Ethan slowly stirred awake from a light sleep.
He felt as if he had just emerged from a very distant dream, veiled behind a thick, heavy mist.
In that dream, a JK girl dressed in a black sailor uniform with flowing long hair was running lightly ahead, her warm and soft little hand gripping his tightly.
As she ran, she joyfully looked back, calling out his name from a previous life in a clear, crisp voice.
That voice held a familiar intimacy, like a wind chime in the sunlight—yet no matter how hard he tried, the key syllables were impossible to catch clearly.
Ethan desperately wanted to see her face clearly, but when the girl turned back, her features were blank and blurred, as if some invisible hand had violently wiped away all her details, leaving only a vague outline.
“Wait!”
A surge of indescribable panic and urgency welled up inside Ethan.
He wanted to pull her closer, to see her face clearly, but the hands that had been held tightly together were suddenly torn apart by an irresistible force, forcing him to let go.
He stretched out his hand desperately, trying to grasp her again, but his fingertips only traced empty air, touching nothing tangible.
The girl stood just out of reach, hands behind her back, her figure seeming unreal in the shifting light of the dream.
Ethan faintly felt her smiling at him, and heard her voice, familiar yet distant, softly say:
“XX… don’t forget me~”
The next moment, Ethan jolted awake, his heart pounding wildly as if trying to break free from his chest.
“Huff… huff… huff…”
He gasped for breath, sweat coldly beading his forehead.
[Master! What’s wrong? Did you have a nightmare? Why are you sweating so much!]
Ruby was anxiously fluttering around his face, worry clearly written all over her small features.
[I… I’m fine…]
Ethan covered his face with his hands, trying to calm his rapid breathing, then slowly shook his head.
In an instant, an even deeper chill suddenly rose from the depths of his heart.
To his horror, Ethan realized he couldn’t recall the name from his previous life.
The name he had used for over ten years as the core of his existence was now nothing but a blurred blank in his mind.
That crucial single word seemed to have vanished along with the girl from the dream.
(Who was that girl whose face I couldn’t see? What was the name she called at the end, my real name? Why… why do I have no memory of any of it?)
Every painful detail of the betrayal from his previous life was still vivid, and his desire for revenge burned just as fiercely as before.
Yet all the key information about “who I am” and the girl who called his name was forcibly torn away, vanished without a trace.
What on earth was going on?
Ethan frowned deeply, feeling this strange problem could only be answered by the goddess who reincarnated him here.
But that unreliable goddess had now fallen into a deep slumber and was unreachable.
For a moment, an inexplicable restlessness and unease quietly filled his heart.
Leaning against the cold wall, Ethan closed his eyes and took several deep breaths, forcibly suppressing the palpitations and the chaotic thoughts brought on by the dream.
He was never one to wallow in unsolvable problems, and dwelling on this strange phenomenon wasn’t his style either.
The immediate priority was to complete the task at hand.
[Ruby, check Selise’s current affection level.]
Ethan shook his head to clear his mind, refocused on reality, and calmly asked Ruby.
[Master, Selise’s current affection level is… -100.]
Ruby fluttered her little wings, pulling up the system panel, glanced at it, then reported.
[Why is it still negative? And -100 at that?]
Hearing this, Ethan’s face showed clear confusion and frustration.
No matter how he thought about it, he couldn’t understand.
He believed that even if his relationship with Selise wasn’t especially close, at least they were on good terms, right?
Was the unreliable system bugging out again?
But this time, Ethan didn’t even bother complaining to Ruby, knowing it was pointless since the little creature wouldn’t be able to give a reasonable explanation anyway.
So he stopped fixating on the disappointing number and instead sank his awareness into the system, starting to browse the gacha interface.
To his surprise, the thrilling incident from just now hadn’t triggered any new quests.
He felt a bit regretful, thinking it was a missed opportunity to earn points.
Then he noticed the Tokens he had accumulated from previous pulls seemed to have reached the threshold to redeem some items in the Exchange Shop.
Feeling energized, he immediately opened the Exchange Shop, which had previously been grayed out and unavailable.
However, since his Token count was limited, he could only redeem the lowest tier items for now.
Carefully browsing through the few available items, his eyes suddenly brightened when they landed on an Equipment icon radiating faint magical energy.
Without much hesitation, he decisively chose to redeem it.
At this moment, Ruby, looking like a tired little fairy, was curled up beside Ethan’s pillow, her tiny head nodding off in sleep, completely unaware of his recent actions and redemptions.
Meanwhile, Rufus was storming through the depths of the academy toward the Star Tower, his face dark and brooding.
The noble students along the way cast him complicated glances filled with surprise, schadenfreude, and even barely perceptible disdain.
Though no one dared openly gossip in front of him yet, just these silent stares made the usually proud Rufus feel extremely uncomfortable, like needles were poking at his back.
Damn it.
Rufus clenched his fists so tightly his nails dug into his palms, trying to suppress the humiliation and rage with the pain.
As one of the “Seven Stars,” he still believed he held a certain special immunity within the academy.
Although he had taken a huge fall this time, with proper maneuvering, there was still a chance to make a comeback.
Right now, all he wanted was to find a completely quiet place where no idle onlookers could disturb him and discuss countermeasures.
