"Crack"
Small branches and leaves crunched under William's boots as he crossed the forest, which felt cool and damp in contrast to the warm sun beating down on the river.
Crackstone Crypt, a small mausoleum with a single entrance located on Raven Island, was made entirely of stone. Two enormous stone statues seemed to guard the entrance; they were giant winged angels at least eight feet tall, covered in long tunics with their faces concealed.
"You plant the Frisbie Hall flag, I'll take care of the Puck Hall flag." (William)
William took the white Puck Hall flag, easily jumped to the top of a tree, and embedded the flag in its trunk.
"Ready, shall we go?" (Xavier)
Xavier also returned with William, carrying the black flag of Caliban Hall.
"Hey, where's our flag?"
"A little further back." (Xavier)
The first team to arrive behind William's group was Eldorado's team, who were confused when they didn't see their flag right in front of the crypt.
"There it is." (Trisbie Hall member)
(How did it get there unless someone...?) (Eldorado leader)
"Wait... it's a trap!!!"
The yellow flag was a little further away, just above a rock. Before the leader could stop him, the second team member ran towards it.
"Uuauau"
His foot activated the simple mechanism covered by dry leaves, and his foot was caught and lifted by a snare trap.
"Uuauau argh''
His friend ran to pull him down and activated the second trap. Now both of them were hanging upside down by their ankles, which was not a pleasant feeling.
"I feel nauseous."
"Shut up, you should have been more careful."
"It's your fault, you fell into the trap first."
They both started arguing about who was to blame and trying to hit each other.
"The knots will come undone on their own in a few minutes. Remember to cover your heads."
Those were Xavier's last words. The trap was set to release itself after a while and didn't even lift them too far off the ground; a layer of leaves and twigs would cushion their fall.
A young Da Vinci had been tasked with setting those traps a couple of days earlier at William's request. She didn't seem to particularly like Bianca's group.
"If you're looking for your flag, look up, ladies." (William)
William's words seemed strange to Bianca and Divina, who had just arrived on Raven Island.
"Son of a bitch." (Divina)
"Quick, let's go, you go up." (Bianca)
Bianca wasted no time. She crouched down and placed both hands on her knee, planning to lift Divina as high as possible until she could reach her flag at the top of the tree.
It took them two attempts with all their strength, and Divina even had to step on Bianca's shoulders to finally reach it.
"Hey, can't you come down?"
"Please, I feel like the blood is rushing to my head."
"Maybe later, guys." (Divina)
The Eldorado Team kept circling around, and Bianca and Divina ran to the small pier.
Raven Island Pier.
"Where's Antony?" (Xavier)
"I got distracted for a moment and he ran into the forest." (Ajax)
"Good job not abandoning the boat. Let's go back." (William)
"Without Antony?" (Xavier)
"I think Bianca used her Siren Voice on him, he must be wandering around the forest." (William)
"All right, let's go, we won't let her sacrifice be in vain." (Ajax)
"He's not dead." Xavier couldn't help but contradict him with a smile.
(Tsk, Bianca ordered me to puncture Caliban Hall's canoe, but that Gorgon didn't leave the boat to run after her friend.)
A mermaid clicked her tongue in annoyance as she watched William's team leave with their flag.
"Where the hell were you?"
"Shut up and start rowing. They're down a member, we should be able to catch up with them." (Bianca)
One of the mermaids in Annabel Lee's boat wanted to complain to Bianca and Divina for taking so long to retrieve their flag, but Bianca was in no mood to put up with her complaints.
Bianca's team of four caught up with William's team of three. They had covered most of the return journey and crossed the first red floating buoys.
"They're catching up to us."
"Will, go ahead and take them down."
"I thought you didn't like the idea of using our abilities this way?"
"Bianca used them first against Ophelia Hall."
A Greater Rune was too valuable to pass up, William would use his abilities to win if necessary, even if Xavier didn't agree with it.
William hugged his shoulders, his body shrank and changed into the form of a large golden eagle.
(Impressive no matter how many times I see it) (Xavier)
William took off into the sky, his figure blurred in the bright sunlight.
"What's that over there?"
One of the Annabel Lee's crew members asked, noticing the brown figure heading towards them from the air.
"Ah!"
A direct blow to the chest sent her mercilessly crashing into the water. Before they could realise what had happened, the second one fell into the water.
(I would be concerned if they were another type of Outcast, but Bianca's entire team are Mermaids.)
It was impossible for them to drown if they fell into the water and passed out, which was one less thing for William to worry about. Now he just had to watch his speed and avoid hurting the girls with his charge.
Enid took out her camera in the distance, determined to record how William knocked down each member of the Puck Hall Team. A smile covered her lips; she was happy and content, her blue and pink blonde hair shining in the sun's rays.
"Here he comes again" (Bianca)
Bianca crouched down against the canoe. Divina wasn't so lucky; she was thrown into the water along with the other two.
"Just one more" (William)
Now it was impossible for Bianca to win unless... An idea popped into Bianca's mind, a way to win.
"Wait, girls, push the boat from the water" (Bianca)
Bianca was delighted; it was a very good plan. With the speed of the three of them in the water, they would overtake Caliban Hall's boat in an instant.
"Water?..."
Bianca felt her shoes getting wet and looked down. A lot of water had entered the boat through huge holes in the floor. William's sharp claws had torn through the soft wood with ease.
"Sigh"
Bianca sighed as the boat sank to the bottom of the river.
William returned with Ajax and Xavier to the dock, just as their teammates shouted excitedly and congratulated them. Many were happy with Puck Hall's defeat this year.
There were bursts of fireworks and confetti, and the crowd parted to make way for the finish line. William, Ajax, and Xavier crossed the line with the black flag of their Team Raven held high.
Ajax and Xavier received pats on the back, handshakes, and even a few kisses on the cheek from the crowd.
As soon as William simply celebrated by hugging Enid, no one else tried to touch him. It was more of a tacit agreement among everyone. After several months, they knew a little about William's somewhat cold personality with strangers, although he was very friendly if you talked to him. He didn't deny a fist bump to Mako, who had a victorious smile on his face.
One after another, the losing teams arrived. Bianca and Divina came out of the water completely soaked, as did Ophelia Hall at the start of the competition.
The Trisbie Hall Eldorado team returned rowing in their canoe with an extra passenger, Antony.
"Someone looks very upset," William whispered in Enid's ear, his gaze fixed on Bianca, who was looking angrily at the crowd.
"It's not against you, it's because of Xavier. He doesn't like being surrounded by girls," said Enid.
"I think it's pretty normal for him to be upset," said William.
"Last time, Bianca made a scene with Xavier because she saw him talking too happily with a Normie in Jericho," said Enid.
"Oh, the girl who asked Xavier for directions didn't mention to me that she had argued with Bianca." (William)
"Few people saw them." (Enid)
"And how did you find out?" (William)
William took Enid's cheek between two fingers without squeezing, it was more of a loving gesture.
"It's a secret."
Enid stuck out her tongue, not wanting to tell him how she found out.
"It's strange that the two of them would have argued in Jericho and returned to Nevermore together and happy."
William and Enid exchanged a suspicious look.
"Will, Enid, lunch is about to start." (Yoko)
Yoko waved to them from the long picnic tables. All the students would eat lunch by the river before returning to Nevermore for the Poe Cup trophy presentation.
(Both as affectionate as ever) (Yoko)
"Don't you think we're forgetting something?" (Ajax)