The following week started like any other. Morning lectures on advanced mana theory, afternoon combat drills, and evening free time for personal training or relaxation. Lukas continued his routine of attending classes, participating when required, and otherwise letting his system work in the background.
[Current Stats: Strength 254, Agility 254, Mana 254, Endurance 254]
His growth was consistent and reliable, and at this rate he'd probably break three hundred across all stats within another week.
It was during a break between classes that Lukas first noticed something off when he'd gone to the library to return some books. Elena was sitting alone at one of the study tables with her posture tense and her eyes occasionally glancing toward the entrance like she was watching for something.
Three girls approached her table, and Lukas recognized them vaguely as Beta Class students though he didn't know their names. They stood around Elena's table and one of them said something that made Elena's expression tighten, though she responded calmly enough. The conversation continued for a minute with the three girls clearly saying something that made Elena uncomfortable based on how her shoulders hunched slightly and her grip on her pen tightened.
One of the girls reached over and knocked Elena's carefully organized stack of notes off the table, and papers scattered across the floor in a chaotic mess. The three girls laughed and walked away while Elena quickly dropped to her knees and started gathering the papers with hands that trembled slightly as she collected everything and tucked them back into her notebook before leaving the library without looking at anyone.
Lukas watched from his position near the bookshelves for a moment before returning his books and heading to his next class.
The next day, Lukas was walking through the courtyard between classes when he saw Elena sitting on a bench and reading through her notebook. The same three girls from yesterday approached her again, and this time he was close enough to hear parts of their conversation.
"Still carrying that stupid notebook everywhere?" one of the girls said with a mocking tone. "What are you even writing in there?"
"Research notes," Elena said quietly without looking up from her page.
"Research," another girl laughed. "You're in Alpha Class because you got lucky with the team assignment, and everyone knows you're not actually strong enough to be there."
"My placement was based on entrance exam scores like everyone else," Elena replied with a voice that was steady but strained.
"Sure it was," the third girl said. "Must be nice hiding behind actually talented people while pretending you belong."
The girls continued mocking her for another minute before getting bored and walking away, and Elena sat there alone while staring down at her notebook with an expression that looked like she was trying very hard not to show any emotion.
Lukas continued walking to his next class.
That evening, the team met for dinner as they usually did. Marcus, Kieran, Theo, Elena, and Lukas gathered at their usual table in the dining hall, though Elena was noticeably quieter than normal and barely contributed to the conversation while mostly pushing food around her plate.
"You okay?" Marcus asked her with genuine concern in his voice. "You seem out of it today."
"I'm fine," Elena said quickly, perhaps a bit too quickly. "Just tired from classes."
Kieran raised an eyebrow but didn't push the matter, and they continued eating while talking about the upcoming tournament details that had been released earlier that day.
After dinner, as they were leaving the dining hall, Marcus pulled Lukas aside with a worried expression on his face.
"Hey, did you notice Elena seemed really off tonight?" Marcus asked quietly so the others wouldn't hear.
"She said she was tired," Lukas replied simply.
"Yeah, but I don't think that's all of it," Marcus continued. "Kieran mentioned he saw some Beta Class girls hassling her yesterday in the courtyard, and apparently they were giving her a hard time about being in Alpha Class."
"Mm," Lukas responded noncommittally.
Marcus studied his face for a moment before asking, "Did you see anything?"
"I saw them talking in the library yesterday," Lukas admitted.
"And?" Marcus pressed.
"And nothing," Lukas said. "She left after they did."
Marcus frowned deeply at that response. "So you just watched and didn't say anything to help her?"
"She didn't seem like she wanted interference," Lukas pointed out.
"She's our teammate, Lukas," Marcus said with frustration creeping into his voice. "We should have her back regardless of whether she asks for it or not."
"She knows where we are if she needs something," Lukas replied calmly.
Marcus shook his head with clear disappointment showing on his face. "That's not how it works, and you know it. Sometimes people need help even if they don't ask for it directly."
Lukas didn't respond to that, and Marcus muttered "whatever" under his breath before walking away while clearly upset about the conversation.
Lukas returned to his dorm and spent the evening reading through some combat theory texts he'd borrowed.
**[You have been idle for 4 hours]**
**[+4 to all stats]**
**[Current Stats: Strength 258, Agility 258, Mana 258, Endurance 258]**
The next day during afternoon combat practice, Lukas noticed things getting noticeably worse. Elena arrived late to the training grounds with a flustered expression and her uniform slightly disheveled while clutching her notebook tightly to her chest like it was a lifeline.
Professor Kaine noticed immediately and called out, "Cross, you're late. Is there a problem?"
"No, Professor. I apologize," Elena said quickly while hurrying to join the rest of the class.
During the training exercises that followed, Elena's performance was significantly worse than her usual standard. Her spell casting was sloppy and imprecise, her concentration was clearly scattered, and she seemed distracted by something. At one point during a sparring drill, she completely missed her cue and left her partner exposed to an attack that could have been dangerous if this wasn't just practice.
Professor Kaine stopped the exercise immediately and called out, "Cross, what's going on? Your performance today is completely unacceptable and not up to Alpha Class standards."
"I'm sorry, Professor," Elena said with a voice that shook slightly. "I'll do better, I promise."
Professor Kaine studied her for a long moment with a critical eye before sighing. "Take a break and get your head together before you rejoin the exercises."
Elena stepped out of the training circle and sat on a nearby bench while staring down at her hands, and Lukas could see from where he stood that her shoulders were shaking slightly.
After class ended, Marcus immediately went over to Elena while Lukas was gathering his equipment nearby and could hear their conversation clearly.
