Knight | Celeste Academy Series BK #1

32nd Chapter ♣ The Boy Under the Hood

"Those with closest relation to the king will always have golden hair and eyes."

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Chapter Thirty-Two  ♣The Boy Under the Hood

After getting the necessary preparations done, Valeriana was dragged towards the arena. Quincy, Poulette, and Zoel looked more nervous than she was. It was ridiculous.

Valeriana almost groaned. The school's policy was seriously harsh. It was kill or be killed or eat or be eaten type of system, so it wasn't pleasing at all. Now, the girl was getting the reason why some students died or if they simply quitted.

The girl sat anxiously. She looked up from her seat and stared at the royal box. The Celestial Circle was proudly taking their seats, and none of them were absent. All of them, including Corvan, were patiently reclining until the start of the fight. She noticed Lady Seraphina, Headmaster Kylon, and Lord Aeron as well.

"Really. I wish that Zion tried to misbehave," she muttered, rolling her eyes.

The duelist's waiting area was a small cavity under the numerous seats in the arena. It was where the competitors take their place and prepare for the upcoming fight they were participating in. Valeriana tapped her feet nervously while her aides merely cowered in their seats in anticipation.

"Can you guys stop that? You're making me more nervous with the way you're acting," she told them, frowning in displeasure.

"W-were so sorry, M-miss Valeriana," Quincy whispered.

"Nah, stop shaking. It's fine." She stood up from her seat. "I'll go to the bathroom to wash my face first. I'm going to die of anxiety just sitting and waiting here."

"B-but the duel . . ."

"The duel won't start anytime soon since it's still a bit dark out," she said before turning towards the direction of the public bathroom. "I'll be back in a jiffy, don't worry."

The three looked at her worriedly before reluctantly nodding, their eyes watching her as she disappeared around the corner. Valeriana flashed them a reassuring smile before she walked out of their sights. Despite the smile, she could feel her knees shaking uncontrollably. Her hands trembled uneasily, so she clenched them and tucked them into her pockets, trying to get herself to relax.

She breathed deeply. "You can do this, Val!"

Although she originally wanted to go to the bathroom to refresh herself and get rid of her apprehension from the upcoming fight, she figured taking this walk was enough. Still, she wanted to make sure she wouldn't piss herself in the middle of the duel, so she chose to continue.

Valeriana grinned and started jumping on the balls of her toes as she neared one of the corridor's sharp turns to the left. She curled her hands into a fist, mindlessly punching them in the open air while envisioning an imaginary opponent. Seraphina said that there was a possibility that the weapon would get knocked out from her hands, so she needed to know how to defend herself properly without a sword just in case. She already got the basics from her father, but she wasn't an expert. If it was self-defense, she knew a bit of karate . . . from watching movies.

She threw a right uppercut right just when someone suddenly rounded from the corner. Her fists collided with the person's chin and he was thrown back by the strong force that he fell directly on his back. Shocked, Valeriana gasped as she watched the person she accidentally punched fall with a thud.