Chapter 185: Misfortunes happen frequently, and I feel helpless and furious!
On the last day before the official competition, the contestants unanimously chose to relax, avoiding low-level mistakes due to mental tension.
Arthur and Stella walked through the bustling Shopping Street, occasionally hearing whispers about the Princess along the way.
"Isn't that the Princess of Vermillion? The boy holding her hand is…"
"They're both wearing Hagun Academy uniforms, are they dating?"
"I didn't expect the legendary Crimson Princess to have a boyfriend? This is big news!"
Countless curious gazes felt like daggers in her back, and even Stella, who was accustomed to public appearances, couldn't help but feel her ears flush crimson.
She secretly glanced at Arthur's calm profile, feeling the slight tightening of his grip in her palm, her thoughts in a whirl.
He, like her, was learning how to be a proper couple for the first time.
Even with strength and wisdom beyond his years, he always seemed to be driven by something, hurrying along without a moment's rest.
But recently, the feeling he gave her had changed. Perhaps that urgency still existed, but he had learned to wrap it in rationality.
The biggest change was that he would actively ask for her opinion, and then they would come to the Shopping Street together for shopping and leisure.
The change in her lover's attitude stirred Stella's chest, and anticipation, accompanying her pulse, welled up with each beat.
"Fuwu (◊ ω ◊)!"
Fou, perched on Arthur's shoulder, brightened her eyes and lightly leaped onto Stella, gently patting her rapidly warming cheek with a paw.
"Wh-what are you doing? I didn't bring any biscuits today, you know."
Stella quickly covered her uniform pocket, while stopping Fou from getting closer, and lowered her head, not daring to look at Arthur's expression.
Lowering one's head in embarrassment is a human instinct, believing that if one doesn't look, others won't notice.
A smile flashed in Arthur's eyes, and he didn't expose the Princess's little secret, instead changing the subject.
"It's too hot. I'll go buy some ice cream. You and Fou wait for me here."
Before he finished speaking, he had already started walking towards the cold drink shop on the side of the street.
"Hello, three strawberry ice creams, please."
The waitress suddenly looked up, her face filled with a bewildered expression, and bowed apologetically.
"I'm sorry, our machine suddenly broke down, I'm afraid…"
Buzz, buzz buzz!
The muffled sound of the machine running interrupted her words. Everyone in the shop, who had been at a loss just moments ago, turned their heads in unison, their faces filled with joy.
"The machine is working again!? Three strawberry ice creams, right? Please wait a moment, customer."
This sudden little incident made Arthur's heart inexplicably tighten.
He looked up and around at the surrounding shops, noticing that not only the cold drink shop, but also the staff in other shops were more or less facing similar difficulties, their faces filled with worry.
"Hmm—this doesn't seem like a coincidence."
Arthur took the three ice creams from the waitress and turned to leave.
And just as he left, the machine behind him, which had just resumed operation, suddenly burst into a shower of electrical sparks, completely dying out.
…
On his way to meet Stella, Arthur noticed a group of vendors gathered in terror by the side of the street, with wisps of black smoke rising from within.
A glimmer of light flashed in his eyes, and a sudden gust of wind instantly cleared a path through the crowd, helping him rush in quickly.
He saw Stella standing next to a collapsed public gazebo, while on the other side, the front of a truck was severely deformed, and the driver was slumped on the ground, his face pale.
Arthur carefully observed the scene, then handed the ice cream to Stella, whose pretty face was filled with a look of "unwarranted disaster."
"Are you alright? Did the truck lose control?"
Stella raised her hand to brush back her hair, explaining the situation from earlier in an understatement.
While she was waiting for her lover to return, a sharp horn blared in her ears, and she turned to see a truck, like an unbridled beast, speeding wildly through the Shopping Street.
She had intended to forcibly stop it, but before she could act, the out-of-control truck seemed to be nudged by an invisible hand, narrowly brushing past her and crashing into the nearby gazebo.
