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Two of them were open, but one remained folded.

Swish-.

I shifted my gaze to the folded paper.

The two unfolded papers bore the mark of Ⅹ, signifying that the teams who drew them would be facing off.

Which meant the remaining one…

“It seems the third years have earned a bye.”

A bye, huh?

While this outcome might have been disappointing under different circumstances, this practical exam was more of a special event.

Winning or losing wouldn\'t have any disadvantages.

Besides, we needed to defeat every team to claim victory anyway.

The only reason we were even having these matches was…

“To give the first and second years a chance to put on a spectacular first round.”

As Luzian spoke, I turned my attention towards the second years.

Hmm, what to make of them?

Each and every one of them possessed a formidable aura.

There was no doubt about that.

However, if you were to ask if there was anyone among them who could rival Baltan\'s prowess…

‘No.’

Among the second-year seniors, there was no one with the ability to defeat Baltan.

Which meant that there was no one who could defeat me either.

But that didn\'t mean they weren\'t a force to be reckoned with.

And why was that?

“Now, let me explain the rules of the match.”

Because, as Luzian\'s following explanation made clear, this wasn\'t a competition that could be won simply by having one overwhelmingly strong individual.

The first rule, naturally, concerned ‘non-lethality’.

Under no circumstances were we to kill our opponents.

From Sytan\'s perspective, reaching the position of class representative meant that the student was an important asset, a treasure.

That was why the rule of non-lethality was put in place.

And the second rule was…

“The match will consist of up to five rounds. The first team to win three rounds will be declared the victor.”

At least three wins were needed to advance to the next match.

Even if Baltan and I secured two victories, if the other three members of our team lost, we would still be considered the losers.

There were other minor rules, but they weren\'t anything worth paying particular attention to.

And so, after going over all the rules…

“Well then, I\'ll see you all in three days.”

The Headmistress, with her youthful appearance, bid us farewell with a bright smile and a wave of her hand.

And with that, the meeting was adjourned.

Swish-.

I rose from my seat.

Rene had already stood up and was walking away.

Thud, thud.

She quickened her pace as if trying to escape from this place as quickly as possible.

I reached out towards her.

“Lady Rene, please wait a moment.”

“…….”

Grip—

I barely managed to grasp her arm, and only then did she stop and turn back to face me.

Her expression, as always, was stiff and unreadable.

……And just like that, I forgot what I wanted to say to her.

I was sure I had something I wanted to tell her, but…

“…….”

“…….”

Neither of us dared to be the first to break the silence.

As we stood there for a while, locked in a silent standoff…

“……You’re hurting me.”

Rene winced, her brows furrowing as she finally acknowledged the pain in her wrist.

Lost in my thoughts, I had unconsciously tightened my grip on her arm, forgetting to moderate my strength.

The moment I realized my mistake, I hastily apologized.

“Oh, I apologize.”

“……So, what is it?”

She brushed off my apology as if it were nothing and went straight to the point.

I opened my mouth to speak, but the words wouldn\'t come.

Flustered, I blurted out the first thing that came to mind.

“Are you confident about this exam, my lady?”

“……I don’t know.”

Her expression turned frosty once more, and she turned away from me.

I felt a pang of disappointment, realizing I had misstepped yet again.

Ah, I stepped on a landmine.

Perhaps that wasn\'t the right thing to say to her in this situation.

But somehow, I couldn\'t quite recall what it was I had originally wanted to say.

And so, I could only watch as Rene walked away.

Lost in my complicated thoughts, I didn\'t notice…

Thump—

Until someone slung their arm around Rene\'s shoulders.

“Yeah, I was wondering about that myself.”

I turned to see a male student, a sneer plastered on his face, his arm still casually draped over Rene\'s shoulders.

Her expression contorted with displeasure, but the student seemed oblivious, continuing his taunting with an air of nonchalance.

“Do those first years really think they can beat us? You think you newbies stand a chance against us?”

The student flashed a smug grin, his white teeth glinting under the light.

A quick glance at his attire told me he was a second-year.

Grip—

Ignoring his words, I reached out and grabbed his arm, the one that was still casually slung around Rene\'s shoulders.

“Wh-what the…”

The second-year student let out a groan, his face contorting in pain.

This time, I hadn\'t misjudged my strength like I did with Rene.

This time, I made sure he felt it.

Of course, I couldn\'t exactly break his arm, so I made sure to apply just enough pressure to inflict pain without causing lasting damage.

But...

“My arm, my arm…!”

Maybe it was because I subconsciously added a bit more force than necessary, but…

The second-year student, the one who dared to lay a hand on Rene, was now kneeling before me, clutching his arm and whimpering.

I bent down to meet his gaze, a faint smile playing on my lips.

“My, what a delicate scream. I don’t have a penchant for listening to the cries of frail maidens, and I certainly wouldn\'t want to hear a grown man\'s shriek.”

“You, you…!”

The second-year student\'s eyes widened in anger, and he started to sputter a retort.

But before he could utter another word…

Grip—

I pressed a finger against his lips, silencing him, and whispered in a voice low enough for only him to hear.

“Next time, I won’t hold back.”

“……!”

Fear flickered in his eyes.

Whether it was because of my words or the chilling tone I used, I didn\'t know.

But the second-year student could only manage a series of frantic nods, his body trembling.

That should be enough to get the message across, even to someone as dense as him.

Just as I was about to let him go…

“First year, what do you think you\'re doing?”

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