Re-Awakened :I Ascend as an SSS-Ranked Dragon Summoner

’Great. He’s exactly as insufferable as the rumors claimed,’ Noah thought, watching how even Kelvin straightened his posture slightly.

Cora, true to form, didn’t even try to hide her disdain. She kept her arms crossed, deliberately looking anywhere but at their new team member. The unspoken end of her earlier statement – that she wouldn’t take orders from a stuck-up third-year – hung in the air like a challenge.

”Micah Reed,” he introduced himself unnecessarily, as if anyone in the school didn’t know who he was. ”I understand we’ll be working together for the Cannadah expedition.”

’Working together. Right. More like you’ll try to boss us around while we actually do the work,’ Noah thought, but Lila stepped forward before he could voice his concerns.

”We’re excited to have you on the team,” she said diplomatically, though Noah caught the slight tension in her smile. ”I’m Lila, and this is Noah, Kelvin, and Cora.”

Micah’s eyes swept over each of them, lingering just a moment too long on Noah. ”Ah yes, the zombie boy. I’ve heard... interesting things about your performance in practical exercises.”

The way he said ”interesting” made Noah’s jaw clench. He looked at kelvin who looked away. This was the bad side of PR he hated. Being the academy’s hot trendy topic tended to have its own backlash.

”We were just discussing our preparation plans for tomorrow,” Kelvin interjected, his tablet still displaying Micah’s academic record. ”Given your experience with expeditions—”

”Oh, I’ve already drafted a comprehensive strategy,” Micah cut him off, gesturing to one of his followers who immediately produced a stack of documents. ”I took the liberty of analyzing your individual capabilities and creating optimal team formations.”

’Of course you did,’ Noah thought, watching as Micah’s minion distributed the papers with mechanical efficiency. ’Heaven forbid we contribute to our own survival plans.’

Cora’s eye roll was practically audible as she received her copy. ”How thoughtful,” she muttered, the paper crumpling slightly in her grip.

”I expect everyone to review these thoroughly before tomorrow’s departure,” Micah continued, either oblivious to or deliberately ignoring the tension. ”The success of this expedition relies heavily on proper coordination and...” he paused, his gaze settling on Noah again, ”...following established hierarchies.”

’Established hierarchies. That’s what he’s calling it now?’ Noah fought the urge to crumple his own copy of the plan. ’Because being number five clearly makes him our divine appointed leader.’

”We’ll look these over,” Lila promised, ever the mediator, though Noah could see the strain in her smile growing.

”Excellent.” Micah clapped his hands together once, the sound echoing in the hallway like a judge’s gavel. ”I have other matters to attend to, but I’ll see you all bright and early tomorrow. Don’t be late.”

With that, he turned and strode away, his entourage falling in step behind him like well-trained pets.

As soon as he was out of earshot, Cora let out a groan that seemed to come from her very soul. ”Please tell me we can accidentally lose him on Cannadah.”

’If only,’ Noah thought, finally looking down at Micah’s meticulously detailed plan. ’Something tells me tomorrow is going to be a very, very long day.’

As soon as Micah and his entourage disappeared down the hallway, everyone turned to Lila.

”Well?” Cora asked, arms crossed and a challenging look on her face. ”Still think we should give him a chance?”

Lila sighed, her diplomatic mask faltering for just a moment. ”I said give him a chance, not roll over and let him take control of everything.”

Cora scoffed and tossed her copy of Micah’s plan to the floor. ”Chance or not, the guy’s insufferable. Did you see what he wrote about me? ’Potentially useful in high-stress situations, though prone to impulsivity.’”

Kelvin, who had been scrolling furiously through the digital copy on his tablet, looked pale. ”You think you’ve got it bad? With my technopath ability, I’m supposed to be ’logistics support only’—basically a glorified tech assistant. Do you know how useless that makes me feel?”

Noah leaned against the wall, arms crossed, as the others vented. He hadn’t even bothered to look at the stack of papers in his hand. ’Why would I? It’s not like Micah’s ego-driven strategy is going to have anything useful for me.’

”Earth to Noah,” Cora said, snapping her fingers in front of his face. ”What about you? What did your highness assign you?”

Noah shrugged. ”Didn’t check. Don’t care.”

