Ethan's P.O.V. (Continued)I could feel his burning gaze on my back, but it only made me glance at him over my shoulder once.I had enough on my plate to take care of.And I did nothing wrong to be afraid of in the first place.His expression changed slightly when he noticed the coldness in my gaze.“I was only asking a question.” He defended himself.I turned my attention back to the laptop before he could notice anything unusual about my expression.I scrolled the screen to get more information on those tunnels under this school.“And I answered it,” I replied nonchalantly.The blue system screen was still floating in front of me. That blinking cursor was the worst eyesore.It continued blinking beneath the words Additional Reward.The system never displayed incomplete information without a reason.I had learned that the hard way.Whenever it showed those three dots, something was usually coming.And considering the mission it had just given me, I wasn't sure whether I wanted to kno

Ethan’s P.O.V.My breathing was ragged while my gaze was fixed on the person lying on the floor.The blood-soaked knife in my hand was trembling hard, like my hand.The black dress on his body covered all the wounds and blood coming out of them.But the pool under his body was the proof of what I just did.I killed someone without any hesitation.I should have anticipated this when I saw the first flicker this morning.Lucifer took care of what happened in the morning.I wasn’t under a life threat with Lucifer and all the school security, but it didn’t mean that no one was coming for me.The ringing of his phone broke the thick silence of the abandoned shed at the far north side of the school real area.The school had built up an entire fortress as the formal school area, but the surrounding area outside the boundaries of the school was also part of the school foundation’s property.And now I was standing in the middle of an abandoned shed far from the main school premises, with no li

Ethan’s P.O.V. (Continued)I regretted not studying the map intently.I had only examined the plans on a screen. I hadn't explored the passages myself, and I couldn't be certain that any of them remained accessible.I had studied earlier the faded lines beneath the eastern wall and the network of corridors that had existed long before the academy was built.I looked around, not knowing where to start my search.But this place was perfect for a secret exit.All those tunnels under the academy had to lead somewhere.And that somewhere must have had an exit here, too.If the abandoned shed stood on the original foundation's property, there was a chance that an old maintenance route connected this part of the grounds to the underground network.That chance was better than standing here until someone found me.I forced myself to stand.The first attempt nearly ended with me collapsing again.My left shoulder throbbed, and something sharp seemed to dig into my side whenever I took a deep br

Ethan’s P.O.V. (Continued)Broken cupboards stood against one wall, their doors hanging from rusty hinges.Several old desks were piled together in a corner, and the remains of wooden beds were scattered across the floor.Dust covered almost everything.The single bulb hanging from the ceiling provided just enough light for me to examine the surroundings.I couldn't remember the last time anyone had used this place.The newer basement levels were connected to the dormitory's regular facilities, but this one seemed to have been sealed off during an earlier renovation.Whoever had built the newer walls had apparently forgotten about the old underground passage.Or perhaps they had deliberately concealed it.It wasn’t my place to think or investigate it.For now, I still had to find a way to get out of this place.My head was now spinning hard.The face, neck and shirt were completely covered in blood.With so many wounds and broken bones, I needed to find a believable excuse to explain

Ethan’s P.O.V. (Continued)I looked at the last item in the compensation package.Concealment of my movements.That could be useful.If the system could prevent anyone from tracing my movements during the period affected by the breach, it might explain why I had been able to leave the shed and enter the underground passage without someone immediately finding me.But I needed to know how far that concealment extended."Will the school authorities be able to trace me through their surveillance system?" I asked calmly.[The compensation protocol will conceal the host's movements within the affected period to the extent necessary to prevent direct identification]I considered the answer.It didn't promise to erase every camera recording or make me invisible to every person who had seen me.It promised to prevent direct identification.That distinction mattered.I couldn't assume that the system could solve all the problems for me.I would still need to check my surroundings, recover my ph