“Huh, there’s going to be a Cross-Grade Duel?”
Sonia suddenly perked up and sat upright.
“What’s a Cross-Grade Duel?”
Yide asked.
Sonia quickly explained.
A Cross-Grade Duel is an ancient tradition that’s existed at Duel Academy since its founding.
After every midterm exam, the academy organizes two Cross-Grade Duels: first-year students face off against second-years, and second-years go up against third-years.
No one really knows why the academy started such a strange tradition, but this event—happening only once or twice a year—is a festival for all the students.
To keep the duels interesting, the academy set some rules.
Although the participants are chosen at random, the lower grade picks from the top three of their year, while the higher grade selects a student at random from the entire year. This ensures randomness, but also keeps the skill gap from being too huge.
Of course, if the higher grade’s random pick still lands on one of their top three, well, tough luck.
“Sonia, aren’t you going to apply?”
Tivia blinked her eyes and encouraged her.
Sonia waved her hand. “Me? No way, I’d rather just watch from below than go up there and get thrashed by a second-year senior.”
“Besides, only the top three in the grade get to duel.”
“I can’t guarantee anything else, but if it’s a contest for the lowest ranking, I’m confident I wouldn’t lose to anyone!”
“…Is that really something to be proud of?”
Tivia was a little speechless.
Forget it, if she doesn’t want to go, she doesn’t want to go.
She’d only brought it up on a whim, curious to see what it’d be like if Yide controlled Sonia’s body to duel those upperclassmen.
It’s just an event, after all. Whoever goes up doesn’t matter.
The two girls dropped the topic and were about to go eat.
Suddenly, the homeroom teacher’s voice sounded from outside the door.
“Sonia, come out for a moment.”
The two girls exchanged glances and walked out.
Sonia saw the homeroom teacher waiting at the door and spoke up.
“What is it, Mr. Laki?”
Compared to class, Mr. Laki now had a cigarette dangling from his mouth and looked completely dejected, as if he’d suffered some terrible blow.
But Sonia and Tivia both knew this was just how he usually looked—his lethargic attitude in class was already his most energetic state.
Laki didn’t waste words. “Would you be willing to participate in this afternoon’s Cross-Grade Duel?”
“Huh? Huh?”
Sonia made a puzzled noise, pointing to herself. “Me?”
Laki nodded.
“That’s right. We’d already arranged someone for this afternoon, but the student ranked third in the year suddenly dropped out, so we need someone to fill in at the last minute.”
“And you came to mind.”
“M-me? I really can’t, Mr. Laki.”
Sonia grew anxious, her tone turning righteous. “It’s only my first day back, and I’ve only beaten Edward Faulkner once! How could I possibly represent the rest of the first-years?”
“By the way, who was the person who suddenly quit? So irresponsible!”
Laki replied, “Edward Faulkner.”
Sonia opened her mouth but couldn’t make a sound.
Silence fell.
After a while, Laki sighed.
“Actually, ever since we heard you were coming back, the Dean’s Office wanted to swap Edward out for you.”
“Edward’s temperament isn’t great, and as it happens, today’s opponent isn’t easy to deal with either.”
Laki looked troubled.
“Normally it’d be fine, but the academy has a guest today, and this afternoon they’ll be watching the duels with the Principal.”
“If those two ended up in the last match, it would be a real mess.”
“Ah, youth… If only I could go back to those reckless days.”
Tivia was exasperated. “Teacher, you’re only thirty.”
Laki took a drag on his cigarette.
“Age doesn’t matter. My heart’s already dead. Even if I were three, my body would just be slowly rotting away. Cough, cough…”
Choking on the smoke, Laki quickly stubbed out his cigarette. “So, what’s your decision, Sonia?”
“Just a friendly reminder—if you earn the Explorer’s Quota this year, this afternoon’s duel is a chance to get a preview of your future teammates or rivals.”
“No thanks, Mr. Laki, maybe you should ask someone else…”
Yide spoke up. “A preview of teammates and rivals? Sounds interesting. I’d like to see how strong the second- and third-years are.”
“(」> <)｣ I’ll participate!”
The refusal stuck in Sonia’s throat.
Anything Yide wanted to do, Sonia was willing to try.
“Alright, then I’ll put your name down.”
With that, Laki shuffled off in his slippers.
Soon, it was afternoon.
The Duel Arena was already packed with people.
Since Sonia would be dueling, she got a front-row seat, and Tivia got to tag along.
Mr. Laki stood nearby, cigarette in mouth, staring at the arena. Tivia was beside him, frantically fanning away the smoke.
“Cough, cough… Mr. Laki, could you not smoke here?”
“Sorry, working this job is the last bit of warmth a useless person like me can offer. Don’t ask too much from me for the rest.”
Laki had completely given up on appearances.
Maybe realizing he ought to say something as homeroom teacher, he turned to them.
“Sonia, you’ll be up for the second match. Your opponent is Zande Yalago, a second-year who’s also Fire Element.”
“Don’t stress. If you lose, you lose—no one really expects the first-years to win anyway.”
“Thanks for the pep talk, Mr. Laki.”
Sonia was at a loss for words.
“Everyone, good afternoon!”
As the three chatted, a clearly first-year student walked onto the stage as host.
“I’m honored to serve as both host and referee for today’s Cross-Grade Duels. I’ll be announcing the start and end of both matches.”
“Without further ado, let’s welcome the seniors for the first duel!”
“From the second year, we have Senior Doubali! And from the third year, Senior Ilouxue!”
Amid cheers and gasps, a petite girl with tanned skin and a tall, cool-tempered woman stepped onto the ring from opposite sides.
Seeing the cool-tempered woman, Sonia and Tivia were both shocked.
“What’s going on? Did the third-years really draw Senior Ilouxue this time?”
Yide asked, “Who’s Ilouxue? Is she famous?”
The name sounded familiar somehow.
Sonia quickly explained, “Mr. Yide, she’s the other student who beat a D-rank Guardian while still an E-rank Duelist!”
“Right now, she’s ranked second in the entire third year!”
“Senior Ilouxue, I never expected you’d be my opponent when I got the notice!”
Doubali’s voice was excited, clearly eager to fight.
“Let’s begin.”
Unlike Doubali, Ilouxue was brief.
The next moment—
“Swear to the duel!”
“Swear to the duel.”
A phantom arena rose up.
The first Cross-Grade Duel… begins!