[240] 5. Match Point (2)
"Do you think Shirone's like you, picking fights just to get popular?"
"What? You done talking?"
Whenever students gathered, they compared Shirone's group to Dante's. Most put Dante at the top and let endless speculation swirl beneath him. It was the result of everything that had happened in the two months since Olivia became principal.
Nade felt irritated by the noise from all directions. Before Number 2000 was introduced, they hadn't split into camps this openly. In any case, with academic performance on the rise, the faculty wouldn't be rolling back Olivia's policies.
"Ugh, seriously. Maybe we should just transfer out."
Nade muttered without meaning to. The girls glanced over, whispered, snickered, and then flocked to Dante.
"Forget it. Don't mind them. We'll do things our way."
Shirone said calmly and went back to his lifting practice.
Nade set his jaw. Dante acting like a monarch while still a student was strange, but Shirone's nerves were impressively thick too—he didn't even flinch when people called him a coward.
A week later came midterms.
Because Dante's group took first through third, everyone's rankings in Class Four slipped. The hierarchy, of course, remained the same.
After the midterms, students stopped talking about Shirone. With no feedback, spreading gossip felt pointless.
Pandora tried hard to get into Dante's circle, but an invisible barrier still separated them.
Deciding that wouldn't do, Pandora pretended to rub Sabina's shoulder and slipped into asking.
"Um, Sabina. I want to do well in real combat too—what should I do?"
"Real combat? You use magic by the book. Don't do that—learn passives. It makes things a lot easier. Learning them early won't hurt. This school's weird, anyway."
Sabina gave advice but made it clear she didn't want to put in extra work.
Flushed and hopeful, Pandora tried to be more direct.
"Then—couldn't you teach me in Number 2000?"
"Oh? You challenging me now?"
"No, no! Not like that—just, I thought it'd be good to know passive skills or tactics I could use in real fights."
Closer's gaze dropped to Pandora's chest. He'd been waiting for an opening; her volunteering made things easier.
"Alright. Pandora's part of our group, so it wouldn't hurt for her to get stronger. We'll give you special tutoring."
Pandora practically floated with joy. Above all, she liked being treated as one of them.
"Really? Oh my—thank you so much!"
Closer's friends all knew his true motives.
Dante wanted power, Closer wanted girls, Sabina wanted popularity.
They'd been childhood friends who helped each other get what they wanted, so Dante went along with Closer this time too.
"Good. Want to loosen up a bit? Let's go into Number 2000."
Taking a corner of the practice field, Dante's group set Pandora up and started handing out tips.
Like most advice from others, it was mostly common sense dressed up in plausible terms.
Closer slipped an arm around Pandora's shoulder and said, "Okay, the three of us will do a pincer attack. Try handling it with scent magic. Take it slow, don't worry."
"Uh—okay."
Dante's group pressured Pandora with basic spells.
From Pandora's perspective it was a useful lesson, but to onlookers it looked like they were training a stray dog.
Sabina, getting carried away, shouted, "Hoho! Not bad. Don't just run—try counterattacking. We're bored."
Pandora cast Olif's floral scent that caused hallucinations. It wasn't an instant knockout, but it made the opponent careless, which made it useful in real fights.
Sabina fell perfectly into the trap. Thinking she could catch Pandora, Pandora unleashed her trump scent, Fire Flower (manufacturer: Alones).
Dulled by Olif's aroma, Sabina inhaled a little despite herself.
Heat flooded her lungs as if she'd swallowed fire. If their sync rate hadn't been at least fifty percent, it would have been dangerous.
"Gak! Gak!"
"Sabina! Are you okay?"
Pandora rushed over worriedly but felt a chill and stopped. Sabina, head bowed, raised eyes cold as ice.
"S-sorry."
"It's fine. You did well. That's how you get better."
As if nothing had happened, Sabina's face shifted into a fake smile. You couldn't show you'd been hit in front of other students—especially juniors.
Pandora, terrified, stammered, "Um… I think that's enough. It helped a lot."
"What? You've already improved this much. Now the real training starts!"
Before she could finish, Dante and Closer lunged. Angry that Pandora had struck back so impertinently, they showed no mercy.
"Alright, Pandora! Take this!"
"Hohoho! Here we go!"
With the three of them determined, Pandora had no way to fend them off. A near-fatal anti-magic strike rocked the Spirit Zone and sent her crashing to the floor.
They didn't stop. They adjusted their power so her gauge would drain as slowly as possible, mercilessly pouring magic on her.
Watching classmates voiced concern.
"Hey, isn't this going too far?"
"This isn't teaching. It's just beating."
Pandora bowed her head and accepted the assault in resignation. She felt so wretched she couldn't even ask them to stop.
