"Next up! Robert Evans versus Celina Tromb!"
*Waaaaa!*
Probably the least interesting match was about to start, with the green-haired spear user going up against Arthur 0.5. Why was it not that interesting? Because the dynamics between their weapons were somewhat set in stone.
Celina would try her best to keep Robert at her optimal range, and Robert would have to try and close the distance where Celina would have a hard time-fighting.
The reason why I thought it to be less interesting than, for example, a mage or an archer against a melee combatant, was due to the simple reason that unless one of them had some interesting skill, I was pretty sure Robert would just win.
To be fair, I hadn't actually seen Celina fight, but even though Robert hadn't stood a chance against me, I knew he was someone that was strong enough that I wouldn't be surprised if he won the whole thing.
Though I often viewed him as a lesser version of Arthur, which he was, it was more because of the fact that Arthur was on another level, more than Robert being weak.
After all, the hero was strong even to the point of being able to contend with me after I had made Ezral spend several fortunes on mana essences. Not only that, but he was also an incredibly gifted fighter and he had a 7-star Manual.
He was still the one I felt like I needed to have control over if I wanted my future plans to go how I wanted them to, as I had no idea how far he could go, or if he would suddenly just die on the field.
That was also one of the reasons I needed to get that branch from Trelis. In the case of him being too weak, I would just give him the branch so he could power up. Naturally, if he wasn't, I would just hold on to it and see if there is something else I could use it for.
'I really need to start getting things done as James...'
Even if I felt like I most likely had quite some time, as the development of Kurat's military power was still very insufficient and the only demon count here so far was Ezral, a part of me knew that it was ignorant to think like that.
*Woooo!*
As the cheer from the crowd brought me out of my thoughts, the match was finally about to begin, with both combatants having retrieved their weapons and awaited the countdown.
"5,4,3,2,1, fight!"
And they were off, with Robert dashing in, making sure he wasted as little time as possible to get in his range of attacking.
"Ha!"
As a result, Celina immediately began preparing to keep him away, launching her spear for to make sure he couldn't run straight in. However...
"[Dance of the Swallow]."
The body of the blonde-haired boy blurred, and the next moment, he was right behind the spearwoman, letting his sword rest on her neck. "Haaa... I surrender. Man, you're too strong Robert."
"W-Winner is Robert Evans!"
'So boring...'
Robert was undoubtedly extremely talented, as he had managed to get a lot stronger than when I fought him, but what I found truly boring was his opponent. From the start, there had been no motivation or desperation in her eyes. Although she pretended to feel otherwise, I had a feeling that she honestly didn't care.
"This was the shortest match we had so far! Bruce, do you have something to say about our two contenders?"
Looking at the huge display over the arena, I saw the red-haired man ponder for a bit, before giving an answer he thought would be fair without throwing mud on Celina's performance.
"Hmm, if there's anything, then it is that Robert is insanely talented. I wouldn't be surprised if he was already [D-]-rank, or at least close to it. For a freshman who has only spent three weeks at the academy, this is quite remarkable."
And he wasn't wrong. The problem was that because I was comparing everyone to myself, Arthur, and Sophie, no one was even getting close to the performance I wanted to see. Not even Sebastian would be worth considering if he went up against one of us.
With that being said, I hadn't actually seen Sophie fight seriously in a long time, so for all I knew, she might have fallen behind, though I doubted it. Her Manual in itself made it so she was literally playing on easy mode, so if she did fall behind, I would be immensely disappointed.
"Man, that was... not so exciting."
Dr. Smith appeared to carry the same opinions as I about the duel we had just witnessed, but as Zero, I couldn't show that I agreed, "I think it was cool! That skill that Robert used seems really good, and if he can instantly close the distance like that, I don't think it was weird that it was hard for Celina to do anything."
'Which, even if it's true, is not to say that she shouldn't have tried everything and anything she could.'
"Hmm, I guess you could see it that way. Anyway, I'm going to get something to drink, do you want anything?"
Resisting the urge to ask for a beer, I instead took the chance to reinforce the innocent image of Zero, "A soda! Oh, I mean, I would like a soda, please..."
"Hahaha! Sure, I'll be right back. There was a stand just outside so it shouldn't take long."
Then, the voice of Ms. Rose was once again heard throughout the arena, "Now, the next match was supposed to be Stella Klein versus Zero Adler, but because of some unfortunate circumstances, Zero is unable to participate. Therefore, Ms. Klein is awarded the win and will advance by default."
'Ah, she can't be happy about this...'
Stella wasn't the kind of person who would see this as something positive, most likely instead being inclined to feel like she was missing out on a chance to fight.
"So, with all the first matches out of the way, we will be starting the elimination matches of this..."
As there would only be one elimination match, with Zero already being out of the tournament, it didn't take long until Akane stood as the victor over Celina. Celina who once again tried to pretend as if she gave her all, but felt a lot like a lifeless fish.
'What is up with her?'
No matter how I thought about it, I couldn't understand the green-haired girl at all. She was even the one who had criticized the fact that I was appointed rank 0, and then she was still not going to give her all?
Yet, it wasn't the same kind of acting as Caroline put up. It was as if she was trying to tell herself that she did everything she could, convincing herself that she was doing her best.
"Here you go."
"Ah, thank you."
Taking the drink that Dr. Smith had brought me, I quickly put the straw in my mouth and took a bit of the sweet liquid inside of my mouth, and swallowed, pretending to be overly excited about the treat.
In the corner of my eyes, I could see a grin on the doctor's face, while at the same time feeling a tinge of sadness cover him like a cloud. In the end, I felt like I needed to dial down a bit, as I wasn't trying to make him get too attached to me. 'I'm sorry...'
****
[Mikael Smith]
Looking at the boy who energetically grabbed the drink out of my hand and drank it so eagerly that I was afraid he might choke, I couldn't help but remember the past.
There was a time when I would go out with my daughter to events like this, smiling and laughing while she was constantly devouring sweets and treats.
'-Dad, look! It's an elpant!'
'-Ah, you mean elephant?'
'-Tch! That's what I said, elpant! Elpant!'
'-Yes, yes. Isn't it scary though? It's so big, after all?'
'-Nu-uh, it's not scary! Because I'm with Dad! And if I'm with Dad, nothing is scary!'
It was as if no matter how much time passed, the memories didn't get less painful, but somehow I had started to find them becoming a bit more mellow after meeting Zero.
They were still painful, but now, they also gave me a bit of strength. Strength to move forward while trying my best to make sure to help as many people as possible. And right now, my biggest priority was Zero.
Because there was no doubt in my mind that Zero would also help a lot of people, and save a lot of people. Not even mentioning his combative power, his talent in healing was unbelievable. It wouldn't be a lie to say he was a talent that would make his mark in history, and his name would most likely never fade.
However...
'Does he really have to die? Shouldn't he also get to spend his time like this, enjoying sweets and smiling?'