Hunter Academy: Revenge of the Weakest novel Chapter 835

Selene’s gaze remained steady on Astron, her interest deepening with every passing second. The crowd’s murmurs around them were fading into a distant hum—background noise, irrelevant.

Her true focus was on the young man before her.

As she continued to observe him, a faint pulse flickered across the corner of her vision, subtle yet distinct—a confirmation that the data was still streaming.

Her lens was working as intended.

A recent prototype from ThornTech Industries, one of her family’s more discreet tech divisions, the lens wasn’t just for aesthetic enhancement. It allowed real-time analysis—minute fluctuations in facial expressions, micro-adjustments in posture, variations in pulse rate and thermal output. All of it, compiled and cross-referenced against behavioral databases.

And yet, despite all of that—

Astron’s readings were… frustratingly stable.

Heart rate: Unchanged.

Body temperature: Within expected range.

Pupil dilation: Minimal reaction.

Microexpressions: Suppressed.

Selene’s fingers tapped idly against her forearm.

’How interesting.’

Selene’s fingers curled slightly, tapping against her arm in a slow, thoughtful rhythm.

Her lens was still active—its faint digital overlay shifting subtly in her vision, confirming that the data was still streaming.

And yet, the results were... peculiar.

’Is it malfunctioning?’

The thought crossed her mind, but she immediately dismissed it.

It was a prototype, still undergoing refinements, but she had tested it enough to know that even in its early stages, it was highly functional. It worked. It had worked flawlessly against trained individuals before—picking up the smallest signs of tension, subconscious tells, even physiological shifts people weren’t aware of themselves.

Yet, as it continued analyzing Astron, the results remained frustratingly... neutral.

No stress indicators.

No fluctuations beyond the ordinary.

No discernible deception patterns.

’Impossible.’

Even the most composed individuals exhibited something under direct scrutiny. A flicker of uncertainty. A micro-adjustment in their stance. A pulse shift, however minor.

But Astron?

It was like he wasn’t even here.

His presence was undeniable, but his body betrayed nothing.

Selene’s lips curled slightly in amusement.

’If the device isn’t broken, then you’re the problem.’

That made him more interesting.

Selene tilted her head slightly, watching him with growing intrigue.

"Tell me, Astron," she said smoothly, her voice soft but deliberate. "What do you think of this match?"

A simple question.

An easy probe.

The data in her lens interface shifted instantly, recalibrating as it registered any change in his vitals.

Astron, however, simply glanced toward the match for a moment before answering, his tone as unreadable as ever.

"It’s predictable."

Selene hummed lightly. "Predictable how?"

Astron’s gaze remained steady. "The way it’s been set up. The interference. The expected outcome."

A calm, objective response.

But Selene’s lens detected something—faint, almost imperceptible.

Pupil constriction: 0.02 deviation from baseline.

Breathing shift: 0.03 variance detected.

It was minuscule. Nearly undetectable. Something even the human eye wouldn’t have caught.

But it was there.

’Ah.’

So he was reacting.

It wasn’t that he wasn’t readable. It was that his reactions were so finely muted that the average analysis wouldn’t pick them up.

But Selene’s lens wasn’t average.

’You’re suppressing them, aren’t you?’

A subtle skill. Passive or deliberate? That was the question.

Selene let the conversation flow naturally, but inwardly, she had already shifted her focus.

There were several possibilities.

He had a passive skill. Something that allowed his body to maintain an unshakable calm. There were abilities that granted physiological control, lowering heart rate, reducing outward tells—it wasn’t unheard of.It was subconscious. Some individuals developed this kind of control naturally—through sheer habit, experience, or necessity. If Astron had spent his life learning to avoid attention, to remain unnoticed, then it made sense that his default state was unreadable.

Let’s see what you will give away more.

Selene decided to press further, just enough to see where his limits were.

Her tone remained smooth, playful, yet laced with something sharper beneath.

"You’re quite perceptive," she mused. "Most people wouldn’t have noticed the interference so quickly."

Astron gave the smallest shrug. "It was obvious."

No change in his expression.

But her lens caught it again—the same minute fluctuations.

Pupil movement delay: 0.04 seconds.

Grip tension adjustment: 0.02 deviation.

Small, so small.

Not much. But it was there.

’So, this is something you enjoy.’

A realization settled in her mind as she watched him, noting how despite his unreadable exterior, his body subtly responded the moment the topic turned analytical.

’You like this, don’t you? Discussing things like this. Picking things apart, breaking them down piece by piece.’

It wasn’t just observation. He was engaged.

And that?

That was useful.

Selene’s fingers tapped lightly against her forearm, her movements lazy, but her mind already shifting strategies.

This was exactly why she used this technology.

Most people thought reading someone was about their emotions—happiness, nervousness, attraction, anger. But control wasn’t about emotions. It was about knowing what stimulated the mind.

And Astron’s mind?

’It sharpens when things get analytical.’

That was his weakness.

And she had just confirmed it.

"Obvious, was it?"

Selene’s voice remained smooth, playful—giving no indication that she had already shifted the conversation into a tool.

Astron remained calm, unreadable as ever. "Yes."

She let the silence stretch slightly, watching him—not just his face, but the minute shifts in his body.

Her lens flickered, adjusting to his response pattern.

Heart rate: Stable.

Body temperature: Stable.

But—