The Villain Is Destined to Die: But as the Creator, I know All Endings Chapter 97: Singles [2]

In a world where blood dictates worth, nothing offends nobles more than rit.

The crystal board flickered to life. A soft blue light spread across the classroom walls.

All conversations halted.

Every student present in Class S knew what was about to appear.

This was the mont they had been waiting for.

One hundred nas. One hundred ranks.

A single number that would decide their standing for the next few years.

For the nobles, this was more than a number. It was the weight of their family na. Their rank was not just their pride but their house’s pride as well.

A few students straightened their backs. So crossed their arms, confident in their own performance. Others gripped their desks, unable to fully hide their nervous expression.

A single number could lift soone to glory or crush them beneath the weight of their arrogance.

Then the nas appeared all at once.

Every head tilted up. Every eye locked on the glowing board.

They began to scan the list carefully, each one searching for their rank. But before anyone could get far, the room froze.

Their gazes didn’t move past the top.

Rank 01 — Ethan Graves

Rank 02 — Leon Valentine

Rank 03 — Rinna Lunovar

...

...

Rank 100 — Tia Rudward

A sharp silence followed right after.

Every noble-born eye in the room stopped on the first na, then slowly drifted to the second.

Even Rinna’s usual composed expression hardened. Her blue eyes moved back and forth across the board, as if she were reading it wrong. But the nas didn’t change.

Two people stood above her.

"No way..." soone whispered.

A ripple of disbelief spread through the room.

Esther, standing near the board with folded arms, watched their faces one by one. She noticed the mouths of a few noble brats hanging open, their pride visibly shattered.

This was not what they expected.

Before entering Eclipse, every noble in this room had studied the list of "promising talents." They knew each other’s nas. They knew which houses would dominate the top. And in that list, Rinna Lunovar was the potential candidate.

All knew just how talented she was.

But among those lists, the top two nas dominated even hers.

"Ethan Graves...?" a voice muttered from the second row. "And... Leon Valentine..."

The First one wasn’t a noble house na.

That could only an one thing.

A commoner had taken Rank 01 this year.

— — —

[Leon’s PoV]

Leon stared at the glowing board; his gaze landed on the number beside his na.

Rank 02.

He wasn’t surprised.

In fact, it was about where he had expected to land. Top 5 was guaranteed, but second place wasn’t bad at all.

’Well... Rank 02.’

He leaned back slightly, resting his elbow on the desk.

’I can live with that.’

Beside him, Ethan let out a low whistle.

"Rank 2, huh?" he said, glancing at Leon with a grin that was a mix of surprise and mischief. "I guess we’re rivals now."

Leon didn’t bother looking at him. "Rivals? Don’t get ahead of yourself."

Ethan chuckled, clearly enjoying the mont. "Co on, let have this. Rank 1 versus Rank 2. Sounds kinda cool, right?"

Leon sighed inwardly.

’Ethan is hopeless.’

He didn’t look threatened or smug. He was genuinely excited.

And honestly, Leon didn’t hate that energy.

Ethan had seen what Leon did during the Shinra incident. He wasn’t blind to his strength, and that was why he wasn’t shocked to see him ranked second, right below him. But the fact that he himself ca out on top clearly added a little spark of pride in him.

Leon shifted his gaze back to the board. And as he did, he saw Professor Esther’s gaze fall on him for a short second.

His attention wavered as nurous gazes pierced in their direction.

Ethan and Leon were sitting side by side; they both felt the envy, the jealousy, and the confusion among the gazes.

But what made Leon more curious was Rinna’s reaction. She stared more at him than at Ethan.

"..."

Leon’s eye twitched.

He didn’t like it at all.

In the original story, she was supposed to look at Ethan and not him. For her, for the entire year, Leon was nonexistent till he died.

Of course, Leon had decided not to bother her, as the old Leon had done enough.

’I don’t want to ruin my reputation again,’ he thought.

Just as Professor Esther was about to speak, Kian, who was from Rinna’s group, suddenly stood up from his desk.

"I am not buying this ranking!" he shouted.

Leon didn’t even flinch. He had seen this coming.

In the original story, Kian had thrown a fit at this exact mont. He had pointed at Ethan in front of everyone, questioning the results and mocking him as unworthy of the top rank.

Leon leaned back against his seat, a small smile tugging at his lips.