The highest floor of the Star Tower, the Star Chamber—a lounge exclusively for the “Seven Stars”—was undoubtedly the best choice.
However, when Rufus arrived at the ornate carved wooden door of the lounge, he was blocked by a green-haired youth leaning casually against the doorframe with a smirking, world-weary expression.
“Well, well, if it isn’t our illustrious Rufus-sama? Sorry, but you can’t go in here right now~”
The green-haired youth teased in his trademark sarcastic tone.
“Ardur, I don’t have time to waste on you. Step aside!”
Rufus was already in a foul mood, his brow furrowed deeply.
He gave Ardur a cold glare without any hint of courtesy and tried to push past him.
“NoNoNo~”
But Ardur stretched out his arm and firmly blocked his way, still wearing that infuriating smile.
His tone was firm and unyielding as he wagged his finger teasingly at Rufus, a mocking smile slowly spreading on his lips.
“Rufus, looks like you didn’t get the memo? After an emergency vote, you’ve been officially expelled from the ‘Seven Stars.’ The ‘No.7’ position no longer has anything to do with you.”
“What?”
Rufus froze, his pupils shrinking abruptly as he let out an incredulous growl.
“I want to see the President! I want to confront her in person!”
“Unfortunately, the President isn’t at the academy right now, and she had nothing to do with kicking you out… but sorry, the majority vote has passed, and the proposal is official. So, please go back, former No.7.”
Ardur shrugged helplessly, feigning innocence.
Rufus’s clenched fists trembled violently from the intensity of his anger.
He glared fiercely at Ardur’s smug face, chest heaving, but ultimately forced himself to hold back from attacking.
He knew all too well Ardur ranked higher in the “Stars” and was far too powerful for him to handle.
Acting rashly would only make things worse, so for now, he swallowed his fury.
“By the way, how do you even have the nerve to come here? A so-called ‘Seven Star’ who was played like a pawn by a transfer student who can’t even use magic well, utterly defeated and humiliated. I’m embarrassed for you.”
Ardur took pleasure in Rufus’s stifled frustration and unleashed merciless mockery.
“Right now, there’s probably no place for you in the entire Saint Daisia Academy. If you ask me, a low-born noble with impure blood and a weak foundation should just stay quietly on your rural estate instead of coming here to embarrass yourself, don’t you think?”
Ardur’s words stabbed like sharp daggers, hitting Rufus’s sore spots mercilessly.
“You…”
Rufus trembled with rage, his face turning pale and then red.
He swept his sleeve and stormed off.
Because Ardur’s strength and status far surpassed his own, he had no way to retaliate.
All his overwhelming hatred and humiliation he reserved in his heart and blamed entirely on Ethan and Selise.
He vowed bitterly that he would make them pay a heavy price!
Elsewhere, after the practical training class ended, Selise packed up and prepared to visit Ethan at the infirmary.
On the way, she ran into Quintina, who had once tried to kill her with accomplices.
“Selise… I’m really sorry about what happened before! I was deceived by that bastard Rufus’s fake video and misunderstood you…”
Quintina’s face showed obvious guilt as she stopped Selise, bowed sincerely with a few followers, and apologized in a low voice.
“I understand.”
Selise simply looked at them calmly, nodded, and replied lightly.
She neither forgave nor rejected them.
This incident had brought a certain degree of growth and transcendence to her heart.
She would no longer be easily swayed by external praise or slander, nor would she overly dwell on past grudges.
I haven’t forgiven you.
I just don’t care anymore.
Your existence means nothing to me.
I have more important things now, and I won’t waste my focus on meaningless matters.
Quintina sighed helplessly at Selise’s indifferent response.
Even being yelled at or hit by Selise would have made her feel better, but this cold disregard was far more painful.
She also knew her past behavior had been excessive and couldn’t force anything further.
She blamed all the faults on the instigator, Rufus.
After parting with Quintina, Selise took a shortcut through the small forest behind the academy to save time on her way to the infirmary.
However, in this relatively secluded grove, she was suddenly blocked by an unexpected figure—Rufus, his face dark and eyes filled with resentment.
“Senior Rufus, do you have anything else to say?”
Selise’s expression immediately grew frosty, showing no warmth.
“You two… you ruined everything for me! My reputation, my status, my future… all destroyed! Then, I’ll destroy you both completely!”
Rufus snarled fiercely, bloodshot eyes twisted by hatred.
He seemed to use some forbidden magic as a dark purple barrier instantly spread out from him, sealing off the surrounding area completely.
He created a temporary enclosure isolated from the outside world and hard to detect.
Within the barrier, only Selise and the frenzied Rufus remained.
Seeing Rufus’s hostile intent, Selise immediately took a fighting stance, gathering ice-blue magic around her body.
But Rufus was faster.
He snapped his fingers, and a purple magic beam descended from above, weaving into a purple Protective Barrier that trapped Selise entirely inside.
Selise immediately tried to attack the barrier with magic, but the ice spikes only caused ripples on its surface before disappearing without a trace.
“Don’t bother, Selise. This Protective Barrier isn’t something your little bit of magic can break. You’d better stay quietly inside.”
Rufus smiled cruelly as he looked at the trapped Selise.
“I’ll notify that damned transfer student to come here… then you’ll watch him die piece by piece before your eyes… You two will see exactly what happens when you provoke me, Rufus!”