Anya shot a sharp gaze toward Raziel after calling him a dumbass. He couldn't help but reflect on the situation, asking himself internally, 'Why is this crazy girl confronting me? Is she really stupid enough not to care about me revealing her secrets?'
"Oh, I'm not stupid, and I really do care about you revealing my secrets," she said, her face showing a hint of anger.
"!!!" Raziel's face suddenly showed surprise as the girl seemed to respond to his inner thoughts. But she couldn't read minds, and he was sure about it.
"How did yo-"
"You're easy to read, and not only that. You see yourself as someone smart, don't you? But I don't think that's the case," she said with a fake, cute smile.
Her words made him take a few steps back, wanting to get out of this situation. The girl seemed to know what he wanted to do but continued speaking, "Well, Raziel, don't be scared. I'm not going to hurt you.
"Even though I don't agree with your deal, my intentions are very simple. I just want to do business together when necessary."
"Business?" Raziel feigned surprise in his reaction.
"Yes. Even though you're not too smart, you're still the heir of the Harvestead family and somehow know my secrets, so this is enou—"
"I know you want to use my family's resources," Raziel interrupted, acknowledging her true intentions.
Knowing this girl's capacities, she now wants to build a good relationship, seeking to increase her network. It's very understandable, as Anya wants to convince her siblings to give up their claim to being heirs and assume control of the Beltremont family.
Having a professional interaction didn't seem like a bad idea. It was better than becoming a target, especially since she was likely to become even more dangerous in the future. However, trusting her was difficult, given that she had genuinely wanted to kill him just yesterday.
"Well, it's good that you understand, but don't worry, it's not going to be one-sided," Anya's tone shifted to a more casual one as her cute persona disappeared.
"I'm not in the position to agree to such things for now, so I can't give you any answer," Raziel said tiredly.
The girl nodded slightly and said, "I know, but it won't take long for you to have access to all of your family's assets."
When Raziel heard her say that, he decided to give in and make an empty promise. He knew that even without Harvestead's support, Erick would be able to handle many of her future problems.
"Okay, when I fully have access to my family's resources and contacts, we can have a formal business reunion."
Hearing his answer made Anya put on a fake excited face; giving empty promises was her most notable skill. Still, she pretended to accept, saying, "Hmm... good then, I will wait for your contact."
Anya prepared to leave, but Raziel suddenly asked, "Hey, before you go, answer me something. Why did you approach me so suddenly? Even though you act as a popular and friendly person, you usually never interact with people on your own."
He really wanted to know why someone like her took the initiative to bother him, especially since in the game she didn't even approach Erick, as the protagonist should do specific things to get her attention.
The girl turned away, showing her back, and said, "When you got punched and humiliated in front of everyone that day, I just thought how lame it was for someone who could have everything to put himself in such a low state because of a idiot..."
She paused briefly, looking up at the sky. "But after you got up and shouted 'shut the fuck up,' I almost laughed my ass off. So, I wanted to confirm if you're some type of madman, easy to manipulate."
With that strange explanation, Raziel just nodded and said, "I see... but I'm not a madman."
Anya smiled, then walked away without saying anything more. Raziel didn't bother either, knowing they couldn't get along with such distinct objectives and roles.
For him, the conversation clarified some doubts and assured one thing in his mind: "Hey, at least she's not going to kill me, right?"
***
A little while later, Raziel ran like a leopard and managed to get to class, even though he was almost an hour late. It wasn't his fault if time seemed to pass more quickly when he was asleep, eating, or lazing around.
Luckily, his increased stamina made him less tired, allowing him to arrive at his class quickly. He opened the classroom door while maintaining his usual poker face.
The teacher, who had been lecturing about something, was interrupted by Raziel, which earned him a disapproving look. Yet, the teacher's expression quickly turned to surprise after hearing what Raziel said.
"I'm sorry for being late, Mr. Hosbern. I was not feeling well this morning," Raziel said, putting on a slightly frustrated expression.
The teacher Valzivet Hosbern, a Class B mage, couldn't understand why this brat was being polite toward him, as he had never cared about being late or bothered to study most of the time.
Valzivet then raised an eyebrow and said, "Right... so go to your seat and inform me in advance if you're not going to arrive on time."
"Understood," Raziel affirmed, bowing his head respectfully.
All the students present, including Sylfi, were dumbfounded by his sudden act. This guy, who was usually rude to everyone, even to teachers, had just apologized and bowed his head? It felt like witnessing a high-level illusion magic.
But it was real.
When he went to his desk, some students stared at him with strange gazes, but they dispersed after the teacher frowned, noticing his students losing focus. However, one person continued to stare at Raziel with a doubtful expression.
'This bastard is sorry for being late? I really doubt that.'
The person with such thoughts was Sylfi, who had noticed his sudden change in attitude since yesterday. Raziel hadn't even attempted to approach or talk to her since the day Erick punched him.
