Chapter 76: She is C-Rank?

"What’s wrong, Shani?" Noella asked, noticing Shani’s uncharacteristic behavior.

Shani realized she had overreacted. Clearing her throat, she quickly composed her expression.

"Yeah, you guys are right. It doesn’t really make a difference anyway," she muttered, realizing that playing it down would actually save him from a mountain of complications.

Deep down, however, she felt like a proud mother desperate to show off her child’s amazing achievements to the world. She let out a quiet, secret sigh.

Sonny proceeded to check his own ranking, along with Kiran’s and Shani’s, which required a bit of digging, as their names weren’t sitting at the top of the leaderboard like Noella’s and Jeryon’s.

"Wait, is this a mistake?!" Sonny suddenly yelled.

Everyone at their table, and quite a few students at neighboring tables, jumped at his outburst.

"What’s your problem, Son? Stop being so dramatic," Kiran grumbled, rubbing her ear.

Sonny projected the holographic screen from his smartwatch so everyone at the table could see. He zoomed in on a specific line: Shani Rowan – 706 Beast Energy (C-Rank).

"Shani is... C-Rank?" Noella murmured in a mix of awe and bewilderment, slowly turning her head toward Shani, who looked just as shocked as the rest of them.

’Wasn’t my beast energy only at 670? Wait! The 36 points of beast essence from resonance fused with my beast energy!’

’Hold on, aren’t I forbidden from ranking up again so soon because it’s dangerous for my body?! System, is my body going to be okay?!’ Internal panic seized Shani.

For a moment, the world around her went muted. She bit her lip in a few seconds of tense silence.

Fortunately, the cold, mechanical voice of the System chimed in like a bonfire in a pitch-black forest, answering her frantic question.

[Beast energy and Beast essence are closely bound, yet they remain different, Host. The energy pool is constructed by pairing energy and essence calculations together. As long as essence does not exceed energy, your energy pool will remain stable and unaffected.]

A visible wave of relief washed over Shani at the System’s response.

Her internal panic had only lasted a fraction of a minute, but her friends couldn’t help but notice the sudden shift in her expression.

"Shan, did you already know about your rank?" Sonny asked, unable to read her face.

Shani gave a half-nod before shaking her head. "I had a hunch based on how my body’s been feeling, but I wasn’t entirely sure until now."

"No wonder your baby beast is a B-Rank!" Kiran said, as if suddenly stumbling upon a massive breakthrough. Sonny had a similar look of sudden enlightenment.

Only Noella remained with her brows furrowed.

Her mind raced, sifting through everything she knew about how an F-Rank could jump straight to C-Rank in such a short timeframe without resonance.

She excluded resonance since Shani and Jeryon had only done a single session since their baby beasts hatched.

Yet, no matter how deeply Noella dug into her mental storehouse of knowledge, the only plausible explanation was the consumption of beast energy elixirs.

Even then, she knew Shani would have had to consume multiple elixirs to achieve a jump like this. Was that even realistic?

"Did you drink an elixir?" Noella finally asked.

Shani shook her head, lying with the most innocent expression she could muster. "I don’t really know what’s happening to my body either, but it’s not due to any external influence."

"I knew Shani was extraordinary right from the start," Kiran piped up, buying the explanation instantly.

Sonny nodded along. "Anyone who can become the Prince’s partner is bound to be abnormal."

Sonny’s remark snapped Noella back to reality, prompting her to accept the absurdity of it all.

After all, the fact that Shani could become Jeryon’s partner in the first place had defied logic from day one. It was foolish to try to over-analyze Shani using the limited knowledge she possessed.

Jeryon was the only one who hadn’t said a word, but when Kiran chanced a glance in his direction, she caught the look of utter adoration the Prince was directing at Shani.

Kiran promptly averted her eyes, pretending she hadn’t seen a thing.

If Shani’s friends were this stunned, the rest of the student body was downright reeling. When Shani walked into class, intense stares followed her every move.

Even the instructors cast curious glances her way several times, though they possessed enough decorum not to corner a student out of nowhere.

As for the other students, none dared to approach Shani as long as she remained flanked by Jeryon and Noella.

...

