Chosen By The Lover's Constellation-Chapter 83: Names, Part Twelve

As Enverna walked away, Lianna let out a deep breath.

Tension wrapped itself around her, making the already chilly air in the artificially cooled stadium feel downright freezing.

The worst part was that even if Enverna won, all that would guarantee was that the president would not die.

What would happen to Zura, though?

[Getting that amulet off her would probably be pretty easy. All I’d have to do is say "hey, can I look at that?" Take it, and run away. The problem is, then I’ll get blown up. I need to find the person waiting to activate it.]

How exactly she’d do that was a question Lianna had no answer to.

The more she thought about it, the more hopeless the situation seemed.

[Agh! I mean, depending on how that thing works, there’s a chance the amulet isn’t even being operated by someone who’s here. The description didn’t specify a distance that the person would need to be at to activate it. They might just be able to activate that thing from home if they want!]

A few desperate solutions bloomed in Lianna’s mind.

She could stand up, walk around the stadium, and inspect every single person’s status there, just to see if she’d find the owner of the amulet by accident, but the odds were certainly not in her favor.

She could tackle Zura, pry the amulet off her, and hope she could throw it away before it exploded, but if the person who was waiting to blow it up had their finger on the button as that happened, Lianna would be throwing her life away.

She could ask around to see if any mages here could help her out, but, given that Lianna wasn’t able to simply tell Zura about the amulet’s hidden ability, she guessed that this would go against the stipulations The Lover gave her.

[The more I think about this, the more I feel like there’s no way this ends without someone getting blown up.]

"Quite the spectacle we’re about to witness. Keep that chin up."

Lianna looked up and was rather surprised to see the administrator there, holding a bottle of water in front of her. She figured after the way their Support tourney participation ended, the administrator would leave, wanting to put this whole thing behind her.

Instead, she sat down next to Lianna.

"Um... You’re still here," Lianna couldn’t help but point out.

"Oh? Does my presence repulse you? Don’t worry, I’ll go."

"N-No! I was just surprised, is all."

"I know, I was just messing with you."

The leader of the Watchful sat down with crossed legs and a satisfied smile on her face, her eyes roaming the arena.

[Maybe I could ask her what to do.] Lianna’s brows shot up. [Actually, now that I think about it, even though I couldn’t tell Zura, I was able to tell Enverna. Maybe... Maybe it’s just that I can’t tell Zura specifically, but I can tell everyone else.]

Because she felt like she had no other choice, Lianna decided to try and test the waters. If she couldn’t do it, The Lover would likely flash the quest message again.

So, she threw out:

"Hey, um, admin..."

"That might be the most casual way someone has attempted to begin a conversation with me in a while. Hehe, what is on your mind?"

"If someone had, say, an amulet around their neck that was about to explode, what would you do?"

"That is... oddly specific."

"Humor me," Lianna shrugged.

"Well," the administrator leaned back, "I’d probably take it off them."

She gave Lianna a little smile like she should have thought about that on her own.

"I-I mean, yeah, but what if it explodes!?"

"Well, I’d say ’I would live with that’ but I probably wouldn’t have to, would I?"

Lianna blinked.

"Um... Fair enough."

---

{Enverna}

In the lockers, Enverna got ready.

Given that Lianna had managed to keep all of her items and abilities in the simulation, Enverna felt a bit of comfort knowing she’d get to keep Storm.

With its back end kissing the ground, Enverna murmured a quick prayer to Saren for success just as the announcer called for the contestants to come out.

As the others exited the room, Enverna noticed Zura was still in there with her.

That amulet Enverna had been told about by Lianna was still weighing heavily on her mind. Zura, carefree, went to leave.

"Wait," Enverna called out. "Um, about your amulet..."

"What? You mean this?" Zura showed it off.

"Yes, I-"

"Indeed," a third voice spoke up. "You’re intrigued by its design, are you not? Such a carefully constructed accessory."

Both women turned and found a short girl with bobbed, white hair and red eyes looking back at them. She had a mischievous smile on her face and wore simple, black, leather armor, with no weapons on her person, though she could simply be keeping them in her Inventory.

