“That girl is challenging Langston?” a pretty girl that belonged to Langston’s entourage said in disdain. “She must be out of her mind!”
“This is what happens when you spend a lot of time with a Dud,” a skinny teenager commented. “You become as stupid as them.”
“How true. My father even supported that proposal to not allow any Dud to study in the Academy. If they weren’t here, this Academy would be a lot better.”
“Seeing them in the Dining Hall makes me lose my appetite. The mere presence of these defects is enough to make my stomach churn.”
“Hahaha! This will be a fun show to watch. Maybe after this, that sorry excuse for a Pillar will leave the Academy for good!”
The students talked among themselves as they watched the young beauty with long brown hair face off against the handsome blonde boy, who was one of the Pillars of the First Years.
Even though she knew that her opponent’s magical power was stronger than hers, Chloe looked at him with a fearless gaze. If not for the fact that the referee of the match wasn’t present, she would have started throwing Fire Bolts at him to wipe the smug smile on his face.
“Fighting against a nobody like you hurts my pride as a Pillar of this academy,” Langston said with a smile. “How about we make a bet? If I win, you ditch that Dud and become one of my followers? I promise that I will take good care of you.”
“Keep dreaming,” Chloe sneered. “I’d rather smash my head on a wall than become one of your idiotic followers.”
“Hey! Who are you calling idiots?!” the pretty girl, who said that Chloe was out of her mind, shouted. “Mind your manners you half-baked Witch!”
“Even your language is crude,” the skinny teenager commented. “Is this what you learned from that Dud? Clearly, he is a bad influence.”
“That’s right!”
“Langston! Beat her up and make her understand what real magic is!”
“Beat her!”
“Beat her!”
“Beat her!”
Langston’s group started to cheer, making the handsome blonde chuckle.
“What’s wrong? Are you afraid that you’re going to lose?” Langston asked in contempt. “If you are just going to waste my time, let’s stop this duel. I don’t get anything from beating up lowly Witches like you.”
“Hmph! Running away?” Chloe replied. “Go ahead and run. I loved the expression you made when the Scarlet Witch beat the crap out of you.”
Langston narrowed his eyes as he fixed his gaze on the young lady in front of him. His defeat against the Scarlet Witch was one of the stains on his Academy life. If possible, he wanted to remove this stain permanently.
However, after his duel with the Second Year, he understood that he still needed to learn to control his magic better before asking her for a rematch.
“I changed my mind,” Langston stated as he commented in a chilling tone. “We no longer have to make any bets. After this duel is over, I will make you wish you never stepped foot in this Academy in your lifetime.”
Chloe snorted because she was someone that was not easily swayed. Ethan was her cousin, childhood friend, and confidant.
If someone were to ridicule him in front of her, she would definitely not stand idle and allow them to trample on one of the few people she cared about in her life.
Just as the spectators were getting rowdy, a beautiful professor with purple hair, landed on the stage.
“I will be the referee of this match,” Professor Violet stated. “If I see that there is no longer a need to continue the battle, I will stop it right away. Are both of you ready?”
“I was born ready,” Langston replied as he took out his wand and took a fighting stance.
“We’ll see if you’re just all talk or not,” Chloe sneered as she also took a fighting stance.
After going to the Martial Hall and taking up one of the Defense Oriented Magical Techniques, Chloe gained a bit of confidence in her ability to protect herself.
Although she acknowledged that Langston had the advantage, all she needed to do was cast defensive spells and wait for an opportunity to strike.
However, just as Professor Violet was about to signal the start of the match, a loud shout reverberated in the Training Area making her pause. 𝒐𝒱𝔩xt.𝗇𝓔t
“Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaait!”
Ethan, who was still in his pajamas, burst inside the Training Area and ran straight towards the arena.
“I don’t approve of this match!” Ethan shouted as he stood between Chloe and Langston.
He then glared at the handsome blonde, whom he wanted to slap very badly due to how angry he was right now.
“Ah… so the clown has arrived,” Langston snorted. “It seems to me that you were having a nice dream not long ago. You should have stayed in bed, and waited for the news of your cousin’s defeat by my hands.”
