Chapter 23: First day (5)

The moment I bought the skill, I felt as if an invisible hand was tearing a large piece of my soul away... my complexion became extremely pale... trying to act as normal as possible... "As a condition, I want Leslie to protect me."

My intentions are clear: I won't let you take Leslie from me... and seeing the proud look in the bitch's eyes turn extremely cold... the fierce gazes of the students also faltered a bit upon hearing my condition...

"I agree!!" Leslie raised her hand with a beautiful smile on her lips, her cheeks turning red as she nodded repeatedly like a chicken pecking at the ground...

"No, wait!" The saint quickly stopped Leslie... she mentally clenched her fists, trying to control her hatred towards the audacious bastard who dared ask to be protected. Placing a fake smile on her lips, she extended her hands: "In this event, offense is of great importance. The strongest among us are clearly Leslie and Evelyn, having them both on the front line will give us a greater advantage for victory."

"She's right."

"Damn, you just want to spend more time with Lady Leslie!"

"Know your place, bastard!"

The students, who were stunned, exploded in protest after hearing Daniela's words...

"Besides, don't you feel ashamed? Asking a woman to protect you..." she said with a sweet smile.

"HAHAHAHAHA!"

The "male" students burst into mocking laughter...

[Seduction skill activated]

[Persuasion skill activated]

"Well, what can I say, it seems you've forgotten that the leader cannot defend or attack. What you say makes a lot of sense—offense is always the best response in a one-on-one scenario, but there are four other classes besides ours participating in this event, and keeping in mind that classes can form alliances with two other classes at the same time... and!" My voice rose with extremely serious eyes, activating the [Seduction] skill to gain more interest from Leslie, Evelyn, and Emilia, who were silently watching what was happening... two birds with one stone...

"Just think a little. If three classes attack us, we'll be outnumbered by 40 students, and we are only 20. I don't think any of them would want to ally with us, considering we are at the top. So we must consider the many possibilities, like all the classes turning against us." Shaking my head... I leave my spot, descending the stairs: "Don't you think this is the perfect opportunity to drag the most prestigious class down to the bottom of the barrel? I can't imagine how the upper classes will look at us!!" Standing proudly with deeply emotional eyes, almost on the verge of tears, I raise my fist: "How will all of you feel? The geniuses among geniuses! In class E? Just for the simple fact of being arrogant? NO! We aren't! We must be careful. In this event, all the classes are our enemies!"

Looking carefully into everyone's eyes, they hesitated strongly; the hostility they had was disappearing like ice under the sun, and some lowered their heads in shame....

*****

"He's using a skill." That was the first thought that crossed Emilia's mind. She was indifferent to what the students were talking about, but when the topic was the boy who had piqued her interest a little, she pretended to be reading... she knew very well what the saint was trying to do... she found it exciting and was also secretly satisfied that her pride had been wounded by that bastard: "Hmph!" With a snort, she kept listening... She thought the boy would feel nervous with so many hostile gazes on him, but to her surprise, he smiled...

"If we find ourselves in a scenario where our territory is attacked by all the classes, we will definitely be the first to be eliminated! It would be a great loss, and if we are eliminated, we'll surely be demoted to class E!" He extended his hands as if he were giving a speech to open the students' eyes....

"A speech skill?" Watching as the boy's words began to tear apart Daniela's words like paper... and the students thought deeply about Arthur's words, as if he were predicting a very likely future... In fact, Emilia saw how quickly the situation shifted in Arthur's favor; she could feel a subtle magic emanating from Arthur's mouth, filling the class...

"If we follow a bad leader who only thinks about attacking and being arrogant, while underestimating the other classes...!" He lowered his head and clenched his fists tightly: "We don't deserve to be in the first class!!" His words were strong; even my mind shook a little...

Moreover... looking at his deeply concerned expression... and the strength in his voice... I felt strange for some reason... it was a call especially for me, my mind was very confused. Taking the cup of tea in my hands, I shook my head: "What the hell is happening to me?" Looking into Arthur's determined eyes and his face, which for some strange reason seemed more handsome than before...

****

Seeing the students' wide-eyed expressions, a smile appeared on my lips... mentally mocking the bitch beside me, but now I had to maintain a dignified expression... "I know offense is best, I'll repeat it again, but we always have to think of all possible scenarios, and defense is also very important. We also have the possibility of being eliminated. Given these factors, what I'm asking for isn't so unreasonable. Leslie and Evelyn are the strongest women right now; I just ask that Leslie protect me. Evelyn can attack, besides, she's a mage and can do much more area damage than Leslie. What do you think?" Ignoring the saint's eyes that were piercing my heart, I looked at the students...

"If you put it that way, fine, it's okay!"

"It can't be helped, then!"

"Let's go all out!!"

"You're absolutely right!!!"

"You have my support!"

"Well thought out, Arthur!" Elias smiled sincerely and gave me a thumbs up...

I subtly approach Daniela delicately: "Nice try, bitch," whispering those words in her ear...

"You d-dare...!" The saint's eyes widened like plates, and she pointed at me with a trembling finger...

Watching her cheeks turn red... it's probably the first time she's been called that....

[The first Seraphim's interest increased by 30]

[Emilia Rose White: 30 (Curious)]

[The fourth Seraphim's interest increased by 50]

[Leslie Violet Rose: 200 (Damn, brother, you've surpassed human limits)]

[The fifth Seraphim's interest increased by 20]

[Evelyn Red Rose: 20 (Sleepy)]