Seems like I wasn't wrong in my assumption. Neraxis nodded to himself as he watched the duel between Soren and Kael unfold.
Celina had been an oddity from the start, but Neraxis thought nothing of it. That was until they began fighting for real—only then did he notice her precision was far too refined for a mere special-class student.
So far, he had only seen this trait in Kael, and now, another potentially troublesome person was added to the list.
[Well, she seems like a little charm. I'm not sure why you're so worried,] Evangeline remarked with a chuckle.
Be that as it may, she's even more suspicious than Kael, Neraxis replied before asking, Want to know something funny?
Puzzled, Evangeline answered, [Sure?]
The tournament that will happen in a few months—the so-called special secret one. One of the heroes will be there. He stated, watching as Kael gained the upper hand in the fight against Soren.
She remained quiet for a moment before speaking. [Are you planning to kill the hero?]
Her tone held only curiosity, in no way discouraging him from his goal.
After all, she too had died at the hands of traitors.
Probably. Neraxis nodded before continuing, The hero Bale is arrogant and wields a spear—quite the combo, really.
But one thing, in particular, had been gnawing at him the more time he spent in this world.
Will he be the same person I want to kill... or someone entirely different? Neraxis pondered with a conflicted look, until Evangeline spoke up in a worried tone.
[Neraxis... look, this world is inherently different, yet at the same time, the same. People you have not met before—or even heard of—exist. But from what I gathered from your memories, the personalities of everyone around you remain the same.]
So he's still going to be a betraying prick, huh? He chuckled. Good to know.
Alas, once the time came, he would find out for himself whether Bale had changed or not—since, if he hadn't, his death would be especially gruesome.
Putting those thoughts aside for now, he resumed paying attention to the fight.
It was surprisingly evenly matched. Even though Kael was stronger in most areas, he could not finish off the annoying Soren, who kept perfectly countering each of his attacks.
Added to that, Kael's skills were being suppressed the moment he used them, which looked quite frustrating, to say the least.
But soon, Kael found an opening—practically the same way Neraxis had done, just taking far longer to figure it out.
Alas, two delayed jabs were all it took to send Soren off balance, and immediately after, it was simply a beatdown.
Ouch... Neraxis shivered as he watched Kael pummel Soren's face in.
After a few moments, Kael stopped, picking up the bloodied Soren and tossing him off the platform.
Immediately, Kael heaved an exhausted breath before turning and walking over to Neraxis.
"Why didn't you go fight him? You could've probably beaten him sooner with that strange sword of yours."
Neraxis tilted his head at Kael's attitude. "How's that my problem?"
"It just is. Anyway, are you ready to fight?" Kael questioned, preparing his stance.
But even at a glance, it was obvious he was roughed up quite a lot.
Even more so, he wasn't using his gauntlets, making this fight just a "beating him while he's down" situation.
Therefore, Neraxis suggested, "Kael, what would you say to a draw?"
"Of course not. What do you take me for? A loser?" Kael scoffed before readying his stance—and, without giving Neraxis a moment to think, he dashed forward.
And... he's going 3-0. Neraxis sighed, simply stretching out his sword and performing a simple horizontal slash at Kael's abdomen.
However, to his surprise, just as the slash was about to land, Kael's tattoos began glowing—and instead of the usual green, they were white.
Neraxis didn't think much of it at first, but the moment his sword connected with Kael's body, he froze.
All of a sudden, a massive stream of blood began spurting from his mouth, rendering him immobile as he clutched his heart.
What the...? he thought with pained gasps. Is this some sort of skill recoil?
However, Kael's next words proved otherwise.
"Oho, it worked," he spoke in an amused tone, before continuing. "I tried mimicking that attack you did on me back then. It seemed pretty overpowered how you could simply absorb all the damage I did to you and then attack me with it, so I tried something similar."
A grin formed on his face. "A reflection shield—one that completely reflects a single attack of an opponent back at them. So, what do you think?"
Crazy bastard... Neraxis groaned, feeling his bleeding stabilize thanks to Evangeline's help.
However, the damage was done—his internal organs weren't looking so great.
At the same time, Kael's fatigue was evident. Therefore, like any regular person would, Neraxis made it seem like he was far worse off than he actually was.
Surprisingly, that seemed to work as Kael walked up to him confidently and raised his fist before bringing it down.
In that short moment, however, Neraxis used his Restorative Cut skill, stabbing straight at the unsuspecting Kael.
Or, that was what was supposed to happen. Instead, Kael managed to avoid it and, with a wide grin, said:
"Read you like a book."
As his words fell, Neraxis felt an impact on his left side that completely knocked the wind out of him, sending him tumbling onto his back.
"Pfft..." He couldn't help but let out a small laugh, lying just beside the edge of the platform.
A former hero—one with the experience to back up his strength—lying on the ground at the mercy of his own classmate.
Neraxis's thoughts had been pretty straightforward ever since arriving back in this world, back to his family—who, all but his sister, had undergone a drastic change.
That same change should have applied to him as well, but in all honesty, he was tired of it all.
Revenge was on the table, it was practically his main driving force, and yet...
Why am I still in denial?
That lone thought had been haunting him from the very start, and now, in this moment of a seemingly zero-stakes battle, it had once again sprung up in his mind.
I need a breather. Neraxis expressed as his heartbeat quickened, memories of his choices swirling in his mind.
[I know I might be the wrong person to tell you this, but you should just start acting like yourself. The past defined your personality... from the bits and pieces I can make out, I can tell it was traumatic, and I understand your want for a simple, naive life,] Evangeline said, making his chest seemingly tighten.
[But delusions must come to an end. You are back. You are in a different timeline, and you can start anew... Most importantly, you should stop holding back and fully utilize your battle experience. Why purposely lose to some kid?]
...Mhm. Neraxis could only nod while lying down, before letting out a deep sigh and glancing at Kael's smug expression.
I should probably end this fight now.