The magic battle expo entered its third and final day amidst growing excitement. The semifinals were scheduled to take place in the morning, and the grand finals would occur in the afternoon. In addition, whereas the first two days saw the use of three separate arenas, the final day’s matches would all take place on the intermediate division’s field.
“Wow, it’s packed .” said Alicia with a grimace as she approached the stands. “I mean, I expected as much, but still.”
The use of only a single arena meant an audience that had been split among three was now merged into one as well. The stands had been expanded to five whole rows of benches overnight, and a large standing area had also been cordoned off to allow for more spectators.
“Anyway. Go out there and do us proud, Sain.”
With a bold grin and a hand on her hip, her casual demeanor radiated confidence and trust, which she proceeded to infuse into Sain with an enthusiastic smack on his back. It worked.
“I’ll try. Thanks, Miss Gold,” he said, feeling better already.
“I’ll be rooting for you. Not that you’ll hear me in a crowd like this, but yeah.”
“Just knowing you’re here for me is enough.” He turned to Marni. “Miss Grim— No, Master Grim. Rest assured that I won’t let you down. I’m going to give it my all.”
He’d never have managed to learn so much dark magic without her help. She’d been a blessing to him, and he owed her a great deal. The least he could do right now to repay her was to try his hardest during the upcoming match.
“So... Where’s Melia?” asked Alicia, glancing around.
“She had some stuff to take care of, so she won’t be here for a while.”
“She’s missing your match because she had some stuff to take care of? That doesn’t sound like her. Is something wrong?”
“No, nothing’s wrong. She’s fine. Besides, she already gave me her pep talk last night.”
Both girls scowled at him.
“...Is it just me, or is one of us trying to get a leg up on the others?” muttered Alicia.
“...I smell a traitor,” agreed Marni.
Sain frowned, puzzled by their conspiratorial tone.
“Uh, anyway, I’m off. Wish me luck.”
He closed his eyes, opened them, and walked off toward the ring with renewed focus.
✦ ✦ ✦
After finishing up his work in the student council office, Cain Theresia began preparing for his match. He picked up the sword leaning against the wall and inspected the blade. After confirming there were no signs of damage, he moved on to the rest of his equipment. Finally, he hung the sword on his waist, pushed open the door, and left the room.
“Cain.”
As the door swung closed, Emilia appeared behind it. She’d been waiting for him outside.
“I, um... I’ll be cheering for you.”
“Sure.”
He uttered a single syllable of acknowledgment and walked off toward the arena. As he did, Emilia caught a glimpse of what could only be a gash on his left arm. The words left her before she could stop herself.
“Last night! What were you doing last ni—”
“Emilia.” He cut her off with a voice that chilled her to the bone. “Don’t ask about things you don’t need to know.”
Faced with his withering glare, she felt all her questions slink back down her throat. In the crushing silence, he turned away from her and resumed his stride, eventually disappearing down a flight of stairs.
Halfway down the hall that led outside, Cain found his path blocked by a girl in a maid uniform.
“Hm. The failed avenger. What do you want?”
His provocation had little effect on her.
“There’s something that I suspect you misunderstood, so I’m here to clear it up for you.” She looked him straight in the eye. “You are indeed stronger than me. That much is certain. While I lived my life in peace, you devoted yourself to honing your skills in a single-minded pursuit of power. That kind of dedication is definitely praiseworthy. You should be proud of yourself,” she said with genuine respect before her tone hardened. “But... I’m equally proud of who I’ve become. And I’d like you to acknowledge as much. That’s all.”
Having said what she’d come here to say, she lowered her head and stepped aside, opening the way.
“...What rubbish,” he spat as he walked past her toward the arena.
Nebulous concepts such as pride were not to his liking. It had no bearing on the actual outcome. All the pride in the world couldn’t change the cold, hard truth of reality.
“Our contestants for the first match of the semifinals are Cain Theresia and Sain Fostess!”
The commentator announced his arrival as he stepped out into the ring amidst the thunderous roar of an audience many times larger than before. Both students and outside guests were packed into the stands and standing areas, their faces filled with excitement. Up ahead, in the middle of the ring, Sain stood waiting in his signature black garb.
“With the battle expo in its third day, we’re finally into the semifinals! First up, we have the lightkind Cain versus the darkkind Sain! So far, both contestants have displayed...”
The voice of a female commentator echoed throughout the arena, working the crowd and fueling their enthusiasm by offering details of each contestant. The commotion, however, seemed to fade away as he locked eyes with Sain.
“Cain, before the match starts, I want to make a deal with you.” Treating his silence as a cue to continue, Sain declared, “If I win, you join me as a friend.”
“...What?”
Despite his usual imperturbable composure, his eyes widened in a rare expression of surprise. The request was so outlandish that even he didn’t see it coming. Nevertheless, disdain soon returned to his gaze.
“...Are you telling me to become an attendant? Of the holy knight?”
“That’s exactly what I’m telling you.”
They stared at each other for a while. Then, Cain burst into a bout of scornful laughter.
“Ha... Ha ha ha ha! Join you? As a friend ?”
The thought was so ridiculous that it was comical. As his sardonic amusement waned, it gave way to a murderous aura so intense it could make the more timid among the spectators faint on the spot.
“Such nerve... Do you really think I would agree to that?”
Cain Theresia had lost his younger sister to a blunder on the part of Sain’s predecessor. With his hatred for the holy knight still burning strong, the last thing he was going to do was befriend the one who held the title. His reaction was no surprise, and Sain had of course seen it coming.
“I won’t use the power of the holy knight.”
“...What?”
“I know that acceptance of the holy knight is beyond you. That’s why I’m going to fight you as a normal person striving to become the dark knight. For this match, your opponent is not the holy knight, but me, Sain Fostess.”
Cain’s brows furrowed at the proposal. Then, Sain made his final statement.
“If you refuse to be a friend to the holy knight, then be a friend to me! Plain old me!”
That got a reaction from Cain, whose eyes widened just as a translucent screen was projected over the field between them.
“Let’s start the countdown!”
As the number in the middle of the screen slowly ticked toward zero, he scoffed quietly at the thought.
“Rubbish... All rubbish.”
He glowered at Sain.
“You have no chance against me without the power of the holy knight.”
Menace erupted from him, so thick it was almost tangible. Sain braced himself as well, tightening his fists as the wave of psychological force slammed into him. Tension of an intensity entirely unsuited for a competition between students filled the air.
“Let the match begin!”
As the commentator’s reverberating voice signaled the start of the match, both of them thrust out their right arm in unison.
“Darku! ”
“Lighto. ”
Sain launched his spell with a defiant roar. In comparison, Cain was practically a statue. The two diametrically opposed projectiles collided in the middle of the ring, pushing against one another for just a second before the glowing bullet of light ripped through its counterpart and shot straight toward Sain.
“Gah!”
He dodged the oncoming threat and quickly tried to counter, only for Cain to appear within a few inches of his face, sword raised high overhead. His hand shot to his own sword, drawing it just in time to wedge it horizontally against the coming blow. The two blades met with a loud clang before he promptly angled his own, allowing Cain’s to slide off.
“Darku! ”