Chapter 21
Most of the students assumed Oliver would dominate Nina in the race. Sure, Nina had shown her freakish strength on her first day, but there were clear differences between men and women, and Oliver’s size spoke for itself. It was hard to imagine how he could lose.
Until it happened.
As soon as the instructor shouted, “Go,” Nina bolted like an arrow released from a bowstring.
Her explosive speed left Oliver eating dust in a matter of seconds, the gap between them widening by dozens of yards before anyone could blink.
The spectators were dumbfounded.
“Holy crap! Did Nina just activate sprint mode?”
“Hah! She’ll burn out in no time at that pace.”
“Wait, are we sure a normal human can even run that fast?”
“Is she even human?”
Even Oliver, staring at Nina’s back as she disappeared into the distance, looked genuinely startled.
This girl… Her speed isn’t just unusual–it isn’t normal. Who is she indeed?‘ he wondered.
Nina’s performance stunned not only the students but also the seasoned instructors, many of whom were special forces. A group of them gathered, whispering in disbelief.
“Are you seeing this? Did she just break every record we have?”
“No way this girl’s just an ordinary student.”
“She’s been trained. Look at how she handled that shoulder throw earlier–it was textbook pro–level.”
“Man, this one’s serious business. I’m sparring with her after this.
On the observation deck, even the officers were taken aback.
“That girl… She’s not ordinary, is she? Her skills are beyond our special forces level.”
“She’s got potential. Should we recruit her right now?”
“Definitely worth grooming as a top–tier talent.”
Clifford overheard their discussion, a faint smile curling on his lips.
Turning to the group, he chuckled. “Aren’t you all curious who you’ll be sparring with tonight?”
The officers exchanged looks before someone ventured cautiously, “Sir, don’t tell me… You mean her?”
They would meet each other anyway.
Clifford’s smirk deepened. “That’s exactly who I mean.
Their collective shock was palpable.
Chapter 21
“Wait, what? How are we sparring against a teenage girl?”
“What, are you looking down on her?” Clifford asked, amused.
The men exchanged awkward glances. “No, sir. If you’re vouching for her, we’re sure she’s capable.”
Even so, doubts lingered. Sure, her running was impressive, but could she match their brute strength in hand–to–hand combat? She was just a girl, after all.
*****
Little did they know, Nina wasn’t done shattering their expectations.
In most military units, running with a weight in under 20 minutes is considered excellent. Every minute you cut off that time marks a major leap in physical conditioning.
With 66 pounds strapped to her back, Nina had everyone questioning whether she’d even make it to the end. But to their amazement, she finished the 3 miles in just 14 minutes and 23 seconds.
And when she crossed the finish line, she was barely sweating, her breathing steady–clearly still with plenty of energy to
spare.
“She… she finished?” The instructors‘ jaws dropped.
“I finished. I followed the route you gave me.”
Nina tossed the weighted pack aside casually, glancing around for Oliver, whose silhouette was still nowhere to be seen. Her eyes sparkled with smug satisfaction.
“Aww, where’s my errand boy? Still running? That’s kinda sad, isn’t it?”
Her teasing tone was enough to make the instructors stare at her like she was an alien.
This didn’t just break their unit’s record–it shattered the all–time record for the fastest weighted run in Moonhuntland’s history!
“Nina, what did
you
do before this? Your fitness is way beyond normal!” the instructor couldn’t help but ask.
“Huh? Isn’t this normal?” Nina was a bit stunned.
She had to keep her identity under wraps, so she’d held back during the run–how could it still be considered anything out of the ordinary?
She remembered the tests she’d done in the lab, where her stats had been even stronger than they were now.
“Normal?”
Seeing Nina’s confused reaction, the instructors exchanged skeptical looks, ing if they were the ones out of shape. How could this girl not realize she was operating on a superhuman level?
“Nina, have you ever trained with anyone?” One of the instructors asked again.
Nina, feeling the weight of their gazes on her, as if they could see straight through her, blinked and quickly lied.
“No one trained me… I grew up in the countryside, doing hard manual labor every day. I guess that’s what did it.
“Just farm work, and you have this kind of physique?”
“Yep, yep!”
Everyone exchanged glances, silently thinking, ‘Do we look like fools to you? This girl is definitely hiding something! Is she a spy from an enemy country?
But that doesn’t make sense. If she were a spy, why would she be drawing attention like this? Is she trying to confuse us, or is there something else going on?‘
While the instructors were lost in their theories, a sharp sound of clapping broke the tension.
Everyone turned to see Clifford walking over with a few officers. He was smiling, friendly and approachable.
“Great job, Nina,” he said warmly. “Looks like you’ve been training for a while.”
Nina immediately understood that Clifford was trying to smooth things over and distract the instructors. So, she payed along, nodding. “Yeah, I grew up working on a farm. Over time, I just got used to carrying heavy loads.”
“I see. You’ve got impressive st–don’t let that go to waste,” Clifford’said with a smile.
“Definitely,” Nina replied, nodding obediently.
The instructors exchanged uncertain looks. They weren’t close with Clifford, but they knew of his reputation–he was a high–ranking officer, much higher than them. If he didn’t think there was an issue, then they probably had no reason to doubt her.
Clifford turned to the instructors. “This student shows exceptional ability. We’ve decided to let her take part in other training activities. She won’t need to join the group training for the next few days.”
“Understood, Mr. Snee,” they replied in unison.
Clifford turned back to Nina with a smile. “Alright, Nina, you can come with us now.”
“Okay,” Nina nodded.
Just as she was about to leave with Clifford and the officers, she suddenly felt her foot catch on something. Looking down, she realized her shoelace had come undone. Without thinking, she blurted out, “Clifford, my shoelace is untied.”
The moment the words left her mouth, the officers and instructors froze, their expressions a mix of disbelief and confusion. They all turned to stare at Nina, stunned.
