Chapter 73: The Delusion of Love.

Ruvian looked at the arrogant young boy with white hair and blue eyes as fury burned through his mind.

How dare that pathetic bastard challenge me?

His mind refused to calm down.

Throughout the many years of his life, he had been constantly overlooked, constantly underestimated and even dismissed as pathetic for being talentless and weak.

But he had never cared because despite living in a deep abyss of darkness, he had a light...

Amyra Von Ruinbringer.

She didn’t know how much she meant to him, she didn’t know just how far he was willing to go to have her as his own and she didn’t know how many people he hurt just to get close to her.

Ever since childhood, since the day they first met, she had been the only one who never judged him and treated him normally.

Back then, he had been only five, sitting at a gathering of children his age from all the influential families.

Nobody had even spoken to him, calling him the most incompetent prince of the empire on his face.

But she was different.

She found him sitting alone and talked to him, laughed with him and told him to smile at her silly jokes.

For her, it might not have been much but for him, it became a whole new purpose to keep on living.

He never cared about the throne but he refused to let her become anything less than a queen.

So he pushed himself harder than anyone else.

He trained ten times harder, studied twenty times longer and forced himself to learn skills he himself hated, all so he could become someone worthy to stand beside her.

But naturally, she never returned his feelings.

Still, he didn’t give up and kept trying again and again and eventually with an idea from his friend, Rodrick, he even resorted to an underhanded method and tried framing her brother to force her closer to him...

...but even than failed and she never understood his love.

And now, this bastard, the one who had ruined his first plan, had once again decided to stand in his way and humiliate him in front of her.

As if that wasn’t enough, she had to bow before him because of that pathetic bastard, she had to apologize to him in front of this massive crowd.

How could he let that go?

How could he ever forgive him?

No, he wouldn’t forgive him ever.

Ruvian’s eyes narrowed as a twisted smile appeared on his face.

I will make sure that you suffer just enough injuries to snap your mind back to the right place... after all, I can’t have my future brother-in-law die here.

"This is an Honorable Duel between the second-year student, Ruvian Divus Auremont, currently ranked three hundred and sixty-ninth within the second year and the first-year student, Zenith von Ruinbringer, who is currently unranked."

Just then, the Student Council President’s booming voice snapped Ruvian out of his thoughts as his gaze shifted toward Silas.

"Although an Honorable Duel is ordinarily considered only to the death but because this duel is between two students and especially those of different years, so according to the rules of the Arcanum, it shall not be treated as a life-and-death duel."

"It will end the moment either participant is incapacitated or voluntarily gives up. I also hope that neither of you use any underhanded methods."

Silas then turned toward Ruvian.

"As the challenged party, you have the right to demand any one condition that the challenger must fulfill if he loses."

"So, Ruvian, what do you demand from Zenith?"

Ruvian had already thought about it too damn much.

His eyes moved across the crowd before pausing on the familiar girl with white hair and blue eyes.

Her delicate face was as beautiful as ever but the worry she was trying so hard to hide was painfully obvious and it annoyed him a little to see her like that.

Why did she have to care so much about that pathetic excuse for a brother?

He couldn’t understand it but, in the end he also couldn’t bring himself to do anything that would make her sad as a gentle smile appeared on his face and he spoke the one demand he truly wanted and the one only one that wouldn’t upset her.

"I want him to apologize to me, that’s all. I mean, how could I possibly ask for anything more from my stubborn junior, no matter how arrogant he seems?"

Almost immediately, a hint of relief appeared on Amyra’s face and seeing that, even Ruvian felt a little better.

Silas nodded without another word before turning to Zenith.

"Do you accept that demand, Zenith?"

"Yes."

Zenith answered without the slightest hesitation.

Silas nodded once again.

"Since you have accepted the condition, both of you should now take the Oath of Honour."

They called it an oath of honour in the academy but in reality it was just a soul contract made to resolve the issue of the academy within the academy itself.

It was a mechanism designed to make sure that the dispute truly ended with the duel and once the oath was formed, neither participant could seek revenge over the incident that led to the duel or over its outcome.

"I swear upon my existence that I shall never seek revenge against my opponent over the matter that gave rise to this duel, nor over the outcome of the duel itself!"

Zenith and Ruvian recited the oath in unison and as soon as the final words left their mouths, a thin thread of mana formed between them before merging with their bodies.

"Very well. Now that all the formalities have been completed, I hereby declare this Honorable Duel to have officially begun."

Silas said, stepping out of the opening and.

Immediately in reaction, Ruvian took his sword as its blade erupted in deep crimson flames.

Meanwhile, Zenith merely looked at him with an amused smile, making no attempt to even draw his own sword but that only made Ruvian even angrier.

With one furious roar, he lunged straight at Zenith because it was finally time to teach his unruly junior a lesson.