With his face drenched in water, Giovanni took a deep breath and did not let panic guide his thoughts.
Aguiar was a familiar name.
It only took a bit of effort to remember where he had first seen it.
During the revelation of the rankings, Giovanni had not managed to memorize all the sleepers, but some had been etched into his mind.
Among them, he was certain that the third on the list was called Aguiar.
'Wouldn't you at least need to be second place to be my rival…?'
Everyone was waiting for Giovanni's response, eager to see how the strongest of the sleepers would react to being directly challenged.
Some showed their interest more openly, grabbing their devices to record the moment, while others remained with their activities, training while listening to the conflict in the background.
Flat-out refusing was an option, but it did not seem like a long-term solution.
Aguiar was deeply emotionally invested in his own disillusionments, so he would only keep harassing Giovanni for the rest of his days there until he got the duel he so desperately wanted.
Giovanni's image would also be tarnished if he appeared to avoid any kind of conflict as if it were a plague. For the sake of the persona he had created, it would be extremely beneficial to leave that situation with a victory.
But just a glance at his opponent said everything he needed to know.
If Giovanni decided to take this to a ring, he would be beaten into a pulp, no chance at all! Besides the guy being completely ripped, that spear was no decoration.
Aguiar seemed to have dedicated all his time to combat classes, and Giovanni had no desire to experience firsthand the fruits of that effort.
He needed to find a way to handle the bomb that had been thrown into his lap carefully and, with luck, not blow himself up in the process.
Giovanni stared at the ceiling, contemplative. His silence made everyone nervous, eager to know what was going on in the enigmatic young man's mind. No one dared interrupt or rush him, fearing the consequences.
His smile and distracted gaze were nothing more than a farce to stall for as long as possible. He needed to decide on a plan within a few seconds; otherwise, he risked making a misstep and digging himself into an even deeper hole.
A way out… a good enough excuse.
The low, confused tone from before vanished, and Giovanni now spoke with clarity and focus.
"A duel… you're a funny person. Very well, then. I accept."
Cheers of excitement exploded throughout the room. Even the most indifferent of the sleepers could not deny the latent curiosity of seeing the supposedly strongest clash directly.
The fact that Giovanni had refused to take part in any combat course only made the curiosity stronger. Everyone wanted to see his potential. News of that moment would spread through the academy within minutes.
"However, I'm in the middle of a task from my mentor, you see."
He raised one finger, allowing the bee to land on its tip. Despite being such a small insect, for a brief moment, everyone felt a threatening, murderous instinct being transmitted from the tiny creature.
Giovanni would need to buy some sweets for his mentor later for helping with his ruse.
"So why don't we kill two birds with one stone? Let's duel to see who has the better aim, Aguiar. We'll grow stronger together… my rival."
In an instant, everyone in that room was overwhelmed by the angelic aura Giovanni emitted.
When challenged by another individual driven by the passion of his dreams, he did not trample on those hopes with coldness. On the contrary, he accepted with all his heart.
Aguiar's desire for war and conflict was weak before the purity of the strongest one's intentions. Giovanni did not want to crush his competition; he wanted to evolve side by side with them!
Or at least, that was what the audience caught up in the scene believed.
Aguiar's face turned a shade of red, caught off guard by his rival's sportsmanship.
Feeling intimidated by such a display of ambition, he took a few steps back. The image he had of his rival had been shallow, and now he could see how foolish he had been to believe he could grasp that boy's true intentions.
If he refused the proposal, it would be an admission of defeat before the power of love! With tears streaming down his face, Aguiar pressed a hand against it.
"Damn you… don't think I'll hold back. Soon enough… you'll know the true terror the tide brings."
Stopping beside the short, brown-haired boy, the two fixed their eyes on the farthest target.
Giovanni began to alter the shape of the earth, making it take on the appearance of a dart. With a calm voice, he announced the rules to everyone else.
"Let's make it best of three. Whoever accumulates the highest number of points wins. You may begin, Aguiar."
"Then bear witness! The difference in our level. I call upon you: Spear of the Murderous Tide!"
He has names for his own attacks?
Aguiar used every muscle in his body, manifesting a construct of water in his dominant hand and hurling it with full force at the circular target composed of ten rings joined together.
While the smallest one, right at the center, was worth ten points, the one on the edge was worth only one.
The spear crossed the room in an instant, colliding with full force against the target twenty meters away.
After a few moments to allow the device to register the impact, the score on the digital screen was revealed.
Five points.
"I'm still warming up!"
"Of course. My turn now."
Instinct was what he needed. When firing something at high speed with his power, Giovanni sacrificed detailed control of movement in exchange for raw force.
It was still very different from using an arrow or a firearm. The projectile was an extension of his body and, therefore, could be controlled midair.
Even without any prior practice, he could hit targets at long distances just by altering the trajectory.
That did not mean he could precisely decide where his attack would connect, and in that duel, the point of impact mattered more than hitting at all.
'There are things your body does better on its own…'
He recalled his mentor's words and infused the dart with his will, finally firing it at the target.
He opted for something smaller for maximum efficiency.
The projectile danced through the air, then struck the target with a soft thud.
Six points.
'Yes!'
Aguiar was clearly more experienced and skilled, but his tendency to do things in a dramatic and grandiose way evened the score.
If instead of a huge, complicated spear, he focused on just throwing something small and precise, it would be the end of Giovanni.
"Tch… I wouldn't expect any less from you, but now it really begins!"
