"I want to challenge Arthur Luminary to a duel with stakes."
'No! No, we don't want that, we absolutely do not want to do that!'
'This is something we have to do. I'm sorry.'
For some unknown reason, I de-summoned sub-me to make sure he wouldn't get in the way. Needless to say, I had been overconfident in my ability to control my emotions and was now sitting in the backseat once again.
However, I wasn't that stressed about it anymore. Not after I had a chance to think clearly as James. In the end, if Zero fucked things up, I would just go back to my original plan, making it as if Zero had never existed in the first place. 'Guess if that happens, it wouldn't be a lie that Zero wouldn't have much time in this world.'
'I just have to make sure he doesn't get us killed...'
An even more confused Arthur stepped forward, "Zero, of course, I will accept your challenge, but stakes? Are you sure about this? I'm a sophomore, you know? Even if it's only a year, being at the academy makes a huge difference in your progress."
Somehow, I could understand that while he did not regard me as an ally, my earlier performance had at least made him inclined to believe we would be fighting for the same side in the future.
With that in mind, I didn't even necessarily think it was a bad thing to make this duel bigger than it had to be. Wasn't it quite symbolic in a way? The hero and the saint of humanity, going against each other as a way for them to understand how the other viewed the world.
Sadly, I didn't think this was what 'I' had in mind right now. If anything this just felt like some sort of controlled tantrum thrown by a child.
Thankfully, the kid in control of our body at least had the decency to act as if it wasn't, just showing a warm but confident smile when speaking.
"I'm sure. Although I am not confident in winning, I want to experience the feeling of going up against the strongest sophomore at full strength. After all, humans only give their all when there is something to lose."
'There's no way that's true, you brat! You just want to beat him up!'
"Haa... Fine, if you really want to... Is it okay, Ms. Turner?"
With a worried face, Jessica didn't know what to do about this situation. While she knew that students were allowed to duel each other with stakes freely, she was probably incredibly confused by why the timid Zero suddenly suggested something like this.
In the end, she couldn't stop us, "It's okay. Just... be a bit careful, will you? And Zero, I know that you are feeling a lot of pressure because of your situation, but you don't have to force yourself. You still have..."
'Oh no...'
Not thinking about what she was saying, she had accidentally stepped on a landmine, reacting just in time to restrain herself before she finished her sentence. At the same time, I felt a huge wave of sorrow engulf the body I was watching from afar, his face flinching for a second when he heard her words.
Though there was the upside that I now got to see that the seed I planted had already begun growing roots, the downside that could happen was a lot worse.
'Zero, I swear to Loki himself that if you cry in front of all these students, I will make you disappear forever!'
"I..."
'Don't you dare!'
"I... I guess that's true, haha but I still want to experience what Arthur is capable of. I believe that he will be a great strength to the allied races in the future, but I still need to see it for myself."
'Thank god...'
Even if Zero was a weak little brat that cried too much, it appeared that he wasn't so stupid as to reveal his 'secret' in front of all of these people. Even better was the fact that there was a teacher present that had no recollection of what the word tact entailed.
"That's great! Yes, that's how you younglings should act! Now, before you get to challenge the sophomores, the internal duels between freshmen will be held first. We have to save the good part for last, after all! Also, for the rest of you, if you want to duel with stakes, feel free to do so! That will make everything a lot more exciting!"
And as if responding to this, my inner Zero withdrew his control of our body and put me back in charge. Now, I could feel the emotions that had been conjured a lot more vividly, making it hard for a tear not to appear in my eyes.
'How did that brat succeed in holding back with all these crazy feelings...?'
Even though I tried my best, I couldn't stop my clenched fist from shaking a bit, biting down hard to suppress these silly sensations that were ravaging my body. Luckily, there was someone who I would get to release all my frustrations against in just a minute.
"So, because we don't have time, we will be having two duels at the same time to start with. Caroline and Celina, Zero and Robert, please enter a ring each and we can finally start the event for real!"
Worse was that as I was preparing myself for my first duel, a very beautiful yet disgusting view could be seen in the corner of my eyes. Two of my former friends were sharing an intimate hug right in the middle of my anguish, not caring about the fact that I was still struggling to keep myself from crying and screaming.
'Ah, how sad it is that I must act like a goodie-two-shoes when fighting Robert... It would have been nice to let loose a bit...'
****
[Sophie's Pov]
Taking a few steps to the side to make sure no one could overhear our conversation, I was having a little chat with my partner.
"Hey, what was that all about? Do you know Zero? And why in god's name did he decide to challenge you with stakes?"
There were so many questions I had for my man, who was now standing awkwardly while I was trying my best from berating him for not straight out refusing Zero's proposal. I knew that to some extent, I had nothing to say about what they decided to do, but on the other hand, Arthur was my man. And if there was someone's business I was allowed to meddle in, it was his.
Scratching the back of his head, Arthur didn't have a good answer to give, "I'm sorry, Sophie. It's true that we did speak a bit earlier today, but aside from that, I have never met him except for that brief meeting when you grabbed him on the grounds."
Staring daggers into my socially awkward man, I knew I needed more information about what happened, "So, what did you talk about?"
Leaning into my ear, Arthur's word's turned into whispers, "I'm sorry, Sophie, I'll tell you more later. Just know that he knows about my secret..."
And just like that, the cogs in my mind started to spin, quickly recreating some plausible explanations for things to turn out like this. "Haaa... Let me guess, you assumed he was lying to me about being blessed by Theia and then you put him on the spot in some kind of way? I understand that you have all the rights to be suspicious of people but you can't just..."
Turning his eyes to the ground, it was obvious that something wasn't right. And just as I was thinking that, he interrupted me and told me the truth.
"He told me that I was spoiled. He told me that I was taking my blessing for granted, that I was cowardly hiding away from the world. And... I think he is jealous that I have you in my life..."
"Arthur..."
Suddenly, I understood just what must've gone down between these two people, and why their clash might have been inevitable from the start. Circling my arms around my man's body, I leaned my head on his shoulder.
It didn't take long for him to reciprocate the hug, his body relaxing a bit during our embrace.
How nasty of a world Tella truly was. Although they were both blessed by the same god, in my mind, it was more akin to a curse. No matter what anyone said, they were both victims in my mind. Though I wanted to reprimand both of them, I could only think of how sad their lives truly were.
Arthur who had to pay the price of losing his parents from a young age, and Zero who had been isolated from the world and would eventually pay the price for his power with his life. It wasn't a situation where someone should debate which of them had it worse, it was a situation where I had to think of how I could support both of them.
"I'm sorry. For both of you..."