Going into the fight, many people had been expecting Rowan Zyne to win. A lot of the elite didn't like the Zyne family because of the sins the head of the House committed, but many had been willing to give the son a pass if he proved himself worthy.
After witnessing his magic type, however, this had changed. The rumor of House Zyne still not producing a proper heir had been just that—a rumor. Yet here Rowan Zyne was casting water-based spells, not wind or gem-based, like his parents. Not only that, but he also failed to achieve anything significant in power, and the reason was apparent.
Nobles were born with more mana and rare traits than the lesser class, yet if Rowan's mother wasn't a proper noble and Charles Zyne wasn't his actual father, then that raised the question. Was Rowan even of noble blood? Here he was failing to hit some no-named man who was barely using spells to win the fight.
The people who had been rooting for Davi had been the weak—the ones who weren't the elite. Slowly, though, there was a shift as more and more people on the side of the Nobles also started to cheer for Davi because to them this was no longer a Noble versus a Rat. This was just a battle of caged animals. Rowan and Davi were both dogs, and it was only natural to cheer for the bigger hound.
After the reveal that there was a member of Phoenix Flight standing nearby, most of the people had fled, and barely half remained. There was always a chance a meteor would drop from the sky and blow up any area a member of Phoenix Flight was standing in, which was why so many people were scared of just being in the same place as them. Those who remained were far too interested in the outcome of the fight. Either because they wanted to see Davi take down a noble or because they wanted to see the false noble Rowan lose, the only people left standing around were those who despised Rowan Zyne.
That was why it was shocking for everyone present when the shadows that had swallowed Davi and Rowan up expanded, and the two men were spat out. Rowan was on his knees, looking stunned, and Davi remained on the ground, badly bleeding from the two stab wounds, the bullet wound, and the other cuts he had gotten throughout the fight.
"It's my loss." Davi's words rang throughout the mostly empty arena. "I guess fighting a Noble is harder than I thought."
"That guy actually lost?" Someone in the crowd muttered.
"I don't know what we expected. I mean, he's still just a street rat, right?"
"He used a Vil spell, though?"
"I bet he blacked out instantly from it, and that's how he lost. His kind never has a lot of mana."
"He was skilled with a sword, though?"
"Was he? He barely got any hits in on Zyne."
"Yeah? Now that you mention it, was he even that good? He's a shadow mage at night, and he lost? That's got to be the biggest advantage? I don't remember seeing him in the first round either; I bet he died somewhere early."
"He sucks."
"He's trash."
"A dog is still a dog."
'It's good to know nobles all think alike.' Davi closed his eyes and sighed. 'I'm not really acting, though. My body fucking hurts. Why did I let him stab me again? Was it worth it to farm the aura? Work on that, Davi. Sieg would be so disappointed in you.'
Rowan remained on his knees, staring down at Davi. "W-Why did you—"
"Master Rowan!"
The man turned around just in time to see Sera and Ashley. Both women grabbed him by his arms and yanked him back to his feet.
"Master Rowan, are you okay?" Sera asked in a panic and began to rub at the cut on Rowan's neck. "Row Size Alter!" Her hands glowed with a flicker of green energy, and she shrunk Rowan's cut wound closed, sealing the flesh and fixing the wound.
"You won, right, Master Rowan?" Ashley asked before she noticed the smoking and still twitching Ken, causing the maid to let out a slight giggle. She turned back to Rowan, her smile growing. "Your father knew you would win."
Rowan blinked, still processing everything. "My father?"
"Yeah!" Sera nodded and pulled her hands away once she was done shrinking all of his wounds. "I'm sorry, I should have told you." The girl looked down at the ground, a bit embarrassed. "I called him and told him about the duel, hoping he would put an end to it in case you got hurt or lost. He told me not to worry, though, because you're his son, and Zyne men don't lose."
Rowan blinked again, feeling a strange warmth in his chest. "He said that?"
"Yeah." Sera nodded and giggled softly. "He was so confident in you. He wants to talk to you now that the duel is over."
Rowan felt himself begin to get dragged as Ashley and Sera both gripped his arms and tugged him along. He shot a look back at the downed Davi before turning his head and allowing himself to be dragged away. As he was being pulled, his ears twitched, and he heard the sound of his peers, who were all staring at him.
"Rowan brought his maids? Damn, they're good-looking. How did he score them?"
"Did you see that one with the size magic? That's an uber rare type? Are the Zynes not as broke as we thought?"
"That girl mentioned Charles? Were we wrong? Does Rowan actually belong to the Zyne family? He has water magic, though?"
"Could his mother have water magic? Or maybe her father has water magic, and it skipped a generation? His water magic was strong! Did you see that dragon spell he used? Only a noble could bust something like that out!"
"That's right. Rowan Zyne. He's definitely one of us. Of course, he beat that mutt over there."
