Chapter 26: A Sudden Marriage Proposal!?

The arena fell silent.

Lucius was pinned beneath a radiant spear. My boot held down Celeste. And Aqua was wrapped in my robe.

The head trainer stared for a long moment, as if his brain needed extra time to process what his eyes were telling him.

"Lady Aqua has yielded. Lord Lucius and Lady Celeste are incapacitated."

He cleared his throat, then raised his voice so that it carried across the entire amphitheatre.

"Victory goes to Lord Reyn Brimstone!"

The crowd erupted.

A roar of disbelief, excitement, and for some, barely concealed terror at what they’d just witnessed.

"Three against one! Three against one and he won!"

"Did you see that light barrage? I’ve never seen anything like it!"

"And he gave Lady Aqua his robe... that’s not the Reyn Brimstone I’ve heard about."

"Did he hit his head or something? Because whatever happened, I want some of it."

I released the radiant spear pinning Lucius and lifted my foot from Celeste’s back. She scrambled up immediately, rushing to Lucius’s side and helping him to his feet.

"Lucius, are you okay?"

Celeste’s voice was soft with concern as she pressed a handkerchief to his mouth.

"I’m fine."

He said, though his voice was hollow. Then, he met my eyes.

"You were holding back."

"Was it that obvious?"

I admitted, not bothering to deny it. There was no point. Anyone with eyes could see I hadn’t used everything in my arsenal.

Lucius held my gaze for a moment longer, then nodded once. A single, reluctant acknowledgment from one man to another.

"I see."

He turned and walked toward the arena’s edge, Celeste close behind him. She glanced back at me once, her expression unreadable, before following him out.

Anna was already climbing over the barrier before the head trainer could officially dismiss us. She reached me in seconds, her hands immediately cupping my face and tilting it left and right as she scanned for injuries.

"You’re not hurt?"

"Of course not."

"Lady Rose."

Anna turned. Aqua had approached, still wrapped in my robe.

"Yes? Is there something you need?"

"Nothing. I only wanted to say..."

Aqua paused, choosing her words.

"You have a keen eye for people. To think you saw Lord Brimstone’s potential before anyone else."

Anna’s expression shifted to visible pride.

"Well, it definitely took a lot of work to get him there. But he definitely did most of it all on his own. He was the one who made the first move and asked me for help with training."

"Really?"

Aqua looked at me, still wrapped in the robe to cover her body. But that was only a temporary solution, so I had a better idea.

"Since that’s academy property, they might not let you keep it until you can find a place to change. So take this instead."

I took off my academy blazer and polo and handed them to her, leaving me in a simple, tight cotton undershirt that did more than enough to show the results of the workout.

Nicholas was right. They definitely looked far better on me.

"Oh my..."

Aqua accepted the clothes, her eyes lingering on my chest and arms without any pretense of looking elsewhere.

"...Excuse my manners, it’s not every day I see someone with a physique like that, especially among strong mages. Most just specialize with one or the other."

"It’s not a problem. I don’t mind being looked at by a woman as beautiful as you."

Aqua chuckled at that. She glanced around and noticed the crowd already shifting toward the remaining tests.

"I should change before the academy comes looking for those robes."

She turned to leave, but paused.

"And about your offer for lessons... I’ll consider it."

✧ ✦ ✧

The rest of the tests were honestly simple enough. Compared to the duels, they were nothing special.

Healing, offensive, and defensive tests. Basically the kind of things the academy only used to make sure they didn’t overlook any hidden talent.

For me, though, it only served as more proof that my future ranking would end up at the top. Once again, Anna stood behind me, cheering me on after acing her own tests.

As for Trish, she had to leave midway through, citing a letter from her parents urging her to return to her estate at once.

And Aqua... well, it wasn’t hard to tell she had started stealing glances at me now and then, without a trace of shame, after what had happened.

Although I still wasn’t sure whether it was my looks or my power that drew her attention.

"People are starting to think better of you now. Better yet, a daughter of another ducal house is interested in you as well. All is well in life, don’t you think?"

"You sound like a steward delivering a report."

I gave a lighthearted reply as I unleashed a powerful beam of light toward a target dummy. At the far end, the professor gave me a perfect score as I finished the last of the tests.

"Hey, I’m even more important and devoted than a steward! This is just what childhood friends do."

Anna walked beside me as we left the testing grounds. The results would be revealed tomorrow. For now, all I had left was free time, and whatever surprise Anna had in store for me now that the afternoon’s main event was over.

✧ ✦ ✧

Well... this was definitely not what I was expecting.

Still, it wasn’t an unwelcome development either.

"Pleasure to meet you, future brother-in-law."

We’d run into Gavian on the way back to our estates. He stood there with a briefcase in hand, so overstuffed with paperwork it could barely close.

"E-excuse me, Lady Rose? What do you mean...?"

"Well, I like Reyn. And I plan to marry him."

She tilted her head, as if the answer were obvious.

"Isn’t it obvious?"

"Anna, what are you—?"

"You’re my childhood friend now, remember?"

She turned to me, her expression utterly serene.

"That means you’re my crush now too. And you did already say you could see me as more than a friend."

I could swear I heard my brother’s brain short-circuit from the sheer bluntness of her answer.

"Reyn, what the hell did you do to Lady Rose...?"