Chapter 12: Under Pressure

A L E X A

We are already inside the hidden arena. It is called that because it is near the shore and it is surrounded by trees. There are only some people who know about this arena and no one usually comes to this part of the island so it is a good hiding place. Its structure is somehow similar to Arena di Verona which is located in Italy.

The Verona Arena (Arena di Verona in Italian) is a breathtaking Roman amphitheater that was built in the first century AD (although the precise date is not known since it was not inscribed anywhere in the structure). It is estimated that, in its first years, the arena could host 30,000 people, who reached it from all over the Empire. Today, because of the demolition of some parts of the site and because of safety rules, it can accommodate only half that crowd.

We are currently standing in the middle, waiting for Hyuna and Du Ho to come. There are still ten minutes left before the said time. "They might ambush us. Aren't you afraid?" Elijah asked, he is in front of me and he is looking somewhere far away. "Even if they try to ambush us, we will still win, am I right?" I answered, a small smile formed in my face.

"Don't smile without me looking, my competitors might rise." He stated as he turned and looked at me, making me blush. Why the hell is he spouting nonsense?

"Ayieee," I heard Nike said then pushed me towards Elijah. I almost stumbled and fell towards him, luckily I managed to balance myself. I closed my eyes shut, trying to suppress my irritation. I turned towards her and she acted innocent. I then smiled and walked towards her direction. I put my right hand on her head and pats it.

"You really have a deathwish, you know that?" I said, showing how pissed I am by smiling.

Before Nike could defend herself, we heard some footsteps and they arrived. Hyuna and Du Ho with their gang. I can't stop myself from smirking.

"Ah~ Too scared that you brought back up?" I sneered at them and I saw how Du Ho's expression darkens. I'm enjoying this.

"Having fun teasing me, miss ambitious?" Du Ho spatted.

"At least my ambitions are realistic, former president." I answered, still smirking.

"Let's just start. We will have a battle in archery but with a twist." He said then members of Ordinis council entered. They are from rich families who chose to homeschool. They are neutral most of the time so they were chosen to be part of the council to judge competitions and manage the rankings.

I noticed the butlers who followed them, they brought targets, arrows, and bows. But what made it weird is the arrows and bows are all low-quality ones. Is this what he meant by twist?

"As you can observe, we will be using a bow and arrow with low quality. We will pick one other player to run and find a better bow and arrow. We have sixty seconds to shoot each arrow. We will be shooting twelve arrows. We will keep using these low-quality ones until they came back with the best-quality ones. But there are also bow and arrows that are low-quality and some small traps around the forest so be careful." Explanation by Du Ho. I know that there are some dirty tricks behind these but I can't point it out so I can't disqualify him. This is getting fun.

"You may now choose your seekers." After that was announced, I quickly went to Elijah.

"I trust you. Hyuna is the fastest runner but you're both smart and fast so you can easily do it. Can you?" I asked, looking straight at his yellow mesmerizing eyes. He smiled and nodded in response.

"Do you really expect me to fail when you are this straightforward to me? Don't worry, I won't fail you so hold on until I come back." He said with a wink, making me smile.

"Gal Du Ho chooses Ga Hyuna as his seeker and Alexa Dives picked Elijah Dias as hers. Seekers and archers, please proceed to your positions." I stared straight into Elijah's eyes then went to my position.

We are standing eighty meters from the target. The others went to the seats. I started warming up and Du Ho did the same.

"Hey Alexa, I have another surprise." Du Ho stated, making me stop and look towards his direction.

Du Ho raised his right hand as a signal then students with their families entered. I scanned the crowd and my eyes stopped at three specific people. Shit. My parents and granda are here. I then looked at Du Ho who has a smirk while looking at me. I can't lose. I shouldn't disappoint them.

Did this cunning fox found out about my anxiety? This is messed up. I might mess up. Calm down, Alexa, calm down. I repeatedly told myself those words as I try to regain my composure. I can't lose here. Naomi and the others trusted me with this, I can't lose. Especially not in front of my parents.

I continued stretching and tried to calm myself, despite my anxiety kicking in.

"Archers, we will be starting in 30 seconds." My anxiety rose as I hear those words. I gripped my bow and arrow tightly as I close my eyes, in an attempt to calm myself.

I heard the gunshot, signaling the start of the sixty seconds to shoot. Using my left hand, I hold the grip tightly as I positioned the arrow and pulled the string backward using my other hand. I aimed at the target and I released the arrow. It hits the target. The arrow almost missed the blue circle. I almost missed it. I got five while Du Ho got eight. I nervously looked at the seats and I saw a bit of disappointment in my parent's eyes. I messed up the first shot. I messed up on something I'm good at.