The praise was back. Just as easily as they had doubted him, once more, he would be put back at the top where he belonged. Something was wrong, though. Rowan felt hollow. The words Davi said to him rang through his mind.
'If the roles were reversed and my parents lost a son, I know that they'd stop at nothing to get revenge, even if it killed or corrupted them. Don't I owe it to them to feel the same way? That's the only advice I can really give because it's the only perspective I have. So maybe you should think about it. If the roles were reversed for you and your father, would he go through the effort that you are?'
Rowan gritted his teeth and shook his head. He decided that he didn't want to think about it right now. It didn't matter. What did matter was that his dad wanted to see and speak to him. Rowan forced a smile on his face and left the arena, leaving the street rat who had made him question everything behind.
It didn't take long for everyone else to leave. Even the people who had believed in Davi. All that remained in the arena now were Davi himself, who was still lying on the ground, Ken Yuan, Bruno, Ash, Olivia, and the Captain of the Phoenix Flight guild, Laer.
Davi opened his eyes when he heard the sand crunching. He looked up, finding Olivia staring down at him. She had an annoyed look on her face and was shivering since it was raining. He felt a little bad since his fight had brought her out here.
"Was it worth it?" Olivia asked, and for once, it was she who spoke in a flat tone.
"Not at all." Davi groaned and sat up, clutching at his still-bleeding stomach. "Shit, this hurts."
"Why'd you do it then?" Olivia questioned.
"Because he needed help."
"Did you even help him?"
"I don't know," Davi admitted. "Maybe I did, maybe I didn't. I don't like helping people, though. I like to get them to help themselves so the issue gets resolved. Rowan might be better off, or he'll be worse. Or, maybe nothing will change." Davi shrugged. "I tried, though. I'm happy with myself."
"You okay, Bro?" Bruno asked, walking over along with Ash.
"I'm fine." Davi nodded.
"How did you let that guy beat you?" Ash frowned. "You should be so much stronger."
Davi was about to answer but then saw that it was Ash. He closed his mouth, cracked his knuckles, and grabbed the sword he had left on the ground. "Round two?"
"I hate you." Ash sighed.
Off to the side, Laer watched the exchange unfold. A faint smirk was on her lips, but it quickly faded when a hand grabbed her ankle. She looked down, finding the still-smoking Ken glaring up at her. The girl was mostly fine, though her hair was a mess and her eyes were full of hate. "Whoops. My bad. Need me to heal you?" Laer asked, which then drew Davi's attention over to her.
"Oh, shit—lady, I almost forgot; thanks for letting me use your sword. Here." Davi tossed it through the air, which caused Laer's eyes to go wide.
"No! Wait, you bastard, it's still storming-" On instinct, her hand caught her sword just in time for another bolt of lightning to come crashing down directly onto the blade that was pointed straight up. Just like last time, the lightning crackled through the woman's body, not actually hurting her, but it did manage to shock Ken Yuan a second time since the girl was still clinging to Laer's ankle.
Ken spasmed again and twitched. Laer was fine, however, and brushed her spiked hair back down, shaking off the effects. She resheathed her sword and cleared her throat.
"Alright, alright, everything is done now, right?" The woman asked, crossing her arms. "If so, head back to your dorms. You dumbasses know there is another test tomorrow, right? You're all gonna be hella tired if you keep this up." The woman pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed. "Kids. I'm glad I ain't gotta deal with any of you."
"You're the captain of the Phoenix Flight Guild, aren't you?" Olivia asked hesitantly, causing the woman to look back up at her.
Laer's eyes narrowed slightly. "So what if I am? You got an issue with Laerton Eman?"
Olivia let out a sheepish chuckle and looked away. "Nope. Sorry. Just wanted to confirm." She was shocked at how pretty the woman was. She had been expecting a brute or some horribly scarred burn victim to be the captain. This woman had some flaws and was a bit vulgar, but it also couldn't be denied that she was a total hottie. Why was the world so cruel sometimes?
Laer shook her head and turned away. "Alright. That's really enough. Go back to your rooms before my friend makes you." Off to the side, the large bear plushie flexed and showed off its muscles, ready to use them if needed.
Bruno helped steady Davi and gave a nod toward Ken. "You got her, Olivia?" The boys and girls dorms were on opposite sides, so this was where they'd be parting ways until tomorrow came. The last day of these exams. It would finally come to an end.
"Yeah." Olivia walked over to Ken and tried to help her, but Ken growled and got up on her own. The girl wobbled a bit, and she smelled of smoke, but she was mostly fine. "You good?"
"I'm going to bed." Ken hissed through clenched teeth and began to stalk away. Olivia glanced back at Davi's retreating back before she turned and followed after Ken.
In one of the spare rooms, Rowan paced back and forth slowly before taking a calming breath and putting the phone up to his ear. "Father?"
"...Did you win?"
