“Good, good!” Teacher Cai clapped her hands.
She sincerely admired the student in front of her and said:
“Since you’re here, I won’t need to worry about E Class’s performance in the FSVM in a few months.”
“FSVM?” Upon hearing the abbreviation, Ye Lan instinctively furrowed his brow.
FSVM stands for “Field Survival Combat Exercise,” also called the “Grade Battle.”
It’s a practical exercise very similar to the LPB, but the exercise doesn’t take place on Beiken Star—it’s conducted on an unknown planet.
The “knockout” criterion is still 10%, but scoring is class-based, with the final ranking determined by class points.
Of course, because Class A’s overall strength is overwhelming, it’s a dimensional crush on the other classes.
So Class A only participates in the later stages of the exercise.
Even if Class A dominates at the end, their points remain relatively limited.
During this exercise, homeroom teachers can lead the team, direct and deploy the class, but they cannot participate in combat.
Seeing Ye Lan’s confusion, Teacher Cai asked:
“Your homeroom teacher didn’t tell you?”
“Not yet,” Ye Lan shook his head:
“It’s still too early.”
E Class students had only known each other for a few days, weren’t familiar, and weren’t yet united.
So there was no need to reveal FSVM prematurely.
Teacher Cai glanced at the time and said to Ye Lan:
“It’s already noon. Go eat.”
“Yes, goodbye, Teacher.”
Ye Lan bid farewell to Teacher Cai and pushed open the cooking classroom door, finally letting out a long breath.
However, he didn’t dare completely relax because he knew more difficulties awaited him.
At that moment, he heard the sound of an argument between a boy and a girl from around the corner.
“Why do we have to make a fool of ourselves?”
“Don’t forget, I still have leverage over you.”
“You! …”
Even now, there were still people here?
Ye Lan thought: it’s been nearly half an hour since class ended.
If they didn’t go to the cafeteria now, there would be no food or seats left.
Perhaps hearing other footsteps, the argument at the corner ceased, and one person hurriedly left.
Ye Lan rounded the corner and saw a blonde girl he knew leaning against the wall, head down, her voice choked with emotion.
“Yaselin?” Ye Lan recognized her from the argument:
“Why are you still here?”
Hearing his voice, Yaselin raised her head.
Tears glistened in her eyes, as if she had been frustrated to the point of tears.
She asked Ye Lan:
“You heard everything?”
“Not exactly,” Ye Lan pretended to be clueless and immediately changed the subject:
“Teacher Cai just scolded me, saying my method was a shortcut and shouldn’t be repeated.”
“There probably won’t be a next time,” Yaselin had heard about the teacher’s initial disciplinary show of authority.
She wiped the corner of her eyes, looked at Ye Lan, and said:
“But no matter what, this was all thanks to you. 200 laps would’ve exhausted me.
Hey! Don’t run away! At least let me treat you to a meal!”
Ye Lan didn’t stop to listen.
If he didn’t hurry to the cafeteria, all the free communal meals would be gone.
But when he heard the words “treat you to a meal,” he immediately stopped and turned:
“Really treating?”
“Of course! Don’t be fooled by me. My family’s actually quite wealthy,” Yaselin proudly pulled out her meal card:
“And the cafeteria isn’t expensive. You can choose anything you want.”
Ye Lan hadn’t expected Yaselin to be a little rich girl.
Although money isn’t very useful in the Military Academy compared to points, it could buy daily necessities and food, making life more comfortable for wealthy students.
Ye Lan thought for a moment, then said:
“Then let’s go for the second-floor buffet.”
“Ah? Just a buffet?” Yaselin had expected him to want a fancier restaurant, but it was a simple buffet instead.
Seeing her disappointed expression, Ye Lan silently cursed:
“Damn rich people!”
“Don’t underestimate my appetite. Going to a high-end restaurant might bankrupt you,” Ye Lan explained.
He chose the buffet because he had eaten the communal meals for so long that he hadn’t had high-quality protein in a while.
He had to eat a lot.
“You better be capable of it,” Yaselin said, unimpressed.
She walked ahead of Ye Lan and said:
“Come on, let’s go! Otherwise, there won’t be any seats.”
…
The Human Alliance subsidized cafeterias at all domestic schools, and the Military Academy’s subsidy was especially generous.
Even free communal meals didn’t affect cafeteria revenue.
But when people have money, they pursue higher-quality food and won’t settle for just communal meals.
At the main cafeteria, the first floor offered free communal meals, while the second, third, and higher floors were rented to interstellar brand restaurants.
So with enough money or points, students could eat snacks and dishes from all over the galaxy.
Daily military training consumed a lot of energy.
Sometimes students grew tired of the same communal meals and wanted better food, which required going to higher floors.
The second floor was the most popular buffet in terms of student preference.
For a small fee or points, students could eat a variety of dishes from across the galaxy—a high cost-to-value ratio.
Yaselin was stunned watching the boy in front of her.
Her tray still had half a steak, but with his eating style, she felt she couldn’t eat another bite.
Ye Lan didn’t care about table manners; he ate like a lion starved for a week.
Anything placed before him was gone in minutes.
The pile of plates half a meter high represented his gargantuan appetite.
Yaselin had to admit that taking Ye Lan to a buffet was the right choice.
If he had gone to a high-end restaurant, he wouldn’t bankrupt her, but her monthly meals would drop several levels.