In another arena, similar to how it was for Alden, a brown-haired boy stood.
This arena was designed not in a battlefield but in a modern devastated city. Many broken skyscrapers and abandoned vehicles were there.
Aziel stood in the centre.
His expressions were serious, unlike his usual goofy ones.
Opposite him stood a beautiful girl with shimring brown hair and green eyes. She looked very delicate.
Her calm green eyes were scanning Aziel with mischief.
Aziel's heart thumped every ti he looked at her.
How could it not?
He had a crush on that girl ever since he was a kid.
Cecilia Duskwood.
Man, why did it have to be her?
He cursed in his mind.
He didn't want to fight her.
But fate worked in strange ways, putting him against her of all people.
Cecilia, on the other hand, sported a playful expression.
She had known Aziel since her childhood. They were from the sa city after all.
The guild run by Cecilia's father was situated in Emberhold, the capital city of Pyrelis.
Pyrelis was the state ruled by the Ignaris family.
Hence, Aziel and Cecilia were well acquainted from childhood.
But Aziel always ran away whenever she tried to talk to him; hence, she teased him a lot about that.
He had talked much to her since they arrived at the academy.
Making excuse after excuse, dodging her ssages, and running away whenever she ca close.
Not because he disliked her.
It was quite the opposite.
He liked her from his childhood.
But that was the problem.
Cecilia was a prodigy.
And Aziel?
'I am just a loser.' This thought has been rooted in his mind ever since he was a child.
He was anything but a loser, it was just that he had always been compared with his sister, who was a prodigy.
'I don't deserve her...'
She won't be happy with soone like .
She doesn't even like …
At least, that's what he told himself….
These negative thoughts were the main reasons he was avoiding her.
He didn't want her to be seen with a loser like him.
But unbeknownst to him.
Cecilia had feelings for him as well. She had seen Aziel since childhood. She loved him more than he could imagine.
Her every teasing…
Her every action…
She wanted his attention.
She wanted him to focus on her only.
She knew Aziel had feelings for her as well.
She knew if she proposed to him first, then he would reject her, as he still believed he was inferior and not worthy of her.
So she was waiting for him to finally tell her how he felt. But that day never ca in the original novel, as Aziel died before anything could happen between them…
"Hey Az, missed …" She said with a playful smile, enough to daze Aziel for a mont.
Aziel was flustered for a mont as his mind blanked.
Cecilia loved that expression of his… 'Tch…only if he wasn't so dense... and just accept his feelings already.
"You have forgotten ever since you got your new friend, huh?" She said in a dramatic expression… "If you continue to ignore , you will make cry…"
"I— It's nothing like that, Cecilia.... I was just…" He shuddered. "I was just busy."
"Right, busy ignoring , you an?" She said with a pout.
"It's not like that…" He tried to respond, his eyes darting towards everywhere but her.
"Right," she said with a pout. "Too busy to even reply to my ssages?"
"Or busy enough to have dates with so unknown beautiful won, huh?" Her voice turned slightly serious.
Aziel's body suddenly shivered at her question. 'Shit, how did she know?'
He couldn't find any excuse for that.
"You're an idiot, you know that?" Cecilia sighed, but her expression softened.
He blinked. "Huh?"
"You've always been strong, Az. Even if you don't see it yourself."
She spoke as she raised her bow.
"Now, let's see if you were busy with training or just running away from ."
"Alright," he exhaled calming his mind down.
"Don't cry when you lose, though." A small smirk appeared on his face…
"We'll see about that." Cecilia giggled softly.
Ariel's katana ignited with flas as he dashed towards her.
He was fast.
Moreover he even let out a small burst of flas from his feet, boosting his speed further.
Cecilia stepped back gracefully, her movents fluid as she notched an arrow.
She didn't shoot imdiately.
She knew Aziel was fast.
Instead, she infused her arrow with wind mana, subtly adjusting its trajectory.
Aziel slashed upward. sending a wave of fire toward her.
Cecilia, however, twisted midair, dodging elegantly as her arrow finally left the bowstring.
Aziel barely managed to deflect it.
But just as he relaxed—
Another arrow ca from an impossible angle.
He ducked, narrowly avoiding it. "You're cheating," he huffed.
Cecilia could alter the trajectory of her arrows up to so extent with the help of her wind magic.
"It's not cheating, it's my skill." Cecilia grinned.
The fight continued in a delicate balance. Your next read awaits at My Virtual Library Empire
Aziel never aid to harm her, and Cecilia made sure her arrows wouldn't cause serious injury.
It was less of a fight and more of a dance… a dance of flas and arrows.
Aziel was happy…. He was reminded again how much he liked being with Cecilia.
A small determination started to form within his heart.
Maybe…. Just maybe… I can try…
I can grow stronger…
And one day I will finally propose to her.
I am not going to give up…
Aziel was also influenced by Alden's action.
Aziel's family loved him, but…. he was always compared to his sister.
Ever since he t his friend, he has changed.
Everyone had known about Draven's family's illegitimate son, Alden.
He had seen Alden never give up despite discrimination from his family, so why should he give up?
No, he wasn't going to give up anymore.
He was going to get stronger and reveal his feelings to Cecilia.
A small determination fired up in his heart.
____
There battle continued for a while.
No matter how hard Aziel fought, Cecilia was just better.
Her arrows always found their way past his defences, and even though she held back, she slowly chipped away at his stamina.
Aziel breathed heavily, sweat dripping down his brow.
His flas flickered; his katana was feeling heavier.
Cecilia looked at him with a soft smile. "It's over, Aziel."
He knew that.
But he didn't feel frustrated.
He smiled.
"You win," he admitted, falling to his knees.
Cecilia walked over and extended a hand. "You fought well."
Aziel took it, shaking his head with a grin. "You didn't even try to hurt ."
"Perhaps I might like you, who knows?" She said with a teasing smile.
Aziel's heart skipped a beat.
He knew she was just teasing, but…he couldn't help it.
'Tch, how many signals do I have to give this dense guy?' Cecilia thought. 'He truly is hopeless.'
Before Cecilia could say anything else, Aziel gave up, and for the first ti in his life, he responded to her teasing….
"Perhaps I might like you as well, who knows?"
Cecilia's mind blanked as a blush appeared on her face…
Aziel didn't see it, as he was already transported to his next match due to his resignation.
"Dummy…" She said in a frustrated voice, but a smile was present on her face.
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