Chapter 80: 79 - Secret

"So...you want us to not say anything about the fact that you're an Anomaly to anyone?" Surmised Taayin, after Director Silva and I explained the situation to my classmates that had been in the maze with me. 

"Yup...that'd be great," I replied sheepishly. 

"Just out of curiosity...what would you do if we did tell someone?" Asked Mitchell curiously. 

Definitely shouldn't threaten them, let's try a nicer approach... 

"Uh...nothing, I guess...I mean, I'd be dead if you guys hadn't bought me some time back there, so I do owe you," I answered with a shrug, before adding, "That said, I'd really appreciate it if you wouldn't tell anyone."

"Sure, fine by me," Responded Kiran with a yawn. 

"Yeah, if you want to keep it a secret, I certainly won't ruin it for you," Added Zoya. 

"Gossip ain't my thing, you don't gotta worry about me," Chimed in Taayin, giving me a thumbs up, as the others voiced their agreement to keep it a secret as well. 

Of course, some of them might be lying, but there's nothing I can do about that, and since I don't have any way of proving it, I'll play it safe and leave it at that. 

"Um, if you don't mind, can we ask you questions about it?" Requested Seila with a curious and intrigued look on her face. 

"Yeah, go ahead, though I won't get into the specifics of how it works or anything," I responded after mulling it over. 

"Hey, come to think of it...I remember one of the Wights' heads disappearing and then reappearing inside the head of another one...pretty sure I heard an activation chant too, though I can't remember the words...and then I saw you stand up and...I think I passed out at that point," Muttered Mitchell with a frown, trying to recall the details. 

Oh, crap, that's right, I did recite the activation chant out loud...was no one conscious to hear it, really? I sure hope so. 

"So, um, have you-?" Seila began to ask with a look of intrigue. 

"Oh, I just remembered! Katie used that Manifestation Overdrive thingy a little before Kilzachs woke up!" Interrupted Mitchell, standing up with a start, as if he'd been struck by lightning. 

"...no, I didn't," Responded Katie, averting her gaze after a moment of silence as everyone stared at her. 

Definitely lying...but I can sympathize, bet she worked hard on it and wanted to keep it under wraps for as long as possible...oh, well, at least everyone's attention is on her now, instead of me. I really don't like the spotlight. 

"Wait, really!?" Exclaimed Director Silva, walking over and grabbing Katie's shoulders, startling her, "Can you really use Manifestation Overdrive!? Ever since it was first used, no one else has been able to pull it off yet, even Zarina herself can't do it consistently yet...how'd you do it!?" 

Katie looked uncomfortable and hesitant for a moment, before letting out a sigh of defeat. Wow, that's the most emotion I've ever seen her display... 

"I actually got the idea from the XFE Takeover technique," She began explaining reluctantly, "I just try to overflow the spot on my back between my shoulder-blades, it almost feels like I'm deliberately panicking...it's harder to pull off if I try to keep myself calm." 

"It's that simple? Great, thanks! Well, I'm going to go back to my office, there's a lot to take care of after the Wight attack," Sighed Director Silva, before leaving with her shoulders slumped, the brief flash of excitement fading quickly as she remembered the mountain of work waiting for her. 

"Whew, that was so nerve-wracking! I think that was the most important person I've been in the same room with!" Spoke up Lin, as the director shut the door and left. 

Yeah, I'd thought she was being uncharacteristically and strangely quiet, now I know why. 

Hm...I still feel a bit uneasy about revealing my powers...should I say something? 

"Anyway, uh...just to confirm where we stand on the matter of my powers, um...," I remarked tentatively. 

I regretted speaking almost immediately...not good, now they're gonna think that I don't trust them, which I don't, and that might make them more likely to spill the beans, and if that happens, then-. 

"Chill out, dude, we ain't gonna snitch on ya," Assured Mitchell with a shrug, slapping my shoulder. 

...why's he talking like that? 

"He's right, if you really want to keep it a secret, we won't tell anyone," Added Zoya with a smile, "After all, you saved us."

Huh, maybe I was just being pessimistic...

"No, not really...I mean, first off, the Wights were after me, so if I hadn't been there, they wouldn't have shown up in the first place. And the only reason that I even got a chance to kill them at all was because you guys held them off," I responded with a shake of my head. 

"You sure are humble, aren't you?" Remarked Mitchell with a grin. 

"No, I doubt that. In fact, I'd say that I have a pretty high opinion of myself these days. That said, I don't like taking credit for something that I wasn't fully in control of," I replied with a frown. 

"I can appreciate that, you're proud but not to the point of arrogance," Said Zoya with a nod. 

Uh...thanks, I guess? 

"Hey, speaking of that whole thing...what happened back there anyway, you just started bleeding like crazy out of nowhere," Spoke up Lin curiously. 

"Oh, that...that's just what happens when an Anomaly awakens a new power. I happened to have inadvertently met an unlock condition right then...FYI, I have no idea what the unlock conditions are until they're met," I explained. 

"That sounds inconvenient," Remarked Kiran with a frown. 

