"You still have a few things to revise before Monday," he said calmly. "You'll be putting everything you've learned over the last five months into action today."
He paused. "I'll make things simple for you. All you have to do is defeat me."
Nnenna blinked. "Wait... what?"
He didn't flinch.
"Defeat you?!" she half yelled. "Haha, very funny."
Arthur said nothing. His face was unreadable, his tone deadly serious.
Nnenna gave a nervous laugh. "This is the part where you say you're joking."
Still no smile. No reaction. Just that sharp, focused gaze locked on her like a predator watching its prey.
Her laugh died in her throat.
"…You're not joking?"
Arthur's silence said it all.
At this point, Nnenna finally realized, he wasn't joking.
Her heart dropped. "Wait… how am I supposed to defeat you?" she asked, voice rising. "I don't even know a quarter of what you know!"
