FORELODY'S POINT OF VIEW
Since Kate was completely fine, she returned to our area, walking with her head held high despite the whispers from nearby students.
"Kate, why'd you do that? You didn't even give us a proper fight," Lovely complained, throwing her voice with a hint of a pout.
"Seriously, Lovely? You already know why. I'm a resce mnarillaza. I'm not capable of physical torture."
"How did you knock him out, then?" Allie asked.
"The shimmering stars earlier? That was just an illusion to distract him. I simply touched his forehead without him noticing… and put him to sleep. Of course, I gave him a very beautiful nightmare."
"I see. You can't do physical torture—but when it comes to manipulating the mind, you're a beast."
We thought Allie's match would take a while to come up, but her name was called right after Kate's.
"For our next match… an aias mnarillaza against a mixed-type with both aias and aiasho mnarills. Let's welcome Ace Zettel and Allie Frost from Ecialis Section A!"
"Do the ice cube thing again!" Owlice joked as I hopped down beside him. "Drown him!"
"That works too," Allie smirked before stepping onto the field.
"Make some snow, Allie! Good luck!" Lovely sang and wiggled in her seat, cheering. "Show them what you've got!"
"Start!"
From their starting positions, the battlefield slowly transformed into solid ice. Snow began to fall, drawing gasps of awe from the crowd.
Jagged spears of ice erupted from Ace's side, hurtling toward Allie. She leapt high, avoiding them with ease.
She sprinted toward him, summoning an ice-forged sword in her hand, using it to deflect each spike Ace sent her way. But before she could get close, sharp ice burst upward around him, forcing her back.
The girls in the audience screamed in delight for their crush, their cheers filling the air.
Then the noise died as Allie stood, a sly smile on her face. Massive chunks of ice began to rise beneath her, forming small frozen hills, lifting both her and Ace high above the ground. The worry on his face was obvious.
Gasps erupted when, in an instant, all the ice—except the patch Allie stood on—melted into water. She raised her hand, and the water around Ace began to swirl. The current grew faster and deeper, dragging him down as he struggled to escape.
"Help! Okay, okay! I give up! Damn it!"
"Our winner for this cold match is Allie Frost!"
The battlefield reverted to normal as Allie, like Kate, returned without a single scratch.
"Thanks for the snow, Allie!" Lovely beamed. "Congrats! You're so brutal. Unlike someone here, whose fight was completely uneventful." She shot Kate a teasing look and promptly earned a glare—and a light smack on the head. "What? It's true."
"Whatever," Kate muttered, rolling her eyes. Still, she flashed Allie a brief smile. "Congratulations."
"Thanks." As Allie sat down, she frowned at Rhein. "Rhein, are you okay? You've been quiet for a while."
I glanced at my partner, who smiled and nodded. "Just a little sleepy, that's all. Not really in the mood."
"You sure? Don't fall asleep during your duel later."
"I'm fine. Don't worry."
Two and a half hours passed, and Rhein's name still hadn't been called. My nerves began to prick—what if they forgot to include her?
"Almost everyone's been called already. Should we go to the school admin? Maybe Rhein wasn't listed," Lovely said.
"She's on the list. The admin wouldn't forget their only hwizta mnarillaza student," Kate replied. "Let's just wait, right, Rhein?" Rhein simply nodded. "You're acting strange. We're not used to you being this quiet."
"I'm fine. Don't worry so much."
"Justin hasn't been called yet, right?" Allie suddenly asked, catching Kate's attention. "I bet the last match will be him versus Rhein. This is going to be exciting. I have a feeling Rhein's been quiet because she's thinking the same thing. Am I right?"
Rhein looked at them and smiled again. "After my match, I'll head out immediately. Don't wait for me. I need to take care of something. I'll explain when I'm back at the dorm."
"Where are you going?" I asked.
She glanced at me. "Just follow me."
Allie's guess was spot on. After a few more matches, the announcer called the final bout: "For our final match… the deore mnarillaza against the hwiztamnarillaza of the entire academy! This is a battle between dark and light! Let's welcome Justin Drake and Rhein Gomez from Ecialis Section A!"
When Rhein stood, she gently set me down from her lap and smiled. "Follow me later, okay?" She brushed a hand lightly over my head. "Don't worry. I'll try to win."
I smiled back, joining Lovely's cheer. "Go get 'em! Good luck!"
As I watched Rhein walk away, I couldn't shake the thought gnawing at me. With the way her behavior has changed… I have a feeling she already knew.
JUSTIN'S POINT OF VIEW
The crowd of admirers screamed my name. But instead of feeling proud or energized by their support, irritation bubbled in me. How annoying.
"Start!"
I stared at Rhein. I didn't want to fight her—mainly because she still doesn't't know the truth about her real powers. I'd noticed for a while that she can only use the abilities of an ofris mnarillaza inside the gymnasium.
"Are you still going to fight me despite your condition?"
Her lips curved into a slow smile. A shiver ran down my spine. Even as a hwiztamnarillaza, she carried that same intimidating aura her parents have.
"Why wouldn't I? Tell me, are you underestimating me just because you're already a fully-transitioned deore mnarillaza?"
"No." It's just that I don't want to hurt you.
I wanted to say it aloud, but I swallowed the words. I didn't want her to think I was insulting her pride.
"Good. Because if you are… you will absolutely regret it."