"You have no idea," I replied with a wry smile. 

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Huh, come to think of it, so far, I've unlocked them in order, first Tier One, then Two and now Three. Wait, does that mean that even if I meet the unlock conditions for a higher Tier, nothing will happen unless I've already awakened all the previous Tiers? 

If that's the case...then for all I know, I might have previously already met the unlock conditions for Tier Four and Five...yeah, I'm not gonna think about it, I've never had any real control over unlocking my Anomaly Tiers, so there's no point in worrying over it. 

"Damn, for real? That's gotta be rough," Remarked Mitchell with a shudder. 

"Yeah, and the timing was really crap this time around," I sighed wistfully. 

"Um, can you really stop time?" Inquired Seila curiously. 

"...yes. That's...one of my powers," I replied reluctantly. 

"Have you ever used it in a fight?" She asked, narrowing her eyes. 

"No, I haven't-...oh wait, there was that time when I used it once during the attack on the Wight campsite," I recalled. 

"Oh...what about during duels?" She pressed me further, her eyebrows scrunching up...ah, I see what she wants to know... 

"...no, I didn't use it when I fought you," I answered with a sly smile. 

"H-huh, that's not what I was-...sorry," She replied sheepishly, averting her gaze. 

"No worries, it's a fair concern. But no, I never used my powers in a duel, for two reasons...the first being that I was making an active effort to hide my powers, and if I'd ever used my time-stopping power, it'd be very obvious that something was off...plus it's not very practical, the way physics works when I freeze time is kinda annoying. Actually, forget I said that last part. As for the second reason, it's because I work hard on my practical skills, so I have confidence in them and prefer to rely on them over the powers that I only got by chance," I explained, before adding as everyone stared at me, "...stop staring at me, I'm not used to talking this much, and I'm definitely not used to this much attention."

"I mean, it's rude to not look at you while you're talking, so...," Countered Mitchell.

"Fair point," I relented with a sigh. 

"Um, could you use your time stopping power?" Requested Seila hopefully, "I'd like to see it, if you don't mind." 

"I...sure, I suppose that's fine," I replied after mulling it over for a bit and chanting inaudibly, "<Activate Anomaly, Tier Two: Pause>." 

Okay, what should I do to prove that I froze time? I could just walk to a different spot in the room and then resume the time flow, but that's kinda boring. Oh, how about if I do something to one of them, like mess up their hair or something? 

I then walked over to Seila, since it was her request...and tied her twintails together around the front of her face, over her nose. There, that should do. I'll back up a bit before activating Play, the surprise might make her trip and fall...with her, that's a highly likely possibility. And if that happens, I'd prefer to stay far away enough that I don't get dragged down with her. 

"<Activate Anomaly, Tier Two: Play>." 

"Wha-...hey, that was mean," Pouted Seila, untying the knot. 

"Wow...so if you're totally serious in a fight, no one would stand a chance against you," Remarked Taayin with wide eyes, "You'd be able to like, stab someone and they wouldn't be able to do a thing about it!" 

"I can think of some other uses too," Grinned Mitchell, before averting his gaze sheepishly as the girls glared at him, since it was obvious what he was insinuating, "What? Come on, surely you've abused your powers at least once!" 

Well, does splurging on expensive desserts and then redoing the day after I'm done count as abusing my powers? Not that I can say that, because my ability to go back in time is the one thing I never want anyone to find out about. 

Of course, I'd want to keep all my powers unknown if possible, but of my current three unlocked Tiers, Tier One is definitely the one I most prioritize in terms of keeping it a secret. 

"No, I haven't...at least, not with my time stopping power," I replied with a shrug, "And that's all I'm gonna say on that matter." 

"From what I know, all Anomalies have a tendency to keep the specifics of their powers a secret, right? With your powers though, even if your opponent knows what you can do, they can't really do anything to counter it, can they?" Inquired Lin curiously. 

"I guess not...though Anomaly powers don't affect other Anomalies, so there's that...well, not directly, anyway. For example, let's say there's an Anomaly with telekinesis, they wouldn't be able to use it on another Anomaly, but they can, say, use it to throw a big rock at the other Anomaly or something like that. You know, pretty sure this information is available for public use, it's not like I'm the first Anomaly or something," I shrugged with a raised eyebrow. 

"Actually, information on Anomalies is pretty limited, since there are only a few in existence...unless there are more like you who've been keeping their powers hidden. Though, yeah, I've read some of what you said online," Replied Seila. 

She's pretty fascinated by this whole thing, isn't she? 

"Hey, I just realized...during that first teamwork exam, you used your powers, didn't you? I always did think it was a big strange that you were able to get away from a Two-Headed Serpent while carrying three people," Remarked Zoya, her eyes widening in realization. 

"Yup, guilty as ch-," I began to admit.

"Three and a half," Interrupted Taayin, correcting Zoya. 

Huh, I was thinking it and he actually said it. And based on Zoya's expression, I made the right call in not saying it myself... 

"Dude...way too soon." 

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