The Extra of The Lunerra-Chapter 381 Volume VI - 14: Arena of the Academy

*(A/N: Yeah... Yeah... I know... I will not say anything from now on. I'm just tired... and I feel like you're tired of this too. So... no 'long' notes from now on. If I know in advance that I need to take a break, I will announce it. I just didn't have any opportunity this time. But you can join the discord server if you want. I will try to make announcements from there from now on. Or one of my friends can also do that. Sorry... once again. And, hopefully, I will upload daily for three days.)*

*******

"You're crazy."

"Oh, thanks for the compliment."

Julian paused, his eyes twitching.

"I don't think you heard what I said...?"

"No, I heard it loud and clear."

"Haaaah..."

He sighed deeply, leaning back and staring at the ceiling as if questioning his life.

I kept my smile, quickly glancing at the others I was in the same room with.

Adrian, Lucia, Celine, Sue, and even Alysia. They were all in front of me. We were in the same room where we always met in our first year.

And we were here for one thing.

The challenge I presented to Jack and Cassandra yesterday. Or rather... something I mentioned at the time.

"What you're doing is... very dangerous, Aiden. Especially politically."

"How, for example?"

"Because the academy is largely made up of nobles! And you threatened them all... And not only that, you're trying to bring them all under you!"

Julian looked at me for a few seconds, silently... without saying anything.

"You... You already know..."

I widened my smile.

"I meant everything I said, I have my own plans for the future. And no one should stand in my way. So I want to prune all the thorns in my foot from the very beginning. That's what I'm trying to do."

I ran my eyes over everyone again.

"And for that, for a very obvious reason, I need you guys."

I broke my smile slightly this time, but I didn't keep a completely cold expression either. I just... wanted to be a little more serious.

"Like I said, you don't have to stand next to me. I'm not forcing anyone to be with me. But... I don't want you to be my enemy. That's why I specifically asked for this meeting, to talk to you, the people I know best in the academy."

I took my cane between my two hands and took a deep breath.

"Be with me, please. Not just now... Not just in this academy. Afterwards, always. Stay as my friends... okay?"

Adrian was the first to speak. With a smile on his face.

"There's nowhere else I can go."

Then Sue...

"I'm with you."

Then Celine.

"You didn't have to ask."

Lucia.

"I wasn't planning on joining any group... but if it's you, sure."

My eyes stayed on Julian for a while. He seemed to be thinking, a serious expression on his face.

He was thinking not only about himself but about his future and his family.

But then...

"Okay, okay... whatever. I'm also in."

And finally... Alysia.

I... actually don't even know why she's here. I thought she would simply... ignore me and not join any group.

Especially considering how she ignored me the last time we spoke.

But now that she's here, she must have something on her mind... probably.

"Are you sure?"

"About what?"

"That you can take on the entire academy."

"If I have enough support... why not? I'm not the question, Alice. The question is... will you help me? I know, the last time we met, things didn't... go well. But the past doesn't have to affect the present, does it?"

Alysia was silent for a while. Then, after some time, she sighed.

"Fine."

Huh... really?

Strange... very strange, indeed. I didn't think she would accept...

And yet...

"Thank you, all of you."

It feels good... that they all chose to support me.

"You won't regret it. I promise you won't."

*******

I gently brought the spoon to my mouth. The sauce on my tongue, the meat that felt like it was melting in my mouth, the freshness and flavor...

Everything about this dish was perfect.

So much so... Sue's words from earlier came back to me. She'd tried everything, but everything was ordinary.

Is this ordinary now...?

That's not possible. This is some of the best food I've ever had in my life...

"Are you really going to finish it in the arena?"

I dipped my fork into the plate again, then took another bite.

"Yeah. There's no secret game. Maybe they will try a thing or two in the future."

I paused for a moment.

"Well, knowing them... they will. But I will also be prepared."

Sue was silent for a while, both hands on her chin, watching me eat her food.

"But... can you really do it? I know how strong you are, but..."

"Don't worry, there won't be any problems."

Sue sighed deeply, then stretched slightly.

"If you say so..."

Then she fell silent again. I continued eating, and when I finally finished my plate, I smiled.

"Fight..."

Sue raised her eyebrows slightly at my words.

"Do you want to fight?"

And with that, she stayed where she was.

First, her eyes narrowed, then she dropped her hands under her chin to the table.

I wasn't talking about the arena, and she knew it. She would be too weak for who Jack and Cassandra would throw at me.

I was talking in general.

"Yes. I... I don't want to sit idle when I have such skills. I... I want to be useful."

I smiled before she started to speak again.

"As long as it's your decision, Sue, that's fine. If that's what you really want to do... no one has anything to say, like I said before. But..."

I slowly lowered my smile, putting on a more serious expression.

"Fighting may not be for you. You can try really hard but... you may simply fail. If you realize you're struggling, if you think it's too much for you... don't push yourself. Okay?"

