With their third loss, Arcane Bishop somehow recalled the memories they had a couple of years back when they were still first years. He felt nostalgic as he glanced at Lufine who was still greatly affected by their third loss.
A smile appeared on Bishop's face as he realized just how far they'd come. Of course, it had only been two years since they were first years. How could they expect to win against them most of the time when their age gap was this close?
Seeing Bishop smile confused Lufine a little bit. How could he smile so genuinely like that after they lost big time?
Then again, Lufine assumed Bishop didn't feel that bad about their loss because she was the sole reason for their defeat. If she didn't temporarily blind Bishop like that, then they'd have a greater chance at winning. But
now, they lost, and it was her fault.
"I'm sorry." Lufine pursed her lips as she apologized. She knew that he wouldn't blame her for her mistake. However, she couldn't help but put the blame on her because of what happened.
"What do you mean?" Bishop asked. It was both their fault that they lost, so why was she blaming herself? "Don't worry about it. We lost because they were pretty good. We underestimated them, that's why we lost."\
There was no time to contemplate their incapabilities though since the third round was bound to start. This time, they were going to fight the Jonathan and Kurogami pair. At this point, they already made the effort to research what superpower they have.
Furthermore, they need a plan in order to get the upper hand. There was no way they'd let a bunch of first-years defeat them for the third time.
For Kurayami Kurogami, they were aware that his power was just like Arcane Bishop's, except he was more offensive and he had more control. If it were a one-on-one battle, Bishop knew that he would lose against him. However, this was a tag team and there were two of them.
The one thing that they were wary of was Jonathan. Not only was his superpower not registered in the Superheroes Association Organization, but they also had no idea what his fighting style was. Then again, they were aware that his superpower was somewhat similar to Emma Leisenberg's— teleportation.
"We just need to deal with Jonathan. As for Kurogami, I'll do my best to go head-to-head with him. We're going to win this." Bishop whispered at Lufine, to which Lufine nodded in response.
"All right, I got your back, Bishop." Lufine returned with renewed determination.
Jonathan and Kurogami stepped forward. Compared to the first three teams, they were as calm as a lake. It's as if they knew that they were going to win this round just like the first three teams who bullied the fourth-years.
"I give you two minutes. You defeat them. If you can't, then I'm stepping forward." Jonathan whispered to Kurogami.
"Sure. I'll defeat them before the two minutes are up." Kurogami declared. There was no way Dark Matter could win against him. And even though Lufine had an advantage over his superpower, he could pull his own weight against her.
Tension began to rise up as the scenario of the match was being decided. Knighthawk gave Dark Matter and Light Wing a raised eyebrow since they were getting bullied by a bunch of first years. They had lost three times in a row when they were supposed to win three times
This time, instead of reacting negatively about it, Dark Matter just shrugged his shoulder before nudging at Light Wing. It's as if he had accepted his three consecutive losses and was now looking forward to the next match.
"Then, let's roll the dice, what would it be, this time?" Knighthawk announced as the computer picked a random scenario for the next match.
One versus one.
"It's a one versus one!" Knighthawk raised his voice as he pumped a fist in the air. "Whenever heroes and villains fight, a one versus one is the most common scenario. Sometimes, a villain would challenge a hero for revenge, or sometimes a hero would challenge a villain to get his point across. In any case, this is the most common trope in heroes versus villains."
"Now, pick your order, and proceed to the clearing in the middle of the arena." Upon saying that, Knighthawk then turned towards his class. "Follow me, we're going to watch this fight from the sidelines."
"Two minutes, all right. If you can't defeat him in two minutes, you have to surrender the match." Jonathan told Kurogami. He then extended his hand so Kurogami would shake it.
At first, Kurogami hesitated since he had no idea whether he could defeat one of them in two minutes. But after a few seconds of contemplation, he reaffirmed his determination and shook Jonathan's hand. "If I don't defeat one of them in two minutes, I'm going to surrender. A man never backs down on his word."
"Well said," Jonathan said.
Everyone watched this exchange, and they couldn't help but be surprised at their friendship. This was the first time the two of them met, and yet it seemed like they were close friends already who had known each other for years.
Kurogami smiled and shook Jonathan's hand. He then turned to Knighthawk and announced that he was going first.
There was no backing down now.
Since their interaction happened while they were walking towards the clearing, Dark Matter and Light Wing also heard it. They were a bit offended that the two of them were making a bet with each other, which implied that they weren't taking the fight seriously.
"I'm going first," Dark Matter said with a tense expression on his face. If they weren't going to take it seriously, then he'd be the one to do the job. After all, there was no way he'd miss the opportunity to win the fourth match.
While it appeared that he was taking advantage of the situation, he couldn't care less. They needed a win no matter what, and if this was what it took to win, then he was going to take the chance.
"No, I'm going first. His element is the opposite of mine. I'll just stall for time until he gives up. I'm one hundred percent sure that he won't even get near me." Light Wing called out.
Quite frankly, she was willing to go first since it would be a complete win for him. Besides, she badly wanted to make up for her mistake in the previous match.
"All right then, if that's what you want. Give us the first win, all right?" Dark Matter cheered as he patted Light Wing on the shoulder.
Kurogami and Light Wing walked towards the clearing.
And as usual, it was Knighthawk who officiated the match as a stand-in referee. "Ehrmm, I'm not going to repeat the rules. If one side is unable to battle, or if one side surrenders, then the match is over. It's as simple as that."
Kurogami and Light Wing put up their hands in a fighting stance as Knightawk raised his hand. He was about to give the signal.
"Ready... start!"
When the signal was issued, Light Wing produced an intense flash of light that filled the entire clearing. Kurogami impulsively raised his hand in a poor attempt to block his sight against the brightness.
As someone who dwells in the shadow, he was extremely sensitive to light. That's why all he could do was block the light while he was pushed back due to the brightness.
"Aghk~!" Kurogami screamed but there was nothing he could do about it. Before he was completely pushed out of bounds, he removed his shirt and wrapped it around his eyes. This will help block most of the illumination, and it will give him a better chance at winning.
All this time, Kurogami was keeping track of the time in his head. A minute had passed.
Now that he was a bit resistant to light, he walked towards Light Wing, who gave off an even better brighter light out of desperation. Kurogami felt like his eyes were going to bleed but he kept on.
With every step, he got nearer and nearer. And after fifty seconds, he was now in front of Light Wing. Of course, since Light Wing was too focused on shining an intensely bright light at Kurogami, she couldn't move an inch. One minimal movement is all it takes for her to lose concentration.
Fifty-five seconds.
Kurogami was finally within arm's reach of Light Wing. With one final push, he closed the distance and grabbed Light Wing by the neck. Light Wing choked, but that didn't stop her from shining down on Kurogami.
Two minutes.
With a sigh, Kurogami let go of the grip, and he raised his hand as he turned towards the audience. "Two minutes had passed. I surrender." He announced.
It was clear that he was going to win if he had given himself ten or fifteen more seconds. But then again, he didn't want to back down on his word, so he surrendered when he couldn't do the job in under two minutes.
Jonathan smiled as he walked towards the stage. "I thought you were going to extend your time. I'll take it from here." Jonathan continued.
But before he could take a step inside the stage, Dark Matter moved forward and swapped with Light Wing. "You're going to fight me. I'm swapping with Light Wing. You can fight her after you defeat me." He declared, assuming his position on the stage.
"Either way, it doesn't matter. I'm going to win." Jonathan confidently spoke.
This 𝓬ontent is taken from f(r)eeweb(n)ovel.𝒄𝒐𝙢