[S1] Chapter 10: Tournament

I recently started using magic again, or rather trying to. Fortunately, I'm pain-free again, but the long break has set me back a little. Not that I could do so much before, but at least I could levitate small things above my hand.

Today, however, I'm working in my field of expertise again. The fighting tournament, which is taking place alongside the preparations for the school festival, is entering its first round. As Lilith announced, I'm being used as a healer.

"This is where the magic barrier is erected so the spectators and we healers can't be hit. But the barrier only blocks magic, so if, for example, one of the fighters should fly towards us for some reason, we have to dodge out of the way."

"That sounds like it's happened before," I remark meekly.

"Perhaps."

Hannah continues to guide me through the arena, which looks a bit like a concert venue. This is where all the tournament matches are held in front of a maximum of one thousand excited students. The stands stretch around the entire pitch. The floor is similar to that in the gym but feels a little softer.

From time to time, I glance up at Miko, who has taken a seat in the stands. She immediately declined the offer to take a look at the facilities from down here. After all, she won't be in action until next week when she faces the tournament winner in a final show match.

"How are you doing at our school? Miko and you?" Hannah asks when she notices how my attention is wandering for a moment.

"Pretty good, I think. We always have a lot to do, and time flies by far too quickly. The food tastes great, the beds are comfy," even if I still miss air conditioning or a ventilator in our room.

"And what about the other students?"

"They usually look at us like we're aliens, but I'm sure that's normal. After all, we seem to be the only guests."

"I'm really sorry about that. I'm pretty sure it's not because of you."

"What do you mean?"

"I've asked around a bit, and it seems to be Miko's fault. She radiates a certain aura. A little arrogant and unapproachable."

Somehow, this statement makes me angrier than if someone were to say something like that about me. None of them have even tried to speak to Miko and talk about her behind her back.

"Then they would just have to get to know her a bit. When you're with her, you realize that she's actually a completely normal girl, whatever normal is supposed to be."

She snores, steals your blanket in her sleep even though she has her own, takes incredibly long showers, is unimaginably honest, and looks out for the well-being of everyone else without wanting to.

But somehow, I can understand the students, which is perhaps why these words sting a little. On the outside, she seems pretty indifferent to everybody. This is mainly because she has no genuine interest in most people. Nevertheless, I'm sure she doesn't enjoy it when others treat her like that.

"Oh, that annoys me. On the one hand, I want to stand up for her, but on the other, the rumors about her are a little too well-founded." Hannah seems really torn. What exactly are we not getting here? Rumors?

"What are they talking about?"

"No idea how much you know about Miko, but they say she killed several people three years ago. She was working as part of security for one of the candidates during the Mage King's coronation ceremony, and, supposedly, there was some kind of incident where she killed the attackers."

I guess I should be shocked, but if that's the case, she was just doing her job, wasn't she? I am aware that, in some cases, it is possible to end things without resorting to killing, but who knows exactly what happened? I doubt that only one of the students who were running their mouths was actually there.

"I apologize for my ignorance. But… what kind of coronation? I don't really understand."

"There is an election every five years in which guild leaders and mages with special accomplishments during that period vote together for a king or queen of the mages. In addition to the title, this person is also responsible for presenting the wishes and needs of the country's mages to the government and ensuring that they are respected."

Sounds like a shitty job. However, Hannah takes a quick breath and continues.

"This event was attacked three years ago, and as I said, Miko killed several people there. I don't blame her; she probably had no other choice, but I also understand the students who feel uncomfortable when they think about the fact that she ended people's lives."

Well, no idea. What am I supposed to feel now? To be honest, my image of Miko hasn't changed at all, whether she killed someone or not. Context matters, you know. Do people avoid police officers when they have to shoot someone? Or doctors when they couldn't save a life because of a mistake? Shouldn't we be much more supportive instead of picking on these people?

"Sorry, I dropped quite a bombshell on you."

I wave it off. I don't even look at Hannah. I can't even remember how we got onto the whole subject. "Don't worry about it."