Sue lifted her dark blue eyes and fixed them on mine. She was silent for a while, just waiting. Then... she nodded slightly.

"Okay."

And so I smiled again.

"Well... first of all, learn how to use your skills better. And pick a main weapon. I think you used a wand, I seem to remember something like that... if you feel close to it, focus on it a bit."

She nodded her head softly. She didn't object to anything I said.

So, after a few not-very long pieces of advice... she had a few ideas in her head about what she could do.

And now that my meal was finished, it was time for me to leave.

"We'll talk again in the evening. For now... see you."

"Bye."

,I got up from the table, grabbed my cane, and headed for the door. But then something caught my attention, something in the corner of the room.

"Huh, you know how to play a guitar?"

Sue curled her lips up slightly before answering.

"I've been practicing lately because I've been so bored... it's no big deal."

Oh...

"Give us a concert sometime, then. It might be good for the study group... When you get to the point where you feel confident, at least."

She nodded gently again, her eyes traveling over the guitar in the corner of the room. And finally... I went out.

*******

Even after Aiden left the room, I couldn't take my eyes off the guitar in the corner of the room.

I slowly got up from my chair, took the guitar from the corner, and sat on the couch.

Actually... I already knew how to play the guitar. It was one of the countless things I tried as a child. But like most things, I had given it up when I realized that I wasn't overly talented at it, and only recently I had picked it up again... That was it.

My fingers moved across the strings, reflexively playing a melody that any beginner knows quite well.

My fingers moved between the frets, I continued for a few seconds without thinking about what I was playing... at the end, though, I paused and sighed.

Ode to Joy.

It had a very simple rhythm, was not elaborate, and was easy to play. I could play more complicated things than that, but still... every now and then, it would come to me and I would play it without thinking.

I left the guitar in my lap and leaned back, my eyes fixed on the ceiling for a brief moment.

Fighting, battling... using my skills.

I couldn't help clenching my fist.

I want to do it... I really do.

So... I will do it.

*******

Thursday evening, the end of the time I gave Jack and Cassandra.

I was waiting in the very center of the arena, my cane in my hands... simply sitting on a chair.

I was surrounded by people. It felt like this even though the arena was huge and the stands were far away from me... There were students everywhere, from all the years at the academy... even adults.

And even people who weren't here would be watching. I was sure there would be dozens of live streams.

And the person in the center of everyone's attention... was me.

I slowly raised my arm, checked my watch.

It was half past eight in the evening. No one else had class, which meant Jack and Cassandra were already prepared and should be here soon... at least if they were going to accept my challenge.

I lowered my arm, kept waiting, ignoring the noise of the crowd and everything else, just... standing where I was.

After a few minutes... I saw some people on the opposite side of the arena, coming out of the brightly lit corridor between the stands, slowly approaching me.

A smile appeared on my face. I slowly got up from my chair, supported by my cane, and took an upright posture.

It was just as I expected. Jack and Cassandra were at the front, with... a lot of students behind them. Most of them were third graders, but there were a few fourth graders as well.

"Welcome."

With my words, the voices from the stands were mostly silenced as if everyone was focused on me.

Jack and Cassandra stopped just in front of me. They both had serious looks. However... I could see Jack smiling a little, but he was not the first to speak. It was Cassandra.

"You can still back out of this, Aiden."

Her gaze was sharp. She wasn't looking at me as an enemy... but simply as an insignificant person.

"It's never too late."

I widened my smile before answering.

"You really don't mind losing face, huh?"

I turned my eyes to the third and fourth graders standing behind him. Briefly examining each of them, but not dwelling too much on any of them.

"You really brought everyone, hahaha..."

Cassandra's eyes narrowed. She had realized that I wasn't going to back down, that she couldn't afford any more empty words.

"You said you were bringing two more people... I don't see anyone?"

"Oh, they'll be here soon... don't worry. I didn't want to keep them ready in case you were afraid to come."

I paused for a moment, turning my head slightly back to look toward my side of the corridors between the stands.

"Aha, here they come."

And as I uttered those words, two figures emerged from the corridor into the center of the arena.

One had his spear in his hand, his emerald green eyes sharp. His silvery hair rippled slightly with each step he took. His eyes were not even on his enemies, they were only on me... as if waiting for what I would say. He didn't seem to care about other details.

The person next to him was... very different from him. Her shoulder-length blonde hair shimmered in the lights of the arena, and her blood-red eyes were fixed on Jack and Cassandra, unlike the one walking next to her. Her simple sword hung at her waist, but she seemed ready to take it out at any moment. She seemed more resolute than ever.

Adrian and Lucia walked side by side until they were right behind me. When they stopped, I turned around again and smiled.

"You're ready, right? This might be a long night."

Jack and Cassandra looked at each other for a brief moment. They waited for a while as if they could speak in their minds. Then they turned back to me.

"Let's begin."

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