LAST CHAPTER FOR SPORTS FESTIVAL!!! hahahahhh got me here ofr 4 chap gosh!
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We were given an hour break before proceeding to the next round.
"Oh my gosh, that was literally exhausting!" Micah exclaimed.
"Indeed. Gosh, I'm so tired—especially the last part. And all this time we thought we were doing okay, since at least five groups are needed to proceed. But suddenly, we got attacked by the pink team," Harmoine said. They were supposed to be in an alliance with the yellow group. It was shocking that the pink team did that to them—but not so shocking, knowing their leader.
"You should've expected that. Knowing her, she's afraid someone might steal her spotlight." They just nodded. I refrained from dropping names; I didn't want drama.
"But—Mary—you are on fire!" Harmoine praised. "Obviously, it's your group! Mary has the highest number of team eliminations, and you, babe, have the highest number of prisons!"
"Well, if only I had a strategy like Mary, maybe I could have both," Jad said smugly, and we all just laughed. We're used to his full-of-himself side.
"But kidding aside, we're so proud of you guys—Mary, Jad, and Reina—you did so good earlier," Micah praised.
"Let's not celebrate just yet. We still have two more rounds, and they'll do another ranking for sure. A lot of plot twists might happen."
Despite making it this far, I still can't bring myself to feel happy about it. Call me negative or whatever, but it's just my nature—I can't feel relieved about anything that's not finished yet.
"Hello again! We're back with our very competitive students who just survived the first two rounds!" the host announced.
"Yup, yup, yup! Got that right, partner! And since we're starting our new game, we'll have another ranking. Here's the latest one!" The screen flashed the rankings, and I could see my name—right at the very top.
"As you all can see, the top 3 rankings are: Quinlan Mary at No.1, followed by Sordien at No.2, and Quinlan Jad at No.3. We all know the top three will be awarded. But the question is… are they going to stay in that ranking?"
"Ooh… our crowd is going wild, partner! So let's not wait any longer and show the results!"
They flashed the updated rankings. These scores were based not just on performance but also on crowd votes. I landed in fourth place, with a total score of 19,456—5,000 from crowd votes, and the rest from group score. Len even got a higher score than I did.
"Oh! Mary Quinlan, who was previously top-ranked, dropped to fifth! Or… is it?" I had the same confused expression as the crowd—what do they mean, "is it"?
"Yeah! Let's not forget—Mary Quinlan still has an envelope to open as our first-round winner!"
Someone handed me the envelope I had chosen earlier. I wasn't sure if I should open it—I just stared at it.
"Mary Quinlan, open your envelope."
I did, and as I opened it, someone handed me a microphone. I had to read it aloud.
"The envelope says… You got 5,000 more points!"
I was shocked. And with those points, my total jumped to 24,456, moving me from fifth place back up to second.
"Clear as day! Mary Quinlan rises from fifth to second place thanks to her winning envelope! Now that we've seen the rankings, let's move on to our next round!"
The cheers grew louder, and I could feel some eyes on me, watching me closely. But I didn't think too much of it. I have a goal—to prove to the high-ups that my family isn't just anybody. And to prove to my uncle that I'm not just a weak woman.
"For our next—and final—round: a one-on-one match. You'll be fighting against each other," the host announced. I looked at Jad and Reina—I could end up fighting against them.
"The match sequence will be decided by a spin-the-wheel. There are 18 students left, and only one person can win each match. This is a last-man-standing game, and it will determine the final rankings. Only three will be honored. Rules: If you can't fight back in 3 seconds, you lose. If you get stuck or imprisoned, you lose. If you step outside the ring… you lose."
"Let's start spinning!"
A big wheel spun, and the matchups appeared:
Son vs. Hikiro
Avida vs. Yen
Javier vs. Len
Quimodo vs. Rensaw
Quinlan J. vs. Munch
Quinlan M. vs. Sordien
Fuck. Out of all people, I get to fight her? Well… at least I get to show her how much I hate her. Politely, of course. "No hard feelings," right?
Jansson vs. Janno
Edevane vs. Follis
"Now we have our matchups! As I said, only three will remain—and only those three will be awarded! Third place gets bronze, second gets silver, and our winner, gold!"
I was backstage with the other contestants, waiting for the first match to finish.
"Hey cousin, you okay?" Jad asked as he came closer.
"Yeah, of course. Maybe just a little tired," I said.
"Later, in your match… fight and win. I want you to win for yourself."
"Thanks. We'll both win," I chuckled.
Time passed, and it was my turn. The previous winner was expected—they're basically the best. Now I'm stepping out—we actually.
"No hard feelings, please," I heard her say. I just smiled.
"Of course."
"Okay! Now we have another powerful match!"
As the bell sounded, Sordien didn't waste a second and used Fire Arch on me. I was shaken, but not really.
"Wow! Starting off with Fire Arch!"
"Aris benis ferrie ilusyon," I murmured—saving that one for later.
"Why aren't you fighting back, Quinlan? Are you scared?"
"Scared? Maybe… but never of you." I used Magior String to try and capture her, but she easily swatted it away. I couldn't go all out—I was saving energy for later. My other hand was readying my surprise.
"Psh. That's all?" she mocked.
I smirked. "Really? I wonder if you made enough wishes… a shooting star might fall at this moment."
