Kain felt on top of the world.
One would think that since he’d shared this position with Serena before, it wouldn’t feel that new for him.
But it was.
It was absolutely new.
Because this time, it was just him.
No asterisk. No ‘technically tied.’ No reluctant sharing of the throne with an emotionally confusing, terrifyingly competent girl who smiled like a goddess and crushed people with horrifying strength.
No half-hearted proclamations of his status as Rank 1, tacked on absentmindedly because people kept forgetting that he technically had the position too!
It was just Kain. All the glory belonged to him and him alone.
And he was thriving.
The closing ceremony of the Re-Ranking Tournament had been everything he dreamed of and more. Professors nodded at him with grudging respect. Fellow students clapped. The scoreboard in the central tower now displayed one name at the top: Kain Newman. Not Kain and Serena. Not Rank 1a and 1b. Just. Kain.
He’d almost cried.
Almost.
That would’ve been unbecoming of Rank 1.
First-years pointed as he walked by: “That’s Kain—the Rank 1!”
His chest puffed up. Slightly. Then some more when he noticed even more people had looked his way at the yell.
He found himself walking slower, more majestically. Imagining theme music in his head. Sometimes he timed his steps to it. It had a good beat.
He was now the main character of the College. The protagonist of every hallway gossip, the headline of every unofficial student newsletter. Kain had considered commissioning his own statue. Not a big one. Just… life-size. With a dramatic pose.
Then came the party.
A celebration thrown by his loyal, wonderful, and suspiciously kind friends…
Addison baked her signature character cookies—only this time, she only made Kain-themed versions. There was an edible Aegis. A new small spore-like Chewy. Vauleth looking like an adorable chubby baby red dragon. Queen and several dozen guard cookies. And somehow, perhaps with the help of Serena, she’d even made a rough guess at what Bea looked like…although it was quite far off the mark. But Bea still loved the thought that she was finally included amongst the character cookies.
Leonara brought decorations.
Elias brought drinks.
Bridge was extra exuberant and almost broke Kain’s ribs with the strength of his hug.
And Serena?
She came too.
She walked in like it wasn’t her loss they were celebrating, offered Kain a drink, and smiled.
A real genuine smile.
Not her “disdainful ice princess” smile. A soft, content kind of smile.
And Kain’s brain completely fried at the visual overload.
It felt wrong to celebrate in front of the loser… but she showed up anyway. She even raised a toast.
Kain couldn’t remember what she said.
Only that it made his heart flutter and his stomach twist.
Everything was perfect.
Except—
RECORD SCRATCH
“What do you mean we’re not switching rooms?!”
Kain stood in front of the Rank 1 dorm room, bags packed, arms flailing, betrayal written all over his face.
His so-called ‘friends’ stood between him and his new room. All of them were already inside the Top 5 building, standing in front of Serena’s room like some kind of intervention circle.
“How did you even get in here?” Kain demanded.
Elias shrugged, holding a tablet for some reason. “Bribed the guard. Maybe flashed Serena’s endorsement letter. Who’s to say?”
“I’m to say!”
Addison stepped forward, hands clasped together. “Kain, listen. You already get all the Rank 1 benefits. More resources. Priority missions. Credits. Why do you need one little room?”
Leonara nodded. “And moving all your stuff is such a hassle. Think of the logistics.”
Bridge, with what may have been the first words he’d spoken all day, added, “Also… she likes her room.”
“She can like it somewhere else!” Kain shouted.
Elias gave him a pitying look. “Kain. The Dean already signed off on Serena keeping the room. He even said he’d give you extra credits and resources.”
Kain’s eye twitched.
“The Dean?! How long have you guys been plotting behind my back?!”
Silence.
Then the flashbacks hit.
The girls had asked him—so sweetly—to delay switching rooms. “Just a week,” Serena said. “I need time to pack.”
Addison had made him extra cookies.
Leonara offered to give him a massage.
Aiden and Finn insisted on taking notes for him in his classes.
Bridge kept calling him “generous.”
Elias had literally bowed once and called him “The Gracious Champion of Supreme Mercy.”
Even Serena had smiled at him. Smiled and touched his arm.
He had been played.
He turned his head away, dramatically. “No. I want the room.”
They blinked.
He pointed toward Serena’s door. “I’ve wanted that room since my first year. When I assumed it was rightfully mine. I want the bed. The bathroom. The floor tiles. Everything.”
Addison tried the guilt-trip approach. “But Kain… she’s your girlfriend.”
“No, she’s not!”
Leonara followed up. “Be a gentleman.”
“What is this gentleman? Can I eat it?!”
Aiden sighed. “Technically, it’s a sociocultural archetype that—”
“Not helping!” Kain snapped.
Elias pulled up a full PowerPoint presentation on his tablet screen titled “Why Serena Should Stay Where She Is (And How Kain Will Still Be Rank 1 If She Does).”
The argument went on for hours.
Kain argued.
They pleaded.
Serena came out halfway through, looked at the group camped outside her door, tilted her head, and said, “Still?”
Kain’s heart nearly leapt out of his chest.
She smiled.
His knees almost gave out.
He pointed at her door after steeling his weakening spine. “I want it.”
She raised a (perfectly arched) eyebrow. “You can have it. They were the ones who insisted on ‘helping me,’ particularly Addison and Leonara. Although it is a hassle to move, so I wouldn’t turn down the offer to stay where I am.”
“…I’ll think about it.”
Three hours.
Four arguments.
One failed PowerPoint presentation.
Elias got a cramp from standing too long.
Chewy fell asleep on Kain’s suitcase.
Bea defected and joined Serena’s side after analyzing the points of both sides.
For good measure, a wild bronze-quality bird flew in through an open window and perched delicately on Serena’s shoulder—an iridescent golden-feathered Fortune Jay, a species that is quite weak but so rare it was said to only appear to those blessed by fate itself. It chirped once, nuzzled her cheek, and stayed—just to emphasize how much the universe was not on Kain’s side.
…
Kain did not get the room.
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