Rebirth: The Universe's Hidden Heiress-Chapter 35: Getting Transferred

In the commentary room, Roukujou took off her headset. "Even though Greenie used long-range firepower to take down Pinky, everyone must have noticed how likely it was for Pinky to win, right?" she asked. The comments flooded in response:

[Totally! It was a crushing victory!]

[If Greenie hadn’t used that firepower cannon, how could he have beaten Pinky?]

[Let’s not jump to conclusions. Comebacks are common in the arena. Greenie could have won in the end.]

[I’m just laughing here. Wasn’t it a tie between Pinky and Greenie? Why are you all dissing Greenie?]

[Seriously? Before facing Greenie, Pinky had already defeated two others. Anyone can see Pinky’s stronger, right?]

[Ignore them, they’re just Greenie fans. Let’s not engage.]

[Why would GPS fans even be here? Don’t they know this place is Pinky territory?]

Seeing the chat turning into a battleground, Roukujou quickly intervened, "Let’s not argue, folks. Let’s have a rational discussion!"

[Alright, we’ll listen to Saltyfish. Let’s see who wins if Greenie and Pinky face off again.]

Roukujou offered a few more words of comfort and then turned off the chat.

Pinky’s ranking was rising, inevitably drawing more attention. Roukujou sighed inwardly, hoping Pinky could keep it up, no, hoping Pinky would continue to rise and silence the doubters.

Meanwhile, Yuka had already left the underground arena. Ayoi and Alex stood behind her, waiting for a Lev.

"Shawn?" Ayoi waved excitedly. "Shawn, over here!" Yuka and Alex turned to the newcomer.

Shawn approached Ayoi, "Long time no see, Ayoi."

Ayoi’s face lit up with dimples, "It’s been a while. These are my friends, Yuka and Alex."

"This is Shawn, my childhood friend and neighbor," Ayoi introduced.

Yuka remarked, "Oh, childhood sweethearts."

After exchanging brief greetings, they waited while Ayoi and Shawn caught up.

Once Shawn left, their Lev arrived.

On the car ride back, Ayoi shared with Yuka and Alex, "Shawn is also specializing in mecha. He’s a student at the Gaia Institute. He’s really good. I think he’ll make it to that final competition the bald man mentioned."

They drove back to the campus, changed into their uniforms, and headed to the library.

Ayoi and Alex found seats while Yuka whispered, "I’ll take a walk and be right back."

Yuka walked to the emergency escape route map on the wall, studying it closely. To access the restricted area on the fifth floor, there seemed to be no indoor route other than the main hall’s spiral staircase. After pondering, she walked up the stairs towards the door on the fifth floor.

The librarian, standing at the entrance, glanced at Yuka as she approached and said, "It’s not open now. Come back in December." fɾēewebnσveℓ.com

Yuka nodded obediently, taking in the setup.

There were three barriers to the restricted area:

1. The Librarian: A tall, sturdy man.

2. Scanning Door with an Alarm: The first line of security.

3. Thick Metal Door with Alarm: Controlled by the librarian, about ten centimeters thick.

Noticing Yuka still there, the librarian stood up to usher her away, "Hurry up and go downstairs."

Yuka noticed that there was nothing like a key or button on his belt. Smiling at the glaring librarian, she turned and walked downstairs, pondering that brute force was not an option; she would need to find another way in.

...

On Thursday morning, Yuka returned to the white classroom and stood at the back of the crowd, looking up as Kenji hurried in for the class. Their eyes met for a second before he quickly looked away and instructed the students, "Today, we’re practicing hand movements in mecha operation. Everyone, get into the simulation pods."

Inside her pod, Yuka opened her eyes in the virtual environment, selecting the class mode, and found herself back on the grassy field.

Kenji stood opposite the students, pointing to a bowl and a small glass bottle beside it, "Your task today is to use the mecha’s mechanical hand to pick peas from this bowl and place them into the glass bottle."

"The bottle’s opening is small; you can only fit one pea at a time," Kenji said with a sly smile that sent shivers down their spines. "Don’t think about cheating. You have exactly one hundred peas in your bowl, one point per pea. If a pea falls on the ground, it disappears."

"The bottle will count automatically. At the end of the class, your score will be the number of peas in your bottle," Kenji added, cautioning against interference, "Keep a safe distance from each other." He then gave Fred a meaningful look.

"Now, come and get your bowls and bottles."

