless question he had asked himself in the first semester.

Instantly, he closed his eyes, feeling like his brain was rotting.

’Ah, by the gods... I need to be cleansed.’

A lot of unexpected coincidences had happened since his enrollment, tainting his pure mind.

"Why are you closing your eyes? Am I that pathetic to look at?"

Hazel’s displeased voice entered his ears. She thought he was avoiding looking at her bandaged injuries.

’How wrong.’

Kaiser sighed and opened his eyes, gazing directly at her face.

"Yes. Your wounds make you look pathetic."

"Ugh." Hazel’s expression darkened instantly, but she couldn’t find a proper retort.

Instead, she decided to change the topic.

"Well? Are you done evaluating me?"

Kaiser nodded, his expression subtle.

"You’re quite strong—for a Rank 1 Awakened less than a year old."

He paused, letting her heart warm from the praise.

Then, he began to criticize.

"However, you’re quite average. Compared to the top students in the first-year."

Hazel’s face darkened, but he didn’t care. He continued.

"Can you withstand a full-powered punch from Thyla? Perhaps you can, but I doubt you’d be yourself for the first few seconds."

Clicking his tongue, he looked at her with a frown.

"Apollo? Hm, I’ll give you a pass. You should be able to give him some trouble. However, the likes of Yamada and Gaga would easily overpower and crush you."

Hazel’s face darkened a shade further, almost turning black.

"Then what about you? How strong am I compared to you?"

Kaiser’s frown disappeared, his expression becoming unreadable.

"Me? Don’t even think about it. You’re still a novice."