Chapter 292.5: The Hunter and The Executioner

Royal Knights Academy — The Arena’s Spectator’s Stands

“Ladies and gentlemen! Our final match of the day is about to begin!” The announcer’s voice echoed loudly through the arena.

I leaned back against a nearby wall as I peered down into the sands, keeping a close eye on the gates.

The moment Carine Sareid stepped into the sands, I knew I hadn't wasted my time.

Her sharp emerald eyes remained fixed on the opposite gate. Even from this far away, I could sense her intention.

She was hunting. Waiting for prey to catch.

I had only arrived at the spectator stands for the final match. The earlier fights had their moments, according to my classmates, but the only person I was interested in was Carine, and as soon as I heard she was reserved for the final match, I arrived and bought a ticket.

After fighting Feyt earlier that day, my curiosity toward her had only grown.

Feyt had been far more interesting than I expected. He had adapted quickly, learned from our exchanges, and continued fighting even when I pushed him beyond what I expected him to be able to handle.

He was going to be an interesting opponent to spar with in the future, perhaps one I could call a friend. But if Feyt was already that interesting, what about the person who had spent so much time fighting beside him?

The western gate rose, and her opponent stepped into the arena.

Reikos.

A classmate of mine, though I hadn't paid much attention to him before. All I knew of him was that he basically lucked his way into the tournament, with many of his opponents flaking out. He wasn’t the strongest of contestants, and he sure wasn’t strong enough to go up against Carine. But the academy must’ve placed him against Carine to show her off.

His movements were clean, his wrist steady, and the control he displayed over the rapier's point showed plenty of practice. However, skill and strength weren't the same thing, and I could immediately see that Reikos wasn't particularly strong.

Not compared to Carine, at least.

Both of them took their positions.

Reikos looked at Carine with a confident smirk, clearly satisfied with whatever impression his little display had made. In return, Carine offered him nothing but a focused stare.

I noticed her grip remained firm, and her stance remained perfect.

Is she taking him seriously?

Surely she knew of Reikos's skill. Speak to anyone in our class, and they would immediately tell you that Reikos was more show than skill. He practiced stances and flows with his rapiers and kept showing it off, and though his skill with it was decent, it was nowhere near the image he portrayed.

The announcer began the countdown.

“Three... Two... One... Begin!”

Carine moved fast.

Reikos immediately attempted to establish a defense as Carine approached, raising his rapier and keeping its point between them. It was the correct decision against someone carrying a sword.

But Carine merely knocked it aside.

His grip on the rapier loosened from the impact, and he was about to lose from disarmament, but Carine didn’t stop.

She lunged forward and drove the tip of her blade into his chest.

The force sent him flying backward. He landed roughly on the sand as the crowd erupted into cheers.

In just a few seconds, the first round had been secured.

Reikos slowly pushed himself back to his feet, his confident expression noticeably less convincing than before. He raised his rapier again, this time with a slight tremble.

Carine stared at him in silence before she shook her head and returned to her stance.

The second round began.

This time, Reikos moved first as he charged forward.

Whatever refined control he had displayed before the match was gone. His movements were sloppy, his footing unstable as he rushed toward Carine with his rapier raised.

Carine charged forward as well, closing the distance in an instant.

Reikos raised his weapon, but Carine's sword moved first.

Her wooden blade crashed into his chest with a heavy, lightning-fast strike.

Reikos didn't dodge, nor block. He barely even reacted.

The force of the blow basically crumpled him, and his body hit the sand before he could regain his footing.

He ended up lying face-up in the sand, knocked out cold with his mouth open.

The second round was over, and so was the match.

For a moment, the arena fell silent.

Then the crowd erupted.

Roars rolled through the stands as the announcer loudly declared Carine's victory. Reikos lay motionless in the sand while Carine remained standing over him, her wooden sword still in hand.

I watched her carefully.

After the first round, there was no way she could have misunderstood the difference between them. Reikos had lost his confidence almost immediately, and when the second round began, his desperate charge had only made it more obvious.

Carine knew he was weak, barely worth the effort. But she didn’t hold back against him because of it.

My lips curled into a smile.

I was right.

Carine Sareid truly was a monster.

Strength didn't seem to matter to her. Once someone stood before her, they became prey, and she would strike them with everything she had. Reikos had been too weak to give her the battle she wanted, but that hadn't stopped her from hunting him seriously.

After everything I had seen, I could finally understand why Feyt had become someone worth fighting. He had spent so much time beside this monster, fighting alongside her and growing beside her.

Perhaps some of that hunger had rubbed off on him.

A quiet laugh escaped me as Carine finally turned toward the eastern gate.

She was the perfect monster for me.

Someone who sought battle as eagerly as I did. Someone powerful enough to turn this painfully boring academy into something worth staying in.

A monster worthy of hunting.

If this is what you look like when you're merely hunting...

Just how much more monstrous will you become when I finally earn your rage, Carine?

—

Royal Knights Academy — The Arena’s Infirmary

The infirmary was much quieter than the arena outside, giving me enough peace to focus on my duties.

The cheers from the crowd had faded into a distant murmur by the time I finished checking Reikos's condition.

I let out a quiet sigh and lowered my hands.

“He should be fine now that I've healed him,” I said to the nurse.

“Thank you, Lady Clara,” she responded. “You're free to go now. I'm sorry for taking you away from your duties for something like this.”

“It’s no trouble at all,” I replied with a faint smile. “Between my duties on the Council and being our only Light magic user, I’d hardly be doing my job if I left him like this.”

I turned toward Reikos, who lay unconscious on the thin infirmary bed.

“I still can't believe she went that far over a simple match...” I mumbled under my breath.

“What was that, Lady Clara?”

“I-It’s nothing!” I quickly shook my head. “I'll be taking my leave now. Please take good care of him, Miss Nurse.”

“Of course,” she replied with a light bow.

Stepping out into the stone corridor, I could hear the excitement from the spectator stands finally dying down as more and more of the spectators began to leave.

My chest tightened as I adjusted the cuffs of my uniform. That last match—no, that public execution by Carine… It hadn't been a duel of skill. It had been a sheer, overwhelming display of unnecessary force.

How could anyone be so cold? To strike an opponent who had clearly lost his resolve with such unyielding violence? The crowd cheered for her strength, amazed at her skills. But beneath it all, I could see the picture she had painted of herself.

She was a ruthless woman who saw others as nothing more than objects to be crushed or owned. Someone who derived genuine satisfaction from asserting absolute dominance over those weaker than her.

She wore the polished mask of a refined noble lady, but underneath, she was a tyrant who didn't care who she broke as long as it kept her name higher than others'.

If this was how she treated a fellow student in a public arena under the eyes of the entire academy… what was she truly like behind closed doors?

What was she like with Feyt in private?

That unsettling question once again returned.

How much longer could he possibly endure that before she broke him, too? How long until his sheer effort was no longer enough, and she cast him aside like trash?

All that I could hope for was that Feyt would be able to see through her mask before that happened.