Chapter 17: The day of the duel

-2 days later-

I stood in the hallway leading toward the Arena reserved for today's duel.

"So, I'm curious. Did you find out about that thing?"

The hidden floating ball beside me came into view as Eris replied.

[Yes. Since they didn't know who is Angelica's champion, 98% of the participants bet on the Prince and his friends. The ones who did bet on Angelica only did it because of some convoluted thought process that I can't quite comprehend.]

"Huh. Yeah, I thought so."

Just like in the manga, the bets were going on. And to even my surprise, the money in circulation wasn't a joke. While it wasn't that much for someone in my shoes, someone like, say, Olivia could become just shy of a millionaire if she bet and won. And she could easily win. All she had to do is bet on me.

'That's some rich kid shit right there. Wasting away their parents' hard-earned(?) money on such things.'

"Yare, yare~"

Too bad Olivia wouldn't bet. I tried to encourage her to do it, but she vehemently refused. A shame, but what else could I expect from someone pure and law-abiding like Olivia.

'Hmm, actually…'

"Did Angelica bet?"

[No. She has shown no interest in such things. Speaking of, she's making her way towards the Arena, along with Olivia. They'll be here… right about now.]

As if it was pre-planned, two blondes came into my view.

"Ian!"

"Leon."

I smiled, seeing the two blondes approaching. They somehow looked like sisters when walking together.

"Hey, Livia. Hello Angelica."

"Are you ready for your duel?"

Angelica asked calmly.

I observed her state and while she looked fine externally, I couldn't say the same for her internal state.

[Name: Angelica Rapha Redgrave

Race: Human

Level: 15

Thoughts about you: Hopeful, Anxious]

"Don't worry, Angelica. I promised I'll win it. I didn't lie. I am guaranteed to win this duel. But…"

I watched as she looked slightly relieved.

"Are you okay?"

My sudden question surprised her.

"Yes? Ah. I'm doing well, thank you."

She replied, curtly.

"Hmm. Do you regret your choice now?"

"Oh, no, no! I am not doubting you. I dare say you might be the best I could get. I'm glad that you accepted my unreasonable request… I don't know what I'd have done otherwise. Probably something stupid."

She sighed tiredly.

"I wasn't talking about that, though. Are you okay with how things are? I'm not well-versed in politics and nobility, but I dare say this situation is going to be troublesome for you regardless of your victory or defeat."

She scoffed; her face now downcast. With a self-deprecating tone, she spoke.

"That's putting it lightly. I am basically ruined after this if I don't win. Even if I win, I won't be in a great state. Honestly, part of me wants to just give up and go back home and accept my punishment. But… since I started this whole thing, I have to see it to the end. I can't give up after coming so far, after roping you into my own problems; Regardless of the consequences. I am a hot-headed and idiotic person who lets her emotions govern her, I have realized."

Her words were barely above a mutter by the time she finished.

"That's not true!"

She turned to see the other blonde who had suddenly shouted.

"You are not stupid! Please don't be so hard on yourself."

"…"

Angelica was surprised to see the sincerity behind those words. Olivia was that kind of person. An honest and kind girl. Her protagonist aura probably helped her too.

We stayed silent for a short while as I thought of the best way to deal with this matter. Since I had decided to help Angelica, I might as well do it properly.

"A few days ago, I had a strange encounter with an upperclassman who seemed to have been in terrible shape after her boyfriend/fiancée broke up with her. The asshole broke up with her over a damn letter."

Angelica looked back at me, confused and intrigued.

"So, she got drunk for the first time in her life and was walking alone in a park in a rather precarious state, crying and shouting about it. It was a coincidence that I was there and she somehow walked up to me. I ended up becoming her ears and shoulder on whom she poured all her pain and suffering. I won't tell you her identity, because that's not important.

What is important, however, are the words I told her.

She was too attached and obsessed with the one who broke her heart and couldn't move on.

I told her to find happiness for herself. That she doesn't need someone else to find that happiness. That she deserves someone much better than someone who didn't understand her true worth and dumped her so easily."

Angelica's eyed widened slightly as her mouth was agape.

I couldn't read her mind, but I could hazard a guess that she probably related to that.

"Interestingly, it happened on the same evening I accepted your request. Anyway, I don't know if this is of any use to you, but I feel like your situation and hers were quite similar in that regard. Girls who are in pain because their fiancés left them for another girl."

'And that girl happens to be the same in case bases (Marie), But I won't say that.'

"So, if you don't mind me saying this, I will advise you the same. Find happiness for yourself and don't let what others think and say bring you down. You are not anyone's slave. You are your own person and you deserve your own happiness."

And with that, I ended my speech.

It was time for the duel, after all.

"Now, let's go have some fun, shall we? We have a duel to win."

"Um, I can't do anything, but… I'll be cheering for you, Ian!"

I looked at Olivia and felt déjà vu.

'She said the same thing to OG Leon, heh. Some things don't change.'

I smiled in response.

