Chapter 193: Last Training Before Duel (1)

Aisha hadn’t expected them to come to the residence as well. After making a decision about Zenick’s situation, she thought about contacting them since the matter of the duel couldn’t be postponed anymore.

So, she wanted to discuss the battle strategy with them. Especially now that their instructor was not going to be able to watch over them, the chances of winning fairly would be reduced significantly. ℯℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

"W-we..." Vesper, who had been full of vigor earlier, now started stuttering. He looked everywhere but Aisha while rubbing the back of his neck, unable to find the right words to tell her.

Kane and Sabel were in a similar situation. They couldn’t look Aisha straight in the eyes, feeling guilty for having been upset over a serious matter that must have kept Aisha awake the entire night.

Looking at her, they guessed she must have had a hard time. Her skin looked paler than normal, and the shadows under her eyes were more visible.

"How are you feeling, Aisha?" Kane was the first one to get over his nervousness enough to ask about her well-being.

Aisha seemed surprised at the question, but she smiled and replied, "I feel fine..."

But the moment her smile appeared, the three of them stiffened. In their eyes, that smile was definitely forced and filled with bitterness.

Sabel stepped forward, and after taking a moment to steady herself, she said, "Have you finally found your brother?"

Aisha slowly nodded.

The instant she gave them the good news, the expression of the three people in front of her immediately lit up.

But before they could open their mouths to ask her anything else, Aisha pulled them one by one inside the gate, then closed it behind them before telling them, "It’s better if we talk inside."

She didn’t want to risk anyone from the Association who had been tasked to watch over the house outside overhearing them discussing Zenick’s condition.

Once they were inside the house, Aisha went to the kitchen and brought some drinks for them. Kane and Sabel felt even more awkward when they received the drinks and couldn’t bring themselves to even take a sip. Meanwhile, Vesper had already finished two cups out of extreme nervousness.

"The duel tomorrow... What do you think we should do?" Aisha started the conversation out of nowhere, startling them. "Instructor Valaerion might not be able to attend, so we need a plan to win."

Kane placed his untouched glass on the table and said, "With the instructor gone, it would be difficult for us to win, you know that, right? They have one of the deans on their side."

Of course, that had been the reason why Aisha approached and asked Zeke for a favor.

Unfortunately, Zeke might not be able to keep his promise. Not after what had happened to him.

"Then, what do you think we should do?" Although she had already thought of different strategies to use during their battle, Aisha wanted to listen to what they wanted to do first.

Sabel and Kane exchanged glances before Sabel looked at Vesper. "He’ll fight first while we will propose a one-on-one duel, but whoever wins will stay on the arena and fight the second opponent. Vesper can fight against two of them. Although it is unclear how he will win both duels, it should buy us some time and give us more chances to win."

This was something they had discussed afterward.

"And you think they’ll agree with that arrangement?" Aisha looked at Sabel.

Sabel smiled bitterly. Kane and Vesper, who sat on either side of her, fell silent as well.

"Although that plan is perfect for us and gives us more leverage in an ordinary battle, they wouldn’t accept it so easily." Aisha looked at each of them and continued, "And the moment they do accept it, it will no longer be a simple battle between students. They’ll do anything to make Vesper unable to fight the next opponent... or even forever."

Aisha knew the type of people who thought cowardly like this. She had come across a lot of them when she was forced to fight a group of scavengers all by herself. Thus, she knew that the moment they proposed a different one-on-one battle from the previous one, it would be met with refusal or, worse, a far more terrible solution to keep them from winning.

Vesper had long become a well-known figure in the school. Their opponents had long treated him as an eyesore.

So, in this battle, not only would this be an opportunity for them to humiliate Vesper in front of everybody, but they might also use underhanded means backed by the dean to render him incapable of fighting.

And that concerned Aisha more.

Of course, none of this had occurred yet. But Aisha’s extensive experience had made her wary of everything. She was just very vigilant about anything that would give her a huge disadvantage. They were too young to see what she could.

"But that doesn’t mean your plan won’t work at all."

Aisha cast a deep glance at them and finally revealed an alternative to their plan.

"You just need to let me fight first."

The only way to keep Vesper from being unexpectedly harmed was for her to step forward and take his place to fight first.

However, neither of the three spoke first to agree with her plan.

Vesper’s frown deepened as he took another sip from his third cup.

Finally, he set the cup down with a ’clink’. "I’ll fight at the start."

Before Aisha could say something to convince him not to, Kane and Sabel quickly chirped in and supported his decision as well.

"Don’t worry, Aisha. Vesper can take care of himself. I’m sure he wouldn’t allow himself to become those bastards’ punching bag." Sabel assured her while elbowing Vesper in the side, causing him to whelp.

Kane nodded in agreement. "That’s right. Vesper might not be smart enough to think of a plan while fighting them, but he’s strong enough to take care of his opponents."

This scene caused Aisha to fall into deep thought. She felt that they were doing this to protect her. She then calmly took a couple of breaths.

Still, that didn’t make her one bit relieved. She glanced at Vesper for a moment, her eyes darkening as a thought crossed her mind.

Should I just tie Vesper up before he steps into the arena and take his spot?

Vesper blinked at her and smiled stupidly, unaware of her hidden plot.

In the end, she decided to step back and let them have their way.

"Alright..."