"I'm sorry, Kayla."

◆

"What did you talk about?"

After the atmosphere had become a little uncomfortable, Hannah just showed me the toilets and changing rooms for us healers and then finished the tour of the arena, so I headed straight to the stands where Miko was still hanging around.

"All sorts of things."

"What's wrong? You look upset and towards the end."

"Really?" I don't know how she was able to recognize it so well from such a distance, but somehow, I'm happy that she kept her eyes on me.

"We somehow ended up talking about your past."

"Oh. Now I'm curious."

I swallow hard and let out a heavy sigh.

"She said something about an attack you were somehow involved in. That you were protecting someone."

"You know I'm not allowed in dungeons at the moment. The incident three years ago is the reason for that."

"Because you killed people?"

"Yes and no. In my eyes, I had no choice but to do it. But in the end, it was decided that I had disobeyed orders."

"What happened?"

"The attack was ultimately a suicide mission. Can you imagine how rational it is to attack an event where the strongest mages of the country are gathered? I was working as a bodyguard for someone at the time, and when the attack started, we were told to flee to a safe room with our candidates. But in my youthful recklessness, I didn't stay put but went back to help fight the attackers. In the end, I saved a dozen lives, ended a few, and was banned from working inside dungeons indefinitely."

Although she tells the story in a relatively relaxed manner, I believe that she regrets it. Whether this is due to the injustice of the suspension or the fact that she had to kill, I can't tell. I don't really know what to say either.

"What assholes, banning you for this." just slips out of my mouth.

"Right?" Miko grins brightly. The whole thing happened a few years ago, but I can't imagine that she doesn't care anymore.

"I'm sorry."

"Sorry for what?"

"That I brought it up."

"Oh, don't be like that. Without all this, we probably would never have met, so you should just be happy."

"I am happy, I really am."

MIKO

After dwelling on this part of my past, we got something to eat and enjoyed it in our room before heading back to the arena. As usual, I sought out a quiet spot in the stands while Kayla disappeared into the changing rooms with Hannah and a teacher.

I probably should have told her about the incident back then. I'm sure there are a few other stories that she also might want to know about if she's hanging out with me. But somehow, it's refreshing to spend time with someone as clueless as Kayla. It's always a real treat to see her interact with Liliith, I can't wait to be there when Kayla realizes what kind of person she got as a guild leader.

But let's move on from special people to the roughly sixty students who have come together for this tournament. I don't know if they get study credits for it or if there are actually that many battle-hungry individuals around. So, I wouldn't want to be beaten up by anyone sooner or later.

While I rather disinterestedly check the rows of participants, they begin to gather at one side of the field while the healers, together with some kind of referee, take their seats opposite them. Without much pause, the first two fighters walk into the center of the arena, which is surrounded by a magical barrier.

Kayla sits between Hannah and the teacher, no idea why they need three healers. I'm not expecting a big slaughter here, but maybe they've had different experiences in previous years. When I see Kayla down there, I'm quite happy to have my peace and quiet up here. Discreetly, I try to look around the stands and quickly realize that the few spectators who are here have taken their seats far, far away from me.

I don't really take it personally now that I know my murder stories are going around here. However, it still bothers me. I'm used to getting a stupid or tasteless comment from other mages. However, being shunned by such a large collective is a new experience for me. Without Kayla, I would probably have left on the first day.

But I couldn't really expect anything else from these sheltered kids who do nothing but hole up in a school year after year. How could they even remotely grasp what I had to go through? The hardest decision they have to make on their own is whether to have juice or some milk with their lunch. I need to breathe. Getting myself worked up is unnecessary.

"Sorry, is that seat still free?"

A young girl with shoulder-long blonde hair tied into two tiny pigtails stares at me expectantly. She adjusts her glasses, which are lying loosely on her nose, waiting for me to say something.

"Well?"

"Sure."

I don't feel like starting a discussion about the fact that there are lots of empty seats. It's almost to be expected that she approached me intentionally. Maybe a lost bet with her friends, and now she has to put up with me for a few minutes.