"What do you—"
She was cut off when she saw my hand raised. I let go, and when she tilted her head, her eyes widened as rocks rained from the sky. Shocked, she summoned a weak shield—that was part of my plan.
I knew she'd do that. That's when I pulled the stones back, confusing her and breaking her focus. Using my speed, I was behind her in seconds. I grabbed her hair and yanked her out of the ring.
"I like doing it easy, you know?" I smirked, leaving her speechless.
"The most shocking and fastest match—finished in just 5 minutes! Woo! Quinlan, what a woman!"
"Fuck you, Mary Quinlan!" she shouted in anger. I brushed it off.
While enjoying the moment, I suddenly saw something—a black shadow in a yellow glow. It was hiding… and looking at me?
Brushing it off was the only thing I could do—for now.
"Why do you look gloomy? You won. Congrats! That was very smart," Quimodo complimented.
"T-thanks… you too." I knew he sensed something was off, but what else could I say? "Uhmm, I'll take a restroom break first."
I was on my way when a hand grabbed my wrist. It was RJ.
"RJ? What are you doing?"
"No, Mary. What are you doing? Did you really go that far—below acceptable—just to win?" he asked directly. Honestly, I was confused.
"What do you mean?"
"Those Magior spells… those aren't just basic. And I won't believe it's all you."
"RJ… I don't know what you're talking about. You must've forgotten—my parents were great heroes. They had books that contained some magior."
"And you think I'll believe—"
"Don't. I don't care. I told you I'm willing to learn—and I did. If that's good enough for improvement, then that's that."
"You just did telepathy!"
"And? That's not impossible."
"It's not—but only for those who've traveled abroad to do the rituals. Or… those who have my emerald necklace." His voice was firm. "So which one are you?"
My heart raced—but I kept cool.
"The one who's using your book," I replied. "I don't know what you mean, but I didn't do anything wrong. Just let me go—I still have a contest to win."
I left before he could press further.
I can't tell RJ yet. I still have a lot of unanswered questions. Hopefully, I'll get them through this.
Back at the arena, they called all winners from the first match. But I noticed it again—the shadow. I wanted to follow it, but another hand grabbed me.
"Where are you going, Mary?" Quimodo asked.
"Nowhere. Let's go?" He smiled, and we walked together to the arena.
"Out of 18, only 9 are left! Ooh, we're close!" the host announced, his voice competing with the cheering crowd. "Only 3 must remain. And for that—we'll have one-on-one battles right here in the arena!"
One on one.
I looked at Jad, Reina, and Quimodo. In such a short time, I'd grown close to them.
"Why?" was all I could say.
No one answered, and then the loud bell rang. It had started.
"Mary… good luck," Quimodo said, already stepping into action.
Someone came after me—I dodged. I was right. They were targeting me to make things easier for themselves. I used String Magior and threw her out.
"Wow! First elimination by Mary Quinlan!"
"Quinlan! Want to have a one-on-one fight with me—no magior?" It was Yen, my classmate in gymnastics.
"Sure," I replied simply.
She struck first. I dodged. I caught her hand, twisted it—she flipped and used her flexibility against me. I jumped over her, locked her wrists, and stomped her foot. She screamed in pain—but then her ring lit up and fired straight at my chest, making me fly nearly out of the ring.
"You bitch! You said no magior!" I shouted. I should've expected this.
"Sorry… but it's just boring."
"Boring? Or you just can't beat me?"
"Shut up and lose."
She tried to push me—but I twisted her around and pushed her out of the ring.
The bell rang again.
"Only 4 left: Quimodo, Quinlan M, Jansson, and Quinlan J!" the host shouted.
I turned and saw them—my closest friends.
We stood in a circle.
"I hate this," I muttered.
"Let's end this!" Jad shouted, charging at Quimodo. The two strongest ones were now clashing.
"What now, Mary?" Reina asked. Was she really asking me to fight her? I didn't want to.
"Don't be weak!"
She suddenly attacked. My reflexes kicked in—I protected myself with a shield.
"What the heck, Reina?!"
"I want you to lose, you bitch!" she screamed, pointing her ring at my shield.
"Stop! If you want to win so badly, I'll let you. I don't want to fight you. We're best friends!"
"Shut the hell up!"
Suddenly, my shield broke—and her magior hit me in the chest… or rather, my necklace.
I felt dizzy. Everything went black. The last thing I heard was Jad and Quimodo shouting my name.
I lost consciousness. When I woke up, I was in a room with my friends. Micah, Harmoine, Quimodo—and RJ—were all there.
"W-what happened?" I tried to stand but failed.
"You did your best, Mary… I'm so proud of you."
"Thank you… but who won?"
"Seriously? That's what you're thinking about while we were all worried sick?" Quimodo said.
"Sorry. Thank you again. I wasn't strong enough. I couldn't even deflect her magior."
"Don't say that. What's on my mind right now is—what the heck is wrong with Reina? She looked like she forgot our years of friendship."
"Speaking of… where is Reina?" I asked.
"We don't know. She vanished after the awarding."
"So… who won?"
"Your most handsome one and only cousin won," Jad said smugly. I smirked—happy for him.
"What about you, Quimodo?"
"I got second. Reina was third."
"Gosh… that's so unpredictable," Micah sighed.
She was right. And now, I can't help but wonder—has Reina been going through something so hard… that she felt she had to win?
My Reina.