Cora groaned again, though this time it sounded more out of exasperation than frustration. ”You’re impossible.”

Lila started to say something, but Noah cut her off with a glance at the time. ”I’ve got martial arts class. If I don’t go now, I’ll be late.”

Kelvin raised an eyebrow. ”You’re still going to that with everything going on?”

”Yeah,” Noah replied, pushing off the wall and shoving his hands into his pockets. ”It’s either that or stick around here talking about how Micah’s already ruining our lives. No thanks.”

He turned to leave, pausing briefly at the end of the hallway. ”Good luck with your subclasses. See you guys tomorrow.”

Without waiting for a reply, he trudged off toward the training hall, his mind already shifting gears. He had other things to worry about—like informing Mrs. Harper about the expedition.

’She’s not going to take it well,’ he thought, picturing her reaction. She had spent most of her life at the base, a relic of an earlier era who still clung to a lot of the old-world traditions. The idea of him leaving Earth would probably send her into a full-blown lecture.

But that was a problem for after martial arts class. For now, he focused on the rhythm of his steps, the weight of his hands in his pockets, and the faint hum of energy in the air that always seemed to precede something big.

’One step at a time,’ he thought. ’Let’s just survive today first.’

---

The walk to martial arts class was supposed to be uneventful, just another chance for Noah to clear his head before throwing himself into another grueling session. But life, as usual, had other plans.

He spotted Raven leaning casually against the wall of the corridor ahead, arms crossed, his sharp features somehow managing to look both brooding and smug. Noah tensed instinctively. The guy was from Class 1A, the academy’s golden tier, and their arranged match yesterday had been the talk of the entire school.

’What does he want now? A rematch?’ Noah thought, his fists subtly clenching in his pockets. ’Or is this the part where he tries to jump me with his buddies?’

He kept walking, his pace steady but cautious. Just as he was about to pass, Raven stepped in front of him, blocking the way.

Noah sighed. ”If this is about yesterday, I’m not interested. Go bother someone else.”

Raven didn’t move. Instead, he did something that completely threw Noah off.

He grabbed Noah’s hand, bowed his head, and said, ”Please take me as your disciple.”

For a moment, Noah just stared, wondering if he’d somehow misheard. ’Disciple? What is he talking about?’

”Uh... what?” Noah finally managed.

Raven raised his head slightly, his eyes full of something that looked dangerously close to desperation. ”Teach me. I’ll follow whatever you say. I’ll listen to every word you speak. Just take me under your wing.”

Noah blinked, struggling to process the absurdity of the situation. ”You do realize we’re going to the same martial arts class, right? Like... literally the same one. Two days a week. The one we’re about to attend together. What could I possibly teach you that you won’t learn there?”

Raven shook his head, his grip on Noah’s hand tightening. ”It’s different. I saw it yesterday. The way you move, the way you think in a fight—it’s beyond what they teach in class. You’ve got something special, and I need to learn it.”

’Is this guy serious?’ Noah thought, glancing around to see if anyone was watching this bizarre scene. A couple of passing students slowed, whispering to each other, their curious gazes making his skin crawl.

”Look,” Noah began, trying to pull his hand free, ”I think you’ve got the wrong idea—”

”Please,” Raven interrupted, his voice rising with emotion. ”I’ll do anything. Anything you ask, I’ll do it. Just let me learn from you.”

Noah froze at the word. His eyes narrowed as an idea began to form in his mind, and a wicked grin slowly spread across his face.

”Anything?” he asked, his tone laced with mock curiosity.

Raven nodded earnestly, completely missing the shift in Noah’s expression. ”Yes. Anything.”

’Oh, this is going to be fun,’ Noah thought, the grin widening. He crossed his arms, leaning back slightly as he regarded Raven with exaggerated consideration.

”Alright,” he said at last, his voice dripping with false seriousness. ”But if I’m going to take you on as a disciple, you’ve got to prove you’re serious. And I mean really serious.”

”I am!” Raven said, standing up straight, his face lighting up with determination.

”Good,” Noah replied. ”Because I’ve got a... very specific test in mind.”

Raven nodded eagerly. ”Name it.”

Noah’s grin turned downright sinister. ”Oh, don’t worry. You’ll find out soon enough.”