"My name is Nada."

Ah, the fourth and final person from the student council.

"Has Hannah asked you to keep me company?"

"No, why? You just seemed like you'd like a little company."

So either she's a terrible judge of character, or I come across differently than I thought.

"And you thought you'd simply come over?"

"Yes, is that bad?"

"I don't think so."

"Lucky me then." She smiles, not as silly and carefree as Kayla, but I notice a similarity. It is probably this naivety and carelessness that they both share.

"How old are you, Nada?"

"Fourteen? And you?"

"Eighteen."

"Really? You seem so grown up, very different from Elliot or Hannah."

"Elliot is and always will be a giant baby."

"That's right, you know each other. He told us a bit about you after Hannah mentioned that you were going to visit us."

"And yet you dare to sit next to me?"

"Of course I do. Although I was a bit nervous about talking to you after what he told me. But I quickly realized that you're quite nice."

"Very sweet of you."

"That's just the way I am. By the way, what do you think of the barrier that protects us spectators?"

At first glance, the mostly transparent light blue veil is nothing special. What is a little unusual, however, is that it spreads out in a cube, although it starts from a single small wooden board. Normally, mages place four objects in the corners for such a barrier.

"Your creation?"

I look over at her slowly and see her cheeks turning red.

"Yes."

"Nice work."

"Thank you." Nada hides her face as best she can behind her small hands, but she has no chance to conceal her blush.

"Let's hope it holds up," I say as the first fight begins.

The two mages simply stand there facing each other. Apparently, they are waiting to see who will make the first move. A valid strategy to try finding out how the opponent will attack, but in the worst-case scenario, the fight is over after that very first move.

"What do you think?" Nada seems to notice my slightly critical expression.

"I wonder if they have any experience."

Then it finally starts. Fighter A opens with a fireball, while fighter B creates a barrier in front of him, which completely blocks the attack. However, what we spectators can see is that fighter A has already fired the follow-up attack, while some smoke covers it for his opponent. It is a massive ball of stone that flies at fairly high speed toward the still distracted fighter B and hits him in the knee. The sound it makes on impact echoes throughout the hall and makes even me shudder a little.

The referee gives a hand signal, and Kayla runs to the injured student, who is screaming in agony. In a real fight, this would never have been the end, but this demonstration in the first round gives me a pretty good idea of what to expect here.

"Holy shit," I mutter to myself.

Nada giggles and looks over at me. "Are you okay?"

"I am, but I'm worried about the participants. That last attack could have gone really wrong."

"You don't mean he was aiming for the knee?"

"If he managed to do that through the smoke, he has my utmost respect, but it looked like a coincidence to me. Especially because the guy went white as a sheet after he saw what his attack caused to his opponent."

Strangely, the following fights were a lot tamer than the first. I don't know if the shock after the injury was so great that they all held back or if they just couldn't do any better. But now it's Elliot's turn. If he hasn't forgotten everything, you will now see a small difference between the students and a former dungeon mage. While he and his counterpart are still warming up, I hear Nada sigh loudly.

"What's wrong?"

"His fan group is annoying me."

I look around the stands in search of said group before spotting a gathering of five young girls holding up a cardboard sign with Elliot's name on it and giggling happily as he waves to them.

"Gross."

"Yeah, right?"

Again, Nada reminds me of Kayla.

"Why don't you cheer for him too?"

Nada chokes on her own spit and gives me a dirty look. "Why would I do that?"

"I thought you might like him."

"Why would I like that womanizer?"

You shouldn't. After all, he's about ten years too old for you. But sometimes, you can't decide who to fall in love with, and at some point, even Nada will realize that the two of them aren't meant for each other. But until then, she'll probably continue to get upset about his fans.

The referee gives the starting signal. Elliot immediately charges at his opponent and delivers a magically enhanced punch to the pit of his stomach. And that's it. The fight is over. The student slumps to the floor and begins to throw up.

