Chapter 77 Part 8: Exam

Me, Shine, Amy, and Rain.

The four of us sat together at a table.

“What kind of team are you going to make?”

“Well…”

Although she said that, Amy didn’t seem to have thought deeply about the team, so she didn’t readily offer her opinion.

“What would be a good name?”

Amy muttered quietly and began writing down several short words on her memo.

Jeff, Amy, Rain, Shine, and Victor.

She wrote down the abilities that the four of us had and wrote down words that could be associated with them.

“How about Raincoat?”

No one listened to Rain’s opinion.

Rain puffed out her cheeks, seeming upset at being ignored.

“How about Jeff?”

“Me…?”

“Hmm. I’m suggesting that we name the team Jeff.”

Shine asked me as if it was a good idea.

I looked at her dumbfounded at her words.

Did she really think that naming the team after me was a good idea?

“I don’t like it a little…”

“I think it’s good.”

Shine’s eyes turned to me.

After a brief silence, it was Shine who gave up.

“If you don’t like Jeff, then there’s nothing we can do.”

She said, as if she was genuinely disappointed.

If I hadn’t refused, she seemed to be planning on pushing the team name as Jeff.

I let out a sigh of relief at Shine’s words.

“You can name your team as you wish?”

“Yeah. That’s usually how we do it.”

“It’s kind of autonomous.”

“Our basic motto is freedom.”

I nodded at Amy’s words.

I’d met Amy many times before, but it was rare for anyone to bow to her.

Amy’s position seemed quite high.

She was an executive, so she should be treated accordingly, but most people treated her like a regular friend or fellow employee.

There was a hierarchy, but it wasn’t forced.

It was an unfamiliar sight to me, who was used to a vertical organizational culture.

“That’s nice.”

I said quietly and shook my leg.

It was unfamiliar, but I didn’t hate it.

At the lab…

Lab?

“Jeff.”

The moment I was about to lose myself in deep thought, Shine’s voice flew in.

“Huh?”

“Didn’t you hear?”

“What?”

“Amy said we should make a team mark.”

“… Weren’t you thinking of a name?”

“I’m thinking of leaving that to Victor later.”

Shine said and handed me a sketchbook.

The desk was filled with colored pencils and crayons.

When did she get it?

I felt a strange urge as I looked at the blank drawing paper handed to me.

I want to draw.

I want to draw a work filled with my artistic soul on that blank drawing paper.

Come to think of it, I haven’t been able to draw at all lately.

“Okay!”

I said vigorously and stretched out my hand.

Rain was already drawing a large chick on the sketchbook.

I couldn’t lose to Rain.

I started moving my hand over the sketchbook.

Green and brown. And gold.

The long lines drew a sleek body, and the gold lines accentuated the body’s elegance.

The sharp white nails.

And the gold horns rising above the head.

“Wow…”

I was amazed as I looked at the half-finished drawing.

This was a masterpiece.

Even after looking at it again, I couldn’t help but think that it was a masterpiece.

I was salivating at the sight of the picture.

I also remembered the team name.

If it’s this, then Amy, Shine, and I think Rain is a satisfactory name.

I, who was feeling salty, moved my hands once again.

I filled in the missing colors and drew a simple background.

Kwaaaaang!

I thought I heard a rough roar.

“I’m done!”

Inside the sketchbook, a large dinosaur was roaring.

The most awesome dinosaur I could imagine.

“Amy! I’m done!”

I pushed the sketchbook to Amy.

“Where should I look?”

Amy, who received the sketchbook from me, began to admire the drawings.

“I even thought of a team name! Dinos!”

I thought that was a really good idea.

I looked at Amy with a confident expression.

After looking at the drawings for a while, Amy nodded silently.

“…It’s okay…”

She didn’t say anything good.

What could be the problem?

Amy’s right eyebrow twitched and trembled.

“Not so good…?”

“Umm…. A little…?”

Amy said carefully and handed me the sketchbook.

Kwaang!

The dinosaur standing majestically in the sketchbook I received.

The rough roar was vivid in my ears, but I didn’t get Amy’s choice.

I let out a small sigh and put down the crayon in my hand.

“I finished it too!”

Rain’s drawing, which was completed a little later than mine.

The chick drawn in her sketchbook was wearing armor.

“What do you think?”

Rain spoke while pushing her sketchbook to the center of the table.

The drawing was cute, but it seemed a bit problematic to use as a team mark.

I kept my mouth shut while watching Amy’s expression.

“Rejected.”

“Why?!”