"Thanks, Livia. I appreciate your support. I'll be sure to treat you to some pastries after we win. My treat."

"Eh?"

That seemed to have caught her off-guard.

I knew her weakness. And I planned to exploit them.

'I'll feed her with cakes and pastries until she's chubby! Muahahaha. Yeah, my totally evil plan to fatten the ex-protagonist is going as planned… Just kidding.'

With such silly thoughts running in my head and without a worry about the upcoming duel, I made my way toward the arena.

There was one small issue I had to deal with right now, though.

'This armor Eris made for me is too skin-tight. My crotch area feels kinda stuffy.'

(Image)

Eris was quite proud of her work so I had decided to humor her with it, but I was having second thoughts now. The slim and futuristic armor did look quite cool and provided more protection than any steel full-plate armor.

'I'll have to tell her to do something about the tightness down there after this fight is over.'

Reaching the arena, I could see and hear the crowd gathered there to witness the match of the year.

***

-General POV-

The Arena was jam-packed with students who had come to witness a rare duel.

Duels rarely happened in the academy. Much less one between the prince and the daughter of the duke.

Nobody wanted to miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Even some of the upperclassmen had come to witness it.

Among those upperclassmen, a green-eyed and orange-blonde-haired girl sat quietly, looking at the duel with a solemn look.

Other than the students, who sat in the audience seat, there were also a few faculty members overseeing the duel. Namely, one of the teachers was assigned to judge the duel, and two others were to oversee it from the commentary room. There was medical staff on standby in case of an accident or emergency. It was normal for the participants to suffer cuts and bruises in a duel after all.

Everyone eagerly watched and cheered as the prince and his entourage made their way, dawning their custom-made battle armor.

Curiously, each wore armor matching their hair color. But no one commented on that.

In the crowd, Clarice watched as the figure of Jilk stood calmly.

'So, it's her. Marie.'

She looked at the short blonde standing in front of the 5 boys, looking nervous yet assured.

'What does she have that I don't?'

She thought, but then quickly shook those thoughts away.

She'd had 2 days to go over it and she had come to the conclusion.

The boy she had met that night, Leon, gave her life lessons she would never forget.

'Live for yourself and find your own happiness. Jilk doesn't matter. I am my own person.'

She felt nothing but gratitude for the one who saved her from falling down into the abyss… And there was also a bit of strange emotion she felt that she was unsure about. Even after she became sober the next morning, she didn't forget that she had kissed and was kissed back by him.

Her face heated up as that scene came to her mind and she shook her head to get rid of those thoughts. Now wasn't the time.

She took a deep breath to calm down and turned to look to her side, finding a tall tanned-skinned boy sitting beside her, observing the arena with a focused and serious look.

"Dan." (A/N: He's been her loyal follower since before her break-up with the green power ranger and not one of the sex slaves she bought in the game.)

She called her follower, making the boy turn to her.

"Yes, my lady."

"Did you find out who Angelica's champions are in this duel?"

The boy shook his head.

"I am sorry, my lady. But nobody other than the faculty overseeing the match knows anything other than the fact that it's only one person. Not 5. Apparently, Miss Angelica has been keeping her champion's identity hidden. We'll see it with our own eyes soon though. He's likely going to make his entrance soon."

She nodded, turning back her focus to the side opposite the prince's entourage.

Truth be told, she had come to witness this duel, not because of Jilk. It was for Angelica. She had learned that Angelica was in a similar situation to her and she felt empathy for her junior. Their stories were quite similar, but unlike her who was weak and decided to react to the news of the breakup by wallowing in self-pity and depression, Angelica was strong and was fighting back for her honor.

She felt respect for the girl who hadn't simply broken down after going through an even worst breakup, even though she knew that this would lead to nothing good for the Redgrave princess. (A/N: Sometimes a duke's daughter is referred to as a ducal princess. Source: Trust me, bro.)

'I just hope she doesn't do anything problematic. For her own well-being.'

The change in the crowd's mood caused her to break out of her thoughts and look at the place everyone was now staring at. Gasps and murmurs soon followed.

"Wait, is that… It's the Prodigious Adventurer! Angelica got the Aloof Adventurer on her side!?"

"Holy crap! It's really him?"

"My gosh, this match just became a lot more interesting!"

She could hear the crowd going crazy, seeing the face of one of the popular first years suddenly coming out to fight.

But unlike them, she had different thoughts.

'Leon… He… is going to help Angelica?'

She didn't know much about the boy, only learning things in the past day or so when she started researching about him to distract herself from her current state.

And much to her surprise, the boy who had saved her was actually quite well-known among even the third-years.

Leon Alpenwind, the prodigious adventurer.

The young man who had made quite a name for himself as one of the best adventurers in the country and the youngest to have reached the fabled S-rank status.

Now that she was made aware of the champion's identity, she was much more invested in the duel.

She wanted to see how strong the one who saved her was. She wanted to know more about him.

Deep down, she had already started to hope and pray for his win.

***