'Huh?' I immediately turned to check who the fuck was trying to ruin my day further, then my eyes widened when I met the gaze of a certain irrelevant NPC.
'What the hell is this bastard's problem?!'
Damon took a step closer to us then spoke again in that same annoying tone: "Let's pick up where we left off, shall we?"
I swallowed. 'Give me a fucken break!'
Then I clenched my teeth, reached out and tapped Audrey's shoulder gently and said, "Sorry to disappoint you, but I've already got a dueling partner here."
Damon frowned. "Huh? Aren't you both in the same class? That won't work, you know. Since I'm from a different class, my challenge takes precedence."
I was about to open my mouth and curse him when Audrey spoke up.
"I've already challenged him. He is my dueling partner. So go find someone else."
"But the thing is… I want him." Damon interjected with a flat voice. "You go find someone else."
The instructor who seemed to have caught on to the scene, approached us.
"What's happening here?"
Audrey immediately spoke up. "I already challenged Cedric to the duel, but Damon insists his challenge takes precedence."
"That's because it does!" Damon retorted. "The duel is supposed to be between classes not between class mates."
The instructor turned away from Damon to Audrey. "Is your opponent in the same class as you?"
Audrey frowned. She hesitated for a moment, then said. "Yes. But…"
"Then find an opponent from the other class. Damon shall duel him!" The instructor shrugged dismissively, then turned and walked away.
…What?!
Hearing the instructor's words, I couldn't help but scream mentally.
Am I supposed to duel Damon?
How the hell am I supposed to do that?!
I looked up to see him grinning like someone who just stole a wallet and got away with it. His brown eyes were glinting in mocking victory.
'What am I going to do? I can't duel him.' I began to panic a bit.
Audrey turned to me. She looked like she wanted to say something but couldn't and a very worried expression clung to her face.
She then gritted her teeth and turned to Damon. "You better not try anything funny during this duel or the next one will be between me and you."
Damon laughed. "Now, that just makes me want to mess with him even more."
Audrey clenched her fists. She turned to me then said, "If things get rough, I want you to surrender immediately."
'If things get rough? I think things are rough as they could be right now.'
Audrey stared at me for a moment after speaking, then hesitantly turned away and headed off to find her partner.
"Prepare yourself and wait, you bondless bastard. When it's our turn, I'm cutting off the arm you used on me." Damon paused, letting the threat sink in, then offered a cruel laugh as he turned to walk away.
'This is bad.'
Even though I was trying so hard to maintain my composure, my heart thrummed as if it would escape my chest.
This… was really bad.
A few moments later, I heard the instructor call out. "The five minutes are up. Take your positions every one. Those who do not have a partner, come over this way let me assign you one."
Surprisingly, every cadet had a dueling partner. Even Audrey had managed to find one quickly.
Every cadet gathered in a circle around a central platform. The instructor then moved to the platform and urged the first duo to step forward and begin.
Two cadets stepped forward to the center of the platform.
Unsurprisingly, one of them was Leon who was gently cradling his white cat. The other was a young man with short inky black hair and ocean blue eyes.
The man raised his hand to the side and pulled back his sleeve revealing the tattoo of a black octopus. He then called out. "Come, Kraken."
Instantly, the tattoo dissolved into water that floated upward and converged in the air. Then, in a flash, a golden trident formed in front of him. He snatched it from the air and immediately pointed it at Leon.
Leon's lips curved into a serene smile. He simply shifted the arm holding his white cat to his side. Then he said in a calm, polite voice: "Come forth, my beautiful Uriel Avelini."
A blinding white light erupted from the cat, engulfing its form. As the light faded, the cat was gone, replaced by a beautiful golden longsword that hovered midair. Leon reached out and grasped the hilt, then pointed the sword at the man.
At that moment, the instructor's voice sounded.
"Begin!"
Both dominants lunged at each other with unbridled intent. Metal clashed against steel and both dominants engaged in a rapid succession of blows.
Any other time, I would have been mesmerized by the beautiful, fierce scene unfolding before me. But now, my sole focus was the very real possibility of Damon chopping off my arm.
I sighed, rubbing my cold, fear-dampened face.
Just then, a sudden shout of 'I surrender!' and the immediate cheering of the cadets snapped my gaze back to the podium, where I saw Leon standing over the fallen cadet with his sword pointed at him.
He had won.
Though it wasn't surprising that he had won, it was indeed surprising that he had done so in less than thirty seconds.
For a brief moment, I have to admit, I was a bit awestruck.
Leon lowered his sword and it instantly dissolved into a brilliant light that shot back into his arm and vanished. He then reached out, helping his partner up, after which they both descended the platform.
A second later, the instructor grinned and called out.
"Next."
At this point, I began to pray that the next duel would last a bit longer. Every swift victory meant my duel with the bastard Damon was drawing closer.
But then, my eyes widened when I saw the next person climbing the platform.
It was Damon.
'That goddamn son of a bitch!'