Divine Milking System-Chapter 10 | The First Rule of Obsidian

I put the glass down and followed her out.

The hallway was full now. Students emerging from rooms. Voices. Movement. The nervous energy of people who didn’t know each other yet but were about to be stuck together for a year.

Hikaru walked fast.

I kept pace.

She didn’t say anything.

I didn’t push.

We took the stairs instead of the elevator. Down five flights. My thighs burned by the third floor but I didn’t slow down and I definitely didn’t complain.

Hikaru moved like someone who’d trained their entire life.

Meanwhile I was in the body of someone who’d spent the last year eating badly and skipping the gym.

The difference was obvious.

We reached the ground floor and Hikaru pushed through the stairwell door into the lobby. Turned left without hesitation.

I followed.

The common room was exactly where the app said it would be. Large space. Modular furniture. Big windows. Already half full of students standing in clusters or sitting on couches.

Hikaru walked to the far corner near the windows and stood with her back to the wall.

I stayed near the middle.

Gave her space.

She noticed.

Her eyes tracked me for a second. Then she looked away and pulled out her phone.

I did the same.

Opened the group chat Belle had added me to earlier. OBSIDIAN FIRST YEARS. Most of them had already changed their display names to nicknames or left them as default.

Belle Fox: is anyone else nervous or is it just me

Unknown Number: you’re not alone

Unknown Number: i threw up twice today

Belle Fox: oh good i’m not the only one

Jordan Wayne: we’re all nervous. it’s fine. we’re fine. everything’s fine.

Belle Fox: you sound very convincing

Jordan Wayne: i’m trying

I smiled at my phone.

The room kept filling. More first years. A few second years. One third year who walked in and immediately commanded attention just by existing.

Broad shoulders. Confident posture.

I didn’t recognize him.

He walked to the front of the room and stood there waiting.

At exactly 7:00 PM he cleared his throat.

The room went quiet.

"Welcome to House Obsidian," he said. His voice carried without him having to shout. "I’m Alexander Shepard. Third year. Your house coordinator for this semester."

He paused. Looked around the room. Made eye contact with different people.

"You’re here because the sorting system decided you have ambition. Talent. Drive. Whatever. I don’t care why you’re here. I care about what you do now that you are."

He started pacing. Slow. Deliberate.

"Obsidian used to be the best house at this academy. We won twelve consecutive championships. We produced more Elite Ten members than anyone. We set the standard."

Another pause.

"Last year we lost. For the first time in over a decade, we lost. And we didn’t just lose. We fucked up so badly that people died and the IHC investigated us and we became a joke."

The room stayed silent.

"This year we’re fixing that," Alexander said. "This year we’re taking back what’s ours. And every single one of you is going to help us do it whether you like it or not."

He stopped pacing and looked directly at the first year section.

"You’re the lowest priority in this house. You don’t have rankings yet. You don’t have proven ability. You’re question marks. But question marks can become assets or they can become dead weight. Your job for the next four weeks is to prove which one you are." 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

He let that sink in.

"First monthly evaluation is September 28th. Four weeks from today. You’ll be ranked based on combat performance, academic scores, and contribution to house activities. Top performers get resources. Training time. Equipment access. Mentorship."

"Bottom performers get nothing."

"And if you’re at the very bottom..." He smiled. It wasn’t friendly. "You get transferred to Amber."

A few people laughed nervously.

I didn’t.

I was watching Hikaru.

She hadn’t moved. Hadn’t reacted. Just stood there with her phone in her hand looking at Alexander with an expression that gave away absolutely nothing.

"Questions?" Alexander asked.

No one raised their hand.

"Good. Homeroom assignments are in your orientation packets. You’ll meet your instructors tomorrow. Don’t be late. Don’t embarrass me. Don’t embarrass this house."

He turned and walked out.

The room stayed quiet for about five seconds.

Then everyone started talking at once.

I looked at Hikaru again.

She was already heading for the door.

I let her go.

Pushed through the crowd toward where Belle was standing with two other lottery kids I didn’t recognize.

"That was terrifying," Belle said when I got close.

"That was standard intimidation tactics."

"Still terrifying."

"You’ll be fine."

"How do you know?"

"Because you’re smart and you’re not going to do anything stupid."

She looked at me. "You sound very confident for someone who got lost six times today."

"Seven times. I got lost on the way here too."

That got a laugh from one of the other lottery kids. A guy with glasses and dark skin.

"How?" he asked.

"Took a wrong turn."

"There’s an app."

"I just downloaded it three hours ago."

He stared at me. "You’ve been here since this morning and you just downloaded the app three hours ago?"

"Correct."

"How are you alive?"

"Stubbornness mostly."

Belle introduced the guy as Marcus. Not Marcus Steele. Different Marcus. This one was from Atlanta and his ability let him turn invisible when holding his breath.

Useful.

The other one was a girl named Naomi who could make wave forms or something.

Less useful.

But everyone started somewhere.

We talked for another twenty minutes. Exchanged numbers. Made plans to sit together at breakfast tomorrow before Hunter Theory.

I watched Hikaru leave at some point during the conversation.

She didn’t look back.

When I finally got back to the apartment at 7:47 PM, the door to her room was closed.

No light visible underneath.

Either she was asleep or she was sitting in the dark.

I went to my own room and shut the door.

Sat on the bed.

Pulled up the system.

67 hours. 41 minutes.

I had a Gold-tier extraction target living four meters away from me.

A target who hated men.

A target who could kill me in my sleep if I made the wrong move.

A target I absolutely could not approach directly.

I opened my phone and scrolled through the student directory one more time.

Looked at Hikaru’s profile.

Offensive ability classification.

Japanese national.

First year.

Same schedule as me for at least two classes.

I closed the app and stared at the ceiling.

This was going to require patience.

Strategy.

Perfect timing.

And a lot of luck.

But if I pulled it off...

Gold-tier essence. 100 points on first extraction. An ability worth stealing. A body that would make the entire investment worthwhile.

I smiled in the dark.

Jackpot.