Seeing a rival humiliated, Boil clenched his fist. He had a rough personality, but Pandora had worked her way up from Class Ten to get here. He couldn't see why she deserved this.
When Pandora's mental strength hit zero, the bracelet on her wrist lit up. Sabina, unable to continue, stopped and sneered down at her.
"How was it? Helpful?"
Sadness filled Pandora's eyes when she looked up. She knew what had been done to her without anyone needing to tell her.
Still, she forced a smile. If even Dante's group abandoned her, she'd have nowhere left.
"Yes. I learned a lot. Thank you."
"Puhahahaha!"
Closer clutched his stomach and burst out laughing. He'd always known she was naive, but not this naive.
Sabina still hadn't had her fun. At least she wanted Pandora to feel the same humiliation she'd felt from Fire Flower.
"You have to go through this many times to get stronger. Got it?"
"Yeah. I guess I was too weak. Please help me again next time."
"Really? Then hurry up and kneel."
Pandora lifted her head in despair. Sabina's eyes were icy.
"What? Since you lost, kneel and beg. Already forgot the rules?"
Pandora tried to hold back her sobs, but they broke through. Her shoulders shook and she burst into tears.
"Kekekeke! You crying now? Was it that humiliating? For someone weak, you're melodramatic. Hey, everyone, look. Your senior's bawling!"
The juniors turned away in embarrassment. If they were in Pandora's place, just the thought made them shudder.
The teachers realized how serious things had gotten. Sade, especially, intended not to let it slide and walked over. They'd have to hear the story—and discipline would be unavoidable.
Seeing Sade, Sabina realized she'd crossed a line. She must've gotten too excited after picking on a country bumpkin.
But she couldn't show fear. For a student doing well back in Bashka, a warning or two was a badge of honor.
Anyway, the situation couldn't continue, so Sabina tried to defuse it fast.
"What? Can't kneel? Then just get lost. Don't ever look us in the eye again."
"No, no."
Pandora shook her head. It was instinct. If they had even understood her feelings a little, what would kneeling now change?
"I lost. So—"
The moment Pandora bent her knee, someone grabbed her arm. Sade's steps halted and Boil's eyes widened.
"Shirone? Why…?"
Pandora turned in surprise to see Shirone there. He'd never once interfered in Dante's business before.
Shirone passed Pandora and walked up to Dante. The silence stretched longer than expected, but no one felt it was too long. This was their first real clash—and it had taken three months to come to this.
"Why are you doing this?"
Dante snorted. He'd expected some grand declaration from Shirone, but instead it sounded like a trite hero speech.
"What do you mean, 'doing this'? What did we do? We just practiced duels, didn't we?"
"You three attacked Pandora. And you did it when she'd already lost the will to fight."
Sabina covered her mouth and laughed. She thought she could use this to dodge punishment.
"Oh my! Did you like Pandora? This is huge! Even better—confess now…"
"I didn't ask you. We're talking, Dante. Back off."
Sabina flushed at Shirone's bluntness, but Dante didn't care. He thought it best to handle the matter carefully.
"Fine. I'll admit we went too far. But Pandora asked us to teach her and we agreed. That's the whole situation. If you want details, ask Pandora. I'm done."
Dante turned away and Pandora hunched her shoulders.
They were annoying for dumping the blame on her and walking off, but she had been the one to bow first.
"Don't talk nonsense. Who are you to teach anyone?"
Dante's steps froze.
He knew it was provocation, but this time it stung. If he'd chosen his words on purpose, it was a sharp strike.
"What did you just—say?"
"Don't fool yourself. Don't think you're the best just because you beat a few classmates. You can't know one-on-one combat without fighting everyone."
"Haha! That's ridiculous. That's why there's a ranking and records. I've never lost and I crushed the top of the advanced class here. Isn't that enough?"
"You that confident? Then fight me."
The students turned, shocked. Shirone—who'd been like a statue until now—had thrown down the gauntlet for the first time.
Dante's expression wasn't entirely calm either. If this went on, Shirone would look like an apostle of justice and Dante the villain to be toppled. A champion needed a stage worthy of a champion.
"Why should I do that?"
Dante had no intention of giving Shirone what he wanted.
"Think about it. You're the one who's avoided fights until now. And now you want to face me? I'm not the kind of man who picks and chooses when to fight."
"I don't want to force someone who doesn't want to fight. Instead, promise not to bother my friends again."
That line irritated Dante. Shirone treated Dante's most treasured thing—power, the throne everyone desired—as trivial.
"Who did I bother? They all grovel on their own. If you don't like it, you should have stopped me earlier. Don't go getting righteous after throwing away your chance."
Still, under Olivia's orders, Dante was a target too. After a moment's thought he came up with a plan that would restore his pride—and crush Shirone.