Chapter 37: Crafty Success

The question hit White right in his chest, and she could see it.

He recoiled, taking a step back, his mouth opening to speak, but nothing came out as he opened and closed it twice.

He turned away from her for a moment, then his eyes lit up as if he had finally thought of something.

He reached back, scratching the back of his head as he spoke.

"I don’t know. Maybe because I’ve fallen for your beauty?"

He said with a goofy smile, but that only confirmed things for Nova.

"That’s not true."

"Hmm?"

"I know what a person crushing another looks like, and I can’t sense that from you. You don’t have a crush on me."

She said matter-of-factly, and judging by her unimpressed expression, White couldn’t bring himself to defend.

Under her intense stare that revealed that his next choice of words may very well depend on what she would do next, his goofy smile slowly faded.

His expression turned emotionless, and quietly, he sat on the ground, looking blankly at his feet.

He remained staring blankly for a while before he raised his head, saying.

"Come closer, I want to tell you a story."

At first, she thought it was a way to lure her away from the mountain’s edge, but as he turned his gaze to his feet, a flurry of emotions flickered in his eyes, as if he were deciding how best to reveal whatever he was planning.

Curiosity got the better of her, and she stepped closer, eventually sitting beside him.

When she did, he remained quiet for a while before, all of a sudden, his hands sprang forward, grabbing her arms.

"What are you?"

She screamed, but White ignored it, exerting more force and picking her up from the ground before throwing her over his shoulder, like a sack.

"Put me down!"

She protested, kicking in a flurry, but he ignored her, grabbing both legs in a tight hold of his palm.

"Shut up, you idiot."

BAAANG!

BAAANG!

Her fists slammed into his back, but he remained unflinching.

He could see the teleporter that led out of her realm up front. One that had been formed by the Health Instructor.

"YOU! I swear I’ll just come back in here, and I’ll be jumping this time!"

She threatened, but all her words fell on deaf ears.

White carried her all the way into the teleporter before jumping in, both disappearing from the grass field.

______

In the real world...

GASPS!

A shocking gasp escaped into the air as White snapped up from the bed.

His hands reached for his back, which stung with pain, and he grumbled in annoyance.

"You’re back! Are you alright? Any weakness you feel that’s not physical?"

The health instructor asked, and he shook his head.

"Not really."

He said, and she exhaled quietly, but then,

GASSSPS!

An even louder and deeper gasp brought her attention as she turned behind her, just to find Nova’s eyes widened, a blue flicker illuminating the room.

It dimmed after a moment, and she looked around the room, taking in the sight of the new environment.

Her face morphed into one of anger at the sight of that face.

"You bastard!"

She screamed, reaching for White, but he never reached for her as the Health Instructor appeared before her, her hands grabbing at her head before she could react.

A green glow flared from her hands, and Nova’s eyes glowed green for a moment before they slowly dimmed, and the health instructor took back her hands.

"What...What did you do?"

Nova asked, feeling something was missing in her.

"The cut in your brain allowed you to access your mind space. I’ve locked it completely, making sure you’ll never be able to slip back into your mind space, unless you reach the Cosmos Level."

She replied, and Nova clicked her tongue while White grinned.

With one easy swerve, he easily got down from the hospital bed, making his way to the teleporter.

"Thank you for your help."

The Health Instructor said.

"This was my job, and I shouldn’t have involved another student."

"Don’t worry about it. I definitely had fun doing it."

He claimed, before giving a sideways glance to Nova.

"See you in class tomorrow."

"Tch."

She clicked her tongue in obvious annoyance, and White rolled his eyes.

He had only moved a couple of steps when all of a sudden, he paused, the world around him growing blurry.

’What’s happe...’

The thought wasn’t completed before his eyes rolled to the back of his head, and he fell to the ground, unconscious.

He was knocked out cold.

The health instructor reached him fast, her hands reached forward and placed on his forehead, as a green glow flickered around her palms, dispersing into him.

"Is he okay?"

Nova asked, and the Health Instructor turned to her.

"He’s been exhausted from the classes in the day. Having to dive into your mind space right after worsened his exhaustion, and his body gave out."

"He’s okay. But he needs rest."

"Can I ask you to help him to his dorm room?"

"What?"

"A student normally shouldn’t be able to do that. But I can bind your card’s authority together, just so you can help him to his room...only for tonight."

She said, and while her face revealed an obvious scowl, the sight of him being unconscious, and knowing he was like that only because of her, left her unable to muster a no.

She rose from her bed before she took him from the health instructor.

"Don’t do anything weird."

She reminded her, and Nova’s face grew red from the thought, though she managed to hide that within her cold expression.

Without a word, she took him away, both disappearing from the hall through the teleporter.

It left only the health instructor who returned to her desk, quickly flickering through the hanging holographs in the air.

’And finally done.’

She mused, tapping on a holograph, the rest of it disappearing.

Her hands moved to her watch, and she tapped, looking at the bed white previously laid on going back into the ground.

’He deserves a reward...’