Chapter 155 - Partners & Power (2) (1/2)

Ellen's worries made sense. Losing a bit of land was no big deal, but losing your freedom as a result was life-changing. I couldn't swallow the tray of food in front of me, thinking I would choke. I wondered why both Ellen and Shelly never revealed this fact I was oblivious to this entire time.

I thought different partners had different relationsh.i.p.s. I listened to Luke because he wanted to improve my grades to survive in school. Luke was more experienced in the system in the first district so I followed his lead. I nodded as I changed how I behaved while he nagged to fix my etiquette to match the standards of the elites like everyone else in school.

Was this why nobody in the neutral fraction had to hide their hobbies from their partners like I did? No one ever mentioned how their partners burned their light novels or manga. But at the same time, they weren't surprised by Luke's cruelty. Instead, they acted like it was normal for Luke to have this power over me.

I started to pity poor Miliana even more. I was wondering why she tolerated Charles' selfish requests, but it sadly made sense now. I needed to have a talk with Luke after class too. Since I knew the truth, I expected the same treatment as Shelly because I wasn't from the first district. I wasn't going to let Luke make my decisions for me anymore.

I ignored my growling stomach and threw my food into the compose. I was going to save both Ellen and I from this mess. Or at least I tried while images of food popped up during class in my head as my stomach rumbled louder with each passing minute.

”Did you not eat breakfast today?” Luke seemed confused as he recalled we entered the cafeteria at the same time.

”I didn't feel that hungry in the morning,” I took the chocolate bars in his hands.

”The last class is ending late today since Daniel is going to be making an announcement about our first practical assignment this year,” Luke frowned.

I rolled my eyes from the absurdity. I totally forgot today was the beginning of a new year. The beginning of the autumn leaves falling down the trees was a sign of a new semester. I ticked the number of years I had left from graduating the school system.

From what I knew, middle school was four years long while high school was three years long. This meant I had a total of five more years left since I was in my third year in middle school. Was it just me, or was time going slower in the first district?

The chocolate bars quickly disappeared from my hands before the next class began. I placed my head against the desk, not caring how the teacher was heading towards my direction in disapproval. My brain was dead from this morning anyways.