“Are you even a man?” Ethan asked in contempt. “You are always fighting against girls. Tell me, are girls the only ones you can fight? Oh! I almost forgot. You were beaten black and blue by a girl in your last match. Are you here to seek redemption? In my eyes, all I see is someone who lacks the balls to fight a real man.”
Suddenly, a loud shout came from the spectators, making everyone turn their eyes on her.
“Go, Ethan!” Nicole shouted. “You tell that pompous prick that he should fight against someone his own size! But, then again, maybe even that part is small compared to the average man? Maybe this is why he is always challenging girls!”
It took a while for Ethan, Langston, and the boys in the group to understand what Nicole had just said.
However, when they did understand, some of the guys, including the blue-haired boy, weren’t able to stop themselves from laughing, making Langston’s face turn red from anger.
Using this opportunity, Ethan turned around to look at his cousin who didn’t expect that he could come in his pajamas in order to stop her duel with Langston.
“I’ve heard the reason why you challenged him,” Ethan said softly. “Thank you, but you don’t have to do this for me.”
“That bastard is badmouthing you in public,” Chloe pouted. “How do you expect me to turn a blind eye on such a thing?”
“I know,” Ethan commented. “If someone were to do that to you as well, I’d definitely start throwing punches and shut them up.”
After hearing Ethan’s words, Chloe felt as if challenging Langston in a duel was worth it. Just as she was about to say something nice to the handsome teenager in front of her, Langston’s voice reached both of their ears.
“Since you’re already here, why don’t the two of us duel instead?” Langston asked with an evil smile on his face. “Or do you want to hide behind a girl all your life?”
“He’s just provoking you, Ethan,” Chloe grabbed hold of her cousin’s arm. “I’ll fight him in your stead. Don’t worry, I’m confident that, even if I can’t beat him, he won’t be able to beat me as well.”
“What’s this? Trying to make a girl fight for you?” Langston jeered. “Are you even a man? This is why I tell everyone that you’re a loser, and a disgrace in the Academy. Someone like you isn’t deserving to be a Pillar of the First Years. It’s time to set things right. Let’s duel with our position as Pillars on the line!”
Professor Violet frowned after hearing Langston’s declaration. A duel between Pillars was quite common. However, a duel using their position as Pillars was quite rare.
In short, whoever loses the duel would lose their qualifications to be a Pillar, and the benefits they enjoyed on a monthly basis would be handed to the victor of the duel.
Just as Chloe was about to convince Ethan to ignore Langston’s challenge, Ethan found himself in a world where the sea extended as far as his eyes could see.
There, he saw a beautiful lady whom he had seen in the past, and this time, she was looking at him with a face filled with anticipation.
“Accept the duel,” the Mermaid Princess said. “You may not be able to beat him tomorrow, or the next day, or the day after that. But, if you fight him today, there is a possibility that you will win.”
The Mermaid Princess smiled at Ethan as if encouraging him to take a leap of faith.
“Although it will be difficult, there are times when we need to fight in order to protect those that we hold sacred,” the Princess Mermaid stated. “Even if the chances of winning seem non-existent, one must stand up for one’s belief, and believe the power of Magic that lies in your heart. The magic you share, and draw out from the people who care for you.”
The mermaid then gave Ethan a nod of assurance, telling him that she would be with him all the way.
In just a blink of an eye, the blue world disappeared and Ethan once again found himself in Arena, looking at the handsome blonde-boy who was looking down on all Duds like him.
“Very well, I accept your duel,” Ethan said with firm determination. “We will fight with our titles of Pillars on the line.”
Chloe, Professor Violet, as well as the spectators were shocked after hearing Ethan’s declaration.
All of them knew that there was simply no chance for a Dud like him to beat Langston in a magical duel.
But, among the spectators, there were two people who were very eager to see the outcome of the match.
One was Nicole who encouraged Ethan earlier, and the other was Lily Langley. The cute blonde girl whom Nicole had said was someone that even she would have a hard time defeating in a duel.