Chapter 66: Alisa’s Partner
A day before.
It was the match that would decide the top 16 players. Adis opponent was Alisa Fervor, a seed player among 3rd Year students that had won many matches since joining this academy.
The girl with braided red hair was a kind senior who had lived in the room opposite Raze’s before. She was good at fighting and had been chosen as a seed player again in this tournament.
However, she had a worried look on her face because of a letter that arrived before the Battle Fiesta began.
If I’m not on the top 4, then…
Alisa clenched her hands. The letter was sent by her parents. In the letter, her parents had written that if she couldn’t make it to the top 4, then she should give up her dreams and had to get engaged with the man decided by her family.
Her family was the so-called nouveau riche.
It is not uncommon for these people to have an arranged marriage in order to maintain their social position. The man that her parents had arranged for her was an older man and they had met before. He was not a bad person.
But Alisa’s dream was to join the Knights, so it was hard for her to accept this condition.
I’ve strived hard for my dream… I can’t lose this match.
Her parents knew that she wanted to join the Knights. But she was their one and only precious daughter. It was only normal for a parent to wish that their daughter could stay at home and support her family instead of doing a dangerous job dealing with criminals.
Top 4 was the middle ground for compromise that both parties had agreed to. Alisa knew that very well.
It was a harsh condition, but she knew the Knights scouted talents from Centrior. A woman was physically inferior to man, so she had to set higher standard for herself to stand out from others.
Even if she selfishly forced her family to let her joined the Knights, she might end up doing deskwork if she had no actual talent. That would make her felt sorry for her parents then.
Alisa took a deep breath, relaxed her shoulder and clenched her fist. Her future depended on this match. But even if it was just a casual match, she still didn’t want to lose.
Her opponent was Adis Lag Zars, a 2nd Year student. He was the son of that famous ‘Invisible War Maiden’. Rumor had it that he had already handled the most difficult missions in the Adventurer’s Guild.
Previously, he always lost to his classmate, Prince Ruben. But that was very suspicious. Someone who was so active in the Adventurer’s Guild should performed better than that. Besides, he was the son of the Prime Minister, which was known as the brain of Shian. His ability was immeasurable.
Alisa surmised that it was going to be a tough match. The bell rang and the battle that would decide her fate had begun.
Adis’ specialty was wind magic. This skill had a great advantage as it could be applied for both defense and offence. Especially the wind blade was difficult to deal with.
Alisa didn’t use weapon as she normally fight using fist and kick. His fighting styles would put her at a disadvantage. As she had expected, Adis didn’t hesitate to wield his practice sword at her, even though she had no weapon.
This is what I’m waiting for!
Alisa could see that Adis had used his wind magic to enhance his physical strength. She hit the practice sword with her palm and grabbed it.
The practice sword turned soft and bent. Alisa’s specialty was heat manipulation. She melted the sword by applying intense heat to her hand.
Adis released the sword that could no longer be used and distanced himself from Alisa.
The real fight starts now.
Alisa quickly ran closer and slammed her fist against Adis.
The efficiency of one’s specialty varied from person to person based on the compatibility with their magic stone activation. And the magic stone was not exclusively used for specialty only. The skill that stood out among all the regular magics that a person could used was called a specialty. A person could improve their regular magic as long as they trained the skill.
Actually, she still wanted to hide it, but she knew that Adis would use his wind magic for a counterattack.
Alisa activated a barrier, which was her second skill that she had trained other than heat manipulation, and nullified Adis’ attack. She managed to attack and defend simultaneously. She made sure to perform her skill while targeting the critical point.
And when she saw Adis put up a wind armor to defend against her attack, she set fire to his wind and shouted, “Burn!”
If the referee stopped the match here, then it would be her victory.
“Sorry, I also have someone I want to fight with. I can’t afford to lose.”
Alisa couldn’t even hear the latter part. Adis had instantly manipulated the direction of the wind, turning the whirlpool of flames back at Alisa.
Alisa sat on the ground, surrounded by burning flames. There was nothing more she could do to fight back.
Referee: “Match end.”
The last match of her third Battle Fiesta had ended.
* * *
After losing the game, Alisa walked through the wide corridor of the arena in a daze. “…I have… lost…”
Saying the words out loud reminded her of her impending future and her eyes started to well up.
“Fervor.”
Alisa raised her head and saw her classmate. “Dreis…”
It was Dreis Kilmarion Muebles. He must have ran all the way here. He ruffled his disheveled hair and then turned to look at her face.
Alisa forced a laugh, saying, “Haha. I’ve lost.”
“I’ve heard from Winston. About your engagement-”
Her expression immediately changed. It was the word that she didn’t want to hear the most at this moment. She shouted in an impulse, “It’s none of your business!”
Dreis was stunned by her reaction. She had never been rude to him before.
“I lost because of my lack of ability. My dad compromised and gave me the conditions, but I was the one who couldn’t fulfil it. It was my own fault, so you don’t have to comfort me. And I think an arranged marriage isn’t necessarily a bad thing. ”
Her tone was a bit harsh. She knew she was being unreasonable but she couldn’t help it because she was still in shock.
“Aah. I’ve worked really hard…” She lowered her head despondently and muttered to herself.
After thinking for a while, Dreis replied, “You can still join the Knights even if you’re engaged.”
“Dreis, that’s just wishful thinking. I am supposed to marry a nobleman with a decent title. Who would want a savage girl who joins the Knights hitting and kicking others? What they want is a mistress to take care of the house.”
“Then, what if you could get engaged to a nobleman who allowed you to join the Knights?”
Alisa didn’t expect such a bizarre question from Dreis. He was acting unlike himself.
“Then I’d be happy to accept his proposal. Well, if only I can meet such person before I graduate from the academy. It’s not like the Knights would scout me,” Alisa replied to him with a resigned look on her face.
She felt it was a delusional story. She had zero expectations. From now on, she would live for her fiancé.
Alisa didn’t realize that Dreis had a determined look on his face when he heard her words.
