“Damnit, damnit, DAMNIT!” *Crash* “How!? How is this possible!? I’m supposed to be better! He’s nothing but a copper rank, a filthy nobody! And yet…How did he get a better grade than me?”

  *CRASH*

  “And then he goes and gets such a high score in his other class! This is unacceptable! He can’t be better than me! He must have cheated somehow.”

  “...”

  *CRASH*

  “That stupid,” *SMASH* “little,” *CRACK* “Insignificant,” *PSSH* “MOTHER FUCKER!”

  “I’ll make him pay for making me look like a fool. I’ll show him somehow. *pant* *pant* *pant*” A young man stood in the middle of his destroyed room, panting as his mind raced with anger.

  *knock knock*

  “WHAT!?”

  From the other side of his room door, a voice spoke, “Is this Darren’s room?”

  “Who’s asking?” Darren cracked the door open.

  Outside, a middle-aged man with black hair that had a white streak stood. He had large, round glasses and wore a white lab coat.

  “I’m Professor Al, Al C. Hemy. I’m the chemistry instructor. I’ve come looking for you.”

  Darren stepped outside of his room, standing tall. “What do you want?”

  “I’m looking for a willing participant to test out a new medicine I’ve been working on, and you seem like the perfect test subject.”

  “I thought you were the chemistry instructor? Why are you making medicine?” Darren asked.

  Al adjusted his glasses. “I’m also an apothecary, or more commonly known as a pharmacist. I develop new experimental medicines.”

  Darren crossed his arms. “Uh huh…so what’s this about looking for a test subject? Cause I ain’t no one’s guinea pig.”

  “Right. You see, Mr. Darren, I’m developing a new medicine to help with stress and to help focus one’s mind. However, most of the volunteers I've had already have low amounts of stress or have no problems thinking clearly. I need someone who is erratic and is prone to stressing out.”

  Al adjusted his glasses again. “That’s where you come in. I’ve observed you for a while and have concluded that you would make the perfect test subject. Your egotistical personality and tendency to become enraged are a perfect fit.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” Darren leaned forward, giving Al an angry look.

  “You tend to let your anger get the best of you, leading to you stressing yourself both physically and mentally. If my medicine works, you’ll be able to think clearly and not let your emotions get the better of you. It could even help you improve your capabilities. Without the weight of your wild emotions, you’d be able to control your powers better.”

  Darren’s anger subsides for a bit as he takes a moment to think. The prospect of becoming better and stronger is appealing to him. However, his ego makes it difficult to accept help.

  After a few seconds, he makes up his mind. “Alright, Prof., I’ll test out this drug of yours. If it can help me become stronger, then I’m willing to try it.”

  Al’s face grew into a smile, his eyes shining with excitement. “Great, then we’ll get started now.”

  He reached into his inner coat pocket and pulled out a small glass container filled with blue pills. He then opened the top and dropped one pill onto his hand, stretching it towards Darren.

  “Already? I thought it would be a while before I could test it.” Darren reached out to grab the pill.

  “Nope. I had them ready to go. I just needed a proper volunteer.”

  Darren looked down at the pill, then up at Al. “So I swallow this or…?” he said, pointing at the pill.

  “Yes, just swallow it and wait for the effect to take place. It should take a few hours for it to take effect.”

  Darren looked down at the pill one more time before throwing it into his mouth, swallowing it whole.

  “Perfect. Now that you’ve taken it, I will come back to check on you in a few hours and to give you the next dose,” Al said before walking away.

  The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

  “Wait, is that it? Now I just wait and do nothing?” Darren asked.

  “Just go about your normal day and let the medicine do its job. I’ll be back later.”

  …

  “Oookay, and done. You’re now signed up for the silver division of the junior tournament, Mr. Kevin. Is there anything else I can help you with?”

  “Nope, that’ll be all. Thank you.” Kevin nodded at the assistant before turning back to the others.

  “Now that that’s over with, what now?” Kevin asked.

  “I guess we all go back and start packing,” Emmett replied.

  “I can’t believe you’re all leaving me.” Amanda crossed her arms.

  Ellie walked up to Amanda, wrapping her arms around her in a tight hug. “It’ll only be for a few weeks. We’ll be back before the festival. Plus, you’re always welcome to join us.”

  “I wish I could, but my father won’t let me go without him or an escort. You know how he is.” Amanda hugged Ellie back.

  “Uncle Xander needs to loosen up a bit. He’s too overprotective. Remember when you tripped on a root, and he was all over you to see if you were okay? You weren’t even scratched,” Ellie said.

  “I know, but I’m still the princess. I can’t do whatever I want.”

  Ellie pulled away from Amanda. “Yeah…I know.”

  Kevin walked up behind Ellie, placing a hand on her shoulder. “It’ll only be for a few weeks. In the meantime, I’ll keep you company.”

  Neither Ellie nor Amanda turned to acknowledge Kevin before punching him in the face. Ian, then, slowly went up to him, placing an arm around his shoulder. “You really gotta stop doing that before you get yourself killed.”

