A myriad of stars blanketed the entire sky, giving it a new face as the cold of the night set in. This wasn't Earth, but the view of the universe was just as heavenly as usual. Anyone who saw it would gape their mouths in awe due to the insane amount of galaxies that could be seen from the ground.
It was a cloudless sky, perfect for stargazing. Even the other Disciples who just got to the dorms leaned on their balconies, enjoying their nighttime coffee while taking in the picturesque scenery of the star-laden skies.
Since the test was officially concluded, some of the Managers were sent to the dorms to monitor the other Disciples. Well, some of them were left behind to look after the Disciples who failed the test. From their estimate, they could more or less guess that some of the Disciples would take until morning before they could return.
"This view never gets old." Hermione Ranger said to herself as she walked up the path toward the dorm. Just like the others, she didn't bother using her superpower to get to the dorm in time. She relished her alone time, partially covered by the trees that lined up the path while a series of gusts flew in. The sight of the stars seemed to take all the exhaustion away while she relaxed.
If it were like this every day, Hermione thought that it would feel like a vacation more than training for their Disciples. Then again, she knew that the Managers needed to take a couple of breathers as well, and right now, she's availing one of hers.
"I wonder what my Disciples are up to. I hope they're befriending the other Disciples." As soon as she said that, she remembered what happened to Raniel and the others. She couldn't help but heave a sigh under her breath when their betrayal replayed in her mind.
She wasn't expecting Raniel and the others to harbor hatred towards Himuro and Nanako when they were just doing their best. They were even merciful enough to bring their flags but Raniel just had to show his true colors at such an opportune moment.
"I had no idea that they felt inferior to Himuro and Nanako... was it because of their talent? No... Raniel is more talented than them, he shouldn't have the right to feel jealous... but why? I've never shown them any favor, nor did I express favoritism towards my Disciples." Hermione Ranger tried to think as hard as she could, but she couldn't recall an instance where she favored any of her Disciples. Not a single memory came to mind.
"Should I talk to them? No... I should let them solve their own problems. If I were to step in and give them an earful, they might think that the other party didn't receive a reprimand. It might aggravate the situation. For now, I should keenly observe them and only step in when things get out of hand." Upon saying that, Hermione Ranger clenched her fist as if she just came up with a satisfactory decision. Then she heaved a sigh since she wasn't sure whether what she did was right or not.
It wasn't widely known to the Disciples but the Managers weren't really higher beings. Just like them, they were once humans who were chosen to lead a couple of their Disciples after they became too strong for their own craft.
They were chosen as Managers so they could pass on their techniques to the next generations. And just like humans, they weren't immortal at all, but they were stronger than any other regular humans out there. After all, they've existed for hundreds of years, so their mastery over their techniques had been honed to perfection.
Hermione Ranger was a bit troubled by the way his Disciples acted during the test, but she knew that it could easily be resolved amongst themselves. She didn't want to intervene unless absolutely necessary.
Seeing a small stone in front of her, she kicked it, causing it to skip a couple of times before landing by the foot of a tree. From a distance, she could see the dorm which was gigantic as usual. She wanted to enjoy the atmosphere and the scenery for a couple more minutes so she slowed down her pace. Even though she already walked at least ten kilometers on her way back, she still wanted to spend more time walking.
Life as a Manager was drastically different compared to being a human. And just like anything new, it brought about its difficulties and stress. Hermione Ranger was not immune to these kinds of things. Her solitary walk was just one of the ways she destresses.
"Wait, what's going on?" Hermione Ranger asked herself when she noticed multiple presences by the rooftop. In total, there were six people, and she immediately recognized two of her Disciples, Himuro and Nanako, with the group.
The moment she used her sense enhancement, she noticed that the other three were actually Bucky Barnes's Disciples. And as for the last one, it was one of Scarlet's Disciple. "Why are they with a bunch of weirdos? No offense, Bucky Barnes and Scarlet." Hermione Ranger said to herself as she observed the gathering.
She didn't even realize that she began quickening her pace so she could get there on time. Furthermore, it didn't even occur to her that she could use her superpower to get to the rooftop in a snap of a finger. Her mind was a mess since she could sense that something was definitely about to go down.
...
On the rooftop, the gathering didn't even notice that Hermione Ranger was right by the edge of the forest. Had they peered over a little bit closer to the edge of the rooftop, they'd have noticed Hermione Ranger making her way to the dorms.
She was the only presence by the path in the forest so they shouldn't have missed her.
Meanwhile, Jonathan already steeled her resolve to go through with the confession. He's got nothing to lose, right? Right?!
"Here we go," Jonathan took in a breath of fresh air, preparing himself for the declaration that he was about to do.
"HERMIONE RANGER-SAAAAN!" Jonathan screamed out of nowhere, causing Satoshi and the others to rethink what they were doing. Then again, it was too late to stop Jonathan from his punishment.
"I LIKE YOU, PLEASE GO OUT WITH ME!" His scream echoed all over the dorms, traveling further into the forest. With how loud he was, there was no way Hermione Ranger didn't hear his confession.
...
"W-w-what?!" Hermione Ranger, who was listening all along, heard the confession loud and clear.
As for the other Disciples who were lingering by their balconies, they also heard the confession loud and clear. In fact, they even noticed that Hermione Ranger was actually in front of the dorms.
They started pointing at her, murmuring amongst themselves while they tried to figure out if she heard it or not.
Of course, she heard it! There was no way she didn't!
From a distance, Jonathan did a celebratory dance since he went through with the punishment without any hiccups. He was confident that Hermione didn't hear him since she was still with the other Managers monitoring the Disciples who failed the test.
That's when one of the Disciples who was by the balcony called out to them, telling them to look by the entrance gate to the dorms.
As if on cue, Hermione Ranger covered her face while she walked into the open area. She didn't speak a single word when she entered the dorms, nor did she call out to Jonathan who did something so brazen right in front of her.
Then again, the Disciples noticed the redness on her face even though she tried to completely cover her face. It was clear that she was affected by Jonathan's blatant confession.
...
On the rooftop,
Jonathan already turned around when the Disciples by the balcony started calling out to him. He was on cloud nine due to the adrenaline rush, so much so that he didn't even think about the consequences if Hermione really did hear what he screamed.
"Oi! Jonathan look!" Himuro was the first one to notice Hermione running through the open area into the dorms. "HAHHA! She heard you, Jonathan, eheyy~"
"What'chu gonna do now?" Yun Zhe added tinder to the fire as he teasingly elbowed Jonathan. "Well, at least it went well, right?"
"There you go, she heard you loud and clear, Jonathan. You've got to own up and take responsibility or something." Mitsuka added, making everyone chuckle even louder.
"Ah eh... what?!" All the colors drained from Jonathan's face when he realized that Hermione really did hear his confession. At the same time, his adrenaline left him and he was left with a feeling of embarrassment.
"There you go, now your wish came true, isn't that nice, Jonathan-kuuun." Himuro continued. Even though the woman in question was none other than their Manager, they still pulled out all stops with their teasing.
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