Chapter 47: The Duel of Maeve Eira

{Vesting Block, Main Tower of IAA}

The whole corridor was made of glass. Translucent to opaque in shifting densities, so that the rooms beyond existed only as soft buried light.

A silhouette might pass and become nothing more than darker smear.

Maeve walked ahead of him as usual. Her shoulders were set too precisely, each step hit the floor with force.

Her posture had aggression drilled. She did not check whether he was following, she already knew he was.

At the woman’s gate, she topped, the panel door slid open with a quite hydraulic hiss.

Warm air and the faint scent of clean fabric drifted out as she stopped.

Marcellus also stopped behind her. He was wearing his pink coat over white T-shirt that had laces instead of buttons on its top. Paired with the same colour of pants and light shoes.

He had his hands inside pockets, and tilted his head when she stopped suddenly.

He looked around noticing it was women’s area, so he wasn’t supposed to be there.

Maeve turned around. Her eyes held his clueless gaze, and jaw tightened.

"You can find the Pillar’s room for the arena on your own, right?" She asked, and mumbled "Young Master," under her breath.

Marcellus shrugged his shoulders once.

"I guess," he replied.

Maeve sighed, and stepped through the line of door.

*Bang*

The automatic doors which were supposed to shut on their own, were forced shut by her hand, leaving him stranded in the corridors.

The glass settled into blankness again, and her silhouette disappeared.

He stood there for a moment, hands still in pockets.

"What’s the big deal, it’s just a duel," he murmured, and turned around.

Marcellus then stopped again.

"Or is it privacy? It’s not like I’ve not seen the worst of her..." He pulled out her phone from his pocket, and opened the map of the academy she had installed specifically for him.

He turned around again in opposite direction, and started walking.

The arena was, according to the map, almost beside the vesting block. A short lateral corridor and a public entrance already had cadets filling the lower seat because of the popularity of the duel.

Kate Magnar, ranked thirty nine, heir of the Magnar family. A woman in bob cut, and the most feisty personality against Maeve Eira, ranked fifty six with power unverified, and also considered one of the most beautiful women the three generations of academy has seen.

Cadets were definitely not missing the show.

The Pillar’s room sat higher than the general audience arena. It had a better angle and isolation for Pillars.

Marcellus found the lift, stepped in, and watched the floor numbers rise while Maeve’s map recalculated in his hand.

The doors opened on a rather quiet level with a silent chime.

The corridor here was made of dark stone and soft recessed light. A single door at the end stood closed.

The Pillar’s observation room opened around him as he passed through the doors.

A long forward wall of polarized glass looked down into the arena. The white cement padded floor, the barrier lines, the rising tiers of audience already filling with violet blazers and voices.

Along the rear wall of the room, a low refreshment counter held sealed carafes, dark glass bottles, stacked tumblers, and a tray of cut fruit no one had touched.

Black lounge chairs faced the glass. A side table carried a dormant display of bout order and medical standby channels.

Three of the chairs were already occupied.

Kaji Sato sat with one knee hooked over the other, long hair bound in clean ponytail, a tablet resting on his thigh. Brody Jaxon leaned on the backrest of Kaji’s chair, always staying interested in Kaji’s display than his own devices.

Corvan Tuoni occupied a wider seat in silence. Tanned skin, black hair, dark eyes, arms folded. At his shoulder stood an assistant in formal dark wear and thin spectacles with his hands clasped behind.

Kaelo’s attention was completely bare on the empty arena below. He had no assistant, or any sort of device, he just sat there in casually, but with attention of a man with some sort anticipation.

The door closed behind Marcellus, four sets of eyes had noticed him enter. Kaji’s attention lifted from the tablet on his thigh for a second and then returned to the screen playing clash kingdoms.

Corvan’s eyes followed him briefly, but his expression was unreadable.

Kaelo did not want to register him, but still glanced once.

Only Brody moved.

He straightened from behind Kaji’s chair and turned fully toward Marcellus.

"So, you can find your own ways," he scoffed.

"I get lucky, sometimes," Marcellus looked around the room, and took an empty seat in the front, just beside Kaelo.

"Ah right. Luck," Brody nodded. "Is the rumour true?"

"I don’t know if it’s a rumour anymore, more like I’m just trying to confirm an already stated fact," He added.

"What rumour? I’m known for several things, you have to be more specific," Marcellus replied, fiddling with the screen beside his chair.

"The fact that you are a healer?" Brody leaned on the armrest of the empty chair left to Marcellus.

"Healer? Yeah, you can say that," Marcellus nodded.

At that, all the people in the room looked at him while he was busy fiddling with chair’s screen.

"Holy...No wonder a lot of people are interested in the duel then," Brody scoffed and turned to face the arena.

"?" Marcellus furrowed his brows and looked at Brody.

"How is her duel connected to my ability or me at all?" he asked.

"You really don’t know?" Brody looked back at him.

"She’s not the interesting part of this scenario. Apparently, you’re the interesting part," he said.

Kaji finally stopped playing, and Corvan’s eyes shifted toward him.

Even Kaelo’s attention moved away from the arena for the second time.

Marcellus noticed that, and looked around at them, and back at Brody.

"Why?" he asked.

"You really have no idea," Brody gasped and put bot hands against his mouth.

"That might actually be worse," he mumbled.

"I’m comfortable facing the worst, just tell me," Marcellus said, and leaned in.

"You know how you and Maeve are together almost everywhere?"

"Yes."

"How she walks you, handles your schedule, shows up whenever you’re involved in something, and apparently has enough freedom to drag you out of places by the collar," Brody leaned in as his voice turned low.

"She...does that," Marcellus nodded.

"Exactly," Brody concluded.

"So, assistants don’t do that, she basically ’Woman-handles’ you," he said.

"Woman...handles? What does that mean?" Marcellus asked.

"It’s a term I just made up," Brody replied, and then rubbed his chin, trying to decide how to phrase it.

"...Oh...I like that term already," Marcellus was completely invested in the baseless conversation.

"Yes, me too. Apparently, there’s a much more interesting word for it," Brody added.

"Is there?" Marcellus raised his brows.

Brody finally leaned back and nodded.

"Girlfriend."

Silence settled over the room.

"Or at least, that’s the version going around. You two are always together, she doesn’t ...quiet behave like an assistant around you," he said.

Marcellus nodded, and returned his gaze to the arena floor.

He observed the cadets, the violet blazers and boundary of the arena as if thinking about something.

"That’s not true," he finally replied.

"So, you’re in denial?" Brody asked.

Marcellus smirked at that, and looked at Brody.

"If I accept that, it’ll kill the thrill of it all," he said.

"Moreover, reducing her to a relationship status just because she has voluntary control of my life, isn’t something I would do," He added.

"...That," Brody said slowly. "Is not a no,"

"I wouldn’t rule the possibility out," Marcellus’s attention returned to the arena boundary.

Brody leaned back, exhaled, and glanced at Kaelo from the corner of his eye.

"What’s the emergency contact for fire brigade," he leaned and whispered to Kaji.

"..."