"How the hell did he end up up here? Does he seriously think he can win this thing?"

  After Cole’s dramatic stunt, the group had settled back into a more stable rhythm. The longer they ran, the more the gaps between the students became apparent.

  The last ten were trailing with Force values around 93, while the next group—Ryder, Vale, and others—were somewhere in the middle. At the front, there were five people with a Force of over 98, plus Axel, who stood out like a sore thumb in that elite crowd.

  Vale snorted, clearly unimpressed. Even though she’d missed her chance to befriend Axel earlier, she had thought about it after the fact.

  One more is too many, one less is fine.

  Ryder had suggested she make nice with Axel, but Vale had brushed off the idea.

  Ninety points of Force? When she joined the War Academy, Axel were in an entirely different league from her.

  The midday sun was unbearable, the heat almost felt like being baked alive. The students who had been watching the elite class had stopped laughing. They’d finished a class and come out, only to find these guys were still running. It was clear—they didn’t have the stamina for this kind of endurance.

  Sweat soaked through their clothes, clinging to their skin, and Axel could feel a slight burn in his lungs. He wasn't sure where his Force level was now; he’d absorbed some raw stones and crystals the day before, so it had probably improved. But compared to the top two, Theo and Cassia, his own Force was still lacking.

  He could easily got the Force-Recovery Pill—he had a secret weapon: his awakening skill, Recovery.

  It would burn through a lot of Force, but it would bring him back to peak condition.

  The catch? Axel wasn’t planning on using it. Not because he had a competitive spirit. He’d thrown that out the window three years ago when he and his sister had been on the run.

  The real reason? He wasn’t sure if Kieran would be able to see the awakening skill in action. If Kieran did notice, it’d be a massive problem. Awakening a skill before breaking 100 Force? That would make headlines all over the country.

  Axel couldn’t afford the kind of attention that would come with that.

  "This kid’s a little strange." Kieran murmured to himself, adjusting his position under the blazing sun. He glanced at his watch, and his expression shifted to something more serious.

  The students were showing more drive than he’d expected. Axel, in particular, had been holding his own at the front for so long.

  "Last half hour," Kieran muttered. Time was ticking down, and if Theo and Cassia were going to win this, they couldn’t leave anything to chance.

  Just as Kieran had predicted, Theo and Cassia picked up the pace. The gap between them and the rest of the pack started to widen as they pushed ahead, pulling away from the others.

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  The students in the back echelon had long given up on winning first place. Some in the second echelon were struggling, gritting their teeth and pushing through the pain, but seeing Theo and his team picking up the pace, the others couldn’t help but feel a little defeated.

  Vale and Ryder weren’t among them, though. They had their eyes locked on one of the stronger runners in the front group.

  Knight.

  The guy had the highest Force value in their small circle—99.

  When Knight closed the gap, Vale and Ryder exchanged a glance, their faces lighting up with relief.

  They weren’t dumb. They knew this whole thing was rigged. The reward was always going to go to Theo or Cassia. But they had found a loophole, a chance to slip by and grab a Force-Recovery Pill for themselves.

  Knight was the key.

  As Knight made his move, Theo and Cassia were a little surprised to see him closing in, but neither said a word. They were both over 100 in Force, and the gap between them was too small to make a real difference. One deep breath would probably be enough to sway things.

  The gap between the top two and others, was getting wider as they surged ahead.

  Behind them, Knight was in third, and Axel had managed to slip into fourth.

  While Axel was impressively holding his own, the real drama was still in the top three.

  There’s still a gap.

  Axel stayed calm. If he couldn’t get the Force-Recovery Pill, he could at least snag a Force-Increasing Pill, which was still a good prize.

  The third echelon was beginning to fall behind the top three, unable to keep up with their pace.

  Kieran watched Knight carefully, noticing the way the guy’s face was turning purple. He frowned.

  Pushing past one’s limits was part of his strategy, but there had to be a limit to how much pressure they could take. Was Knight really trying to compete with Theo and Cassia for first?

  Just as Kieran was about to consider intervening, something unexpected happened.

  Knight pulled a red pill from his pocket while running, popped it in his mouth without hesitation, and swallowed it.

  “What the fuck…” Kieran muttered under his breath. His eyes widened in shock. “These kids are way too fucking smart for their own good. I miscalculated!”

  Knight had just taken a Force-Increasing Pill, a second-tier reward meant to boost his Force. It wasn’t as good as a Force-Recovery Pill, but still pricey—and a lot easier to get. For a student like Knight, it would almost instantly replenish his drained Force, and maybe even leave him with some extra.

  Knight only needed half the pill. As soon as it kicked in, his face flushed back to normal, and the exhaustion seemed to melt away. He powered forward, sprinting with renewed energy.

  “Hell yeah, that’s more like it!” Knight grinned, feeling the surge of energy. He wasn’t even winded anymore.

  While picking up speed, he couldn’t help but think, Ryder and Vale, you guys are genius-level strategists.

  Taking the pill wasn’t the most honorable move, but technically, Kieran hadn’t said anything about not using meds. It wasn’t in the instructor’s rules, and it was his first day on the job. He couldn’t exactly backpedal now.

  Knight wasn’t about to win against Cassia and Theo in Force, but with half a pill, he could definitely close the gap enough to make a good run for the top.

  “What the fuck, Knight’s going crazy?”

  “Did you see that? He just took meds!”

  As the race neared its end, some of the students who had just finished their class came out to watch, catching the last part of the action.

  Theo and Cassia exchanged a quick look when they saw Knight speeding up behind them. They were surprised for a second, but that was all.

  They both kicked into high gear again, but after all the hours of running, they were reaching their limits. They could feel Knight pulling ahead.

  Wait, what the hell? Did he just take a pill?

  Axel, who was trailing about half a lap behind them, had noticed the move as well. His heart skipped a beat.

  As everyone’s focus shifted to the top three, Axel used the opportunity to catch his breath and push forward. With a subtle burst of energy, he started to close the distance.