The Scumbag's Guide To Heroism novel Chapter 130

Chapter 130: 130 | My Momager Wants to Read the Terms and Conditions First

"You know her?" Sloane asked, finally sliding down from my waist but keeping her arms around my neck.

"I know of her. Former military, specialized in unconventional warfare tactics. She’s been with Halloran for about five years now." Diane’s expression was thoughtful as she continued reading, her eyes tracking across the letter with the same focus she gave contract negotiations. "Says here that 1-B focuses on tactical flexibility and non-traditional Aspect applications."

"What does that mean?" I asked.

"It means," Diane said, setting the letter down with a satisfied smile, "that they didn’t put you in remedial classes. They put you in the experimental program."

Sloane’s head snapped up. "Experimental?"

"Think about it. Your entrance exam ranking was third overall, but your practical performance was completely unorthodox. Using Force Manipulation for rescue operations instead of direct combat? That’s not standard Hero thinking." Diane’s eyes were bright with the kind of excitement she got when she figured out a particularly complex PR puzzle, when something that looked like a problem revealed itself as an opportunity she could work with. "They’re not trying to fix you. They’re trying to figure out what else you can do."

The System chimed in with what sounded suspiciously like approval.

〘 Assessment accurate. Class 1-B placement indicates recognition of non-standard tactical potential. Instructor profile suggests optimal environment for continued development. 〙

Well, when the universe’s most annoying AI agreed with Diane, maybe she was onto something.

"So 1-B is actually good?" Sloane asked, her voice cautiously hopeful in a way that made it clear she was still processing the idea that my class assignment wasn’t a disaster.

"1-B is different," Diane corrected. "Which for someone with Lukas’s particular skill set might be exactly what he needs."

I felt some of the tension in my shoulders ease. Maybe being in a different class wasn’t the end of the world. Maybe it was actually an opportunity to develop without the pressure of constantly being compared to the traditional Hero track students, which I was not particularly interested in being compared to anyway.

Plus, if Diane was right about the experimental aspect, it might give me more flexibility to explore the System’s capabilities without raising too many eyebrows. Hard to explain sudden new abilities when you’re in a class full of people who’ve been training their whole lives to notice that kind of thing. In a class that was explicitly structured around unconventional applications, sudden unconventional applications were just on-brand.

"Besides," Diane continued, moving closer with that particular grace that meant she had something specific in mind, "being in different classes means you’ll both have your own achievements to be proud of. No one will be able to say Sloane succeeded because of Lukas, or vice versa."

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