Chapter 73: Convincing Enough?

Everett suppressed a shiver when he heard another scream arise from the forest.

Dakota swore up and down that her traps were non-lethal, but he didn’t know if that was true after seeing their design.

And judging by all the noise everyone was making, they must have hurt even worse than they looked.

Though he could scarcely imagine how such a thing was possible…

Everett saw Dakota break through the trees and hold up her thumb.

In response, he smiled and flexed his wings before taking off into the sky.

With no more aerial threats to stand in his way, Everett was as free as a bird.

He soared over the battlefield with the grace of a swan.

As long as he kept his wings covered with aura, they never became soaked from the rain and he was able to move about with impunity. Giving their team a natural advantage.

“Back wall!”

Solomon’s head snapped in Everett’s direction.

He immediately raced toward the back wall where nine more individuals were climbing over the gate using rope or cloth.

They carefully avoided the spikes atop the pillars and jumped down into the base.

Half of them rushed for the cutouts, the other half ran towards Jiaoying.

Solomon locked eyes with her for a brief moment.

She was watching him carefully, though she pretended that she wasn’t.

Solomon only kept his eyes on her for a moment before he turned in the other direction.

He ran to meet the enemies heading towards the cutouts. At the same time, Everett dove out of the sky to attack those who came near Jiaoying.

Leading the charge to the cutouts was Carver Ishtar, the fencer with some of the best swordsmanship in the year.

At the sight of Solomon rushing towards him, he was far from daunted. On the contrary, he was visibly excited.

“FINALLY! I wonder how much my notoriety will grow when I best you!”

Solomon quirked his brow as he ran at Carver full speed.

’What a weird thing to say…’ he thought.

Carver was the first to strike, thrusting his needle-like sword towards Solomon’s chest.

With surprising athleticism, Solomon ducked under the first stab and concentrated power into his knees.

He shot upward with the explosiveness of a bomb, drilling his elbow into Carver’s jaw.

Solomon saw his eyes go white near instantly.

However, before he could fall back and hit the ground, he bit down on his tongue hard enough for his consciousness to flicker back to life.

It was an impressive feat. But it did nothing to stop Solomon from smashing his forehead into the bridge of his opponent’s nose.

Carver was unconscious before his body even touched the mud.

The rules stated that for an opposing teammate to count as being incapacitated, they had to be restrained.

Before Solomon could even begin tying up his opponent, he was under attack from the other support actors.

Their sword swings were simple, but dangerous. Their numbers only added to the threat.

Solomon was stabbed in the leg and gritted his teeth in annoyance.

He drew the sword from his back and struck the actor across the jaw with the flat side of his blade.

Remembering that he wasn’t supposed to kill the support actors was about all that Solomon was capable of.

He decimated them rather quickly and with barely any effort.

He feels bone crack through the hilt of his sword. His eyes instantly pick up the dots of blood that fly through the air.

It isn’t long before he can tell that his own blood is starting to heat up.

His head begins to swim with so many different thoughts, not all of them oriented toward the battle.

He feels uncharacteristically proud of his power. So, so proud.

He hopes that his people, that Emmanuel, that Rena see how powerful he has become. It is his most fervent wish that they are proud of him in the afterlife and send him their blessings.

Simultaneously, he thinks of Jiaoying.

He wants her to see his strength. To know that, despite his youth, he is in fact a man worthy of her.

But what shocks him the most, is that he finds himself wishing that Yari was here as well..

It is the last thought that he harbors before he feels something ’wrong’ take hold of his body.

Slowly, Solomon comes out of his delirium and looks around.

The remaining support actors are on the ground, groaning.

At a glance, he can see some of them have limbs that are twisted into impossible angles and others are already developing some very fat bruises.

Solomon’s gaze goes toward his right knee.

There, a familiar needle-like sword is embedded within his flesh.

Carver smiles madly at him, blood streaming down his nose and a litany of missing teeth.

“You’re… you’re not so tough after all, are ya?”

Solomon grunts as he feels his body begin to seize up.

He drops to one knee almost immediately. It is a miracle he has not ended up facedown in the mud with everyone else.

“Boss!”

Everett notices Solomon in trouble and immediately flies toward him.

He quickly rushes in and knocks away Carver for the final time before attempting to aid Solomon.

