Divinity

--- [Alex’s perspective]

“And with that, this year’s D-rank exam is over!” – Leanne

With no one else there, Leanne jumps into the middle of the arena.

“Out of the eight contestants who reached the final round, a total of five won their matches. All five of you are now officially D-rank hunters!” – Leanne

I did it…

I’m D-rank now…!

The same rank as Luna and Vic!

It doesn’t feel real…

Not too long ago, I was just a weak kid who wanted to be like my brother.

Now I’m the same rank as my teacher…

I’ll get to participate in the battle festival!

Too bad Shin and Illian won’t be there though…

Oh well!

I should be happy that Lett made it at least.

None of us even thought we stood a chance before our training with Luna, so it’s to be expected that not all of us would make it.

They won’t get to participate in the battle festival, but they can still cheer us on!

Oh, and I can’t wait to rub it in that I’m higher ranked than Shin now…!

“Rin Nox from The Dwarfs, Alexander Minima from The Red Knights, Isabella Gladius from The Dragons, Lett Lepus from The Red Knights, and Isaac Lux from The Beast Hearts… Congratulations on becoming D-rank hunters! As for the rest of you… You all did incredibly well. I hope you’ll give it another shot next year, because you all have what it takes to rank up!” – Leanne

I make my way over to Rin; I haven’t gotten the chance to properly talk to her yet.

I tap her on the shoulder, and she turns around…

“Congrats!” – Alex

“Oh! Thanks! You too!” – Rin

“So, now that you’re D-rank… Are you planning on joining the battle festival?” – Alex

“I am actually!” – Rin

Just as I’m about to continue the conversation, she cuts me off.

“Sorry, I’d love to talk, but Jade is waiting for me. Let’s catch up another time, okay?” – Rin

“Uh, sure! Anytime.” – Alex

And just like that, she blitzes away, over the horizon…

I should probably check up on Lucas too…

--- [Shin’s perspective]

“Illian, can we have a word?” – Shin

“Huh? About what?” – Illian

“Oh, nothing special! But let’s go somewhere a bit more private…” – Shin

It’s finally time to ask him…

Ever since the first round, I haven’t been able to get it off my mind.

I decided against asking him in the middle of the exam, but I can’t postpone it any further.

As we make our way away from the crowd, I pick out the exact words I want to use…

“So…” – Shin

He gives me a confused look…

“During the first round, we faced off against that guy who could force people to answer his questions truthfully. It was a troublesome ability for sure, but… You said something that made me really curious.” – Shin

He’s trying to hide it, but I can tell he’s getting a little nervous.

It’s like he’s putting on a confused look, but I can tell it’s all an act.

His pupils are dilating, he’s fidgeting with his hands, and a bead of sweat trickles down from his forehead…

“We both agreed to take him down first, and when he asked us why, we both gave different answers. I said I was focusing on him because I didn’t want to leak our plan, you however said something really interesting… Do you remember what you said, Illian?” – Shin

He hesitates for a second before opening his mouth.

“Uhh, I-I’m not sure…” – Illian

“I believe your exact words were: ‘because I can’t risk Alex finding out.’” – Shin

I look him in the eye.

“Am I wrong?” – Shin

“O-oh! Right… That!” – Illian

He lets out a nervous laughter…

“I forgot, ehehe…” – Illian

Why is he lying?

Should I just be blunt with him, or is it better to keep playing ‘good cop’?

I want to get some information out of him, but at the same time, if it isn’t anything important, that could put a big dent in our relationship.

He’s one of my best friends after all, I should have some trust in him…

“Look. Cut the bullshit. I know you’re hiding something. We’ve been friends for a long time now, you can talk to me about anything. I won’t tell anyone, okay? Your secrets are safe with me.” – Shin

Many times over, he starts talking, only to cut himself off immediately…

“It’s a little embarrassing, so you’ve got to promise not to tell anybody, okay?” – Illian

“I already told you I won’t. You have my word.” – Shin

“Alright, well… The thing is that…” – Illian

He stumbles for a moment before finally letting it all out.

“I have a crush on Alex, but I don’t want him to know because I’m scared it will ruin our friendship! He-” – Illian

“Ok, ok! I’ve heard enough… I don’t want any part of this…” – Shin

So it wasn’t anything shady then…

If he’s telling the truth that is…