The Transmigrated Author

[Pinnacle Academy, Aetherium Nexus]

BDUMP...BDUMP...

"Haah...That was too close." She leaned back against the wall, letting out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding.

"Uwaaah!" she screamed internally and her face flushed. "What am I even doing?"

Valencia wondered why she was hiding like a scared rabbit.

It wasn't like they were friends or anything.

They barely spoke. He was just... there. A classmate. Someone she occasionally exchanged a few words with during group projects. Nothing more.

And yet, her heart was still pounding like a drum.

"This is ridiculous," she muttered, trying to regain her composure. "I just want to train. But..." she hesitated, "...if he's watching, I won't be able to focus."

The image of him, drenched in sweat, his muscles flexing with every swing of the wooden sword, flashed through her mind.

"No! Stop thinking about that!" she scolded herself, shaking her head vigorously.

"Whatcha doing against the wall like that, Val?"

Valencia nearly jumped out of her skin. She flicnehd and found that her best friend, Camila, was standing in front of her with a curious expression.

"I just tripped," Valencia mumbled, quickly changing her features into a calm and cold face.

She even managed a nonchalant shrug, for good measure.

"Oh really?" Camila raised a sculpted eyebrow.

She knew that this kind of act wasn't going to fool her.

"Well," Camila continued, "suit yourself if you're gonna stay there, but I gotta see if Jan's training—"

"Stop!"

grip!

Valencia lurched forward, scrambling to her knees and grabbing Camila's wrist before her friend could even take a step towards the window.

"I-I just checked," Valencia mumbled.

Her gaze darted everywhere but Camila's face.

"And Jan isn't there. So you should probably go."

"Ehh?" Camila was surprised by this rare display of desperation from Valencia.

Even through her calm expression, she enjoyed seeing her friend flustered.

What was causing her to act this way? Especially since Jan doesn't even train on Fridays...

So, she decided to poke the bear a little more. "I believe you," she chirped, flashing a mischievous smile that held no innocence whatsoever.

Valencia sighed in relief, thinking everything was all fine.

"But I'm gonna check, anyway."

"...!"

Valencia's grip tightened, and then her hand suddenly slipped from Camila's wrist as if coated in oil.

She had to use both hands to keep herself from falling.

"Sorry, Val, but you should've known... Jan doesn't train on Fridays..."

Camila's voice came out in slow motion, but Valencia realised she had been tricked.

"So let's see who it is-"

As Camila peered over the window. For a moment, her expression mirrored Valencia's earlier shock.

Then a slow grin stretched across her face.

She turned to her friend with a sparkle in her eyes.

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"That was not on this year's bingo list," Camila chuckled as she walked towards Valencia.

"You better get down there and train. Otherwise, I will be stuck here watching you until you do."

She laughed, extending a hand to help Valencia up.

"Even for someone like him," Camila continued and whispered into her ear, "he's quite ripped, right?" she winked at Valencia with a smirk.

Valencia flinched, and her gaze snapped at Camila's mischievous face.

"Shut up..." she muttered, looking away.

huhu...

Camila, still chuckling, grabbed Valencia's shoulders and turned her towards the entrance of Emu-Plateau.

whooosh...

"...!"

With a gentle nudge, Camila sent Valencia stumbling forward.

"...hey!"

Valencia shot her friend a bewildered look.

"Well, I'm off back to the dorms," Camila declared. "If I see you in your room an hour from now, I'm dragging you back here no matter what." Camila's voice held a rare seriousness.

"Okay, okay. "

With her head still feeling foggy, Valencia could only nod in response.

As Valencia stepped through the automatic doors towards the escalator, Camila waved goodbye.

Valencia waved back, watching her friend disappear from view as she descended.

Please tell me he's finishing up. Please... she repeated in her head, and before she knew it, she was on the ground level, inside Emu-Plateau.

The escalators were conveniently located near the center of the training area, allowing students easy access. But for Valencia, this presented a problem...

"He's training near the wooden sword rack... and I forgot my ID for the emulator machines!" she thought, gritting her teeth in frustration.

But she had no other choice.

I'll just pretend that he's not even there.

And so, with her chin held high and movements swift, Valencia made her way towards the rack.

The person swinging the sword didn't seem to notice her; he was too focused on his training.

Though she couldn't help but sneak glances at him at every given moment.

But just as Valencia reached the rack, she heard her name being called out.

"Valencia?" the familiar voice startled her, and she froze.

She turned, almost nervously, but quickly regained her composure. No, she thought, I can't let him see me like this. I'd rather die than show this side of myself.

Her eyes widened as she took in the sight before her. The person standing there was drenched in sweat from head to toe, his muscles clearly defined even through his training clothes.

"Oh, it's you... Rel," she said, trying to sound nonchalant, as if seeing Rel wielding a sword was an everyday occurrence. Which, of course, it wasn't. He was an archer, wasn't he? What was he doing with a sword?

"Why are you here?" Rel asked, sounding surprised. His tone implied that seeing her here was the unusual thing.

Valencia tilted her head, confused. Rel's eyes rolled, a subtle gesture that went unnoticed by her.

"I thought you and everyone else were watching the final for Dawn's Blade Arena?" he clarified.

Dawn's Blade Arena? Valencia blinked. Of course! That explains why everyone isn't here... they're all watching the final, But that still didn't explain why Rel was practising with a sword. He's an archer... she thought, her brow furrowing in confusion.

"I just felt like training today," she replied with a shrug. "Not really interested in watching that arena show."

"Okay..." Rel seemed to take a step back, almost as if trying to hide his sword from her.

Valencia noticing this knew it was her turn to ask questions.

"Ehem...Rel?" she began, trying to sound casual. "I thought you were an archer. Why are you even using a sword? You suddenly find that the sword is your profession?"

She tried to phrase the question without sounding condescending or judgmental, but it seemed to rub Rel the wrong way.

He fell silent for a moment, then looked at her, scratching his head. "Since everyone was watching the tournament... I-uh... just wanted to try something new," he mumbled. "You can just ignore me."

"Okay then," Valencia shrugged, turning away from Rel and heading towards the nearest sensor dummy.

As she reached out, a surge of lightning crackled around her hands, illuminating the training area with a sudden flash.

With a determined grunt, she swung her fist at the dummy.

BANG!

The impact reverberated through the hall, and the dummy practically vibrated with the force.

The sensor display flashed:

[Estimated Power on Hit: 10,000]

But Valencia barely registered the impressive reading. Her expression was grim and her jaw was clenched tight.

It wasn't meant to come out like that! she thought, I just should've asked the first bit!

Frustration ate at her word choice.

She had wanted to seem like she didn't care at all, but her question about his weapon of choice had come out all wrong.

Now he probably thought she was judging him or looking down on him again.

Why am I even getting so worked up over this? she berated herself. It's not like I care what he does...

But deep down, she knew that wasn't entirely true.

Seeing these new sides of Rel opened Valencia's eyes.

It was like witnessing a hidden world unfold before her, a world she had never known existed.