Yu Xi looked at him, unreadable for a mont then he said, "Just tell who’s coming."
Jian Ci opened his mouth to answer, but Yu Xi’s communicator chid. A soft reminder blinked across the screen.
"Ah," Yu Xi said, straightening. "Ti to prep for my match."
Jian Ci nodded, stepping back. "Show no rcy. Go show them who is boss."
Yu Xi smirked. "So you admit I am better than you?"
"You are better than ," Jian Ci said, stepping close, "just not when it cos to ch battles. I live and breathe ch battles."
He was all in Yu Xi’s space now, eyes gleaming with challenge. Yu Xi’s grin widened. "Living and breathing ch battles? Sounds exhausting... I just win them."
He turned and walked off, the picture of smug confidence.
Jian Ci stood frozen, mouth slightly open.
"Wow. Just... wow," Jian Ci muttered, dragging a hand down his face as he turned on his heel and strode back into the observation deck.
The mont he stepped in, the room quieted. Conversations died mid-sentence. All eyes turned to him.
He stopped in the center of the room, arms crossed, his voice cutting through the tension like a blade. "Alright. Listen up."
A hush fell. Even the ones who had been laughing earlier straightened in their seats.
"The next person to make fun of my performance," Jian Ci said, his tone deceptively calm, "will get the Harrison treatnt. You will lose in under thirty seconds. Do you understand?"
A low murmur rippled through the room,"Yes," soft, sheepish, and unanimous.
"Good."
They had seen what he was capable of. The only reason Harrison had lasted as long as he did was because Jian Ci had been generous dragging the fight out to rack up more points. If he had wanted to, he could have ended it in ten seconds flat.
Jian Ci walked to the railing, ignoring the way the crowd parted for him. He leaned forward, eyes scanning the arena below.
Yu Xi was entering the field. The cheers were deafening. Students from every division called his na, waving banners, clapping, whistling. And Yu Xi, handso, composed, radiant in his ch suit, walked toward the platform like he owned it.
Jian Ci’s lips curled into a smile. He couldn’t help it. Watching Yu Xi like this, confident, adored, untouchable, made sothing warm twist in his chest.
Then a voice spoke beside him. "There’s a lot of people who want to fuck him, you know."
Jian Ci blinked. Vigil stood next to him, arms folded, his expression unreadable. His tone was casual, almost bored, but his eyes were sharp watching Jian Ci’s reaction like a hawk.
Jian Ci didn’t respond right away. His fingers tightened slightly on the railing. His smile didn’t fade, but it sharpened. "So," he said flatly.
Vigil didn’t flinch. "A lot of espers too," he added, voice casual, almost amused.
Jian Ci turned his head sharply, his glare cutting like a blade. The air between them tightened.
Vigil knew he was playing with fire, but watching Jian Ci off his ga? That was worth the burn.
"Keep talking," Jian Ci said, voice low and cold, "and I will break your neck."
There was no heat in the words. Just a quiet, malicious promise. The kind that made people believe he ant it.
Vigil raised a brow, unfazed. "Why?" he asked, tilting his head. "Why does it bother you so much that an esper might like him?"
Jian Ci’s hand twitched at his side. He was about to move, about to lunge, consequences be damned when a roar erupted from the arena below. Both of them turned.
Yu Xi’s ch stood tall at the center of the platform, erald psi-energy still crackling faintly around its limbs. The red ch, his opponent, was already off the platform, smoking and sparking where it had landed.
Match ti: thirty seconds.
Yu Xi looked up, eyes scanning the observation deck until they landed on Jian Ci. He smirked. It was a slow, deliberate and challenging smile.
Jian Ci’s breath caught for half a second. Elias, who had been watching from nearby, let out a low whistle. "That’s a fight I can’t wait to see," he said, clapping a hand on Jian Ci’s shoulder. "My money’s on you, Ci." Jian Ci smirked, the tension in his jaw easing.
Behind them, Vigil pressed his tongue to the inside of his cheek, eyes narrowing. He didn’t say anything, but the irritation in his posture was obvious.
He had wanted to be the one to reach the finals. To fight Yu Xi. To prove sothing vut even he knew, deep down. that he would never make it past Jian Ci.
***
The ch battles had ended for the day, the arena lights dimd and the roar of the crowd replaced by the low hum of maintenance drones resetting the field. Tomorrow would bring the semifinals and the finals. Tension was already building across campus.
Yu Xi lay sprawled on his bed, one arm tucked behind his head, the other lazily scrolling through the floating screen above him. The forum was ablaze with comntary. Most of it centered on Jian Ci’s... performance issues.
Yu Xi’s jaw tightened. He tapped the corner of the screen, switching to his alt account. The na was untraceable, the profile picture generic. He cracked his knuckles once, then began to type.
The best way to kill a rumor wasn’t to deny it, it was to redirect it. Twist the blade. Make people question the source.
His post was sharp, calculated, and laced with just enough plausible outrage to pass as genuine:
"So let get this straight. So random person just happens to overhear Alarna’s roommate talking about how she hasn’t been laid, and that sohow becos gospel truth about Tenth? Co on. The odds of that kind of gossip leaking? Slim. Unless soone wanted it to leak. Unless soone planted it."
He didn’t na her outright. He didn’t have to.
The implication was clear: Alarna was behind it. She was manipulative, bitter and willing to sar Jian Ci’s na just to get what she wanted.
Yu Xi’s words were elegant, but vicious. He knew exactly how to lace them with venom while keeping his hands clean. He painted her as petty, attention-hungry, and desperate for sympathy. He even added a line about how "so people can’t handle rejection without turning it into a public spectacle."
By the ti he hit post, the thread was already gaining traction. Comnts poured in. So were skeptical, so gleeful, others disturbingly eager to tear Alarna apart.
Yu Xi leaned back, watching the chaos unfold with a cold, unreadable expression.
He didn’t care if his actions were childish. No one got to humiliate Jian Ci. Not on his watch.
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