"Elena, what happened today? Why were you late?" Marcus asked gently.
Elena hesitated for several seconds before speaking quietly, "Those girls from Beta Class cornered me after last period. They took my notebook and wouldn't give it back for ten minutes, so I had to chase them around just to get it back."
"That's harassment," Marcus said with anger creeping into his voice. "You should report them to a professor or the academy administration."
"I can handle it," Elena insisted while gripping her notebook tighter. "I don't want to make a big deal out of this."
"This is already a big deal," Marcus argued. "They're specifically targeting you, and now it's affecting your performance in class."
"I said I can handle it!" Elena's voice rose slightly and drew a few glances from nearby students, which made her take a deep breath and lower her voice again. "I appreciate your concern, Marcus, but I really need to deal with this myself."
Marcus looked like he wanted to argue more but held back whatever he was going to say. "Okay, fine. But if it gets any worse than this, please tell someone, because you have friends here who want to help."
Elena nodded quickly and then walked away while still clutching her notebook close.
Marcus turned around and saw Lukas nearby, so he walked over with a frustrated expression clearly visible on his face.
"You heard all of that, right?" Marcus asked.
"I heard," Lukas confirmed.
"And you're still not going to do anything about this situation?"
"She specifically said she wants to handle it herself," Lukas pointed out calmly.
"She's clearly struggling and suffering because of these girls!" Marcus said with his voice rising. "As her team leader and her friend, shouldn't you care about that?"
"Then she'll either figure it out on her own or she'll ask for help when she's ready," Lukas replied.
Marcus stared at him for a long moment with an expression that was equal parts disbelief and disappointment. "I don't understand you sometimes, Lukas. You're strong enough to solve this problem in five minutes, but you're actively choosing not to do anything."
He walked away without waiting for a response, and Lukas finished gathering his equipment before heading back to his dorm.
**[You have been idle for 8 hours]**
**[+8 to all stats]**
**[Current Stats: Strength 266, Agility 266, Mana 266, Endurance 266]**
The next morning, Lukas woke up and found a note that had been slipped under his door during the night.
*Lukas,*
*The situation with Elena is getting significantly worse. Those Beta Class girls are escalating their harassment. Marcus is pretty upset about your stance on this whole thing. Just giving you a heads up so you know what's happening.*
*—K*
Lukas read the note, folded it, and set it aside on his desk.
As he made his way to morning classes, he saw Elena in the hallway walking ahead of him with her head down and clutching her notebook like usual. The same three girls from before were following several steps behind her while saying something loud enough that other students in the hallway turned to look and whisper among themselves.
Elena's shoulders were tense and hunched, but she kept walking without responding or turning around to acknowledge them. The girls eventually got bored after a minute or so and split off in a different direction while laughing among themselves about something.
Elena disappeared around a corner, and Lukas continued walking to his class.
During the morning lecture, Marcus sat next to him instead of taking his usual spot with some other classmates. He didn't say anything for the first half of the class and just took notes while listening to the professor explain advanced mana circulation theories.
Halfway through the lecture, Marcus leaned over and spoke quietly enough that only Lukas could hear, "Kieran talked to Elena last night after dinner. She apparently broke down crying and said she doesn't know what to do anymore about those girls."
Lukas didn't respond and kept his eyes focused on the professor at the front.
"She's trying to handle everything on her own because she doesn't want to seem weak or incapable to everyone else," Marcus continued in that same quiet voice. "But it's clearly eating her up inside, and she's falling apart."
Lukas kept his attention on the lecture.
"I know you probably have your reasons for not getting involved in this," Marcus said after a pause. "I just hope you're okay with watching someone suffer because of whatever principles you're holding onto."
The lecture ended a few minutes later, and Marcus gathered his things and left without saying another word or looking at Lukas.
Lukas collected his notes and headed to his next class while processing what Marcus had said but not coming to any particular conclusion about it.
The rest of the day passed with the usual routine of training and studying. Elena was notably absent from afternoon combat practice, which Professor Kaine marked in her records with visible disapproval and a comment about how missing practice would affect her evaluation scores.
That evening, Lukas was in his dorm room reading when there was a knock on the door. He opened it to find Kieran standing there with a serious expression that was unusual for him.
"Got a minute to talk?" Kieran asked.
"Sure, come in," Lukas said while stepping aside.
Kieran entered and leaned against the wall near the desk. "So, Elena skipped combat practice today, which is the first time she's ever done that since classes started. Marcus is genuinely worried that she's going to fall too far behind and get moved down to Beta Class because of her recent performance."
"She's smart and capable," Lukas said. "She'll figure something out eventually."
"Will she though?" Kieran asked while looking directly at him. "Because from where I'm standing and from what I've been hearing, she's actively spiraling downward. Those girls have been harassing her consistently for almost a week now, and it's clearly getting worse each day. Today they apparently spread rumors around Beta Class that she cheated on the entrance exam to get into Alpha."
Lukas didn't respond to that information.
"Look, I'm not here to lecture you or tell you what to do with your life," Kieran continued. "But I figured you should at least know the full picture of what's happening. Elena's situation is objectively bad and getting progressively worse each day. Whether you personally care about that fact or not is completely up to you."
He left without waiting for a response, and Lukas closed the door before sitting on his bed and staring at the ceiling while thinking about nothing in particular.
[You have been idle for 6 hours]
[+6 to all stats]
[Current Stats: Strength 272, Agility 272, Mana 272, Endurance 272]
Tomorrow would bring new developments in this situation, but for now Lukas simply lay in his room and let time pass while his system continued working in the background