Calibri's eyes trained on Haochen for a moment before they flicked over to Cloud. It was as if he was calculating who would be more of a challenge.
Cloud blinked rapidly and turned his head sharply towards the unconscious form of Kol, slumped against the invisible barrier. With wide eyes, he looked back at Calibri.
"H-Hey, how about we beat Haochen together, and then I'll surrender afterward. You and I don't have to fight." Cloud said, trying to strike up a bargain. He wasn't a fool, he'd seen how Calibri's daggers formed those lightning whips that took Kol down without even touching him.
He'd severely underestimated the beautiful man, and yes, he was brave enough to admit that. But if Calibri was that powerful then he did not want to take the chance of fighting him and getting a concussion.
It was better if Haochen could get the concussion and he'd take one for the team and forfeit on his own. At least one of the three of them needed to walk out not looking like a carcass to salvage their dignity after getting their ass beat by a person from a sect that avoided violent encounters.
The two continued to look at Calibri, but oddly, Calibri wasn't moving at all. He stood in the same place that he had when his whips shot Kol across the stage, and he didn't look as if he planned on taking any steps towards them.
Haochen tore his gaze away from Calibri and gave Cloud a disgusted look. Cloud winced. "Don't tell me you didn't think of doing the same. Look at him. His eyes are glowing. He's got lightning daggers. His face is an overall handicap and distraction. You seriously want me to fight that?" Cloud asked, gesturing his hands at Calibri.
"You're shameless." Haochen said, but he didn't want to fight Calibri either, for many reasons.
"You don't understand, Haochen. I need my face. I'm not ready to be fried."
"What you need is divine intervention." Haochen said.
Calibri who'd been staring between the two of them for quite some time bowed his head and kept his eyes closed for a minute. He felt awful.
He'd never been in a physical fight before. Of course, he'd trained, but with well-skilled men and women from his sect. Nobody had fallen unconscious because of his attacks. Had he really hit Kol that hard? Was he too harsh on the prince?
Most of the time he'd practiced combat with enchanted figurines and targets, with his mentors onlooking. It wasn't very often that he fought living, breathing people, not even his mentors. Seeing Kol slumped on the other end of the stage made him feel very ashamed of himself.
"…Why don't the two of you fight as you originally intended, and I'll tend to Kol. If you wish to fight me afterward I do not mind." He said, opening his now violet eyes, disturbing the bickering.
Haochen and Cloud looked at Calibri, pausing their argument.
"Hey Sweetheart, what's wrong?" Cloud said, his brows knitting immediately.
Haochen made no comment because he too could hear something off in Calibri's voice.
Calibri clenched his fists. He was only doing what was expected of him. He needed to take part in the fight. He wasn't doing anything wrong. It wasn't as if he was intentionally trying to harm anyone.
But he was harming others, it wasn't in his nature to do so, and the feeling was uncomfortable and suffocating. While Verbatians would whip out their daggers if endangered, they never harmed others intentionally. It felt too strange, and he hated it.
Why was he such an emotional weakling? Alexei was right, his nickname would definitely become crybaby after all. Haochen and Cloud probably thought he was a dramatic person too.
Haochen pursed his lips and walked forward cautiously, till he was in front of him. The timer hanging over their heads was long forgotten. "Calibri, are you alright?"
Calibri nodded.
"Are you lying?" Haochen asked.
He didn't answer. Calibri's eyes were lowered, but he was still staring at Kol, trying to blink the glossiness out of his eyes. Haochen frowned and discreetly followed his line of vision towards his unconscious friend.
"Are you upset that you hit him?" Cloud asked, after also picking up where Calibri's eyes were focused.
Calibri shook his head. "I am not."
Haochen tilted his head, unsure of what to say. Kol was unconscious, but Calibri didn't need to feel bad about it. It was a test, after all. Besides, it wasn't as if Kol would have missed the opportunity to stab Calibri if he got the chance.
"Calibri, you know this is a test, yes?" Haochen asked.
"I know that it is." Calibri said.
"Then you know that nobody here is going to think you're a bad person for beating Kol, right?"
Calibri stayed quiet.
"If anything, I'm glad you beat his ass. Needs to be knocked off his high horse, that one. Thinks he shits gold and silver. Spoiled. If you didn't beat him, I would have." Cloud said, a matter-of-factly.
"…I think I may have crossed the line. My intention was to subdue him by knocking him unconscious. However, I should not have sent him hurtling across the stage in such a manner." Calibri said. "I've degraded him."
Cloud blinked at that, then his brows furrowed.
