Chapter 42: Battle


    My injuries quickly healed within a few days. The bruises were slightly noticeable by then.


    Instructor Gills left our ss for self-studies until the sports festival. I assumed it was for training


    herself. At the same time, the special event where I would face off against Instructor Gills became hot


    news from posters of the bout being seen all over campus.


    "Arielle! You are facing Instructor Gills?" Charlotte asked as she badgered me early in the morning


    three days after I challenged Instructor Gills.


    "It just so happened."


    "Isn''t this a bit rash?" Charlotte said worriedly.


    "I will be fine."


    I will be fully recovered with two more days of rest. Afterwards, I will go back to intense training.


    "Still, it is a special event, right? I hope that you will let me help you with your attire and makeup."


    "It is not a ball, Charlotte. I going to battle."


    "A girl should still look her best at all times."


    The sports festival was suddenly under its way. I was exempted from doing any particr event for my


    ss for the main event.


    I was soon dressed in a silver breastte armor with my midriff showing, a long double slit maroon


    colored skirt with silver faulds on the sides, sabatons, greaves, poleyn, cuisse, and matching silver


    gauntlets on both arms.


    I felt awkward about my midriff and my thighs being shown, but they offered the most ess to


    movementpared to other armors that I was presented with. I tied my long hair high up and tied up


    the metal headpiece over my head.


    Before I headed into the arena, a long shadow was waiting for me at the end of the hall.


    "Are you here to stop me, Your Highness?" I asked him.


    He simply kept his arms folded and his back leaned against the wall and turned his head slightly


    towards me.


    "...I suppose that you do not need any words of encouragement?" he asked with a worried look on his


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    face.


    After his confession, he had left me alone for a while. Only now does he show up. I liked how he


    respected my space. That has not changed since our first lives.


    "It won''t be long," I answered with a smile as I walked past him.


    The arena was a five-foot-high stage with a diameter measurement of eighty-six meters across and


    fifty-four meters wide.


    I was the first to arrive onto the prepared stage before Instructor Gills.


    Loud cheering erupted from the stage when Instructor Gills appeared with her form fitted breast


    breastte and her even more revealing clothes.


    She licked her lips before she said, "This will be fun."


    The announcer blew their whistle.


    Instructor Gills suddenly took the first sh. I jumped back and missed by a hair. She came back with


    another sh from the other side. The second iing sh had scratched my breastte. I quickly


    jumped back fourrge steps.


    "That sword doesn''t have a blunt edge..."


    "Oh? You noticed?"


    "That is a clear vition of the rules," I said.


    "You won''t turn me in, won''t you?" Instructor Gills said.


    "...No."


    "I thought so!"


    She came at me again. This time she was more aggressively attacking me. Our continuous bout


    consisted of me constantly on the receiving end of her attacks. My blunt sword was slowly bing


    chipped from my rough handling.


    "Why do you detest me Instructor Gills? Ever since I walked in, you have always gone out of your way


    to heavily discipline me."


    "I hate pretty girls like you born with status and people that love you. You yourself do not realize how


    privileged you are and that incurs the hate of every female around you. It''s only natural that some of us


    want to see your destruction!"


    I suppose this is why Kaya Ouchi and so many people targeted me. Honestly, it could have been


    anyone. It did not have to be Instructor Gills, Randall, or even Kaya Ouchi. My whole existence was a


    liability.


    I am a burden...I was a burden to Erik. That is why I cannot forgive myself for being a burden to him a


    second time.


    I finally went on the attack.


    "I will not admit defeat to you or to anyone else! This is my life. For that person, I will be the strongest!"


    My sword was on its breaking point.


    I sessfully knocked Instructor Gills off her feet and her sword out of her hands. The sword flew high


    into the air and fell near the edge of the stage and pierced halfway down. I pointed the tip of my sword


    towards her neck.


    I won.


    "Congrattions on winning, Lady Arielle," Prince Erik said as he pped his hands and walked


    towards me. "We have a victor! Arielle Ira Maddox!"


    I raised my chipped sword in the air above my head in a triumphant manner.


    A rain of praises and shouts of my name erupted throughout the stadium.


    Just then, my sword had given out and broke in half.


    "Ah..."


    The crowd quickly became silent.


    Prince Erik quietly walked over to Instructor Gills'' sword and pulled it out from the stage. He held the


    de up for everyone to see.


    "This is not a dull de as you can all see! For what should have been a fun event was actually a show


    of Instructor Gills tormenting her student knowing full well she was given a dull de. Have you no


    shame, Instructor?" Prince Erik said coldly.


    "No, Your Highness..." Instructor Gills pleaded.


    "I will inform the Academy of your immediate dismissal," Prince Erik said.


    Instructor Gills quickly made her exit.


    The sight of her leaving like this was rather pitiful. I wanted her to lose her pride as my instructor by


    defeating her in arge crowd. She would be transferred to a different ss and learn her lesson about


    not mistreating another student again. All this incident would be teaching her is shame and the loss of


    her career.


    It was already difficult enough to earn a teaching degree as a woman and get hired in the capital. She


    will have to change her name and move far from the castle now.


    There was too much evidence against her. The most obvious one was the state of my sword. The


    second was how deep the Instructor''s sword stabbed through the stage. The third piece of evidence


    were the scratches on my armor.


    "I''m sorry," Prince Erik mouthed to me.


    I tossed my broken sword aside and left the stage. This was probably the most unwanted victory I ever


    received...


    The next day, I met Instructor Gills on her way to depart in her horse drawn carriage.


    "Are you here tough at me?" she asked.


    I handed her a letter.


    "It is a letter of rmendation to a ce a bit far from here. The pay is a bit lower, but they will not


    mind background checks," I said.


    "I do not need your pity!" she screeched at me.


    "It is not pity. They are in desperate need for teachers there," I said.


    "Why would you give me this chance after everything?" she asked.


    "I don''t think that you are a bad teacher, Instructor Gills...Out of every teacher I had ever had, I


    probably learned the most from you. You were the only one to correct my posture, fix the way I held a


    sword, and taught me about endurance and being strong. Those were all things all of my other


    instructors feared to do because of my background. The next time that you will be teaching, surely


    there will be many students in favor of you as well."


    "I hated that you looked naive...A young girl studying under Knights. Someone weak looking like you


    would just get destroyed under men," she said as she grabbed my face. "Someone wanted me gone as


    much as they wanted to hurt you. They switched my sword before the match and threatened to reveal


    my secrets to the world if I did not continue. Remember that not everyone is as sweet and forgiving as


    you are..."


    "Instructor Gills, good luck on your next ventures," I answered her with a smile.


    I received a kiss upon my forehead for some reason.


    "Weak people like us only have the option of putting a brave face."


    Instructor Gills made her exit and waved me goodbye.


    I do not think that Instructor Gills was the one who prepared the sword. There just was no reason for


    her to risk her career to tell me that kind of lesson. She came to tell me that there are other people


    wanting to see my downfall.


    Most likely, someone switched her sword out for a real one and made it so that she would lose to


    me...