HOLD IT RIGHT THERE, AOBAN WHITEHEART!

"The Boss? Why am I The Boss?"

"You're the leader, aren't you?"

"We don't have a leader."

Jalone mouth fell wide open as he looked at me with bewildered eyes.

"You need a leader!" he prompted.

"Do we?" I squinted, unconvinced.

"Yes!"

Staring at the boy who was not going to let it go, I sighed.

"Alright, alright," I conceded. "We can choose a leader. How about we go with age? The leader should be the oldest, don't you think?"

"I'm ten!" Jalone enthusiastically exclaimed.

Well, nobody was going to ask you but… Ten? He's younger than I thought. He's quite big for his age, he's as tall as me. Is it because he's a demi-human?

"I'm fourteen," I said in my turn as I saw the boy staring at me with insistence.

I glanced at Frost.

"Sixteen," he casually revealed.

We all directed our eyes to Vivian.

"Ah, I'm seventeen."

That's surprising, she's older than I thought. She closer in age with my brother than with me. Thinking about it, I never really asked her age, right?

"It's settled then," I concluded. "Vivian's the leader."

"Huh?!" The young girl yelped. "W-Wait, I don't think I'm fit to be the leader! No matter how you think about it, aren't you a better choice than me?"

"I don't really want to be the leader though," I confessed. "Frost?"

"I pass," he flatly declined.

"Then what about me?" A little voice spoke up. "I can be the leader!"

We all turned our attention to Jalone, whose eyes were glowing with expectation. Then, we exchanged a silent but meaningful glance.

Ultimately, much to Jalone's disappointment, we decided to stay without a leader for now. It's not like it's urgent anyway. While the boy seemed quite motivated to become our representative, none of us were comfortable with letting a child be our leader.

The rest of the meal went on peacefully. Forgetting about the team and the tournament, we shared stories and anecdotes about classes. Although they didn't attend the same course as they all had different specialties, the three of them were all in intermediate classes, so they were quite eager to hear about the things we did in advanced classes. But when I told them about the Tuesday exercise, they all blanched in horror. Afterwards, we talked about much more general things. Food, dreams, life in the capital. While Vivian and I were both from Agraal, Frost and Jalone came from different kingdoms, so it was quite interesting to hear about the differences between our nations. Just a simple and casual discussion between teenagers.

School life isn't so bad after all.

It was now pretty late in the evening and the hall was starting to become overcrowded. As we had long since finished eating, we decided to give up the table and continue our conversation outside. However, on our way out, we were blocked by someone.

Oh for the love of…! Can't I just spend one peaceful moment in this goddamn refectory? Each time I come here, something always happens!

"What now?" I grumbled.

It was Aoban. Again. Vivian and Frost both stepped away, averting their gaze awkwardly when they noticed him. I can't blame them, though. Their last meeting with brother didn't exactly go well.

"What is this?" Aoban asked as he showed me one of my flyers.

"Advertisement," I coldly responded. "I'm recruiting."

Brother frowned, clearly not pleased by my answer.

"You're recruiting people through advertisement? Is this some kind of a joke?"

I knew that whatever I was going to say, brother was not going to like it, so I simply gave him a silent answer.

"Lyni," he called me out. "Are you serious about participating to the tournament?"

I nodded.

"You're going to find yourself in real battle situation. You might even get injured. You know that, right?"

I nodded.

"What if I tell you to forget about it? You're not going to listen, are you?"

I nodded.

Brother clicked his tongue in exasperation before letting out a sigh of resignation.

"Take Lukas with you," he then demanded. "I won't be able to stay with you, but at least Lukas will protect you. He is quite proficient with Light Magic, he'll be a good healer."

I squinted my eyes at his unexpected request.

"Erm, no thank you," I politely declined.

Aoban frowned.

"What? Why?"

Mmh, let me think. First, you're controlling enough as it is, I don't want one of your spies in my team. Secondly, Lukas is Uncle Jack's son. I'd rather not have him involved in this competition. We might find ourselves with a conflict of interest. Thirdly, I haven't really spoken to him ever since I arrived. We're not exactly close, so I don't picture myself asking him to join my team just because you want to. And lastly, did you just say a healer? I think that's enough reasons for me to decline.

"We don't need a healer," I decided to go with the last excuse. "We have enough mages like that, we're already four."

"You have four mages?" Brother scowled. "Are you trying to go for a full mage team?"

No, that's exactly what I'm trying to avoid, thus not accepting Lukas.

"Don't worry! We'll be the strongest mage team in the competition!"

Oh boy… I had forgotten about Jalone. As usual, unable to read the mood, the demi-human boy meddled in the conversation, a bright and ignorant smile on the face. At his side, I could see Vivian and Frost silently apologizing with their eyes for not being able to hold him back.

