With newfound confidence, I slowly continued, approaching Marianne and Ryuzaki holding a makeshift flag with the letter F boldly carved over C—
"Yo—champion!" Ryuzaki mockingly yelled out.
"What's with that flag?" I asked, glancing at it.
He raised his gaze toward it. "Oh, this? If you're gonna fight and die, might as well go in a boom!"
"So I'm already dead in your eyes?"
"Relax, we just thought it could give you a slight confidence boost," Marianne said as they started walking alongside us.
"I see… and did you do…?"
Ryuzaki leaned in and whispered, "Yes, of course I did. I even added a slight bonus."
"Bonus?"
"You'll see."
Behind us, a shuffle — someone was trying to pass through. "Pardon, please, thank you, excuse me. Ah, sorry, sorry—" Glancing back, it was the announcer, whose eyes widened with glistening as he saw the two in front of me. In a second, his arm raised.
"IT SEEMS JOINING THE LONE WARRIOR ARE B-CLASS MARIANNE THURIGSONN, 'THOR'S DAUGHTER'—" She flipped her hair over her left arm as the girls squealed.
You mean bitchy—
"AND RYUZAKI LEE, THE DRAGON OF THE 'CROWS UNDER ACADEMY'—"
You mean bombastic trash shit.
Finally, there it was—the entrance to the central grounds of the school.
Marianne placed her hand over my left arm. "Ready?"
Not really… but I can't disappoint anyone, can I?
"Born ready!"
"That's the—" As she tried to speak, yelling almost sounded like a war cry echoing from the other side of the middle grounds, which in reality was a football field.
"Someone's fired up."
"Seems so."
Left of me, I heard a familiar voice whose name I couldn't quite remember. "What's this? They're actually having a class battle?" Then a voice whose owner I did slightly know responded, "And to think of Ryuzaki as a friend—I thought he was bullying him?" It was Akito and his friend's group.
Well, it's a long story, Akito…
The announcer passed by me. "Alrighty then. I'll swiftly call each of you to come. Got it?" I nodded, then he left, approaching the center.
Finally, he stopped and looked left, then right. "LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, THANK YOU FOR THE PATIENT WAITING—"
"Why is he acting like it's a real circusant battle?" I whispered to Marianne.
"Well, let them have their fun," she answered, meanwhile Ryuzaki was excitedly looking toward the center with his arms flapping down and right. "Come on, come on, start, start." So were a couple of his friends—well, most of the boys were.
"MY NAME, THOUGH THE LEAST IMPORTANT, IS RADEN, AND ON MY TWO SIDES ARE PROUD WARRIORS. ONE WAGES HIS LIFE, ANOTHER HUMILIATION BEFORE DEATH. ALBEIT THE WAGE COULD SEEM UNFAIR, IT IS NOW!! AFTER ALL, WHAT IS A MAN WITHOUT HIS PRIDE?"
No, it's definitely unfair. I'm glad Dokuremi likes Anastasia to that extent—he'd wage his life trying to impress someone who didn't even follow after him.
I glanced toward Anastasia, noticing how pretty she actually was—her long eyelashes matching those of Marianne's, but unlike Marianne's pale skin, she was much tanner. Curiosity got the better of me, so I asked, "Hey, Anastasia."
The announcer continued, "FROM MY RIGHT SIDE, I CALL THE MAN HIMSELF—" I continued whispering, "Why did you not go after Konan? Since he likes you?"
"C-CLASS DOKUREMI KONAN!"
"No, to begin with, why would you agree to help… it could potentially kill Konan?"
"AND FROM THE LEFT SIDE, I CALL FORTH THE LONE WARRIOR WITH TWO MAIDENS—"
"Why?" she whispered slowly, turning her glance toward me.
"HE WHO TAMED MARIANNE, THE WRATH OF GODS THEMSELVES—AND LEE, THE DRAGON OF OUR ACADEMY!"
"NO ONE EVER TAMED ME, YOU IDIOT ANNOUNCER!" Ryuzaki yelled back, while the students behind him laughed.
"I CALL FORTH F-CLASS, SOON TO HIT THE DEEPEST ABYSS OF HUMANITY, F0—"
Just as I thought Anastasia wouldn't say anything, I stepped forward when suddenly, overlapping with the announcer, she turned me around and pulled me in closer.
"Because I've always loved you." Slowly, her lips touched mine. Marianne immediately gasped, while the laughter from our side died out, looking at the two of us. Even Emilia, who was nonchalant most of the time, had her glasses drop down as her lips just slightly widened.
"NARUHIYA SATOOO!" As he yelled that, she pulled away, turned me around, and lightly pushed me forward. "You better win, Sato!"
Immediately my heart stopped. As I glanced toward Marianne, I didn't know what to feel.
Is this cheating? No… I didn't do anything. It felt nice though, her lips were so soft… AH, NO, IDIOT—
"Ah, I see, so you just confess to everyone you see?" Marianne said. Too late—I was already walking forward as Anastasia sent me.
Push those thoughts aside. If I lose today, everything won't matter anyway!
I breathed in and out, seeing how Dokuremi was already in the center, smiling.
"WHAT'S WRONG, SCARED?" he yelled, taunting me. "AT LEAST YOU DIDN'T HIDE~" he continued. "AH, THAT'S RIGHT, I'VE HEARD ANASTASIA FOLLOWED YOU OUT? MUST HAVE BEEN OUT OF PITY."
Did he not see the kiss? Impossible. Is he blind?
Or did he choose not to acknowledge it?
"YES, YES, IT MUST HAVE BEEN OUT OF PITY, SATO!"
I glanced around, ignoring him. The central grounds, which in reality was a football field—the school being circular, with four main buildings on each side of the halls—had an overlapping view over the whole field in the center.
Left window: students. The same went for the right, front, and back. Everyone was looking.
Finally, it's actually happening.
As I looked around, trying to find something, I finally did.
Good, he didn't lie.
Every now and then, on the green field, small white circles—appearing to be made of chalk—appeared, with stones scattered around and over them.
Is that the bonus?
Finally, this time for real. I stepped in front of Dokuremi. Beside us, the announcer and our homeroom teacher.
This bitch followed Dokuremi—?
"Your wrists," she said. We both raised our arms against each other. She placed her palm in the middle, closed her eyes, and then whispered something I couldn't quite hear due to the crowd's cheering. Then she opened her eyes, simultaneously yelling, "RELEASE!"
Both of our watches disappeared into thin dust. The wristbands fell down while the watches, in truth, did not disappear but connected with our bodies—literally falling into our wrists as miniature chips.
"Ruden, all ready."
"Got it."
The teacher proceeded to leave the field while we stared at each other.
"NOW THAT YOUR POWERS HAVE BEEN RELEASED, I EXPECT FAIR FIGHTING, WITH ONLY TWO RULES: NO STOPPING UNLESS THE OTHER PARTY ADMITS DEFEAT, AND NOT DIRECTLY TRYING TO HARM THE PUBLIC! AS SUCH, WE OFFICIALLY GRANT YOU PERMISSION TO START THE RANK-PROTOCOL-SYSTEM RANKING BATTLE—STAAAAAART!!"
Even through my anxiety and the slower beating of my heart as I tried relaxing, I couldn't help but think—
Long-ass name.