[Alisha's POV]
Is tomorrow the last day of the tournament, then?
I have been at this academy for one month now; have I been having fun? Perhaps, and that is because I have met several interesting people here.
Yesterday, a letter arrived from my country...
They said the monster wave has been pushed back as far as the country's border regions. This makes me a little relieved, but a small victory must not let the soldiers there become careless.
"Alisha."
Hearing my name called by someone, I turned around and saw a blonde-haired man walking toward me.
"Brian?"
"Where has that servant of yours gone?" Brian asked me.
"I am currently ordering him to do something," I answered him.
Leon is currently retrieving something at Duke Alvaro's mansion; we received a shipment of goods from our home country.
"Hey Alisha, do you still remember our agreement?" Brian asked again.
An agreement? Does he mean the one about me having to cancel my marriage with Raul if Brian manages to defeat me in the tournament?
"You are still hoping for that, it turns out?" I muttered, a bit confused by this man.
"Of course, I will free you from that Bastard!" Brian exclaimed, clenching his fist.
"Why are you so confident?" I asked him. "Didn't he once defeat you and hundreds of other students during the survival exam?"
Hearing my words, Brian's face looked red from embarrassment.
I only just obtained this information yesterday after asking several people. It is truly unbelievable that one person could almost defeat hundreds of people like that. Initially, I thought he could do all this because he possessed powerful magic and Nature Mana. However, the students said that he only used bare hands and physical magic.
If I am not mistaken, Valeria also told me that he can also use Reject Impact, a magic that only a few people in this world are capable of mastering! However, this is a magic that cannot be used recklessly because of its side effects; it is impossible for Raul to defeat hundreds of people just because he mastered this magic.
"That was then, and now is a different matter!" Brian exclaimed, looking serious. "Right now, I am much stronger than before and will win this tournament no matter what happens!"
Heee~ A very strong determination, it turns out...
I want to know what will become of this man if I give him a sad reality later. I think the sight will be very interesting.
While I was chatting with Brian, suddenly I saw the black-haired man entering the hall together with a blonde-haired woman. They appeared to be discussing something; the woman was seen smiling beautifully as if she were having fun. On the other hand, the black-haired man appeared relaxed and was enjoying his time with the woman as well.
They enjoyed their time together as if they were the only ones in this room.
Are they truly always this close?
***
[Raul's POV]
The next day, I was heading to the arena to participate in the quarter-final round on this final day. To be honest, this time I do not know who I will face in the fight later. The match arrangement I gave to Instructor Tevaz was only until the second round.
That is because the drawing for the quarter-final round will be purely conducted at random. However, at least I have fulfilled all the goals I wanted to achieve in this tournament.
First, winning the bet I made with the Lancer club.
Second, harvesting hatred from them so that I can unlock other abilities from the Profound Codex I possess.
Third, getting rid of Vlad, who tried to approach Elena.
And finally, attracting the attention of Marquis Fran and building a relationship with him. This is very important for me so that I can execute my plans well if a war with the Republic occurs. Besides that, I will also frequently cooperate with him when carrying out field work later.
Upon arriving at the arena, I went straight to the participants' stands. It was seen that they had all gathered, waiting for the event to begin.
"Spectators in attendance! I am sure you have been waiting for this moment!"
The Promoter began to speak, signaling that the event was about to start.
"This is the final day of the Tournament for the most talented students in this country!" said the Promoter, clenching his fist in the air. "A total of 36 participants initially participated in this tournament, but now only 8 people remain who will compete to become the best!"
The spectators cheered hearing the Promoter's words, shouting the names of their favorites. Of course, my name was not among their noisy chirping.
"This time, the participants will continue to fight without rest until the final round! Who will be able to survive until the end!?"
Ughhh... This Promoter talks too much; it would be better if you immediately open the event and announce the first fight.
The easiest, of course, would be against the two remaining seniors because they do not have any Overpowered abilities at all. However, if I had to choose a middle ground, then I would rather fight Leon. It would be very bad for me if I fought Elena or Princess Alisha now. That is because my chances of winning in an open place like this against them are very low.
Fighting Brian is just a matter of luck and Plot Armor. With his current ability having unlocked several of the Profound Codices he possesses, I will not know when his special ability or his Plot Armor will activate.
"Alright, without waiting any longer, I will announce those who will fight in the first match!"
Finally, the time has arrived...
I think this is a good opportunity to try the Redirect technique that I have been practicing for some time. Although my chance of success has only reached ten percent to execute this technique, I will try it in a real fight.
"Princess Elena de Aragon!"
Now, I do not want to use Redirect against a very strong AoE user like Elena. Call Brian's name this time; I want to know if his Plot Armor works against an opponent as strong as Elena.
"Will be against Raul de Garcia!"
Why do I have to fight her now? Elena will definitely electrocute me until I am scorched with her lightning magic in this fight.
"Hey, Raul..."
I turned to the side hearing my name called; a blonde-haired woman was seen smiling mischievously at me.
"Let us continue our dance from yesterday, this time in the combat arena," Elena said while licking her lips. "I can't wait to bully you, Raul..."