# Chapter 109: Bullied?
After a brief silence.
“What’s going on?!”
“Twenty minutes? No way, the ceremony doesn’t start for over an hour!”
“And we haven’t even eaten yet!”
No matter how these frowning girls complained, there was no answer from outside. I heard the plump Grandma pounding on the next door again, which told me breakfast was a lost cause for today. The academy had notified everyone yesterday that the opening ceremony would start at 9 AM sharp, and aside from that, they said nothing else, but today they pull this surprise attack… Those twenty laps aren’t a joke, and I bet if someone is late, they’ll probably be used as a “bad example.”
So I quickly said to them, “Run!”
“Being late is going to be a disaster!”
Sofia clearly caught on to the academy’s message, her cute face showing some impatience as she hastily tied her hair into a ponytail and stood up, ready to open the door.
“Sofia, don’t forget your badge!”
“Wait, did anyone see my hairband… I swear I left it in the vanity drawer…”
“Strange, where did I put my badge…”
“Faster, faster—!”
“I found it!”
“Ugh, Sarah, quit fiddling with your hair, just leave it and let’s go!”
That little delay turned into nearly five minutes. We rushed out the door, sprinting down to the first floor, spotting many other students who looked just as panicked as us, their faces pale and bewildered, some struggling to button up their uniforms, looking like those guys who jump out of windows to escape, totally in a mess.
Sarah saw them and burst out laughing, barely catching her breath.
“Ahahaha! Look at those guys…”
“What are you laughing at? You’re no better!”
“It’s because you wouldn’t let me do my hair, Sofia!”
“Shut up and run!”
Once we were out of the tower, it was full-speed ahead. The training ground isn’t far from the shore of Sirlan Lake, and if I pushed myself, I could easily cover it in two or three minutes. But the other three girls clearly couldn’t keep that pace, so I had to slow down and follow them. Even though we were taking it easy, I hoped we wouldn’t be late… a leisurely stroll wouldn’t be so bad either.
Just as I was thinking that, Daisy stopped mid-run.
“Phew— I can’t… breathe…”
She bent over, hands on her knees, her once rosy cheeks now devoid of color, and her breathing trembling. Seeing this, the three of us came to a halt.
“No way, Daisy, your stamina is terrible; you must’ve been last in the tests!” Sofia exclaimed, clearly displeased.
“Um… I’ve just never been good at this kind of thing. You guys… go ahead, don’t mind me…”
The always fast Sarah turned around, squatted in front of Daisy without waiting for permission, “With stamina like yours, you’re never getting twenty laps done. Hop on!”
“No, no, Sarah, I—”
Daisy tried to wave her off, but halfway through, Sarah interrupted, “Come on! Don’t dawdle! Do you want us to all run twenty laps?!”
With that, Daisy had no choice but to climb onto Sarah’s back obediently.
“Hold on tight.” Sarah sprang up, adjusting her grip, then suddenly broke into a laugh, “Oh— so squishy… heehee~”
That “heehee” laugh had a slightly creepy uncle vibe, and everyone understood what she meant, making Daisy’s face flush bright red.
“Sarah, your intentions seem a bit impure…” Sofia rolled her eyes.
“Sarah’s a creepy uncle.” I chimed in.
“What’s a creepy uncle?”
Hearing Sofia’s question, I tilted my head in thought.
“Someone who likes to be inappropriate with innocent girls, like a greasy old man.”
Sarah’s face scrunched up in disgust when she heard that, “Pfft! I’m not like that! That sounds so gross! Where did you even hear that, Peilo… and who’s an old man? I’m also an innocent girl!”
“Hehe.” I chuckled, not wanting to explain further.
Sofia, watching the students zoom past us, started to panic, urgently urging, “Enough chit-chat! Let’s go!”
We four continued to run, and soon enough, the massive silhouette of the training ground came into view. Sarah, running beside us, licked her dry lips. I turned to look at her and noticed she was huffing and covered in sweat, clearly drained of energy. Worried, I asked, “Sarah, are you okay? Want me to carry you…?”
“Carry me? You? Your small frame would be crushed by Daisy’s chest,” Sarah chuckled while slightly adjusting her breathing, ignoring Daisy’s playful objection from the back, and smiled gently at me, “I’m fine! My dad trained me as a knight since I was little; I’m great at this! This distance is nothing!”
“…I’m sorry, Sarah.” Daisy mumbled while resting her head against Sarah’s back, “Just let me down; I feel okay now.”
Sarah shook her head, still smiling, “I said I’m fine, we’re almost there.”
Just then, a series of strange monkey-like sounds mixed with crackling electricity and flames suddenly erupted from behind us.
“Yahhh—”
“Peter, go faster!”
“Come on, come on! Hahaha!”
Instinctively turning around, I saw two sturdy eighteen- or nineteen-year-old male students. One had sparks coursing over his body and was moving like lightning, while the other was shooting flames from his palms, propelling himself two meters into the air with each leap. They were moving much faster than ordinary students, and as we looked over, their eyes landed right on us.
“Ooh, four lovely ladies up ahead~”
“The quality looks pretty good!”
Their flirty chatter reached our ears, causing Sarah to furrow her brow and j*rk her head toward us, “Let’s move to the side; ignore them!”
I nodded and shifted sideways with her, but then I heard Sofia scream from behind, “What are you doing?! Ah!”
“Watch out—!”
The wind carried the “zzzz” sound of electricity clearly to me from behind. My heart raced, and my right hand instinctively glowed blue. But I hesitated—this is the academy! Before I could decide, some guy zipped past me, howling like a lunatic, his hair and skirt fluttering in the wind. I instinctively reached out, and just then, “boom!” the flame boy whooshed over our heads.
“Yah—!”
Sofia flinched, while the fire boy laughed maniacally. Unfortunately, when he landed, his right foot accidentally kicked Daisy in the head, causing her to yelp and clutch her head, while an already fatigued Sarah stumbled, her legs giving way, and she fell to the ground.
When Sarah fell, Daisy was flung off her back. She was running fast enough that the fall had quite the impact, and both of them rolled on the ground for several circles before stopping.
“Ah…”
“Sarah! Daisy!”