Yuka and Ayoi stepped forward to collect their items, then found a spot on the open field, summoning their mechas to start picking peas. Ayoi, crouched nearby, watched Yuka basking in the virtual sun and asked, "Yuka, aren’t you going to practice?"

Yuka squinted her eyes, "I’ll start in a bit."

Just as she finished speaking, a heart-wrenching scream came from not far away. Yuka immediately stood up, curious to see what was happening.

A mecha operator wailed over their half-empty bowl while others tried to console them. Yuka listened for a while and understood that the person had slipped, scattering most of the peas from the bowl onto the grass. Even if he managed to put the remaining peas in the bottle, he wouldn’t pass.

The desperate pilot pleaded with Kenji for another chance. Kenji’s response was cold and uncompromising, "No. The peas were lost due to your own mistake, not external factors. And someone who can’t even stand properly doesn’t deserve a second chance."

The murmurs around them ceased, and everyone looked down, not daring to meet Kenji’s gaze. Yuka thought to herself about his strict and unsympathetic nature. The next moment, Kenji’s gaze turned towards her.

He walked over to Yuka, towering above her, and said, "Yuka, get up and practice."

Yuka blinked and, deciding not to provoke him, slowly sat up and reached out with her mechanical arm to pick a green pea.

Under Kenji’s watchful eye, Yuka’s hand shook tremendously, and the pea flew out, arcing through the air and disappearing into the grass.

"Oh no, I dropped it," Yuka said with feigned regret.

Kenji, visibly frustrated, turned and walked away. Once he left, Yuka lay back down and asked Alex, "How many have you got?"

"I’ve got three, dropped one. You should start, you need to pass," he whispered, hinting at the importance of passing for her specialization transfer.

Yuka hummed in response, continuing to relax until there were only fifteen minutes left in the class. Then, she got up and rapidly started to work.

She deftly grabbed peas with her mechanical hand and tossed them towards the bottle. While most didn’t make it in, Ayoi was still astounded by her skill.

By the end of the class, Ayoi stared at the thirty-five peas in Yuka’s bottle, speechless.

Yuka looked at her bottle with satisfaction. Thirty-five points, added to her previous five, kept her average just at sixty.

Kenji noted Yuka’s score and remarked indifferently, "You have failed twice now."

Before Yuka could respond to Kenji, Fred let out a snicker nearby. Ayoi, protective of Yuka, confronted him with a sharp glare, "What’s so funny?"

Fred, about to retort, caught Kenji’s displeased expression and decided against it, leaving with his sidekick.

Yuka, unfazed, openly acknowledged to Kenji, "I know."

Kenji, pausing his input of scores, seemed to realize something and looked up at Yuka. "You don’t want to join the Alliance Army, do you?"

Yuka nodded, "No, I don’t."

Kenji studied her for a moment and then offered, "Many others want to. If you don’t want to stay in the mecha department, I can apply to transfer you out."

Yuka’s face lit up, "Really? How long would that take?"

Despite having seen Yuka act many times, Kenji genuinely felt her joy this time. "You’re so happy not to join the Alliance Army?" he asked, with mixed emotions. "If things move quickly, you could leave after next week’s autumn outing."

"Autumn outing?" Yuka and Ayoi exchanged looks, asking Kenji, "Next week?"

Kenji replied, "Hasn’t it been announced? It’s from next Sunday to Tuesday." After saying this, he left the virtual practice area, with Yuka and Ayoi quickly following suit.

Outside the classroom, Kenji was nowhere to be seen. Yuka, barely containing her excitement, checked the school’s notifications.

"A shift on Saturday?!" Ayoi exclaimed, realizing the schedule change of the art appreciation class were due to the outing.

Alex caught up, adding, "Did you see? Our trip is to Poseidonia planet. There’s a large ocean there, and Atlantis Academy is built by the sea."

Still elated about her impending transfer, Yuka cheerfully suggested, "Do you guys want to buy swimsuits? Let’s check out the mall this afternoon."

Alex and Ayoi hesitated, but Yuka, ever casual and generous, assured them, "It’s on me, from my family’s business. Let’s not be formal among friends. Let’s go."

Then she held the two’s shoulders and laughed.

The butler quietly reminded, "Master, your behavior..."

Yuka dismissed it carelessly, "It doesn’t matter, I’m about to be transferred by Kenji anyway. No need to sweat the small stuff."

Accepting this, the butler fell in silence.

Yuka, with a graceful flick of her hair and a sweet smile, urged Alex and Ayoi, "Let’s go."