Basic Combat Sniping

At least he said thanks. Zane murmured to himself as he watched the prince enter the gate of the Department of Strategy and Tactical Operations.

Increasing the speed of the hovercar a little, he observed the environment and structures of the Department of Strategy and Tactical Operations. 

Tall, impressive buildings, it gave one the feeling that they were looking down on everyone. Is there a hidden message Amherst College wanted to send across through the structure of the buildings?

There were a lot of students in the Combat Department. Even though the air sphere couldn't have a traffic jam, it was quite a little bumpy to manoeuvre.

Zane connected quickly to his atlas and opened the school portal, loving it with his ID. His first class was Combat Strategy and it was in Building 20, Hall 2. He downloaded the map of the Combat Department and made his way to his classroom.

When he finally reached the door he breathed a sigh of relief. It was not only far from the gate, it was up a cliff.

He entered the class at 7:22 a.m. It was quite early, the Basic Combat Sniping Class began at  8 a.m. There were a few people in the class already.

Zane scanned them with his eyes. Seven students had already arrived before him, five boys and two girls. 

Some of them were already chatting in groups while others were doing their own thing.

Seeing the eyes on him, Zane gave them a bright smile before he took a seat at the front of the class.

The class was very equipped. He could see the large shooting rink from within. The class itself was spacious with several virtual pods at the back of the class. It seems like the lesson will be a combination of both virtual and reality.

Before he could speculate even more, the door of the classroom opened and a tall beautiful girl walked in.

She had dark curls with sharp blue eyes. She entered with her head raised high, an innate confidence in every step.

The moment she saw him, her eyes narrowed at once and she made her way towards him.

Zane brought out a book from his inventory and placed it on his desk. Yes, he wanted attention but not this kind of attention.

Thankfully the girl walked past him, sitting two seats away. Her posture was elegant and she was not at all bothered by the stares she received. Perhaps she was used to it. Even before the Earth went online, beautiful people had gathered attention.

A boy even swaggered from the back seat and sat on the seat next to him. The boy was taller than him and had gazed at him so savagely as if daring him to oppose. Zane had just given him a warm smile in return.

Well done!

Three more people entered the class although none of them gathered the same attention, the girl, Avery Millox had gathered.

The noise in the class was increasing, groups were slowly being formed. Zane had never really been good with the group stuff.

He snapped his book and got up to the front of the class. He was tall and handsome and dressed in trousers and a light blue shirt, he looked like a model student.

He grinned at them. His Atlas was a black color and in the shape of an ear stud. It gave his upright appearance a hint of rebellious charm, reducing the resistance many students have towards model students. 

"Everyone, please listen to me for a moment. It is 7:40 a.m and we still have some time before the instructor gets here. I would like us to use this time to introduce ourselves and get to know one another."

The murmurs from the back increased rapidly and Zane shook his hands rapidly, "It is not compulsory and I am not forcing anyone but this is a full year course and we might have to do group assessments in teams. Getting to know each other now would be beneficial in the long run. I will go first."

"My name is Zane Black Valois. You can just call me Zane. I am a level 1 sniper. I registered with the Department of Research and I hope to choose Alchemist as my subclass. I am very excited to start raiding dungeons."

The murmurs grew even louder, not escaping Zane's ears.

"Zane Black, isn't that the 2nd rank student in CAT? How can he choose a sniper class?" A bald boy all but whispered.

"Are you crazy? Where did you hear Black, I heard Valois, wait Valois?'

"No wonder he looked so familiar, I must have seen him on the web."

The boy sitting next to Zane stood up. He was taller than Zane, arguably the tallest in the class. 

"I am Jet. Awakened three weeks ago. I am a level 2 gunslinger. I have already raided a dungeon. Registered with the Department of Combat. I am a member of the Whitebane club." Although he presented to the class, his line of sight was singularly focused on Avery.

Loud gasps sounded in the class. Jet's portfolio was really amazing, awakened not long ago and was already in level 2. Had already raided a dungeon and much more importantly, was a member of a prestigious, exclusive club.

Zane did not only show the shocked and awed expression others showed, but he also added a, 'Very impressive.'

Avery didn't seem to notice the students' admiration of Jet. She got up slowly. Zane was really curious so he turned his attention back to the girl, the officer that helped him with his registration had claimed that she had a very good class.

"My name is Avery Millox. I am from the Department of Combat. I am a level 2 Winged Sniper." 

As if to dispel all doubts, she floated above her desk. Long white feathered wings protruded from her shoulder blades. After her performance, she sat back to a stunned class but not before throwing Zane a look of pure disdain.

Zane endured her look, it was a wonderful class after all. 

Everyone was silent for a while and even Jet sat down quietly on his seat.

This was not good. Zane thought to himself. It was no secret that this lady had a bone to pick with him so she launched such a show to destroy his little information gathering scheme. Or maybe he was just overthinking.

As he bothered over a joke or a speech to crack the ice, a boy that sat not too far from him stood up hesitantly. He had short, straight brown hair with a dotting of freckles across his face and light brown eyes.

"My..my name is Oliver Knight. I am a student...I mean I was a student of Alliance Preparatory School. I am now a student of Amherst College. I...I am eighteen years old and I…"

"Oliver." A cold voice sounded clearly amongst the low chuckles that were emerging. 

The voice seemed to calm the boy down, because he continued more confidently, "I am from the Department of Logistics and Support. Level 1 Twin Ranger."

Zane looked at the girl that sat on the seat next to Oliver. She has similar features, short brown hair with light brown eyes. Her hair was cut even shorter than the boy and her face was cold.

"Olivia Knight. Department of Combat. Level 1 Twin Ranger."

Zane nodded. This type of person would score high points in the summary part of a language exam.

Many were eager to introduce themselves and more students trooped into the class.

At 8 a.m, Zane signalled for them to stop the introduction and they wanted for the teacher. The teacher was punctual, coming into the class a minute after 8 a.m.

Zane caught sight of that bright red hair and kind green eyes. He froze. His back was covered with sweat and goosebumps danced on his skin.

How...How could this person be here?