"But you didn't do anything wrong." Cloud said, trying to understand how Calibri could become sad after injuring someone who hated his guts.
Calibri was feeling even more irritated at himself. It was not their job to comfort him as if he were a crying child, yet there they were, talking him out of his internal-partially external- meltdown.
"I hurt him."
"He was going to hurt you."
"But I shouldn't have-"
Haochen sighed and held Calibri's shoulders, turning him so that Calibri looked at his face. Calibri looked at him with wide eyes.
"Why are you at this school, Calibri?" He asked.
Calibri's mouth opened and closed. "…To become the Grandmaster."
Haochen nodded.
"And how do you think you're going to do that?"
"… I need to learn more, and become stronger."
Haochen nodded again.
"What about yourself do you need to be stronger?"
"…My cultivation."
"What parts of your cultivation?"
"…Everything?"
"And how would you make everything stronger?"
"I will require training." Calibri said.
"What are we doing now?"
"Competing?" Calibri asked. Haochen shook his head.
Calibri thought for a moment.
"Training?"
Haochen nodded.
"Training. All you're doing now is training. This entire fight is merely another name for giving us experience. If you were ever put in such a position someday where you need to fight someone, where you really have to compete, this very fight would be an invaluable part of your experience."
"But Haochen, Prince Kol is hurt now. This is a danger to his health."
Haochen shook his head.
"No. Kol is training too, he's learned a lot from this fight. I know he has, and next time, he'll know to steer clear of your daggers." He said.
Calibri glanced at Kol again, still worried.
"Everything that happens at this school is meant to teach you something. There will be plenty of what the adults think is 'competition' because the stakes are high, but you need to remember that nothing that happens should be taken personally. We are all trying to grow, and learn. If you fight someone because the training calls for you to do so, then nobody can fault you for it. Nobody can be angry at you for it." Haochen said.
"Actually, speak for yourself, Haochen. Now that I think about it, I kind of want you to whip me now, it was really attractive, and I'm really mad that he got whipped first." Cloud said reaching forward to play with Calibri's dangling teardrop earring, pouting at Calibri who stared back at him blankly, not understanding the innuendo.
Haochen exhaled harshly through his nose, and while still holding Calibri's shoulders, he lifted his leg and sent a heavy kick towards Cloud who yelped and fell onto the stage floor. He continued, not missing a beat even as Calibri blinked rapidly at the action.
"As I was saying, please don't feel guilty for participating in these fights, Calibri. I assure you, nobody else here is feeling that way. Everyone is here to get stronger. There will definitely be some injuries along the way, but even then, when a bone breaks, it always grows back stronger. So, in a way, by not holding back, you're forcing people to try getting onto your cultivation level. In reality, you're helping everyone grow. The more uncomfortable you make them, the more they'll want to grow. If you hold back, they learn nothing. Children have to fall and scrape their knees before they can run without bleeding legs."
Cloud looked between Haochen and Calibri. He'd been listening intently for the entire conversation, and it was strange.
Haochen was not a person to usually use his vocal cords this excessively. Even when arguing. Especially not to make someone else (other than his siblings) feel better.
Cloud propped himself using his elbows as he lay on his back, looking up at them. He turned his attention to Calibri.
Was Calibri really so innocent that knocking a narcissist like Kol unconscious was enough to make him sad? That wasn't only innocent, it was naïve too. If anything, Calibri should have been ecstatic that he knocked someone as skilled as Kol unconscious within a few minutes. But very clearly, he wasn't. Not at all.
Cloud tilted his head. Maybe Haochen was right. Maybe Calibri really was too pure to be tainted.
Cloud stared at him for another minute, then stood up with a wry smile. "Well, Haochen has spoken quite a bit. Do you get it now, darling?"
Calibri looked into Haochen's eyes for a moment, considering his words. If what Haochen was saying was true, and if fighting to the best of his ability would be beneficial to them all, then he didn't mind doing so. However, he really wasn't keen on injuring anyone.
Still, Haochen spoke with conviction, as if he were completely certain. So much so that Calibri had a difficult time not believing him. If not holding back was a disservice, then he would feel even worse than he did now for knowing he could help them grow, and not helping. If giving them a few bruises and knocking a few of them unconscious would help them(even though it barely made any sense) then he would try not to cry over it every time.
"I understand." Calibri said, ignoring the thought 'Just barely.' passing through his mind.
Haochen smiled and took his hands off his shoulders.
"If you understand, then the three of us should fight, and seriously this time." Cloud said, grinning with a quirked brow.