Chapter 203: Arrived At The Arena!

The arena in front of them was enormous, capable of holding at least a thousand people in its wide rows of seats. It was shaped like a massive oval, with the seating sections rising higher toward the back and several enclosed viewing tents positioned above them. Their transparent walls gave the people inside an unobstructed view of the entire arena, and judging from their location and privacy, Aisha guessed they were reserved for professors, academy officials, and other people with important positions or identities.

The floor below was made of reinforced combat alloy, its dark metallic surface specially designed to withstand the destructive abilities of Sentinels. Energy-dampening grids had been embedded beneath it as well, allowing the arena to absorb some of the force released during a battle without being damaged.

Several wide holographic screens hovered above the arena, already displaying the four of them as they climbed the stairs toward the raised platform.

Yet, none of that was what caught their attention.

The arena wasn’t empty.

Students had already filled a large portion of the seats, while several professors could also be seen among them. The noise of their conversations drifted across the enormous space, mixed with occasional laughter and excited voices as more people noticed the four students arriving.

Aisha’s steps slowed.

Beside her, Kane suddenly stopped as well, and his face changed the moment he took in the crowd.

"Fuck."

Aisha turned slightly toward him. It was the first time she had heard Kane curse. Sabel’s expression had also hardened, while Vesper’s face twisted with anger as the four of them finally understood what was happening.

They had been deceived!

This wasn’t the private duel between students that they had agreed to, one that would simply be overseen by a professor.

But it had become a spectacle.

Their opponents had gathered everyone to witness their battle as an official duel.

Aisha continued up the stairs, her eyes moving across the packed seats. The holographic screens, the spectators, the professors, even the specially arranged viewing tents made it obvious that this had been prepared beforehand.

Someone had gone through the trouble of turning their duel into an official academy event.

And she already knew exactly who had done it.

Her gaze settled on the middle of the arena.

Corwin and his two companions were already there, waiting for them.

The three stood together as though they had been expecting this moment all morning. Corwin’s posture was relaxed, and the moment his eyes met Aisha’s, a smug smile slowly spread across his face.

He had known.

Aisha’s expression cooled.

Kane stepped forward before she could say anything, his voice carrying clearly through the arena.

"What is the meaning of this?"

Corwin’s smile widened. "What? Is something wrong?"

"You know exactly what I’m talking about." Kane’s hands tightened at his sides. "This wasn’t what we agreed on."

Corwin gave a small shrug, completely unconcerned by the accusation. "It would be such a waste to have a duel like this without anyone watching. So I had my family arrange it. Now everyone gets to enjoy the show."

Aisha’s eyes narrowed. "You changed the agreement."

"Did we?" Corwin’s smile remained in place. "We’re still fighting, aren’t we?"

One of his companions laughed. "If you’re afraid of embarrassing yourselves in front of everyone, you can admit defeat now."

Another joined in, his amusement obvious as he crossed his arms. "We’ll accept it with open arms."

The first student grinned. "Of course, you’ll have to kneel and tell everyone that you don’t want to fight anymore."

Laughter spread from their side, and a few students in the audience joined in after hearing the provocation.

Vesper’s forehead twitched.

His fingers curled into a fist, the veins along his hand bulging as his temper finally snapped.

He took a step forward.

Seeing this, Aisha caught his forearm before he could go any farther.

"Vesper."

"They’re asking for it," he said through clenched teeth, his eyes fixed on Corwin and the others.

"I know."

"Then let me—"

Aisha turned him toward her, keeping her hand firmly around his arm. "Calm down."

Vesper’s chest heaved, but he stopped.

Aisha released him only after making certain he wasn’t about to charge forward again, then looked at the three of them.

There was nothing they could do now.

The spectators were already here, and the academy had clearly sanctioned the duel with Corwin’s family having arranged it with the dean, while their opponents had made certain that backing out would be seen as an admission of defeat. Complaining about the arrangement would only give Corwin another opportunity to ridicule them.

They could either kneel as their opponents demanded or step onto the arena and show everyone why they had accepted the wager in the first place.

"Vesper, you can’t let them provoke you into attacking before the fight starts," Aisha said, her voice remaining calm despite the anger surrounding them. "You’ll get your time to beat them however you want once you step onto the arena."

"But they—"

"Vesper."

Aisha stared straight into his eyes, and the hardness in her gray eyes made him flinch. It stopped him from continuing whatever he was about to say. He gritted his teeth and forced himself to stay where he was.

Kane finally stepped beside him, placing a hand on his shoulder. "She’s right. You can run amok once the fight starts, but not before it."

Vesper’s jaw tightened, yet he didn’t argue again.

Kane then turned toward Aisha.

Inside, he couldn’t help feeling relieved that she had stopped Vesper.

If she hadn’t, he wasn’t sure he would have been able to hold him back either.

He understood what Corwin and the others were doing. They had deliberately provoked them before the duel, hoping they would lose their composure and make a mistake before the actual battle even began.

And for a moment, it had worked. Even he hadn’t been able to get himself to calm down after seeing what their situation had become. And Corwin’s words only made it worse.

Aisha, however, hadn’t allowed the unexpected situation to cloud her judgment. While the three of them had been caught off guard by the crowd, she had already accepted the situation and started thinking about what they could still control.

Kane’s expression became more serious.

They couldn’t afford to lose now.

Not after accepting the wager and going through all the preparations for this day. And certainly not after letting Corwin turn it into something official for the entire academy to watch.

He looked at Aisha, then spoke with a seriousness that made Sabel’s attention shift toward them as well.

Aisha met his eyes.

Kane hesitated for only a moment before asking, "Do you have anything to say to us before we start?"

Sabel’s gaze moved toward Aisha.

So did Vesper’s.

Only then did Sabel realize that Kane wasn’t merely asking for a few encouraging words.

Without anyone saying it outright, they had already started treating Aisha as the leader of their group.

Perhaps it was because she was the calmest among them, or because despite being the quietest of them all, she was the one who made them feel comfortable relying on her. And most importantly, after sparring with her, no one in their group underestimated her because of her rank or because she was a Guide.

Whatever the reason, the three of them were now waiting for her answer.

Aisha raised her eyebrows slightly.

She wasn’t particularly good at giving speeches, and she had no intention of standing here and giving them some grand speech about friendship or victory.

Her mind wandered through several things she could say, but none of them felt right.

Then, an old saying from her previous world suddenly came to mind.

The grannies there used to say that when a child was too disobedient and mischievous, the only way to make them learn was to beat them until they finally understood who their mother was.

It had always been a crude saying.

But looking at Corwin and his companions now, Aisha felt that it suited the situation rather well.

A faint smile touched her lips as she stepped gracefully in front of the three.

"Beat them down until they whine like dogs."