Allen knew something had happened yesterday.

He was one of the students assigned a room near Professor Adrian and the headmistress' room, sharing it with Michael.

He was awake at that time so he faintly heard someone shouting from the neighbouring room. However, since he and the other students were restricted from wandering around, he respected the rules and stayed in his room.

However, he lost his patience when a huge explosion occurred, and he, along with Michael, which was surprising since Allen thought that he was sleeping, burst out of their rooms.

Fortunately, there were other students too, including Sylvie and Elana, who were trying to look at the scene. But the officers had barricaded the room…which belonged to Professor Adrian.

At that time, the only thought that came to his mind was, 'Why does he always get surrounded by trouble?'

Last night, he hadn't been able to make sense of anything—and the fact that Adrian was involved nearly pushed Elana over the edge. Everyone was stunned to witness someone radiating such overwhelming mana, capable of influencing her surroundings even without her armament.

But thankfully, soon the Headmistress came out and assured everyone that everything was fine.

Now, in the morning, they were sitting in the meeting room given to each team for pre- and post-round meetings.

Allen's eyes turned toward the Ice Princess across from him.

Her beauty…takes away his breath. She is an attractive girl, but the air she emits deters people from approaching her.

The way she sits and constantly looks at nothing particular… gives her a peculiar charm.

Even her smallest gesture makes her appear stunning.

"It seems you aren't satisfied just with Olivia." A familiar voice broke his daze as he glanced at Sylvie.

She was reading a book, but it didn't seem she was paying attention to the highlighted lines at all.

"Just because I admire someone, it doesn't mean I am aiming for her." Leaning closer, he added, "And things between me and Olivia are quite good."

Sylvie scoffed, "Even if you have some thoughts about Elana, you should already give up. She is head over heels for the Professor."

"Professor Adrian?" His brows elevated.

Sylvie seemed surprised now, "You didn't realize it?" With a sigh, she added, "The way her demeanor shifts and the frost around her melts, I thought it must have been quite obvious for everyone."

Allen hummed, "But their age difference, and they are teacher and student."

Sylvie shrugged, "Elana is eighteen and the Professor is twenty-three. And in a few months, she will graduate, so there won't be any boundary separating them."

Allen was surprised. He wasn't actually aware of Adrian's age…which was a surprise since, at such a young age, he had gained a reputation in the academy.

But then he suddenly grinned, "You know a lot about the Professor. By any chance, you are also-"

A book came flying toward him, and Allen had no time to dodge.

*THWAP*

Everyone turned toward Allen, who had his face pressed against the book.

Sylvie huffed and opened another book, "Idiot…"

Soon, the door of the room parted, and the man for whom everyone was waiting walked in.

Allen removed the book and looked at Elana curiously.

And as Sylvie said, her expression shifted.

She instantly corrected her posture and combed her hair with her fingers. Her pale white cheeks faintly glowed, and all while with her eyes focused on the bespectacled man.

'She really is…' he softly chuckled.

Adrian stood before the whiteboard and looked at his students.

His eyes went toward Michael for a moment, wanting to see if he had any reaction to last night's failure.

However, as expected of the villain of this arc, he retained his calm façade.

'Only if I can get rid of him right now…' Exhaling a sigh to remove the dark thoughts, he called out, "Close your books and put your notes away. I don't want to see any student reading anything or discussing anything about the test."

Sylvie followed his words and stuffed the book in the bag. Others, too, did the same thing.

All eyes were on Adrian as his hazelnut-shaded eyes swept over the room before he continued, "You've already learned everything you needed to. You've gone through all the notes and information required to earn your place on this team. So be confident—go out there with the mindset of sharing your knowledge, not treating it like a test."

Aries seemed pumped up while Elana gave a firm nod, showing dedication from her upright posture.

Adrian might not be the best motivator, but he does bring calmness.

There was a brief pause before Adrian told them, "I know you all must be already aware of what you should or should not do; I still would like to remind you. So listen carefully."

Raising his index finger, he said, "You cannot take anything to the room, not any note or a single extra thing other than your clothes. Remember, there are female officers too who would check every student." Sylvie shifted uncomfortably in her seat—bothered about the inspection.

The second finger, "You all will be given the same question paper, which you first need to discuss and give your answer to Elana, who will be submitting the final paper." Elana was in charge of the team, so no one questioned that.

The third finger rose, "There would be three officers constantly looking over you so behave and don't fight under any circumstances."

The fourth one, "You will be given three hours to finish the paper. Even if you finish the paper before, don't ask to leave the room."

"And finally, to pass the test, you need to answer at least sixty out of eighty questions. Each question carries four marks and a wrong answer would deduct one mark."

That was a great point of concern…the negative marking. They would end up losing more if they confidently answered everything. That's why they need to be very careful while making a decision.

Taking a pause, Adrian told them, "There might arise a situation where you can't get the majority of votes on any answer. So, in that case, leave that question."

Everyone gave a firm nod, ready to face the challenge.

Adrian smiled at them and said, "Whatever happens, remember I would be proud of you all. Now, start moving out."

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A/N:- Thanks for reading. I will keep the test brief, no info dump. Drop a comment.