This difference is what I noticed across the board. None of the students went into real hand-to-hand combat, probably because it didn't fit the image of a mage. But the real ones, the people who kill monsters in the dungeons, rarely have anything to do with the fancy wand-wielding long-range fighters.

"Wow," Nada whispers, staring at Elliot with shining eyes.

"Have you never seen him fight?"

"No, he's never participated since I started going to school here."

It could possibly be my fault that he's doing it this time. After all, I'm sure he knows that the winner of the tournament gets to compete against me. What I don't understand is what he hopes to achieve. He probably assumes that I've just been lazing around for the last three years and that he now actually has a chance of defeating me. I can't help but chuckle a little.

"What's so funny?"

"Nothing, nothing." I wave it off, but Nada gives me a serious stare.

Ignoring the little one next to me, I take a look down into the arena and can no longer spot Kayla. Before I can hear the sound of panting approaching. I glance over and see a slightly sweaty Kayla, who is completely out of breath.

"The training doesn't seem to be paying off yet."

"Oh yes, it is! I even ran up the stairs; a theme song was playing in my head, and I had to refrain from striking a victory pose when I reached the top."

"You're nuts."

"Naturally. Hello, I'm Kayla, by the way." she then says to Nada and drops into a seat next to her.

"Nice to meet you. My name is Nada," she says a little sheepishly, what's going on now? With me, she's pretty cocky, and around Kayla, she seems like a shy little girl?

I look at Kayla's face and see how her brain is processing. She knows she's heard the name before. Come on, girl, try harder. You can do this. Who would want to sit next to me voluntarily? Nada is very young, so she's probably not someone I know from the past. But the longer the silence lasts, the less likely she is to figure it out.

"Do you guys know each other?" Ah, that stupid but so adorable grin. Sometimes I want to hate her, but it's just impossible. I refrain from slapping a palm to my face.

"I'm part of the student council, so I knew who Miko was and decided to hang out with her."

"Aww, how sweet. Thank you so much for that."

"You're welcome?"

Why is Kayla now acting like I'm the weird, lonely kid on the playground that nobody wants to play with? She may be right, but sometimes she could at least try not to say everything she thinks.

"Very well. I think I should get going then. Thank you for talking to me, Miko." Nada stands up, smoothes her skirt, and then walks away. Kayla slips into the now vacant seat without waiting and looks at me.

"What do you want?"

She suddenly starts to pout and furrows her eyebrows. "I don't know."

"Don't be like that. Was everything all right? Did you have any pain while healing?" I shouldn't start giving her what she wants just because she's acting like a little child, but I can't bear it any other way with her.

"Everything was fine. I also got praise from Hannah and the teacher. They've never seen anyone heal so quickly and so effectively. Although Hannah did seem a bit pissed off at one point."

"Are you surprised? I don't know her story, but suppose you've been practicing something for half your life, and suddenly someone comes along who started doing the same thing just a month ago and is noticeably better than you already."

"Who says I haven't been working hard on it for a long time?"

"Are you?"

"No comment. Anyway, it was fun. How was it as a spectator?"

"Better than I thought. Especially because the thrill of someone possibly dying was quite a surprise."

"And have you found a worthy opponent for yourself yet? Some diamond in the rough that could actually beat you?"

I shake my head slightly. "No, there are certainly a few talented and hard-working students, but that's worth little if they lack real combat experience. Elliot will win this thing and lose to me soundlessly in the final."

"You're pretty sexy when you speak so confidently."

"You're gross."

"Then why did your cheeks turn red?"

Are they? I put a hand on them to feel if they're any warm, only to realize that everything is normal.

"The fact that you checked is enough for me." Kayla sticks her tongue out at me. I would love to bite it off. That's all this cheeky brat deserves.

While my eyes are focused on her face, I consciously pay attention to her lips for the first time, and for some reason, they seem so soft that I'm curious to find out what they feel like.

What the fuck is wrong with me?

"Miko, are you not feeling well? You look a bit pale."

"Let's go and get changed, we're training today."

"Huuuuuh? You said we were taking the day off. You're not fair."

Neither are you.