'Maybe the punch and my threat made him rethink about disturbing me again' Sylfi thought, watching Raziel as he took his new seat.
That day, all classes ended a little early because they were going to have the qualifying matches for the annual tournament of the Revery Academy. This was supposed to be where Raziel and Erick would settle their dispute over Sylfi's engagement.
But now, as in the original plot, Erick would be classified for the tournament with Sylfi, while Raziel, who chose not to participate, would only watch as the minor characters were destroyed to serve as stepping stones for the protagonist and Heroine.
The Revery Academy requires students to study for four years to graduate, and the qualification process is divided into four groups, with each group corresponding to a different year, allowing only sixteen students per year to advance to the next phase. Of course, not every student can enter, as they need to meet certain requirements, which means they must achieve a good rank on the Pharefal Rank List.
The Pharefal Rank List measures students potential at the academy, encompassing their performance in primary classes, with each year having its own list. Erick's current rank is respectable, at 34th position among second-year aura users, while Raziel currently holds the 59th position among second-year mana users. This rank is considered decent for someone who struggles with using their earth spells.
All the students fighting in the qualifiers can form teams and collaborate temporarily, which is highly recommended, as they are pitted against each other in a battle royale until only sixteen students remain standing.
In the main tournament, there would be eliminatory rounds consisting of 1v1 fights between these sixteen students. For example, first-year students would fight against each other until only one victorious student remains.
That logic repeats for the other years, leading to the last part of the tournament where the four students remaining from each year will fight among themselves at same time, and the last one standing becomes the ultimate champion of the academy, winning a lot of rewards.
In the game, Raziel recruited some students to confront Erick, but it was in vain as they were effortlessly defeated.
After witnessing his comrades being beaten, Raziel himself was quickly overwhelmed and defeated. With this knowledge, the 'new' Raziel would be wise not to challenge Erick.
Maybe using the system could help him, but after the agonizing pain, he refuses to even consider it, despite it being his initial intention from the beginning.
'Wait, if I passed out that day, who took me to the infirmary?'
For some reason, he had forgotten about this little detail. A mystery arose, as the place where he and Anya were located seemed very isolated.
Raziel was deep in thought about it as he walked toward the arena, until a voice came from behind him. "Raziel, you bastard! Why didn't you sign up for the qualifying matches?"
As he turned to face the voice, a guy with an almost handsome face and short black spiked hair was looking at him with a challenging expression.
"Excuse me, who are you?" Raziel feigned ignorance despite knowing exactly who the guy was.
"What? It's me, Erick. The guy who punched you for trying to force yourself on Sylfi," he retorted sharply.
"Oh, I see..."
After saying that, Raziel started to walk away, showing no concern for this protagonist with heroic tendencies. Due to his personality, trouble seemed to follow him everywhere, even leading to the Yogh-Za cultists hunting him down.
"Hey, you bastard, where are you going?" Erick shouted again at Raziel, who was lost in his thoughts.
For some reason, he really wanted to pick a fight, and Raziel had an idea about his motive. As everyone passing by became curious to see the conflict, it was obvious to Raziel that Erick was seeking more attention to use as pressure against him.
"Okay, look, I know why you want to do this, so let me make things clear. I don't want to fight with you, and I don't care about my engagement with Sylfi, which I'm going to break off in a few days," Raziel stated firmly.
Everyone watching this supposed drama became dumbfounded by his statement, even Erick, whose light blue eyes widened in surprise. his mind was filled with questions. How could this guy know the reason for his actions? Not even Sylfi knew, as it was meant to be a surprise. Yet, Raziel had even mentioned breaking off the engagement, which aligned with the purpose of the duel Erick intended to offer.
"Wait, how do you know?" Erick was genuinely curious about that.
"You're easy to read," Raziel said, placing a hand on his forehead in disappointment, echoing Anya's phrase.
"WHAT?"
"Repeating again, I'm going to cancel my engagement this week. She can live her own life because I'm cutting ties with her," Raziel declared, turning his back to Erick and walking away.
With that, he hurried to the arena, not wanting to waste any more time with this guy. Little did Raziel know, amidst the whispering crowd, two significant figures watched the scene with varying reactions.
Among the student crowd stood Sylfi, who had come to participate in the qualifiers. Witnessing Erick and Raziel in what seemed like a heated argument, she was prepared to intervene.
However, upon hearing Raziel's words, she froze in place, asking herself if she had heard him right about wanting to break off their engagement with such a serious and confident face. This made Sylfi feel relieved yet also doubtful.
"Unbelievable" was the word she used to describe that situation.
The second person, a pink-haired girl who was also going to participate, was laughing hysterically in her mind, almost drawing attention. She found the situation very amusing, especially after hearing about Raziel wanting to break off his engagement.
Raziel ignored the gazes and whispers from others as he went to find a seat to watch the upcoming battles, which would officially mark the beginning of episode two.