Part- 399:

  Sliding through a group of murmuring students, James reached the notice board and lifted his gaze. There, at the very top of the list, he saw his name: *James.*

  He blinked, letting the reality of it sink in. *James* was at the top. Not Rafi. Not anyone else. It was his hat stood out, bold and undeniable. He didn’t bother to hide the smirk creeping onto his face. There was satisfa in knowing his hard work had paid off, but there was more than that—a genuine, almost ued surge of pride. This wasn’t something he’d been gunning for specifically, but having it felt good. Really good.

  As he stood there, his gaze drifted a few names down, and that’s when he spotted Rafi, frozen iaring at the board. Rafi’s usually cool demeanor looked strained, his face pale with a mixture of shod something close to disbelief. His gaze was fixed on the ranking list, his jaw set in a hard line. He didn’t seem to notice James at first, but when he did, their eyes met.

  James raised an eyebrow, his smirk turning just a shade more pointed. He could see the disfort ripple through Rafi’s expression, a subtle tension that hadn’t been there before. Rafi’s fiightened around his backpack strap, and James felt a faint surge of satisfa, knowing he’d uled the “perfect” Rafi—even if only a little. After years of ing up sed to him, James could appreciate the irony of the role reversal.

  “Well,” James said casually, his tone light yet pointed. “Guess everyone’s full of surprises this year, huh?”

  Rafi’s face darkened, but he mao keep his voice steady. “grats,” he replied coolly, but the forced calm didn’t fool a was the kind of “gratutions” one gave out of obligation, not genuiiment. “I’m sure you... worked hard for it.”

  “Thanks, man.” James nodded, not missing a beat. “Hard work, and maybe a little bit of luck,” he added, just a touch provocatively. “You know how it is.”

  Rafi narrowed his eyes, the subtle jab clear as day. “Luly gets you so far, James.” There was an edge to his words, a hint of something that bordered on a challenge. “Enjoy it while you .”

  “Oh, I will,” James shot back, his voice light but with a gleam in his eye. “Might even try to keep it up. But I don’t think it’ll be that hard, really.” He let the words hang there, enjoying the slight twit Rafi’s jaw.

  As they stood in silehe tensioween them palpable, James felt the weight of the eyes around them. Their cssmates had started to notice, whispers cirg through the crowd as they watched the exge. No one said a word directly, but the look of surprise on their faces spoke volumes. James had toppled Rafi from the top—something most of them had thought impossible. And judging by Rafi’s barely cealed irritation, it wasn’t something he repared to accept.

  James turned and slipped away from the board, leaving Rafi and the lingering murmurs behind. He made his way toward the , trying to shake off the lingering energy from the enter. Just as he reached his desk and sat down, a faint chime echoed in his mind, and a new notification popped up in his system interface.

  *System Notification: +5 WIS reward for being the css topper.*