That afternoon, Damon called Shani into the Essence Combat lecture room. Her heart hammered against her ribs, knowing he was bringing news of his meeting with the Nova City instructor.

Now that everyone knew she was no longer an F-Rank, opinions were split.

Either she had chugged an absurd amount of high-tier elixirs, which made little sense given her backwater border-town origins, or her physique was abnormal.

Such an anomaly was bound to attract unwanted attention from various people, and perhaps Ashbournes were among them.

If they dug deeper, they could easily uncover the fact that she was a Night Panther beastman.

Desperate for a way out, Shani had been hoping for good news. But the moment she stepped inside and caught the troubled look on Damon’s face, her heart sank.

"It’s not that he’s unwilling to take you on as a candidate," Damon explained hastily, his voice trailing off.

Shani bit her lower lip, steeling herself before asking, "Then what’s the catch, Sir?"

"He’s more interested in Prince Jeryon," Damon answered, avoiding her disappointed gaze.

Shani fell silent for a moment before asking, "Can’t he take both of us as candidates?"

"Prince Jeryon would never agree," Damon replied swiftly.

"Becoming a direct student means committing to Nova City even after graduation. He likely intends to return to Argenor to vie for the crown."

"I can’t speak for the future, but right now, Jeryon wants nothing to do with the royal family. I’ll try talking to him," Shani said.

Damon himself had heard rumors that Prince Renard was being groomed as the crown prince. If true, heading to Nova City might actually be Jeryon’s best path forward.

...

Shani racked her brain trying to figure out how to bring up her conversation with Damon to Jeryon. First, she needed to find an opportunity for them to talk alone.

"Shan! Shani!" Kiran’s gentle nudge on her shoulder snapped Shani out of her reverie.

She looked at Kiran inquisitively, and Kiran signaled with her chin toward Jeryon.

Shani turned her head forward, meeting Jeryon’s gaze.

"I bought a new toy for Nyx," Jeryon offered. "If it’s alright, could I come over to play with him?"

Shani’s eyes widened with excitement. ’This was exactly the opening she needed!’

"Sure! Let’s go right now!" Shani blurted out, springing from her seat.

"Shan, you haven’t even finished your food," Kiran reminded her.

Shani sheepishly sank back into her chair with a silly giggle. ’Whoops, gotta curb the enthusiasm a bit.’

Watching the interaction unfold, Kiran and Noella couldn’t help but let their wild imaginations run wild once again.

After dinner, Jeryon followed Shani back to her room, where he was immediately greeted by Nyx’s soft meows.

Shani hung back in the corner, giving them space while frantically rehearsing how to start the conversation.

Resting in Jeryon’s arms, Nyx let out a mew toward Shani. Jeryon stepped closer to bring it over, but the nimble little furball wriggled free and leaped effortlessly onto Shani’s bed.

Nyx sprawled its chubby body across the mattress before letting out an indignant meow toward its two "parents," as if demanding they come join immediately.

Exchanging amused yet exasperated glances, Shani and Jeryon complied with the little black cub’s demands. Jeryon sat on the left edge of the bed, while Shani took the right.

Nyx popped its head up and let out an unhappy growl.

Getting to its feet, the furry ball of chaos trotted over and yanked on the hem of Shani’s shirt with her teeth. Caught off guard, Shani tumbled backward onto the mattress.

Before Shani could scold Nyx, the baby beast darted toward Jeryon to pull the exact same trick.

Having watched Shani get taken down, however, Jeryon remained firm. Nyx only managed to leave tiny teeth marks on his shirt without budging its "father" an inch.

Nyx let out a frustrated squeak, batting its tiny paws against Jeryon’s hands as he tried to scoop it up.

Shani had initially intended to give the naughty little cub a scolding, but seeing Nyx sulk in frustration at failing to drag Jeryon down only made her break into fond chuckles.

Little did Shani know, Jeryon wasn’t finding the situation adorable at all. He was inwardly spiraling.

The brief mental image of lying on the same bed with Shani made his pulse skyrocket, and he felt a sudden urge to bolt out the door with the little feline in his arms.

Wiping away tiny tears of laughter from the corners of her eyes, Shani felt the atmosphere soften enough for her to speak.

"Jer... I might become a candidate of Direct Student..."

...