Chapter 83: The More The Merrier!

"Thank you for the advise, Mr Fredric. I’ll do whatever it takes to avoid them."Fredric sighed. "You are going to keep ignoring my word, aren’t you?"

I shook my head.

Fredric sighed deeply. "Do whatever you want to do. However, it’s my job as your instructor to ensure that this conflict doesn’t escalate. So if it does, you can find me at my office. If you can’t make it, then you can only depend on yourself."

"You may leave."

I nodded at him respectfully before standing up from my seat.

I didn’t bother asking him about the case between Ivory and me.

I was sure that he knew that I doubted his word.

Besides, he might make up another story to delay the case.

I exited the lecture hall with my belongings.

I returned to the boy’s dorm so I could eat before heading to the dungeon to complete a task and train.

Awakeners ate more than an average human to sustain their bodily functions.

Only as they grew stronger could they store nutrients within their bodies to use for later, or become self-sufficient on their mana alone for survival.

I could also survive on mana as a Rank One Awakener, but it would only last for an entire week before my body slowly begins to react the same way a peak human reacts to hunger.

As I arrived at the boy’s dorm gates, I halted.

I sensed multiple figures following me.

I turned to look at the path paved with carved bushes and tall trees on each side, before turning to the small park in the distance.

"Come out, I can sense you!" I shouted.

My voice penetrated across the surrounding areas.

One by one, figures rushed out from the bushes and the park and arrived before me.

They surrounded me.

I looked at Jaran and the Windcrest Clan Descendants staring at me with immense hatred in their eyes.

I turned to look at the others around me.

They were also members of the Windcrest Clan, but they weren’t from our class.

They were all dressed in the Grand Avalon Combat Uniform with a sword strapped to the side of their waist.

Just as Fredric had warned me, the Windcrest Clan descendants across the Magical Swordsmen department were determined to attack me.

However, they had retaliated faster than I had expected.

And they had done so boldly.

"What’s the meaning of this?"

I looked around, pretending to be confused.

"Isn’t it obvious? We are here to discuss with you about the conflict between you and the Windcrest Clan," Jaran said.

He stepped forward, accompanied by two people by his side. On one side was a young man, and on the other was a young girl, both of whom had purple hair; however, the young woman’s own was much longer.

Julian Windcrest, a Ninth Ranker on the Class One Magical Swordsman Ranking.

Kaelis Windcrest, an Eleventh Ranker on the Class Two Magical Swordsman Ranking.

Behind them were Kiran and the rest of the members of the Windcrest Clan, some of whom I barely recognised.

"Ezekiel Zahara, I challenge you once more to an official duel. I had underestimated you previously, and this time I won’t repeat the same mistake." Jaran narrowed his eyes at him.

"If you accept, I promise that every record of the conflict between you and the Windcrest Clan will be wiped away."

"Do you accept?"

"I refuse," I responded.

"What do you mean? Are you afraid of facing me?" Jaran barked, his fists tightening as veins bulged on his forehead.

"No, you have it all wrong. I’m not afraid of facing you. I won’t battle you because you’re a joke to me," I responded, shaking my head and sighing tiredly.

"You should also be aware of this. Knowing that you can’t face me alone, you choose to challenge me with your emotional support family. If these are the so-called future leaders of the Windcrest Clan, then it’s safe to say that this generation will be the last because you lack the basic survival instinct to endure."

I wanted to accept his duel. But it wouldn’t have been enough to fulfil the requirements of the quest.

The only way I could achieve that was to piss off everyone present.

I would be happy to do it even without the quest.

It just served as motivation to be more bolder.

The more the merrier!

The students within the boys’ dorm emerged one by one to observe what was happening outside the gates below through their windows.

"I see. I heard that the Worst One has begun flaunting his authority after gaining a bit of strength, but I didn’t expect it to be this bad. I have watched how you defeated Jaran, and I’m forced to admit that you are indeed strong. Since you’re not willing to battle Jaran, then how about battling me?" Julian said, his expression solemn.

"Ezekiel Zahara, I challenge you to an official cross-class duel?"

"If you emerge victorious, I will see to it that you are rewarded twice the standard amount, fully paid, in accordance with the rules of the Grand Avalon Academy."

"And I, Kaelis, challenge you as well, Ezekiel Zahara," Kaelis chimmed in, stepping forward. "I offer the same terms, double the reward, honoured and paid in full."

Jaran attempted to speak but was quickly held back by both of them.

Oh! I realised that they had already planned this before coming here.

They might have tried ganging up on me if I had accepted Jaran’s challenge and emerged victorious.

The first ten top rankers in any class could officially challenge each other. Unlike the usual reward, which was the loser’s position if their rank was higher than the winner, the reward for defeating a classmate in another class was that the winner would be paid half of their merit points earned from holding their position until the loser could beat that individual or the loser was removed from their position by another individual.

The Disciplinary Committee actively observed official cross-class duels to ensure that there was no cheating, such as a loser intentionally forfeiting their position to another person to cancel the rewards and then reclaiming it.

So, this was an offer that I couldn’t refuse.

Yet..

"Are you three going to be the only ones challenging me?" I asked.

"What do you mean? Are three of us not enough?" Julian asked, his tone filled with a mixture of confusion and curiosity.

"Yes. Three of you aren’t enough. Since you’ve all gathered here, I will grant each of you an official duel for a chance to challenge me one by one," I responded.

Jaran’s expression shifted to a mix of shock and surprise.

Julian’s and Kaelis’s expressions also shifted similarly.

The crowd surrounding me reacted in the same manner, and in the next moment, they erupted into furious shouts and clamour.

"How dare you utter such words? Do you think that you can speak anyhow to us just because you’ve earned yourselves a small achievement and become the Class Three third-ranked Magical Swordsman?!"

"I am the fifteenth-ranked Magical swordsman from Class One! Do you think that you would be able to defeat me if we battled?"

"He’s too arrogant, I would have found it difficult to believe if someone informed me that this was the same Worst One that I knew! Someone needs to clip off his wings to show him his place!"

"I’ll defeat him myself. Neither Jaran nor the others even need to interfere!"

They weren’t too happy after hearing my words.

I hadn’t thought the time would come when I would choose to challenge every member of the Windcrest Clan.

"Are you trying to embarrass us?" Jaran gritted his teeth as he spoke.

Any harder, and his teeth would have fallen out of his mouth.

I shook my head for the umpteenth time.

"Do you think that one alone won’t be able to defeat you?" Jaran asked.

"No, you have it all wrong. I want to test the strength of every member of the Windcrest Clan, so that you understand the overwhelming disparity between us. It would be embarrassing if, after these frequent defeats that you still came to challenge me."

Jaran trembled in anger.

The expressions of the others also twisted into anger.

"On behalf of the Windcrest Clan, we accept your challenge," Jaran responded with a nod. His face was emotionless, unlike before.

"Let’s head to a training ground and resolve this matter once and for all."

"Lead the way." I nodded.

Jaran turned around, and the other followed behind him. The others that once surrounded me also turned one by one and followed him.

I followed behind them.

***

Meanwhile, as the event that had transpired outside the boy’s dorm gate spread, a massive uproar spread across the Magical Swordsmen Department.

Jaran challenged the Worst One to an official duel again after his previous defeat; however, the Worst One not only accepted his duel but also extended the challenge to all Windcrest Clan members across Classes One, Two, and Three for a cross-class duel.