Rowan closed his eyes and tried to settle his beating heart. "Yeah. I did." He said, forcing a smile on his face. His arms shook as he held the phone. "I won the duel."
"I see." He waited for his father to say good job, but the subject changed. "I was told your card had an issue. A suspicious spell was bought. Shadow Robes. Explain."
Rowan opened his mouth to say something but then closed it. It would be easy to tell his father the card was stolen, but that would mean admitting he let someone take it. Not to mention it would mean admitting it was Davi Hawker who took it. Davi, the man who let him win…
"I won't ask again."
"It was for Crow."
"What?" His father actually sounded puzzled.
"Captain Crow," Rowan said slowly. "He's someone who has Shadow Magic."
"Why in Haru's name would you buy a spell for a captain? You know how expensive Shadow Magic spells are? They're the fifth most expensive spells, directly behind Soul, Time, Space, Moonlit, and Light. Such a cost was spent on a mere gift?"
"It wasn't a mere gift." Rowan had to use a sleeve to wipe away the sweat that was pouring down his face. "It's a stepping stone. One that will get me in his graces."
"And why would you need to be in his good graces?"
"Because the plan has changed, Father." Rowan decided to go all out in his approach. He was already too deep in the lie, so it was go big or go home. "You wanted me to join the Hydra Storm guild to help you become the vice captain of it and bring honor back to House Zyne, but I think that isn't where we should be aiming for. Captain Crow already proved it. Someone who isn't of the Branch families can become a captain. Zyne doesn't need the position of vice captain to bring honor back to us. We need to aim higher. House Zyne will be a House that has a guild captain residing in it."
"...And you think you can manage to place your foot into the Umbra Mortis Guild?"
"I do. Because I know something no one else does." Rowan's hand grew tighter around the phone he held. "You already told me that this year's exam was going to be different. This year, the Guilds we will end up in are the ones we are destined for. I'm a member of House Zyne. We're destined for greatness."
"...Very well. Don't disappoint me."
The call hung up, and once more Rowan was alone. The sinking feeling in his gut had grown, but his heart had turned to stone. He was a Zyne. He had to do something grand. He was the one who would bring honor back to his family after all.
***
The night came and went, and the sun began to rise. At the crack of dawn, it was time for the final two tests to begin.
Exam-takers entered the arena, which had been cleaned up since the battle between Davi and Rowan. The people roamed out like ants, none even noticing that up top, an eighth person had arrived where the captains were.
"Well, well, well, if it isn't little Laerton." Dark Star gave a large, toothy grin, and she slapped her knee as Laer walked up the stone steps and made her way over to her throne. "Finally joining us, huh? You know you went and missed the first two tests! The second one was boring as hell, but the first one was something awesome!"
"I didn't miss it, dumbass." Laer rubbed her stomach and winced slightly. She had to go take a dump again but decided to hold it in since the last time she needed to take one, she ended up in that raven-haired man's shadow vault and had to fight off an army of bird-like monsters while taking a shit. That hadn't been very fun. "I left Birdy to watch it all." She stopped when she reached her throne and looked down at the orange bird plushie that rested in the center of her chair. The small stuffed animal twitched and then flapped its wings, flying up and landing on her shoulder. "I saw through her eyes and heard what she heard, so I get the gist of it all."
"Why are you even here?" Crow asked, raising an eyebrow.
"To fuck your mom, that's why." Laer collapsed on the throne and groaned again, grabbing her stomach.
Father, for once, didn't have a smile on his face. "I see you still haven't changed after all this time, Laer. I hoped being in a Guild would give you a more knightly image, but you're still the same mutt that crawled out of Mordheim."
"Mutt? I prefer bird." Laer flipped the man the bird.
Dark Star laughed again and shook her head. "Oh, Laer, I'm glad you're one of us. You always remind me how lucky I am to be an actual Knight."
"And you always remind me what a bitch old age looks like," Laer said flatly. "Thank Haru, I won't live long enough to look like your crusty ass. Honest to Haru, I think if I looked like you, I'd crave death. You're courageous for going on living, Dark Star."
"Well, fuck you, too, you bitch." Dark Star's amused look was gone.
"Maybe after I'm done fucking Crow's mom."
The three top captains all glared at the lowest-ranked captain, who met their stare head-on. Myth, Gorgon, and Dye decided it was wise to stay out of the exchange, and Grampa Green was asleep, unaware that he was still alive.
Father went to say something, likely to put an end to the arguments, but he was stopped by the sound of a horn blaring. Back in the sky, Pretty Face flew around, her wings extended and a large grin on her face.
"Boys and girls! I hope you're all excited because this is it!" She announced, pointing up to the sky. "No rolls this time; we're going straight into the second-to-last test! Created by the one and only Dark Star! Let's give it up for the test of Courage!"
Down below, the arena began to shake and glow. The next test was about to begin.