Chapter 95: Inara Crudela
The academy itself had its own battle arena, occasionally used for the year-end tournament. And every now and then, it wasn’t unusual for a few students to get permission to use it for other purposes too.
That was exactly what was happening today. Right beneath the blazing sun, though the air itself stayed comfortably cool, a huge crowd of students had gathered to watch the fight.
Not just first-years, either, but second-years too, and even a handful of visibly curious third-years.
Eiros sat in one of the stands alongside the others. Down in the arena, a single overseer stood watch, tasked with making sure the fight stayed safe for both students.
The atmosphere was genuinely lively, packed with students chattering away, full of energy and humor.
Taking advantage of the wait, Eiros glanced around every so often. He could spot plenty of strong figures among the second-years, along with a handful from the third-years as well.
One particular third-year girl seemed to be drawing an unusual amount of attention, and Eiros noticed just how many eyes kept drifting toward her.
"Wow, I can’t believe she actually showed up to watch."
"Why do you think she’s here?"
"Eh, I’d guess Alen? She’s never once shown interest in Caeril, has she?"
"Fair point."
That girl was one of the strongest among the third-years. Not only had she been born into a horrific background, her talent was also extraordinary enough to make her one of the very few third-years who’d already reached the Luminous Tier.
Inara Crudela.
A girl with pale, icy-blue hair falling all the way down to her slender waist. Her eyes looked as hollow as ice, her face showing no expression at all, nothing but a flat, empty stillness.
She practically looked like a living doll.
And that character was one Eiros actually recognized from the webtoon. Not some minor side character either, he clearly remembered plenty of mentions treating her as a canon heroine.
He didn’t know for certain if that was true, since Eiros had never confirmed it directly. All he knew was that she was clearly a very important figure in this story.
[Stigmata Profile]
Name: Absolute Zero.
Activation: The loss of all emotion, along with the ability to express any.
Potential: ?? [Tier-??]
Seeing her stigmata profile erased any lingering doubt Eiros had.
Eiros shifted his gaze away. He couldn’t quite figure out what had drawn Inara here, but this was part of this world’s plot progression, so he decided he’d never get involved in it.
Right around then, he finally spotted a student walking out from the tunnel along the arena wall, a young man with long blond hair, wearing a relaxed smile dripping with arrogance.
Eiros immediately recognized him as the Caeril Midgard everyone had been talking about. A second-year student, exceptionally talented even among his own generation.
As he strode forward under the eyes of the crowd, the stands erupted into noise. Filled with shouting and an overwhelming wave of energy from Caeril’s supporters and fans.
"Wooo!! Young Master Caeril!!"
"You’re going to win this easily, no doubt!"
"Go get ’eeeem!!"
"Kick that insolent first-year’s ass!!"
The crowd, of course, was firmly on Caeril’s side.
***
Alen, meanwhile, was still in the waiting room. Standing with him was a second-year girl with jet-black hair and warm brown eyes.
"Alen... you don’t have to do this, okay? We still have time, you can call it off right now."
Seeing his older sister look so despairing wasn’t a pleasant sight. Alen couldn’t help but furrow his brow, but he quickly forced a smile.
"Don’t worry, sis, I’ve got this handled. I already promised to protect you."
It was a debt of gratitude he owed the family that had adopted him and raised him as their own. Alen had grown up well because of them.
So a little sacrifice, especially something this small, wasn’t even worth thinking twice about. He’d do it willingly.
His sister, Niana Hazelia, looked visibly upset. Unlike the gifted Alen, Niana, born into an ordinary family, hadn’t inherited anything special the way he had.
She was genuinely just an ordinary commoner who happened to have looks above average, which made her a frequent target for lecherous noble boys.
Up until now, she’d managed to protect herself, but when Caeril Midgard finally set his sights on her, she’d struggled to defend herself and had very nearly been taken advantage of outright.
Alen had only been lucky enough to find out in time, allowing him to step in and save her immediately.
"I already told you, I’m fine," Niana insisted again, while Alen himself remained just as stubborn.
"Same here. I’m fine too. Just wait here, okay? I’m going to win this."
The terms were simple: if Alen won, Caeril would apologize and stop bothering his sister. And if Alen lost, the punishment wouldn’t fall on his sister at all, only on Alen himself.
But Alen was confident he wouldn’t simply lose, no, more precisely, he was confident he would win.
He just needed to push himself a little harder than usual. With that, ignoring his sister’s clear refusal to accept his decision, Alen walked out toward the arena.
The roar from the stands was absolutely deafening. He could hear the crowd’s shouts, some cheering him on, others hurling insults his way.
He ignored all of it and kept walking, finding himself standing under the sunlight, stopping a few steps away from Caeril, who regarded him with a dismissive look.
"I figured you’d run. Turns out that childish reputation of yours wasn’t given without reason."
Alen’s smile looked strained as he let out a short scoff. "Why exactly would I run."
He answered casually, which made Caeril burst out laughing, looking at him with an amused smile as he said,
"It’s not too late. Kneel and leave the arena. I’ll forgive you, this is my last act of generosity."
The crowd erupted into cheers once more at Caeril’s words. Alen felt like his ears might start bleeding from the noise, but he held himself together well enough.
His lips twitched for a moment, then his gaze shifted toward the overseer.
"Overseer, sir, can we get started?" He gave a crooked smile. "I have no idea when we’ll actually begin if we keep letting him talk."
"You...!" Caeril sneered, visibly irritated by the blatant insult. His eyes sharpened, his whole body trembling with anger.
He turned toward the overseer as well. "Right, let’s just get started. I’ll teach you a proper lesson, like a good upperclassman should."
***