All the water poured forth and began to gather between his palms, forming a spinning sphere that emanated a threatening glow.
"Answer my call: Divine Sphere of the Seven Seas!"
The sphere was thrown alongside an unnecessarily long shout, and because it had such a large surface, it struck several rings at once, hitting from the eighth to the fourth.
'Is that even allowed…?'
The machine at the end counted the highest number, granting him a respectable score.
Eight points.
It would be difficult to surpass him this time. But that was fine. Giovanni only needed to score a seven to at least keep things tied.
Regaining his focus, he fired a second dart, praying for perhaps a stroke of luck that would let him hit the center!
The machine calculated the result once more.
Five points.
It was worse than the last one!
Aguiar was now two points ahead of him. If Giovanni did not make the best shot of his life now, his defeat was on the horizon.
"HAHAHA! So this is your limit, Giovanni?! Allow me to finish our duel… great ancient dragon of the abyss… lend me your strength: Abyssal Wrath!"
This time, Aguiar was even more ambitious than before. Shaping the water into the form of a creature's jaw, he seemed to struggle to maintain something so complex.
Using all his effort, he made the jaw fly like a monster toward the target.
Everyone stared in shock at the final result.
He… missed.
His focus on maintaining the shape of the mouth midair had been so great that his accuracy suffered drastically.
The onlookers burst into laughter while Giovanni, a bit stunned, fired the final dart.
Seven points.
Aguiar collapsed to his knees, feeling the weight of defeat crushing his pride… he had been blinded by glory. Giovanni, feeling a bit bad, approached and offered his hand.
"Uh… are you okay?"
The only response he received was silence. Then, suddenly, Aguiar sprang to his feet, floating again with the help of water.
"You may have won today, Giovanni! But tomorrow, the day after, and beyond, I will always be there. Your defeat is inevitable. Savor the taste of victory while it is still fresh…"
And slowly, Aguiar left the room, floating backward while maintaining eye contact with the other boy, until he disappeared into the corridors.
'I'm surrounded by lunatics!'
***
The rumors after that incident followed him for weeks.
The emergence of a rival acknowledged by Giovanni himself gave rise to increasingly absurd ideas about the relationship between the two.
Some people said they were old opponents who had reunited after many years, while malicious tongues hinted at a forbidden romance hidden behind the veil of that conflict.
'I'm really doomed…'
Giovanni had decided to call Aguiar his rival because he believed it would make it easier to convince that lunatic, but it only served to worsen other people's fantasies!
It was the last day of the month, and it was time to test the fruits of his efforts in practice.
After days of constant pain and tears, he could proudly say that maintaining a sphere of earth was no longer an effort worth noting.
Like breathing, he easily forgot it was there and went about his day on autopilot.
His awareness of the environment had also reached a completely different level.
Living with a bee constantly trying to beat him up had taught him to always be prepared.
Arriving thirty minutes early, he opened the door and came across Beako sleeping on an improvised mattress.
He was about to close the door and come back a bit later when he felt something coming from above. The threat made no sound, a lethal attack.
His body moved on instinct, taking a quick step to the side and narrowly avoiding the bee that sought to strike his head.
"heehee! Looks like a month of beating you up did your hollow head some good!"
"Usually it's the opposite…"
Realizing it was just another one of the woman's dirty tricks, he sighed and entered the room. Beako was already on her feet, having tossed aside the pile of cloths she had used as a mattress and sheets.
"I'd like to congratulate you, golden boy! You've officially moved up from the Coughing Baby category to merely bad. Keep up the pace!"
"I appreciate the encouragement. What's today's lesson going to be?"
She raised a finger, signaling for the boy to wait.
"Before we start a new one, let's repeat your first test one last time."
Positioning herself on the other side of the room, she prepared an attack and stared at Giovanni, waiting.
He had trained the entire month for that… and no matter how fast it was, he had the advantage.
The moment seemed to stretch on infinitely until the familiar sound of the bee firing to punch a hole through his forehead echoed.
The two watched in silence the sight of a bee embedded in a wall of earth. It was something so small, but Giovanni could not contain the urge to shout.
"Yes! Yes!"
It felt so good! More than that, it was a visible milestone of his evolution.
"What a racket! Don't get cocky over something so simple, got it?"
Regardless of what was said, Beako was smiling too.
"Looks like you're passable now, so it's time to take the training wheels off your bike. Defending against a telegraphed attack is easy, but in real combat, your enemies will adapt to your defenses and try to deceive you."
From behind Beako, a swarm was summoned, covering the room in an instant. Each of those bees was capable of delivering a lethal attack to a mere sleeper like him.
"So let's raise the difficulty level. My only tip is: Survive!"
The attacks came down from the ceiling and surged from the walls one after another. Even though there were very few bees, just three simultaneous attacks were enough to break his coordination.
While he blocked the first, the second was already inches from his neck.
The third did meet resistance, but the earthen barrier he raised was too thin and weak, being pierced through and failing to protect him.
'Shit…'
His perception could track the individual movements, but it was necessary to predict where Beako would aim.
If he waited to be certain, the blow would inevitably connect. Each hit was even more painful than those he had endured throughout the entire month. They stole his breath and made his mind blank out for a fraction of a second.
In less than a minute, Giovanni was unconscious on the ground. However, he would not have the luxury of staying knocked out for long.
A sweet taste woke him; his wounds healed, and the physical fatigue faded.
Every time he lifted his head, Beako was there to say:
"Again!"