’I was waiting for this. I wonder how Ethan will handle him this ti.’

But Kian’s next words made Leon freeze.

"Leon Valentine! How could he rank second?!"

’What... what?’

Leon’s eye twitched. He straightened his posture imdiately.

’The hell... he changed his target.’

Kian glared at Esther first, then turned his head sharply toward the back, locking eyes with Leon. Leon simply stared back. He didn’t flinch or react.

"Prince Kian... No. Mr. Kian. Are you saying there is an error in the evaluation?" Said Esther.

Kian opened his mouth, ready to spit sothing out, but Esther didn’t give him the chance.

"Sorry to break your bubble, but the Class S ranking was conducted by a special group of professionals. Even the Headmaster himself was involved in the evaluation," she said, folding her arms.

Her gaze sharpened; after a pause, she added.

"If you are doubting this result, then you are questioning the very man who shaped Eclipse all these years. You know who he was before he beca Headmaster, right?"

The room went quiet again.

Kian’s lips pressed together.

No one in their right mind would challenge Headmaster Raizen. He was known across the entire Kingdom of Liora.

To question him was to question the entire foundation of Eclipse. And Kian wasn’t foolish enough to get on his bad side.

"But how can he be there, even above Princess Rinna?" he muttered under his breath.

Leon stared at him in disbelief.

’How can soone not feel embarrassed saying that in front of the whole class?’

’I wonder what kind of garbage goes through their heads.’

Esther let out a small grin.

"Sure. If you doubt the decision, you can always check for yourself."

Kian froze.

Everyone knew what that ant.

A duel.

Leon leaned his cheek on his hand. ’Yeah, no thanks. I’m good.’

"Now sit," Esther said sharply. Kian clenched his jaw but obeyed, lowering himself into his seat.

’What a clown,’ Leon thought.

"Congratulations to all of you," Esther continued, her voice returning to its usual composed tone.

"Moving forward, let’s proceed with the activities you need to complete. Since Class S is special, we will skip basic theories. I know you all have the knowledge, and it would be a waste to teach you again. Unlike other classes, Class S will be given priority in all events first."

Leon recalled the next portion.

’Alright, I nearly forgot about this.’

"That being said, I want all of you to move to the weapon storehouse now."

A few confused looks spread across the room.

Esther glared one final ti, and that was all it took.

"This portion is mandatory. Move quickly."

— — —

The students followed Esther down the long corridor toward the weapon storehouse.

Every student in Class S knew what this event was.

It was the first privilege Class S received after entering Eclipse. A chance to choose their own weapon for free from the Academy’s armory.

Esther walked in front, her black coat swaying lightly.

Leon noticed that, few students, especially males, walked way too closely behind her.

’They are courting death itself.’ Leon prayed in his mind.

"You will each select a weapon or tool of your choice from the storehouse," she said calmly. "Rember, once chosen, changing it later will be a complicated process, so think carefully."

After walking out of the academy zone, where classes were located. Leon found himself standing before an old classic building.

It resembled a palace, and up close, it looked like it hadn’t been getting cleaned for ages.

Unlike all the places in Eclipse, this specific building stood out in a bad way.

Leon looked around and saw that all the faces had the sa expression as his.

"What is this haunted place?"

It was Ethan who spoke.

Leon turned his head to him and said, "Who knows, it might be grand from inside."

They moved further inside.

Leon could sll burning tal around him.

"Wait here," Esther said as they all stopped before a giant rusty tallic door.

Professor Esther moved closer to the door; straight-faced, she knocked on a little slider at the corner.

"Hey, why is the door closed?" She said loudly, "Didn’t I say that we would be visiting today?"

She sounded annoyed.

Leon and Ethan exchanged glances.

Clang–!

The small slider opened, and from there a pair of black eyes looked back at Esther, annoyed.

They stared at each other for a while.

After a long silence, a gravelly voice ca out.

"Esther, aye*?" He said with a quirky accent, "I though* I banned you from mah* forge the other day. Why are you here again? You* really lookin* for trouble this ti, aye?"

A few students froze.

Esther sighed as if this were nothing new. She took out a paper and flashed it before his eyes.

"Just open the door, old man."

.

.

[A/N: Those ’*’ words are intentional. Anyways, we are close to 300 PS for extra chs, lets see if we can make it...]