"What were you thinking?!"
The loud roar of Alex's voice bood in my head, dispelling all my lingering wooziness from just waking up.
If i wasn't awake before, now i most definitely was.
"Ah, my head..." I held my throbbing head with a frown and tried to cover my ears.
It hasn't been up to five minutes since i ca too. I woke up in the infirmary so ti after the duel, and imagine my disappointnt and horror when i rose to seeing Alexanda's face.
I gritted my teeth and hissed sharply at Alex
"Why are you here?"
"Are you actually insane? Why would you pull sothing like that? What if you got more hurt than you are right now?"
My words easily flew over his head as Alex continued to rant like my mom. At first i was pissed, what gave him the right to nag like that? But then even all of that energy was siphoned in the face of Alex's rants.
A hole of fatigue, despair and suffering was left behind inside of .
"Okay, okay... What even are you talking about?" For now, i decided to skip over the question of why Alex was here.
'If i let him keep talking, I'll definitely be enlightened!' i couldn't see my face, but i was certain of having a despairing expression.
I dryly looked at Alex who had a fierce expression.
"Why did you suddenly challenge Ceres to a duel?"
"Oh that?" I feigned nonchalance.
"Don't feign nonchalance! Why did you do that? You know who she is, right? She's the the strongest first year. What suddenly got into you?"
And once again...
"Oh that? "
I rubbed the inside of my ear and shrugged.
"Just because."
"Y-you...!"
Alex didn't seem satisfied with my response as his face seed to go red.
Well even if i tried to explain it to him, it's not like Alex would believe or understand.
What's with him anyway?
It's not like we're close or anything like that. It might be good will, but i felt his persistence as quite annoying.
"Wait hold on! It must be that..." All of a sudden, Alex perked up and said as i glanced dryly at him.
"What now?"
He leaned in slightly closer, and Alex's eyes glazed with coldness.
"You weren't forced by soone to do it, were you?"
Under such a gaze from him, i barely suppressed my body from visibly trembling.
"Wh-what the hell are you going on about?"
Forced?
Well i certainly wasn't intending on fighting Ceres in a duel, and only did because of the quest.
Hmmm.
Would that count as being forced?
"Did anyone force...or bully you?"
"Ah..." At Alex's words I realised what he ant and made a small voice.
"I see. So that's how it is..."
Alexander's eyes narrowed ominously and he slowly leaned back.
Sothing felt really unsettling and ominous from Alex's behaviour if i let this misunderstanding continue, so i quickly tried to call it off.
"No! No, i wasn't bullied or anything. And would you stop hounding like that, it's becoming really annoying." The best way to brush off Alex's intensity was to be intense myself.
And it worked.
Alex quickly beca remorseful. The dangerous glint in his eyes ceased and vanished, replaced by embarrassnt.
"Ah, well, uh... I'm sorry...?"
Hey, now.
What am i supposed to do if you apologize for showing concern?
Suddenly feeling like the bad guy, i let out a sigh and slumped my shoulders.
"..No. I was too much myself." I scratched the back of my head, "Thanks."
Since it's co to this, Alex at least deserved a reasonable explanation for my recent actions.
'Plus I'm kind of terrified about what he would do to the guys he thinks forced .' i thought grimly with a trickle of sweat down my cheek.
"I was curious." I said.
Alex looked at with a puzzled attention.
"How strong is the strongest student of our year and if... I wanted to know the difference and disparity between us."
I held a handful of the blanket in my fingers and squeezed only slightly. I chuckled dryly and continued.
"Maybe one day I'll be as strong as Ceres. No, I'll be better."
Internally i shrugged indifferently.
I said Alex deserved an explanation, but i said nothing about being honest.
I just put together so sympathetic sounding words to appease to him and get him off my back.
Well they weren't entirely wrong either.
Ceres was strong for my current standards, but she was simply a small wall i would overco soon enough. My reality lay more further and further than Ceres, or anyone else, could imagine.
I turned to my side where Alex was looking at with a gaze of mixed emotions.
'Maybe, Alexander might be the only one who could understand what i an.'
Alex...he too had a fate and destiny much larger and greater than anyone else in the world, including .
"If you put it that way, then i guess i can't mindlessly attack you like that. Although i still think rashly challenging the strongest student and taunting her untop is too reckless! And Ceres too! Couldn't she have gone a little bit easier on you? Look at you?"
As Alex said, i was looking pretty pathetic actually.
The extent of my injuries from the duel were considerable but not life threatening.
A few shattered ribs and broken bones. But to , it was no different than stubbing my big toe against a furniture.
Damage like this no longer held any weight over .
Much less to talk of how I'll be fine in a few weeks or two.
But to Alex and others, i must be looking quite pathetic. Coupled with the manner i was finished off after all of my bravado at the beginning.
One shot.
The match ended in Ceres' overwhelming victory as i was punched into next week.
It's been nearly a day since the duel was concluded and i was only just waking up. My wounds had been attended to while i was still out cold, and now i was currently wrapped in bandages round my torso, arm, and head.
"Uh, it's almost ti for the closing of visiting hours, i should get going." After a while, Alex said as he slowly rose to his feet, his movents held traces of reluctance like he had sothing more to say but couldn't.
"Yeah."
Then Alex promptly said.
"And you too. You should get so rest after this. You really shouldn't think of using the training hall in your current condition."
"I don't know what you're talking about." I glanced away from Alex.
"Don't act like you don't know. In fact, everyone knows you spend more ti in the training hall than your dorm. In fact, i bet if the hall was always available throughout each day, we won't even see you for class."
Alex words began to sound annoying again. I felt the need to shut him up.
"When you stop talking, my wounds stop aching."
Alex went speechless at my sudden at remark and stared with slightly widened eyes at .
I t his gaze blankly without looking away.
Yes, let it sink in...
The burn...
With a deep and heavy sigh, Alex took his leave away from the infirmary.
Sohow, his slumped shoulders looked painfully depressed.
-Cluck!
And by the ti Alexander was gone, a deafening silence filled the ventilated interior of the infirmary.
I wasn't sure oyf there were any other patients or admitted cadets inside aside from , but i could literally hear a pin drop in the emptiness that ensued.
"Finally..." I sighed deeply.
I brushed my fingers through my brown bangs and lingered silently for a few seconds.
"He's gone."
Alex was finally gone, leaving alone with the chance to reflect effectively.
I placed a hand against my bandaged chest. The broken bones and wounds around it thrubbed mildly, even though i had been putting uo a front in front of Alex.
Despite everything Ceres went easy on in the end.
Outright killing a cadet in a duel was strictly against the rules. If Ceres was after my life with that single blow, i at the very least would be crippled right now.
'Damn. Now that i see it, it really was a gamble.'
It made sense why Alex and everyone would think I'm crazy.
But in the end, the gamble paid off nicely.
....
===
[Type:- Survival
Na:- Quest to becoming Stronger
Description:- Challenge the number one student of your year to a duel.
Duration:- ...
Rewards:- 1 instant level up!
Penalty:- ...]
===
[Ding! Quest clear conditions have been t;
-Challenge the number one student of your year (Ceres) to a duel.
-Survive a duel.]
[Ding! Quest reward(s) have been distributed.]
- 1 instant level up [Lvl33 >> Lvl34]
[Ding! You have leveled up! Lvl33 --> Lvl34!]
[You have grown stronger.]
===
...
The quest status completion screen was screen was the first thing i opened my eyes to.
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