Preparation [1]

The news of Felix Osborn's death quickly made the headlines.

Osborn Corporation announced that they would do all they can to find the suspect.

The case was handed to the Special Force, but it was for naught.

There were no leads.

No evidence.

A cold case.

In the middle of Combat Class, Brandon pondered on everything that happened a week ago.

"Haa…"

He breathed out a heavy sigh.

He was glad to have worn the mask before Amy arrived.

But to what extent did she see?

And it seemed like she did in fact see Brandon enter the alleyway.

After Amy dialed the police, she quickly sent an emergency message in the group chat.

But since Brandon had passed out, exhausted in his bed, he didn't see the message.

While everyone else instantly went to the police station where Amy was being held custody, Brandon was asleep.

After those events, it felt like Amy was keeping a fixed distance from Brandon.

As if she was suspicious of him.

But as long as Brandon doesn't reveal his Fire Affinity, then the crime wouldn't lead back to him.

Thus, Amy's suspicion of him would only be mere speculation.

Regardless, he had to clear it up with Amy soon.

From a distance, he could feel Amy sneaking glances at him.

Brandon returned her look, but Amy instantly looked away.

There was no helping it.

'She's definitely suspicious of me.'

But Brandon just shrugged it off.

Because of the Mirage Mask, Brandon and Moriarty would be a separate entity, and Brandon was counting on that. Which is why he revealed the Moriarty name to Amy.

It was then when a figure entered the room. It was the Professor.

It seemed like the Professor from the previous Combat Class was replaced for unknown reasons.

The Professor then introduced herself.

"Good morning everyone, my name is Evelyn Cessna, and I'll be your Combat Class Professor starting today."

Step- Step-

She continued to strode forward, her purple hair gently cascaded along her shoulders, just stopping right above her curves.

Her cold cyan eyes spoke for her stern demeanor.

Evelyn Cessna, the only Professor that rivaled Vanessa in terms of looks and power.

From behind Brandon, he could see the male students gawking at the sight of Evelyn.

After the events of last week, Brandon was already quite immune to the sight of a beautiful woman.

He had a lot of things to do, and idly staring at women was a wasn't one of them.

Evelyn then commanded attention with a strict tone.

"Today's Combat Class will be a quick session. Firstly, find a pair, and make it quick."

Glancing around, Brandon found Raven.

Raven waved to him, and Brandon followed suit, walking towards him.

But when Brandon was making his way, someone quickly pulled him.

When he turned to look he realized it was Amy.

"Hey, wanna work together?"

Brandon was taken aback.

Since Amy was keeping distant from him the entire week, the change in her behavior left Brandon puzzled.

But this was an opportunity to clear his name.

"Sure."

He then took a glance at Raven who wore a look of shock as well.

Brandon just shrugged at him as if saying, 'Well, that's that'.

Since Reinhard wasn't in the same Combat Class as them, Raven might not have any choices.

'Hope he finds a partner.'

But he soon remembered that Claire was in the same Combat Class.

And as if on cue, Claire made her way towards Raven.

Brandon then turned towards Amy, and asked,

"Any reason why you chose me as your partner instead of Claire?"

As if she already had an answer to the question, Amy responded,

"I realized we didn't get a chance to get close, despite being in the same friend group. Plus, I don't wanna work with Claire."

"Why's that?"

"You'll find out soon."

"...Okay."

Brandon had no idea what Amy was talking about, but he could make a guess, knowing Claire's personality.

It seemed like Raven was about to have a hard time.

Shifting his gaze on the students around him, it seemed like everyone else had formed a pair.

It was then when Evelyn spoke up. Once again, her voice was stern.

"For today, you'll each be practicing your pair in preparation for next week's session."

She instructed clearly for everyone to understand.

"This is because you'll be fighting other pairs. But that session will be held next week. Each of you will be given a solid week to learn how to coordinate with your partner."

At her instructions everyone turned their gaze towards Raven and Claire.

The student ranked 1st and the student ranked 3rd.

They were a powerhouse.

Realizing this, the students instantly complained.

"If that's the case, shouldn't there be a balance with each pair?"

"Yeah! You should be the one to choose who partners with who, Miss."

But of course, there were other students who stayed quiet, probably wanting to see if Raven was really worthy of his rank.

 And Brandon was one of them.

He wanted to see how he could fare with Raven, another person with a system.

His system against Raven's system.

Excitement welled up within Brandon.

But from beside him, Amy had a worried look, and spoke,

"I think I should've paired up with Claire…"

It seemed like she regretted choosing Brandon as her pair.

Brandon dismissed her.

"Don't worry, we'll win."

"How are you so sure?"

"Trust me."

He was confident.

As the novel's long-time reader, Brandon knew everything there was to know about Raven and Claire.

From the way they fought to their weaknesses, especially in the later stages of the story.

There was no way he thought he could lose.

With a serious expression he turned to glance at Raven–who returned his look.

Brandon nodded with a fierce smile on his face, and Raven did the same.

A chance to fight the main protagonist of Path to Ascension.

Brandon couldn't let the opportunity slip away.

At Evelyn's instructions, they were dismissed for the day. But they were given the choice to stay and practice.

For now, Brandon and Amy decided to leave.

"We should hide our abilities for now."

"Yeah, I agree."

Brandon nodded at her words.

She was right, if they stayed and showed their cards, then it would backfire on them.

Since Brandon had barely shown what he could do, then it was advantageous for him.

While he knew everything there was to know about Raven and Claire, they didn't know anything about him.

Walking side-by-side with Amy, she turned to glance at him.

She was a tad bit shorter than Brandon, so she had to look up.

"Let's rendezvous and discuss our strategy in a coffee shop."

"Sure."

With Combat Class being their only lecture for the day, they had all the time to strategize.