Zone 7
"Which side?" Celeste asked warily, her fingers tightening around the hilt of her long blade.
She had landed one of the worst possible matches, standing face to face with Elizabeth. There was no denying that Elizabeth was an opponent to be reckoned with, and the very idea of crossing swords with her now set Celeste's nerves on edge.
Elizabeth's gaze t hers, calmly, before a small smile tugged at the corners of her lips. "Blue," she answered.
For a mont, Celeste stood frozen, but then, hearing the word, her shoulders dropped, and she exhaled a sigh of relief, loosening her grip on her weapon. "Here I thought I'd have to go all out already."
"You're overestimating ," Elizabeth replied, shaking her head.
Celeste rolled her eyes, a wry smile creeping onto her face. "Oh, please. Spare the humility. I know exactly what you're capable of."
But Elizabeth's serious gaze didn't change. "I'm not joking, Celeste. I'm warier of you than you are of ."
There was no lie in her words. She had seen first hand that small fleeting mont when Celeste faced Alvara. It was a brief mont but she understood at that ti that Celeste had gone through an exceptional growth. "What should we do, then?" Celeste asked, not really taking Elizabeth's praise seriously.
"Hm?" Elizabeth tilted her head slightly, as if unsure where Celeste was going with the question.
"I an, we're in the sa team," Celeste said, gesturing between them with her blade. "Should we team up? Just in case the others appear?"
She didn't need to spell out who 'the others' were. Both of them knew they were up against so of the strongest opponents of their generation.
Elizabeth considered it for a mont, then nodded. "I suppose that's a good idea."
With that agreent, they set off together, walking side by side through Zone 7. It wasn't long before they encountered other students—unfortunate souls who, upon recognizing the monstrous duo of Elizabeth and Celeste, attempted to flee. But there was no outrunning them. Elizabeth's speed, combined with Celeste's raw power, made them a terrifying force. One by one, they caught up to the fleeing students, quickly defeating them and dividing the points between themselves.
"Shouldn't we head to the lower zones?" Celeste proposed after a while. "It might be easier there."
"I've thought about that too," Elizabeth admitted, her brow furrowing slightly. "But people like us… I think we're evaluated differently from the rest. If we take the easier route, it might not reflect well on us."
Celeste nodded thoughtfully. "Hm. You're right. Knowing my father, there's probably so hidden criteria we don't know about."
Elizabeth gave a small smile, but it only made Celeste even more guilty for so reason. They continued walking in silence, but Celeste allowed herself to fall a step behind.
It wasn't like her to be so distant, especially with Elizabeth. Normally, she was the one leading the conversation, cheerful and talkative, always finding sothing to discuss. But now, sothing weighed heavily on her heart, sothing she couldn't shake.
She felt indeed guilty.
The reason for that guilt was obviously Amael.
Celeste's feelings for Amael were undeniable, growing stronger by the second, each ti she spent with him. It was shocking—how drawn she felt to him. But it wasn't just a simple infatuation. Amael wasn't just any boy; he was engaged to one of her closest friends, Elizabeth. From everything she could tell, their engagent wasn't just so political arrangent—it seed to be based on love. They really appeared to care for each other.
And yet…
Sothing about their relationship didn't sit right with Celeste.
She wasn't naive when it ca to matters of the heart. The way Amael and Elizabeth acted around each other… it was too strange. Too awkward for people supposedly in love. It gnawed at Celeste's intuition—sothing was off. And that single seed of doubt, no matter how small, was enough to make her question everything.
Celeste knew Elizabeth better than most, and despite her feelings for Amael, she couldn't ignore the nagging suspicion that the connection between Amael and Elizabeth wasn't as solid as it seed. There was a distance between them, a strange reluctance in their interactions that didn't fit the image of two people madly in love.
In so twisted way, that doubt beca Celeste's justification for continuing to get closer to Amael. She wasn't heartless—she cared about Elizabeth deeply. But if Elizabeth and Amael didn't truly love each other… maybe Elizabeth wouldn't mind.
And then, of course, there was the other complication. Amael already had a fiancée back in Celesta—worse, there were rumors swirling that he had up to eight lovers. Annabelle had all but confird it. The idea of being just one among many should've been enough to make Celeste turn her back on him, to snuff out her feelings once and for all.
But it wasn't.
She tried. She really did. She told herself that she deserved more, that she should find soone else—soone who wouldn't string her along as one of many. But every ti she convinced herself to let go, the mont she saw Amael again, it all disappeared. He was her classmate, after all. They were bound to cross paths. And every ti she did, all the other boys seed like children in comparison.
It was exhausting.
Celeste found a strange happiness in teasing Amael but alongside that thrill ca a profound guilt—guilt toward Elizabeth. What if she was wrong? What if Elizabeth and Amael really did love each other, and she was unwittingly driving a wedge between them? The thought of hurting Elizabeth, of betraying her friend without even realizing it, was unbearable. If that were the case, she would give up on Amael in a heartbeat, without hesitation.
But she needed to know.
"Co on…" Celeste muttered under her breath, clenching her fists in frustration.
She had followed Elizabeth today with the intention of talking to her, of bringing up her suspicions and getting to the bottom of it. But now that the mont had co, she found herself tongue-tied. What could she even say?
How could she possibly ask such a thing? It was too embarrassing, too awkward to even bring up!
And yet, the awkwardness between her and Elizabeth was becoming unbearable. They were friends—close friends—and Celeste hated this growing distance. She only wanted Elizabeth to be happy. After everything Elizabeth had been through, her happiness was the most important thing to Celeste.
"I don't mind."
"Hm?" Celeste blinked, surprised by the sudden declaration. She raised her gaze to et Elizabeth's crimson eyes, her heart skipping a beat. "About what?"
"I don't mind you flirting with Amael. If Amael loves you as well, which I think he very likely does, then I don't mind you becoming his fiancée," Elizabeth said without hesitation.
Celeste's face flushed. "W–What?"
Elizabeth's lips curved into a wry smile. "Not like I have much of a say in the matter, anyway. Go ahead, Celeste. Don't mind ."
Celeste's heart pounded in her chest. "B–But, you love him—"
"I don't." Elizabeth shook her head slowly. "Neither does he. It's… complicated. Our engagent is a formality, nothing more. There's no love involved. In the near future, we might find a way to end it—cleanly, without making waves."
Celeste stood frozen a bit. "Eliza… are you telling the truth? I don't want to be a nuisance, especially not to you..."
Elizabeth chuckled softly. "Why would I lie about sothing like that, Celeste? I've never fallen in love, not in my entire life, and I don't think I ever will."
Celeste's eyes widened. She struggled to respond, but Elizabeth continued.
"So please, don't feel like you have to hold back because of ," she added gently. "If you did, I'd be the one feeling bad about it."
'In truth, I feel more like the third wheel between you two.'
Though she wasn't certain, there was sothing in the way Celeste and Amael interacted, sothing that suggested a mutual love though she wasn't entirely sure about Amael's feelings.
"I see…" Celeste murmured but a small smile tugged at the corners of her lips. Relief washed over her.
Elizabeth couldn't help but laugh. She was too obvious. "You really love him that much, huh?"
Celeste's cheeks turned an even deeper shade of red as she scratched them awkwardly. "W–Well… I do…"
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