"I originally thought this world would still follow the original plotline somewhat. Small changes here and there, but nothing major." Cassien shrugged, "But that was stupid."

He looked down at his own hands, "Too many things have already changed because of me. Theodore surviving longer than expected. Sophia dying early. Even Class 1A moving differently than they originally did."

The little boy quietly listened.

"The problem is, the story is adapting faster than I expected."

[And that scares you?]

"No," Cassien answered instantly, "It irritates me. It’s like playing a game of chess where some surprising variables appear that you can’t predict. That type of irritation. Though that would mean as soon as I look away at the board, the pieces have already gone on the offensive, and I’m left to defend."

[There it is! That personality again!] He pointed excitedly toward Cassien. [You always say the most interesting things whenever your control starts slipping.]

[But back to your thought process... perhaps someone might just be smarter than you?]

Cassien smiled, "Doesn’t that make it fun, though? A challenge in a death game. It’s like playing chess with your life on the line. Imagine I go up to my old schoolmates and say, ’Have you ever played chess with your life on the line?’ I mean, they certainly haven’t."

The boy laughed, [You somehow avoided my question completely.]

"I’d rather you watch what will happen next than me simply showing you, doesn’t that make your heart pound?"

The boy smiled, [Y-yes!]

"Well then, this is goodbye for now. Take me back to my dormitory."

[As you wish.]

The Christmas lights began flickering.

[Teleporting...]

[Teleportation Successful!]

The moment Cassien blinked, he was back in his comfortable bed.

He turned off his nearby table lamp, then looked at the mask he had forgotten he was carrying in his hand.

Looking down at it, the calmness gave way to his sensations.

’Reform back into my shadow.’

[Reforming...]

Afterward, the mask disappeared back into an automatic unseeing trait.

"Cassien Artfold, Fated to be Exiled from Nosguard Academy."

------------------------

[Host: Cassien Artfold | Age: 16 | Fate #1: Fated For Exile | Expulsion: 182 Days | Sync: 0% | Character Points: 0]

------------------------

’No new points and no new unlocked fate yet?’ Then, he flipped the blanket over himself, ’Robbery.’

...

The morning sun came.

December 17th, 9:00 AM.

Each of the first years was called down into the gymnasium.

"Well, thank you all for coming." The entire student council of ten was seated in long rows across the stage. "It is time we finally announce our yearly island challenge! This time around, we’ll be taking each student on a cruise to enjoy the fun before the seriousness begins."

Aiysha stood in her single-file line beside Cassien.

"This time around, we won’t be working together." She told Cassien, "And my class is going to advance."

Cassien looked at her, "Every time we worked together, you needed my help. Never once have I requested yours. Don’t you remember who defeated Jameson back in the caverns?" He asked in a soft but joking voice.

"I never requested it; you came willingly. Thanks for your help, hero," she said, laughing internally afterward.

"Hero... I like it, it has a nice ring to it."

"Don’t get the wrong idea, you’re closer to a villain than you are to a burglar."

Cassien smiled, "Yeah, yeah, say what you want, at the end of the day, you know what happened."

Aiysha was about to continue until she heard Victoria’s voice begin to speak from the stage.

"I-island," Ren whispered, "Seems exciting...?"

"It will be, Ren," Cassien tapped his back, "Trust me."

After a long hour and fifteen minutes, the student council had finally finished explaining how this yearly first-year tournament would be held.

The rules themselves were simple enough on paper.

Each class would be separated across different sections of Elaris Island.

However, each group would secretly possess one assigned "Leader."

Only the class members would know who their own leader was. And the objective? Protect your leader’s identity while discovering the leaders of enemy classes.

The moment Victoria explained the rule, the atmosphere inside the gymnasium shifted completely.

"A hidden leader?"

"So it’s a psychological exam..."

"How are we supposed to figure that out?"

The first seat of the student council of ten took the stage. "If your class successfully identifies another group’s leader, points will be awarded accordingly."

A large magic screen appeared behind him.

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

[Island Examination Rules]

→ Correctly Identify Enemy Leader: +50 Points

→ Enemy Successfully Identifies Your Leader: -50 Points

→ Completing Island Objectives: Variable Points

→ Class With Highest Total After Seven Days Wins

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

"Additionally," he continued, "false accusations will result in penalties."

Students started eyeing one another suspiciously. The exam hadn’t even begun yet, and paranoia was already forming.

’So they changed it this much, I see. In the original story, the island examination focused more heavily on survival and combat. Now it relied on psychological warfare.’

Aiysha crossed her arms beside him, "You seem quite excited."

"Yeah, I guess you could say that."

Ren seemed completely overwhelmed, "H-how are we supposed to hide a leader for seven days...?"

"Through behavior, Ren, through behavior. There’s much you must learn."

Several more rules appeared behind Victoria.

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

[Additional Rules]

→ Violence Permitted

→ Killing Forbidden

→ Temporary Alliances Allowed

→ Island Surveillance Limited During Nighttime

→ Leaders May Change Behavior Freely

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Cassien’s eyes paused slightly on the last rule.

’Limited surveillance at nighttime? I guess the academy purposely wants chaos to happen without directly motivating it.’

"Transportation to Elaris Island will occur tomorrow morning aboard the academy cruise ship."

That announcement instantly lightened the mood again.

"A cruise ship?"

"No way..."

"We actually get to relax first?"

The council member smiled.

"The cruise will last one full day before arrival at the island."

Cassien knew what this meant. It was part of the exam because students would naturally begin forming alliances, observing behavior, manipulating conversations, and more.

Cassien then turned his head in the direction where Class 1A was lined up in a single-file line.

’So that’s the group that will supposedly outplay me?’ He smiled right after, ’I’ll win and defy those odds.’

And already, faster than he expected, the first examination was about to begin. And he was going to leave first thing tomorrow morning.