I'm a Villain in My Own Game?

[Alisha PoV]

Tomorrow's the last day of the tournament, huh?

I've been at this academy for a month now. Have I enjoyed myself? Maybe so — that's probably because I've met some interesting people here.

A letter arrived from my country yesterday...

They said the monster wave had finally been pushed back to the far corners of the country. That gave me some relief, though I couldn't let a small victory make the soldiers there careless.

"Alisha."

Hearing someone call my name, I turned around and saw a blond-haired man walking toward me.

"Brian?"

"Where's your attendant gone off to?" Brian asked me.

"I sent him to take care of something," I answered him.

Leon was picking something up from Duke Alvaro's mansion — we'd received a shipment of goods from our home country.

"Hey, Alisha, do you still remember our deal?" Brian asked again.

Our deal? He meant the one where I'd call off my engagement to Raul if Brian managed to defeat me in the tournament.

"You're still expecting that, huh?" I murmured, somewhat baffled by this man.

"Of course! I'm going to free you from that scoundrel!" Brian shouted, clenching his fist.

"Why are you so confident about that?" I asked him. "Didn't he defeat you and hundreds of other students during the survival exam?"

At my words, Brian's face flushed with embarrassment.

I'd only just learned about that yesterday, after asking a few people around. Truly unbelievable — one man nearly defeating hundreds of others like that.

At first, I'd assumed he'd pulled it off using powerful magic and Nature Mana. But the students told me he'd only used bare hands and physical-enhancement spells.

If I remembered correctly, Valeria had also told me he could use Reject Impact, a spell only a handful of people in this entire world could ever master!

But that spell couldn't be used carelessly, given its side effects — there was no way Raul could have defeated hundreds of people just by mastering that alone.

"That was then, this is now!" Brian shouted, his expression turning serious. "I'm far stronger now than I was before, and I'm going to win this tournament no matter what!"

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Heee~ Quite the strong resolve, it seems...

I found myself curious what would become of this man once I handed him a bitter dose of reality later on. I imagined the sight would be rather entertaining.

While I was chatting with Brian, I suddenly spotted a black-haired man entering the hall alongside a blonde woman.

They looked deep in conversation, the woman smiling brilliantly, as if thoroughly enjoying herself. The black-haired man, for his part, looked relaxed, clearly savoring his time with her as well.

The two of them seemed to be enjoying each other's company as though no one else existed in the room at all.

Were they really always this close?

[Raul PoV]

The next day, I made my way to the arena for the quarterfinals, the tournament's final day. Honestly, this time I had no idea who my opponent would be for the upcoming match.

The bracket arrangement I'd given Instructor Tevaz had only extended through the second round.

That's because the quarterfinal drawing would be done entirely at random. Still, I'd already accomplished every goal I'd set out to achieve in this tournament.

First, winning the bet I'd made with the Lancer Club.

Second, harvesting enough resentment to unlock another ability from my Profound Codex.

Third, eliminating Vlad, who'd been trying to get close to Elena.

And finally, catching Marquis Fran's attention and building a relationship with him. This was crucial for me, to properly execute my plans should war with the Republic ever break out.

Beyond that, I'd also be working closely with him during my upcoming field practicum.

Arriving at the arena, I headed straight for the participant stands. Everyone had already gathered, waiting for the event to begin.

"Ladies and gentlemen! I'm sure you've all been waiting for this moment!"

The announcer began speaking, signaling the event was about to start.

"Today marks the final day of the tournament for this nation's most gifted students!" the announcer declared, raising a fist into the air. "Out of the 36 participants who originally entered this tournament, only 8 remain, competing for the title of the very best!"

The spectators cheered at the announcer's words, shouting out the names of their favorite contenders. Naturally, my name was nowhere among their noisy chants.

"This time, the participants will fight without rest all the way through to the finals! Who will manage to survive to the very end!?"

Ughhh... this announcer talks far too much. Just get on with it already and announce the first match.

The easiest matchup for me would obviously be one of the two remaining seniors, since neither possessed anything remotely overpowered. But if I had to pick a middle ground, facing Leon would probably suit me best.

Facing Elena or Princess Alisha right now would be terrible for me. My chances of winning against either of them, out in this open field, were slim to none.

Facing Brian was purely a matter of luck and plot armor. Given how many Profound Codexes he'd already unlocked, there was no telling when his special ability or plot armor might suddenly kick in.

"Alright, without further delay, I'll now announce the first match!"

Finally, the moment had arrived...

I figured this would be a good opportunity to try out the Redirect technique I'd been training. Even though my success rate for executing it currently sat at only about ten percent, I intended to test it in a real fight.

"Princess Elena de Aragon!"

Well, I certainly didn't want to use Redirect against someone with AoE as powerful as Elena's. Let's hope for Brian's name instead — I was curious whether his plot armor would actually hold up against someone as strong as Elena.

"Facing off against Raul de Garcia!"

F*ck!

Why did I have to be the one fighting her right now? Elena was going to fry me to a crisp with her lightning magic in this match.

"Hey, Raul..."

I turned at the sound of my name being called and saw a blonde woman smiling at me mischievously.

"Let's continue our dance from yesterday, right here in the arena," Elena said, licking her lips. "I can't wait to bully you in this fight ... "

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