DESIRE

Position Selection (2)

Baam Pov

"Hey, where's mine?" Gator grumbled, glaring at both Koon and Cecelia.

"The next time I'm at a pet shop, I'll get you a custom collar," Koon replied.

"Speaking of which, I got one for you, Rak," Cecelia announced, pulling a triple-XXL size collar out of nowhere.

"HAH?! I'LL BITE BOTH OF YOU TO PIECES!!"

"Bring it on, big face!!"

"Among my people, having a bigger head is more desirable!!"

While the Rak and Koon bantered, Cecelia took me to the washroom. She made sure that I didn't have any injuries that they'd missed, before instructing me to sit down with my head hanging over the side of the bathtub. I did as she asked, positioning myself so that my head would be inside the bathtub. My eyes caught the sight of a necklace that I hadn't seen before, hanging from her neck. It seemed to be made of silver. She noticed my gaze and put the pendant underneath her clothes to hide it from view.

"If you want, I'll tell you about it later. But for now, close your eyes, and try to get some rest. I'll wake you up when I'm done washing your hair."

FSHHHHhhhhhhh.....

I felt her fingers scrape over my scalp gently, lathering nice-smelling shampoo into my hair. It felt nice. But even with Cecelia talking to me about the funny things that had happened over the time that I had been unconscious, I couldn't help but drift back to the thought about Lahel.

Lahel... at least tell me why. Can I not be with you?

Somewhere, deep inside of me, a part of me knew that Koon was lying. Lying about how the girl that I had saved wasn't Lahel.

[Michelle Light]

Even her name's different... maybe I have mistaken her as Lahel... but... Are you that desperate to see the stars?

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The next morning, after having changed into my new clothes, I headed to the Cafeteria for breakfast. The Wave Controller Instructor had arrived sometime around last night, and lessons would start today as scheduled. But Cecelia, Koon, and Rak all insisted that I have some food beforehand.

According to what Cecelia told me while washing my hair, Koon was a Light Bearer. Rak was a Spear Bearer... I think. Cecelia was apt at all five positions, so she decided to take lessons in all five positions. Her position in our group would be Fisherman, but the fact that she was severely lacking in brute strength didn't help her very much. Nonetheless, she seemed to enjoy learning about the positions in general.

--- Cecelia Pov ---

I sat in the Cafeteria, thinking about what Koon had told me earlier this morning. I don't want what happened to me happen to him. To achieve that end... I'll lie as many times as I need to, he had said.

I took a bite of my sandwich, the taste bland on my tongue. I could tell what it was- but it was different from eating gourmet souls. If normal human food was water, then souls would be like eating a delicious five-course meal, rich in both taste and experience.

"Suppose that she is the girl that you're looking for." Koon started, talking to Baam that was sitting beside me.

"Eh?" Baam said, looking up to meet Koon's blue eyes.

Baam sat to my right, while Koon sat across from me, with Hatsu eating his soba noodles on my left. Our table was full of members from the other teams- the ones that didn't hate Koon, anyway. After the Crown-cloning stunt that he had pulled during the Crown Game, there were still some regulars that held a grudge against him.

"It means that she doesn't want to see you." The said light blue-haired male continued, smiling slightly.

He knew that his words hurt Baam. But it was the truth, and it was a way to keep the two apart from each other.

"And if that's the case, then your only option is to get stronger. If you get stronger, then she'll want to climb the Tower with you." I said, stuffing the rest of the sandwich into my mouth.

"She's right, black turtle. Get stronger and battle me!!" Rak commented, challenging Baam again. As always.

"Train hard, Baam!! I'll be here with you all the way!!" I told him, before taking his plate of an omelet.

"Now, eat!! Say "ah"!!"

"W-wait!! Cecelia!!"

~~~ Time Skip ~~~

"Shinsoo is a mysterious substance with the power to control all things, like a God. So to use more than a fixed amount of Shinsoo, you must form a contract on each floor. Ah, Laure, it looks like you already formed a contract while you were asleep." The Wave Controller Instructor, Yaga, commented.

"Seriously?" He asked back, looking relieved about the fact that he didn't have to do any more work.

"The rest of you haven't formed contracts yet, so please make your Pockets visible and close your eyes," Yaga instructed.

"Visible mode," I muttered, making the small black orb appear in front of me.

"Now speak the command, "Form contract with Administrator"."

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"Form contract with Administrator."

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2.5 pages, 864 words