Amy shook her head firmly while looking at Rain’s drawing.

Rain’s eyes widened at her reaction.

It seemed like she hadn’t expected her drawing to be rejected.

“It’s really cute!”

Rain spoke while fluttering her sketchbook.

I also agreed with Rain.

It’s cute, but that’s all.

“Rain. What were you thinking when you drew that?”

“I drew it while thinking of our team! The chick is cute, right? That must mean me.”

Rain’s words sounded pretty plausible.

Amy nodded as if to tell her to say more.

“The armor is for Victor and Amy! They’re so capable that they can protect us!”

“You’re just thinking about being protected?”

“No! Look here carefully!”

Rain held out her sketchbook to Amy once more.

The direction Rain’s little finger pointed to.

It was the chick’s waist.

The chick had twin swords on its waist.

“This is Jeff and Shine. Shine has the same abilities as Jeff, right? That means Shine can use powerful lightning abilities like Jeff, so she can be responsible for our team’s firepower.”

If you just listened to Rain’s explanation, it sounded pretty plausible.

However, Amy let out a small sigh and shook her head.

“Do you really think so? Do you like this mark?”

“Yeah!”

Rain nodded to Amy’s words.

I nodded cautiously as well.

That kind of meaning was hidden in a drawing that I just thought was cute.

I secretly covered the dinosaur drawn in my sketchbook.

“Absolutely not.”

Amy’s firm refusal.

Rain collapsed on the table as if shocked.

“Sigh…”

“I did it all.”

At that time, Shine, who had been quietly drawing, handed me her sketchbook.

I was impressed by Shine’s drawing.

It was simple yet intuitive.

The lion’s head drawn in black.

The water droplets surrounding it.

And the small lightning bolt pattern connecting the water droplets and the lion.

I felt a deep sense of defeat as I looked at Shine’s drawing.

It was the same for Rain, who hid her drawing behind her back.

“It’s nice, isn’t it?”

Amy exclaimed, looking at Shine’s drawing.

It was the first time that Amy had spoken in praise.

Amy took out a piece of white A4 paper next to Shine’s drawing and began to draw with a ballpoint pen.

The drawing was more neatly and sharply done than Shine’s drawing, and it gave off a more refined feeling.

In the end, Shine’s drawing was chosen as the team mark.

Shine nodded when she heard that the drawing would be used as the official team mark after some revisions were made to the draft.

The team name was decided to be chosen by Victor.

Shine, Rain, and I had the worst naming sense.

“Are we forming a team right now?”

“No, we can’t make it that fast. We have to go through various procedures and finally get permission from Jin.”

I recalled Jin chewing on hay at Amy’s words.

I had forgotten Jin’s rank because he didn’t seem very trustworthy.

“So when will we become an official team?”

I asked with shining eyes.

Amy, Shine, Lane, and even Victor.

I couldn’t help but feel excited at the thought of being in a group with people I liked.

It felt different from being in a group called the Resistance.

It felt like we had something smaller, something of our own.

“As soon as next month?”

“So you’ll be going on missions with Amy from then on?”

“No.”

“Huh…?”

I asked back, wondering if I had misheard.

“Shine and Jeff can’t go on missions.”

“Why…?”

Suddenly, my heart sank at Amy’s words.

It was such a shocking thing to say that we couldn’t be together.

“You’re too young.”

“Uh… You’re not young.”

“You’re still too young to do that.”

Amy said, patting my head.

I gave her a look full of discontent.

“You’re not too young.”

Amy, who was patting my head, smiled playfully and stroked my cheek here and there.

“Sorry. I misspoke. Jeff is not too young.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

I nodded.

Amy’s hands stroked my cheek here and there, making my gaze crooked.

“So you can go on a mission together.”

“No. Not yet.”

Amy shook her head and took her hand away.

Her cheek, which had been stroked, turned red.

“If you pass all the training stages, I’ll let you go on a mission together.”

“Training stages…?”

“If you can pass.”

Amy’s words were strangely filled with laughter.

I nodded to her.

There was nothing I couldn’t do.

If being able to go on a mission meant passing the training stages that Amy was talking about, then that meant Lane had to pass too.

Lane had done it, so there was no way I couldn’t do it.

I looked back at Rain with that thought.

Rain was drawing a new picture, perhaps inspired by Shine’s drawing.

I can do it too.

I’ll go on a mission with Amy.

“I can do it!”

I shouted loudly.

Maybe it was because I raised my voice quite loudly, but Shine, who was drawing, jumped up in surprise.

The crayon she was holding fell to the floor.