Enverna was most struck by the way in which she was being looked at. The girl was staring right through her heart.

It was as though she were daring her to keep talking.

"Yeah, it was a gift. For good luck, though it hasn’t exactly gotten me any," Zura muttered before she simply walked away.

"..." Enverna quietly went to follow her out of the lockers, but the girl stuck a hand out, stopping her.

"I can’t exactly just let you leave after what you’ve seen," the girl giggled. "Sorry. I don’t know how you realized what that amulet does, but it’s my job to see to it that the day’s proceedings aren’t interrupted. Goodbye."

Out of nowhere, a rapier materialized in the girl’s arms.

One with its tip quickly aimed at Enverna’s neck.

Without a word, she lunged forward. Enverna’s instincts kicked in, and she managed to deflect the initial strike with her spear, due only to the fact that she’d been carrying it out of her Inventory.

The clang of metal echoed in the confined space as Enverna pushed back, creating distance. However, the girl moved with an unnatural grace, swiftly closing the gap.

Enverna desperately parried and blocked the razor-sharp strikes of the girl’s rapier. Each clash sent vibrations through Enverna’s arms, threatening to loosen her grip.

Sweat dripped down Enverna’s forehead, stinging her eyes as she focused on the intricate dance of blades. The last time she was put to the test like this was when she, Lianna, and Mel faced that Greater Fiend in the cavernous ruins.

Enverna’s {Cascade} flickered to life, a lifeline in this desperate situation. With a surge of energy, she activated the ability, coating Storm in water.

As Storm sliced through the air, it left behind a liquid trail, a visual testament to the enhanced damage it could inflict. Enverna’s movements became more fluid, and she attempted to exploit the advantage granted by Cascade. However, the girl adapted, skillfully evading the liquid trails with a dancer’s grace.

Enverna’s movements became a dance of survival, each step calculated to avoid the razor-sharp tip of the rapier.

The cramped quarters, however, worked against her; there was little room for her to maneuver.

The mysterious girl pressed on, exploiting the limited space to her advantage. Enverna could feel the pressure building.

She twisted, trying to gain some leverage, but the girl’s relentless assault pushed her back against the lockers.

Sweat trickled down Enverna’s forehead as she fought to maintain her ground. The fear in her eyes mingled with determination, reflecting the realization that she might not make it out of this encounter unscathed.

This girl was clearly no rookie.

Just as Enverna felt her strength waning, the locker room door swung open with a sudden force.

Lianna stood in the doorway, her eyes wide with alarm as she took in the intense confrontation. Without hesitation, she leaped into action.

"Enverna!" Lianna’s voice cut through the tension, a blend of concern and urgency.

The mysterious girl, momentarily distracted by Lianna’s entrance, hesitated in her attack.

Enverna seized the opportunity, kicking her back.

The blow was empowered by the sudden activation of her and Lianna’s proximity buff. The newfound strength clearly caught the girl off-guard, as Enverna managed to create some distance between them.

Lianna, quick on her feet, scanned the situation.

"What the hell is going on here?" she demanded, her eyes darting between Enverna and the girl.

The mysterious girl regained her composure, her gaze shifting from Lianna to Enverna.

"Just a little misunderstanding, nothing to be concerned about," she replied, a hint of malice in her tone.

Enverna, catching her breath, glanced at Lianna, silently pleading for her to stay on guard. Lianna, perceptive as ever, maintained a protective stance.

The mysterious girl’s lips curled into a smirk and before Lianna could say anything else, the girl said:

"I believe our business is concluded," she said, putting her rapier back in her Inventory. "I’ll be heading out first."

"Like hell you will," Lianna replied angrily. "You-"

"Ah, ah, ah," the girl then produced a detonator, one that came out of her Inventory. Both Lianna and Enverna fixed their eyes on her right thumb, hovering dangerously over the button. "You wouldn’t want to... accelerate the process, would you?"

Before leaving, she leaned in close to Enverna’s ear, her words sending a shiver down Enverna’s spine.

"If you try to warn Zura again, both of you will pay the price."

With that ominous warning, the girl sauntered out of the locker room, leaving a bewildered Enverna and a horrified Lianna in her wake.