Chapter 156: [156] Fool

The entire arena fell into chaos as the players tried to make sense of what they had just seen.

"Wow." Soo-min said without any form of excitement, letting out a quiet breath as she stared at the scene in front of her.

Clap clap.

Only two claps, and she folded her hands on her lap. That was more than enough for his performance.

A holy knight, the very best talent in a notable guild, floored by a mage who was somehow talented with the blade?

She was aware that the academy taught all students mandatory weapons mastery classes, but when he obtained his mage class, wasn’t he meant to specialize in magic?

Ark glanced at the association members by the side. "Someone get a mop and a healer..." He tossed the hand to one of them, and when the woman reflexively caught it, her face turned pale.

The arm was still warm.

"Reattach it while it’s still viable, or he’s going to be a cripple all his life."

Soo-min stared at him for a moment longer.

And then she smiled.

"I see why you like him. A little too kind for my liking... but that cocky personality with the strength to back it up... it’s charming."

She turned to face her younger sister, only for the smile to vanish immediately after their eyes met. "Would you consider trading him?"

Soo-jin’s face was emotionless. She always did her best to hide what she was feeling, but Soo-min could always piece it out. She was afraid, worried even, that Soo-min would take what was hers.

"Don’t worry. I won’t go that far." She turned her attention back to the skeleton. "I do wonder— how far will he go before he is inevitably dragged down by his circumstances?"

Still, today was his victory. He had managed to one up the Order guild. And Soo-min was more than grateful for that.

She stood up to leave when Soo-jin grabbed her hand. The moment their skin made contact, Soo-min jolted as though she had been burned by fire.

Soo-jin stared at her, surprised by her reaction, but Soo-min played it off as if it were nothing, prompting Soo-jin to speak.

"Where are you going?"

"What do you mean?"

Soo-jin turned her attention to the stage. "The duels are not over..."

’Duels?’ Last time Soo-min checked, she did not have short-term memory. The deal had been to settle the dispute with a duel, and they had done that—

Soo-min’s thoughts trailed off as she frowned. "He can’t be that foolish..."

But a second later, Ark proved that he was truly as foolish as she suspected.

"Come on Cain, are you not going to defend the honour of your vassal?" Ark called from the stage. "He lost an arm trying to defend you, the least you can do is step into the ring!"

"Hmm..." Soo-min retook her seat and crossed her legs. "Strength without brains, such wasted potential."

Ark had managed to greatly raise his reputation, and the reputation of whatever backwater guild he was building.

Not only that, he had managed to escape with his life after crossing Order.

A smart man would have taken his win and basked in the glory of his triumph. This way, he would leave people unsure of just how powerful he was, which would reduce the number of players willing to cross him.

But instead, Ark had gotten drunk with one victory. To challenge Cain, the heir of Order, it was pure folly.

Because Cain was not on the same level as Francis. They were worlds apart, and the bronze dogtag hanging around his neck was a stark reminder of that fact...

Cain had already undergone the first stage of ascension.

"He is nothing like you." Soo-min said as she settled deeper into her chair.

Soo-jin smiled as she stared at Ark, her crimson eyes gleaming in the flood of lights overhead. "That is precisely why I chose him."

Her sister stared at her for a few seconds before asking. "What exactly do you see with those eyes of yours?"

Soo-jin’s smile vanished, replaced with an eerie, emotionless mask.

"The end of Fable’s legacy..."

A few seconds passed in silence, before Soo-min scoffed.

"A childish dream. Just like your friends’ hope in defeating Cain, it will all come to naught."

<•••>

’How dare he challenge me?!’ Cain’s grip on his armrest tightened to the point the wood creaked.

He was already a bronze rank player, while Ark was copper, and yet he had the gall to call him out?

His eyes drifted down to his friend who was being carried away in a stretcher, and Cain felt a pang in his chest.

Francis may not have been the strongest in their age group, but he was no pushover either.

And yet, Ark had dominated him throughout the fight... just like he had dominated Cain throughout their time in the academy.

Cain still remembered how Ark wiped out the goblin king and his knights back in the tutorial, all while he was unable to do anything but pitifully watch. That was the very reason he was wary about him from the start.

But—

’I have grown stronger since then!’

Driven by the desire to surpass him, Cain had grinded night and day in the dungeons, he had absorbed skill tome after skill tome, practiced till his mana core trembled within his chest.

He had even ascended before all his peers!

At this point, Cain had no doubt he was stronger than Ark, so... why did he feel worried whenever he saw him?

’Maybe I should reject the duel—’

"What are you doing?" A voice suddenly rang in Cain’s head, causing a jolt to run through his spine.

He turned around to stare at his brother who was looking at him from a distance.

"Why are you sitting down there like a fool?"

Even from here, Cain could sense his brother’s rage.

’Don’t you dare do anything that will disparage the honour of Order. If you dare...’

’I will kill you myself.’

And just like that, the decision was made for him.