Top Five

"Are you finally done?" Xander, who was standing behind five unconscious students, asked. His gaze fell onto the passed-out Mark and then on Draco, whose eyes were still red since he hadn't deactivated the skill.

"You are talking as if you expected me to win." Draco made eye contact with Xander.

"I have been studying you since the semester started, so naturally I knew you could manage this much." Xander talked as he threw his shield aside, exposing his body. "I have been itching to have a go with you for a long time."

"I also always wanted to fight the infamous Xander," Draco said with a smile, though these weren't his true thoughts. He was drained off most of his mana, and he definitely didn't have enough power to fight against Xander, who practiced a four-star body manual, which was passed down in his family throughout generations.

Even though he already knew some of his weaknesses from his previous life, it would still be a draining battle, which Draco was most likely to lose. Their difference in stats was too great right now.

"Show me everything that you have got, Draco." Xander punched his fists one against another, completely changing his demeanor from when he was using the shield. Being a tank was just a hobby of his, and it worked well to catch his enemies by surprise.

"Yeah..." Draco got into the battle stance, forgetting about his exhaustion. Although it didn't look like it, Draco was really curious about the strength of one of the strongest heroes in the future. His blood began to boil when suddenly a clap resounded throughout the arena.

"I have seen enough." Angelica appeared in the middle of the arena, startling the twins, who were preparing an attack on Sarah. "You can stop fighting now."

Xander sighed heavily, clearly not expecting such a bummer as he glanced in Draco's direction. "Let's fight next time then."

"Sure." Draco agreed. He didn't oppose the idea of sparring against Xander since even he could learn something from their battles. Whatever made him stronger, he would do it.

While Cassie, Jaime, Sarah, and Draco took some time to recuperate, Angelica glanced in Draco's direction with a strange expression on her face. She knew Draco had been hiding his actual strength, but she never expected him to defeat Mark, who was the fifth person she thought would qualify.

Angelica also never anticipated Draco to have a skill that could temporarily boost his power. After all, skills weren't lying on the ground. In fact, they were extremely rare, and someone like him without a backing didn't really have any hope of getting skills. Or that was what she thought.

Other than that, Draco showed excellent swordsmanship, even with no martial techniques. He defeated all of his opponents with his own power and rational thinking.

Right. There was also that moment when Draco suddenly turned somehow alien. She didn't understand what it was, but it just seemed like he became a different person for a few minutes.

'He only became more mysterious now.' Angelica sighed, making a mental note to investigate Draco further. An orphan defeating someone like Mark in a fair battle seemed ridiculous. After all, the latter spent his entire childhood training coached by some of the best teachers in Northern city.

"The five of you have passed. Congratulations." Angelica talked slowly, eyeing all the remaining participants. "From now on, every Tuesday and Thursday, we will have our private training after the official lessons. Understood?"

Draco could swear that he saw Angelica smiling.

"Since I have personally chosen you, I will make sure that your team will be the one to win this year's tournament," Angelica said with solemnity. "Now, leave and have some rest. Tomorrow will be the day the hell starts for the five of you."

As she those words, she prepared to leave, but she stopped for a moment. Extending her hand forth, a potion suddenly materialized on her palm as she threw it towards Draco who caught it with one hand.

"This...a healing potion?"

"Treat that shoulder. It's hindering your movement." Angelica stated before disappearing from the spot, not caring about eight students who were still passed out on the ground. It was their fault for being weak.

'As expected of her.' Draco smiled subtly, once again understanding that staying in this school was one of the best choices. Now that he got into the top five, his training would finally start for real.

"Cough... cough..." Jaime feigned his coughing to attract everyone's attention as he smiled brightly. "Since we are going to be a team for a very long time. How about having dinner together to get to know each other better?"

"Not interested." Xander was the first one to refuse, hopping off the arena.

"I am sorry, but I will have to refuse as well," Sarah answered, always keeping her stoic face. "I have to meet my little sister. Perhaps next time."

'Sarah's sister...' Draco sighed, a strange look appearing on his face. However, it didn't last long as he brushed all the unnecessary thoughts away.

"Haha... it's alright. Next time it is." Jaime didn't appear disgruntled, already expecting such answers. After all, these two were quite busy. Seeing Sarah leaving as well, Jaime then turned towards Draco for an answer.

"Sure. I will go." Draco smiled, scratching the back of his head. Even though he didn't like spending his time so uselessly like that, Draco needed to get closer to these two. The reason for that was simple; Draco wanted to recruit them into his group in the future.

"Really?!" Jaime smiled brightly, his eyes almost shining.

"Yeah." Draco's expression turned evil for a moment. "But the dinner is on you."

***

Multiple people were sitting on round tables, dressed in beautiful gowns as they conversed one with another. The entire restaurant was dimly lit with artificial candles, forcing away the shadows of the night and creating a peaceful atmosphere.

"Isn't this too much?" Draco sighed, glancing down at his own clothes, which comprised a simple white t-shirt and black jeans. Fortunately, Cassie and Jaime were also dressed casually, hence he didn't stand out too much.

"Hmm? This is the place where we usually eat." Jaime answered with a smile, putting a piece of meat in his mouth.

'Should have never asked.' Draco thought, deciding to just enjoy his time here. Even in his past life, he had rarely visited such places.

"It's a pity Xander and Sarah couldn't come," Jaime noted.

"Is it? I think it's much better without them." Draco shrugged his shoulders. "The atmosphere would just be ruined."

"Oh, I never thought I would hear something talking ill about them, especially an orphan," Jaime exclaimed with a subtle surprise as Cassie nodded from the side, still not saying a word throughout the entire conversation.

"How do you know I am an orphan?" Draco furrowed his eyebrows, glaring at Jaime with an intense look. Did they investigate his past?

"Well... Uhm, it's just that you don't have the last name."

"Oh, right." Draco scratched the back of his head, once again focusing on his meal.

"Cough, anyway, we were really impressed by your battle before. We knew you were talented before, but not to that extent." Jaime and Cassie nodded at the same time. "Even though you are still [G+] rank, we are happy that you were the fifth one chosen to be a part of the team."

"Thank you. You both are strong as well, especially when fighting together." Draco returned the flattery with more flattery.

"Well, it's just because we have been getting a lot of support from the family." Jaime cleaned his hands with a napkin, with Cassie following his example like some doppelgänger. "In my opinion, your progress is much more impressive since you did it all by yourself."

Draco nodded, deciding to change the topic. They talked about many other things and Draco finally came to a conclusion. Jaime was a simple and easy-going guy, and it was honestly soothing to talk with him. He has yet to find out whether or not that is just a facade.

Cassie, on the other hand, didn't say a word throughout the entire dinner. From what he understood, she was extremely shy. Whenever Draco asked her a question, she would simply blush and let Jamie answer it for her.

Their personalities were a lot different compared to the future, but that was probably because they still haven't experienced that tragic event...

In the end, Draco decided to observe them for longer and only then decide whether they were good enough to join his group.

They talked for a bit longer before Draco finally left. Of course, he didn't pay a cent and returned to his apartment.

He decided to sleep early.

Yes, training was great and all, but resting was also essential.