"As expected of the Princess, even with a truck brushing past her, she remains unfazed."
Facing the teasing, Stella, licking her ice cream, let out a soft snort.
She was about to retort, but saw her lover's gaze had already moved past her, circling the onlookers like a hawk.
The next moment, Arthur's knife-sharp gaze locked onto a target, a burst of wind erupted beneath his feet, and he crashed through the crowd like a cannonball, grabbing hold of a thin figure!
"I remember you… Shinomiya Amane?"
Arthur looked down at the struggling Rebel Army member in front of him, his tone icy.
"These repeated anomalies in the Shopping Street, you're the one behind them, aren't you?"
"Ow, ow, ow… How rude. Do you have any proof for saying that?"
Shinomiya Amane spread his hands, feigning innocence, but his azure pupils were overflowing with undisguised hatred for Arthur.
Enduring the almost tangible emotions from the other party for no reason, Arthur didn't get angry, but instead smiled.
"Such pure hatred doesn't seem to be aimed at tomorrow's opponent. Do you want to kill me?"
Stella, who had been calming the onlookers, arrived belatedly, and hearing this, the flames in her crimson eyes suddenly flared.
Directly enduring the gaze of two great dragons, Shinomiya Amane couldn't help but sneer, his body shaking uncontrollably like a broken toy.
"I'm part of the Rebel Army. Wanting to kill you, who destroyed the 'Innovation' plan, isn't that natural?"
Upon hearing this, Stella unconsciously clenched her fists, and scorching flames erupted from her body, causing the surrounding temperature to suddenly rise.
Arthur, however, shook his head indifferently, pushing away Shinomiya Amane, who was still about to bluster, his tone full of disdain.
"Alright, alright, I accept your challenge. See you at the arena tomorrow. Get out."
Shinomiya Amane rubbed his red wrist, glaring back at him venomously, and scoffed.
"Is that so? I hope you can survive until tomorrow."
Whoosh!
Before he finished speaking, a blur flashed past!
Arthur appeared before him like a ghost, delivering a fierce roundhouse kick to his abdomen, the crisp sound of bones cracking was chilling!
"Don't get it wrong, you brat." Arthur looked down at him from above, "Your ability is useless against me."
Shinomiya Amane, curled up on the ground and twitching, suddenly widened his eyes, his twisted expression and frantic gaze unified for the first time, and he shrieked hysterically.
"Why! This power I gained by giving up everything! Why doesn't it work on you?!"
Arthur scoffed: "So, while you hate your own power, you also depend on it?"
Saying that, he walked over and squatted in front of Shinomiya Amane, his impatience almost overflowing from his eyes.
"It's your business if you like to debase yourself. No one is obligated to tolerate the willfulness of a brat like you."
"Stop that self-pitying expression. If you really have any capability, just use it tomorrow."
Shinomiya Amane, with venomous eyes, struggled to get up and fled without a word.
Stella, who had been completely bewildered the whole time, stepped forward and hugged Arthur's arm, recalling the chaotic battle that had occurred at Hagun Academy, her tone subtle.
"I remember he's the guy who always 'accidentally injured' his teammates in battle, right? His ability… is naturally countered by you?"
Arthur nodded slightly: "In the Giant Gate Academy representative matches, his opponents, without exception, would be injured and absent due to various 'accidents,' winning ten consecutive matches without a fight."
"It's most likely a Blazefield ability that manipulates 'concepts' or 'causality,' making the target plagued by bad luck."
Arthur paused, his eyes becoming profound.
"Unfortunately, mere bad luck cannot affect me."
"Cannot affect you?" Stella was a little confused, but more worried, "But what if his ability isn't just about creating accidents? What if… he can directly twist something more terrifying?"
Arthur was silent for a moment, then looked in the direction where Shinomiya Amane had disappeared, and slowly spoke.
"Then we'll have to see how much power his so-called 'giving up everything' actually bought him."