Ard immediately became nervous. Unconsciously, he turned and bowed slightly, trying to hide his Garuda bird. Minerva instantly stepped closer to Ard.
"Ard... you have two elements? And they are Holy and Dark?" Minerva asked.
"Uh... um... yes, ma'am," Ard replied, having no choice but to answer.
"This is... extraordinary, Ard. Holy and Dark elements are rare elements. Not many people possess them, and mostly only heroes... and demons," Minerva said.
"Uh... y-yes, ma'am," Ard replied, still trying to hide his Garuda.
Suddenly, "blaaaz," Irwin's black dragon spat a glittering black fireball at Ard, who instantly spun around, blocking it by raising his hand, which was covered by a ball of white light, while shielding Minerva.
"Hey... what the hell," Ard shouted, staring intensely at Irwin.
"Damn you, you took my spot! If you weren't here... Princess Eva would..."
Before Irwin could finish speaking, Ard was already in front of him, grasping the head of the black dragon with the hand covered by the ball of white light. Irwin gasped in shock. Then Ard leaned his face close to Irwin's, his eyes staring sharply into Irwin's.
"You've been watching me all week, and you're always watching Princess Eva. Who are you, really? Just like Madam Minerva said, those with the Dark element are rare... including demons," Ard said with a calm, sharp voice.
"Stop, Ard... release the dragon... or it will die," Eva yelled.
Ard turned to look. The black dragon on Irwin's shoulder, whose head he was gripping, had become very limp. Ard immediately let go, and Irwin instantly hugged his dragon. Eva immediately approached Irwin and checked his dragon, then she turned to look at Ard with an angry face.
"He is my bodyguard and my servant... that's Irwin's true identity," Eva said.
"P-Princess," Irwin replied, surprised.
"Huh... i-is that true?" Ard asked, backing away.
"Yes, he's with me at this academy to guard me. It's only natural for him to want to test you, because I like you, and at the very least, you have to be my equal," Eva yelled angrily.
"P-Princess... I..." Irwin said, unable to continue his words. His face showed that he was deeply hurt. It seemed he also liked Eva, and hearing Eva's statement felt like a rejection to him.
"Wait... wait... could you repeat that, Princess? What did you just say?" asked Alicia, who had also heard Eva's words, drawing her sword, with her salamander ready to attack.
"Yes, that's right, Princess. Please explain what you mean," added Milia, who was now joining in, drawing her sword, with her sea serpent standing on her shoulder.
"You're quite bold to just declare you like Ard. All of us here like Ard," shouted Beatrice, who drew her sword, with her carbuncle or green cat hissing on her shoulder.
"Um... Princess Beatrice, maybe you should step back... but I also agree with you," Rosalind said, staring at Eva. Although she didn't draw her sword, her green dragon was ready to attack.
"Hooo... so you all want to defy me, huh?" Eva said, drawing her sword, and her griffin immediately flew into the air.
Irwin shifted next to Ard, who was stunned, still processing what was happening in front of him. Geoffrey also shifted, pulling Ainsley, who was pushing up her glasses, and holding Patricia. The atmosphere became extremely tense. Minerva could only shake her head and looked very tired. Then Geoffrey moved closer to Ard.
"T-this is... an elite battle, bro," Geoffrey whispered to Ard.
"This is all your fault," Ard said to Irwin next to him.
"Sorry... like the Princess said, I had to test you," Irwin replied.
"Um... this is... amazing... they are all fighting over Ard," Ainsley muttered, pushing up her glasses.
"Ard is truly great. We're both commoners, right? That means you can marry me, right?" added Patricia, who looked at Ard with admiration and full of hope.
"Huh," Eva, Alicia, Milia, Beatrice, and Rosalind immediately turned to stare at Patricia, who then became instantly nervous and lowered her head. Suddenly, Rosalind approached Patricia, pulled her forward, and placed Patricia in the center between her group and Eva's.
"I-I'm sorry," Patricia said, terrified of being stared at by the two factions.
"Shut up, draw your sword," Eva, Alicia, Milia, and Beatrice yelled in unison.
Ard, seeing the atmosphere becoming increasingly tense and heated, finally pulled Irwin and also ushered Geoffrey and Ainsley out of the auditorium. Once outside, Ard immediately bowed slightly in front of Irwin.
"I'm sorry," Ard replied.
"It's okay... but I got to know Princess Eva's feelings. I was the one who was wrong for paying too much attention to you," Irwin said.
"But why do you have the Dark element?" Ard asked.
Irwin fell silent. He looked at Ard's, Geoffrey's, and Ainsley's faces, then he looked toward the auditorium, whose hot atmosphere seemed to radiate outward.
"Alright, let me tell you why I have the Dark element," Irwin said.
Irwin touched one of his eyes and covered it with his hand, then he opened his hand. Ard, Geoffrey, and Ainsley were immediately shocked because one of Irwin's eyes was red.
"A-are you half-demon?" Ainsley asked, holding the bridge of her glasses with a shocked expression.
"That's right. My mother was a demon and my father was human. I'm actually from the Durnhill Kingdom, then I was sold as a slave in the Fredonia Kingdom and brought to the Orthus Empire when I was little, after my father was killed by the villagers for marrying a demon along with my mother," Irwin answered, looking down.
"So you inherited your mother's element?" Geoffrey asked.
"Exactly. My father couldn't use magic and was considered a failure," Irwin replied.
"I'm sorry... I shouldn't have asked," Ard said.
"It's okay. When I was brought to the Orthus Empire at the age of 10, Princess Eva saved me, and since then I've become her personal servant... maybe I also fell in love with her... ha ha ha... ridiculous, right? A slave falling in love with a princess," Irwin said softly.
Ard, Geoffrey, and Ainsley couldn't say anything. A slave falling in love with a princess was indeed highly unlikely, but they understood that feelings are hard to fight, so they chose to remain silent and tried not to look at Irwin with pity.
"But I realize, it's impossible for me to get the Princess, so I'm asking you, Ard, please take care of Princess Eva," Irwin said with a smile.
"Oh... I'm just a commoner too... it's also impossible for me to be with a princess," Ard said.
Suddenly, Irwin pulled Ard closer and brought his face near Ard's ear. He immediately whispered to Ard,
"You're the third prince of the Fredonia Kingdom, aren't you? I've been investigating you for a week, but don't worry, I won't tell anyone," Irwin whispered.
Ard immediately glanced at Irwin, whose face was still next to his. He suddenly turned pale and gaped upon hearing Irwin's words. Finally, he just nodded, having no choice but to trust Irwin to keep the secret, as he couldn't cause a scene in front of Geoffrey and Ainsley.
"Please protect Princess Eva... especially from her older brother," Irwin whispered.
"Hmm... her older brother, huh? Alright, I understand," Ard whispered back. "Wait a minute... her older brother... could the source of the Princess's tragedy, the one that turned her into the cruel Queen, be her older brother, the Crown Prince?" Ard muttered to myself.