Aoban frowned even further when he saw the unknown boy interjecting.

"Who are you?" he asked.

"My name is Jalone!" the demi-human boy happily introduced himself. "A future archmage!"

Brother inspected the boy with piercing eyes for a few seconds before turning his attention on me.

"That kid is in your team?"

I didn't answer. I didn't dare to. I knew what he was thinking and I knew it wasn't good for me. Jalone was just a child, and a demi-human mage on top on that. Anyone would think that I'm not taking this seriously if I told them I was planning to participate in one of the largest-scale competitions on the continent with him. Brother was no exception. As expected, as he took my silence for a yes, he let out a sarcastic chortle.

"Is this just a game for you?" he growled, his patience reaching its limit. "Is this whole competition a joke to you?"

"It's not! I'm serious about this!" I tried to convince him.

"Serious?!" brother repeated with an air of offended dignity. "You call this serious? You think you can join with your team of clowns?"

I widened my eyes.

"Clowns?"

"A kid!" Aoban shouted as he designated Jalone with his hand.

"One of the bloody bastards of the Duke!" he moved to Vivian.

"And let me guess, that little thug is also part of your team?" he finished, pointing at Frost.

I couldn't find anything to retort as brother pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to get rid of the sudden headache assaulting his mind.

"You don't have a fifth member yet, do you?" he eventually asked with a calmer tone of voice.

"No, we don't," I muttered.

Aoban took a deep breath and let it out in a long sigh, relieving his tension. Once he had somehow regained a cool state, he directed his gaze on me.

"Good," he said before walking away.

Good? I grabbed brother's arm, a restless feeling growing in my chest.

"What do you mean 'good'?" I questioned.

"Since you don't have a fifth member yet, I'll make sure you never find one," brother callously declared.

"What?!"

Aoban's eyes were cold and cruel. He felt so distant.

"I'm not letting you get yourself killed in that tournament," he scowled. "And since you're not listening and insist about participating, you're not giving me a choice. I'll make sure you're not eligible to even be selected."

I glared at him, dumbfounded. He is dead-serious.

"You don't understand!" I ranted. "I need to participate!"

"Why?!"

Frustration was building up within both of us as he couldn't understand why I kept insisting about the tournament. It was pointless and dangerous. But it was also necessary.

"For mom," I reluctantly explained, realizing that I never truly told him. "To protect mom."

It was the breaking point of his patience. As Aoban didn't get the full story, he still couldn't understand my point.

"You? Protect mom?" he sneered. "Do you even know anything about mom?"

His expression turned into something which I really didn't like. Disdain, irony, resentment. How am I supposed to interpret this?

"What is that supposed to mean?" I grumbled, my eyes narrowed and set hard.

"It means that mom protects you. I protect you!" brother emphasized. "You, are not protecting anyone!"

At this point, he snarled more than he spoke.

"I could if you give me a chance!"

"How? By participating in some stupid competition?" Aoban snorted with laughter.

"I'm serious!"

"No, you're not!" He immediately refuted. "You've never been serious about anything Lyni, and that's the problem! You are always so carefree about everything, just like if life itself was a game to you!"

Uh, well, about that…

"You're so busy playing around you can't even see what everyone else is doing for you! How much we sacrifice for you!"

I flinched.

"What?"

"Do you think I want to be here, in this stupid school? Do you think mom wants to stay in that goddamn residence, being looked down on, by even some lowly servants? It's all for you Lyni! For you! And yet, here you are, fooling around, exposing yourself to danger like an idiot!"

His words kept crashing out unchecked, punching into the air, as brother let his heart out.

"I haven't asked for anything!"

Aoban glared at me, a vein almost popping in his temple and his fists tightly clenched.

"For goodness' sake Lyni, once, just once, listen to me!" He begged. "You are being such a burden right now…!"

W-What…?

"What did you just say…?" I managed to mumble, my heart unsettled.

"You are a burden, okay?! A real pain in the ass!"

As Aoban trashed out everything he had to say, something broke within me. My heart sank. My face became rigid, expressionless and I stopped listening to him as he kept spitting words after words. Once he had finally finished venting out all his frustration, my vision became blurry. Before I realized, tears started to form in my eyes and I knew I wouldn't be able to hold them back for long. When brother saw that, all his anger suddenly vanished, just like if it never existed, as his expression collapsed in regret. He had went too far and he knew it. But it was too late. He had said the forbidden word.

In one instant, old memories started to flow back as the same single word kept resonating in my mind. Something, that I buried deep within my heart a long time ago, suddenly arose.

Shit.

'burden…'

Not now, not after all this time.

'…burden!'