  “She’s just playing hard to get,” Kevin said half jokingly.

  Ian sighed before gently slapping Kevin’s face. “You’re lucky I tolerate you.”

  Kevin smiled at Ian, then said, “We should get going. We have a long trip back home tomorrow.”

  …

  “So, Mr. Darren, how do you feel? It's been six hours since I gave you the first dose,” Al asked.

  “I don’t feel any different. Maybe a bit hungrier, but that’s about it. Are you sure the medicine works?” Darren asked.

  “Nope, that’s why I’m testing it. But it’s still early to say. I just wanted to make sure no early negative side effects arose.” Al wrote on his notepad.

  “So the medicine might not even work?” Darren’s voice rose, but not to the usual intensity it would normally go to.

  “That’s correct, but I’m confident it works. I’ll just have you test it for a while.” Al noted the slight difference in Darren’s voice.

  He then pulled out the small container of pills and placed one in his hand. “Here’s the next dose. Take it.”

  Darren hesitated for a bit. He eventually grabbed the pill and swallowed it.

  Al put the container away as he said, “For the next two months, I’ll have you take three pills a day. One in the morning, one in the afternoon, and one in the evening. During this time period, I’ll need you to stay on campus for monitoring.”

  Al then pulled out a plain-looking silver bracelet and gave it to Darren. “Also, you have to wear this. It’ll track your location and send me basic data about you. Your heart rate, stress levels, and nutritional data.”

  “I never agreed to being monitored.” Darren's anger slightly increased.

  “I know, but it’s just to make sure nothing goes wrong.”

  Darren looked at the bracelet, thinking to himself. He then hesitantly put it on.

  “Good, now I’ll be able to locate you to give you your doses,” Al said.

  “Whatever. This better be worth it in the end,” Darren reluctantly said.

  “Oh, it will be. Trust me.” Al smiled at Darren

  …

  “Alright, that should be everything,” Ian said as he finished packing his last bag.

  When he first arrived in the capital, he showed up with a light load. Now he was leaving with three large bags, one in each hand, and the last on his back.

  Lucky stood beside him, now reaching up to his knee, his tail wagging happily. With everything packed, the two left the room and headed out to meet up with the others.

  In the cafeteria, Kevin and the others sat at a table waiting for Ian. They were all having one last meal before going to the train station. Around them, an assortment of different bags was stacked on each other.

  “Hopefully Ian doesn’t take long. I don’t want us to miss our train,” Zoey worriedly said.

  “Don’t worry, babe, Ian will be here,” Emmett calmly said.

  A few minutes later, Ian and Lucky showed up. “Sorry for taking so long. I had to throw out my trash before leaving.”

  “It’s all good. We’re still ahead of schedule,” Kevin said, waving his hand. “Well, now that everyone is here, I guess we should get going.”

  Everyone nodded in agreement and started collecting their bags. Soon, the table was cleared, and the cafeteria went quiet as they were the only ones in there. Most students had already gone back home by now.

  The group walked and chatted as they headed to the main campus gate. They talked about the things they did and the things they struggled with. Kevin and Ian joked most of the way there.

  Once they left the campus, the group made their way down the busy city streets, weaving through other crowds. Along the way, Ian made a quick stop at a food stand he liked to grab a simple meat skewer. From there, they continued to the train station.

  When they arrived at the train station, they went to the main terminal and sat on a bench that looped around a pillar, waiting for their train to arrive.

  With plenty of time to kill, the gang continued talking. They were excited to go back home and see everyone again.

  After waiting for a while, their train slowly pulled into the station. Once it came to a stop, they all gathered their bags and began to board it. However, as they were about to get on, a voice called out to them.

  “Ellie! Wait!”

  The groups turned to see who was calling, only to see Amanda running in what appeared to be a prestigious yellow dress.

  “Amanda?” Ellie asked as she watched her approach.

  Ellie quickly dropped her bags and ran up to her. The two reached each other and jumped into each other's arms.

  “What are you doing here?” Ellie asked.

  “You think I wouldn’t see my favorite cousin off?” Amanda replied.

  “Does your dad know you’re here?”

  “No, I had to sneak out. But by now, he probably knows.” Amanda pulled away from Ellie, holding her hands.

  “Even as a princess, you’re still the same. Thanks for seeing me off.”

  “You know I would. Now get on your train before it leaves you behind,” Amanda said as she let go of Ellie’s hands.

  Ellie nodded and grabbed her bags again, getting on the train. She took her seat by the window, looking out at Amanda.

  The two waved at each other as the train began to move. However, once it started to pull out of the station, Ellie saw a tall figure appear from behind a pillar. Upon closer look, the figure was Ash. She walked up to Amanda, watching as the train left before turning to speak to her.

  Ellie let out a sigh of relief when she saw Ash. She then turned to recline in her seat. It would be a while before she got home, so she wanted to take a nap.