Everett pulls the rapier out of Solomon’s knee before trying to help him get back to his feet.

But it was no good.

Solomon’s strength hadn’t actually returned just because the sword was removed. His muscles still felt tight and rigid. Even standing on his own felt nearly impossible.

“Fuck, you’re heavy..!”

“Everett…”

“It’s okay, boss, it’s not like it’s fat!”

Solomon tried to shake his head. “You can’t worry about me right now, you need to focus on-”

Out of the corner of his eye, Solomon sees the worst-case scenario unfolding.

During the course of the battle, he had been constantly wondering when and where Elowen McAllister was going to reveal her hand.

Of course, like the viper she was, she chose the moment where there were the fewest obstacles in her path towards a straight victory.

She slipped through one of the gaps in the wall with no one at her back but herself.

As her blonde hair fluttered in the wind, she raced toward Jiaoying.

“Everett!” Solomon roared.

Everett followed his captain’s gaze towards the back wall, where a single figure was making it’s way toward their ’Lord’.

His face paled.

He quickly dropped Solomon, and flew towards her at breakneck speed.

But it wasn’t enough. Everett wouldn’t be fast enough to reach her in time.

As Solomon’s rigid body fell towards the mud, the world seemed to slow down for him.

He felt something within him claw towards the surface. Perhaps it was simple desperation, or maybe it was his stubbornness manifesting itself into physical power.

Solomon felt a section of his brain vibrate from the strain.

He wiggled his fingers faintly, funneling energy into his hand.

The winds around him kicked up fiercely, swirling around and becoming a menacing, albeit small, typhoon.

He launched it at Elowen just as she was seconds away from reaching Jiaoying.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a small windstorm barreling toward her at breakneck speed.

There was a moment where she considered retreating and taking cover. But in the end, she refused.

She was too close to her victory to concede now.

Just a little bit farther..!

Her hand was millimeters away from reaching Jiaoying’s leg when the storm hit her like a runaway carriage.

She flew headfirst into the wall of the next building over, screaming in agony.

Everett stopped just in front of Jiaoying with a stunned expression on his face.

He looked back at Solomon, then towards Jiaoying, repeating this process an excess of ten times.

“So, uh… this means we win, right?”

Jiaoying didn’t answer immediately.

She was too busy staring at Solomon, just as he was staring right back at her.

–

“They cheated! Magic should have been off limits for this exam!”

Solomon listened from afar as Elowen threw a hissyfit after regaining consciousness.

He couldn’t really blame her for being mad. That whirlwind he’d hurled at her was so powerful that it had broken her arm.

Still, Master Abel looked like he was beginning to question his decision to teach nobles.

“Yari teach you that move?”

Solomon looked up from the steps at a smirking Jiaoying.

He went back to whipping the mud off himself, ignoring the thoughts that formed around her smile.

“…She’s a good teacher.” Was his only response.

Jiaoying couldn’t help but notice that it seemed like a non-answer.

“I must admit… You surprised me. I thought you’d want to play the big hero role and rush in to save the idol of your affection.”

Solomon almost coughed up a mound of mud.

“Didn’t feel the need for that kind of grandstanding… I went where I was needed. I knew Everett could handle things on his own.”

Jiaoying didn’t speak, but she was silently pleased with his answer.

“So…?” Solomon stood up.

“So what?”

“We had an agreement, didn’t we?”

Jiaoying laughed. “I hope you weren’t expecting me to start fawning all over you just because you passed one little child’s test, Solomon. I said I’d give you the opportunity to court me, and by that I meant I wouldn’t break your nose for crossing the line. I never said I would accept your confession.”

Her words actually make Solomon smile, in a way that he hasn’t in a very long time. “But you will allow me the opportunity to convince you?”

“I doubt you’ll be able to actually do it.”

“That’s not what I asked.”

Jiaoying’s smirk grows noticeably wider.

She turns on her heels and leaves while waving Solomon goodbye over her shoulder.

“I’ll keep my eye out for you, Solomon A’Kenai. Good work out there today.”

Solomon watched Jiaoying depart with a smile that mirrors her own.

His eyes naturally drift towards her back and hips before inevitably dipping lower… to the ghost that is staring at him with a wide open mouth and eyes that seem about ready to pop out of his skull.

“…Fuck.”

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