Shut up. I had finally erased that memory from my mind, so why now? Stop remembering, Aileen. Stop. This is all in the past. You are Lynett now.

'This child is a burden!'

◊◊◊◊◊◊

The where the same words, my grand parents told my mom and dad before they cut all ties with thm

This is only one memory, but this one memory is etched in my mind as clear as if it was yesterday. Because my grandparents had a point. I was a burden. I was no blessing, I was only filling my parents' life with hardships and anxiety. It was not worth the very few happy moments we shared.

Millions of questions sprouted in my mind when I got reincarnated here, but there is one thing I always told myself. That this time, I wouldn't be a burden.

Yet, here you are, brother. You, of all people, calling me a burden.

My heart drowning in feelings of betrayal, regret and disappointment, and my mind flooded with painful memories, I was unable to hold back the tears. I could feel them flowing down my face uncontrollably. I had cried before, I was good at faking it. But this was the first time since I got reincarnated that I was genuinely crying.

Family is never perfect, but at least, I thought that Aoban would never hurt me. I thought we could be here for each other. Ever since I got reborn, he has always been my closest friend, so why would he say that? I know it's not the same. I know. He's not looking at me the way my grandparents were. His eyes aren't filled with contempt. Instead, he's looking at me tenderly, his expression full of concern. I can tell he's already regretting his words, but I can't help it. I keep seeing my grandparents' face overlapping with his and I hate it.

Unable to watch me in this state any longer, Aoban broke eye-contact.

"Go home Lyni," he muttered, his voice filled with regret. "You don't belong here."

His shoulders slumped, brother turned around. He had shattered something and he knew it, but he wasn't going to apologize.

"W-Wait," I tried to articulate through my uncontrollable sobbing.

But brother didn't look back. Instead, he kept walking away.

"Wait…!" I pleaded as my bottom lip kept quivering, more tears threatening to spill.

I was definitely clearer this time, but brother still didn't stop. He was leaving and I didn't have the heart to hold him back. My mind and my body were in conflict. I wanted to grab his hand, I wanted to make him stay, but my body just wouldn't listen.

Is that it?

Is that really all?

Are you just going to leave, Aoban?

'Hello Lynett! My name is Aoban, I'm your big brother!'

I suddenly remembered my first meeting with Aoban. His smile, his voice… His innocence.

"Hold it right there…"

Memories flooding back into my head, I could finally feel my muscles regaining some strength.

That's right. I do remember that little boy with messy hair looking down on me with beaming eyes, vowing to protect me. I still remember.

You're not getting away with it Aoban. You can't just leave like that. You don't get to just throw away everything we had until now just like that. But you're not going to change your mind and you're not going to apologize, I know that. I know you. You're more stubborn than a mule. So I'll make you. I'll force you to change your mind. I'll shove it into your head until you understand. Even if it means that I need to confront you. Even if it means that I need to break your spirit... I'm not throwing away our relationship!

Finally regaining full control of myself, I wiped the tears on my face and clenched my fist, my expression hardening.

"HOLD IT RIGHT THERE, AOBAN WHITEHEART!"

My voice resonating in the hall, brother had no choice but to stop. He turned around, looking at me with wild eyes. I had called his full name, so he knew it wasn't good.

I shot him a glare, my eyes burning with determination. I took a deep breath.

"My name is Lynett Maedis Whiteheart!" I loudly declared.

At that moment, Aoban understood what I had in mind as his face collapsed in one instant. But I didn't give him the time to stop me.

"Aoban Whiteheart!" I called out. "By the old laws of this school, I hereby challenge you to a duel!"

Brother immediately turned blue in the face.

"Take that back!" He ordered.

"No."

I had trapped him in a situation where he couldn't escape. In front of this many witnesses, Aoban won't be able to refuse. His honor won't let him do so, even if I am his sister.

I could feel many stares on us. The entire hall fell silent. Not everyone had followed our dispute, but everyone shared the same expression on their face. Vivian and Frost both froze in astonishment. Blood drained from their face, they completely lost their colors as they displayed their best grimace at me. Even Jalone, who so far couldn't read the mood, was giving me a concerned look.

That's how serious the situation was.

"Do you even understand what you're doing right now?" Aoban growled.

"I perfectly am."

For a while, brother glared right through me. But as he understood I had no intention of backing down, his face slightly softened.

"Fine."

His expression changed from furious to serious. He straightened his back, facing me.

"My name is Aoban Whiteheart," he announced sharply.

Realizing where this was going, Vivian quickly regained her senses as she grabbed my clothes, trying to attract my attention. But I ignored her. I knew what she wanted. She wanted me to withdraw, and I had no intention of doing so.

Aoban marked a pause, as we both glared at each other. His eyes hardened.

"I hereby accept your challenge."