Crushing flags and claiming the Villainess - Chapter 82

Chapter 82: Chapter 81- Disappointed?

Ryan Grimshaw is a boy born at a noble house but someone who was raised by a hunter after the age of six and was taught everything about a very basic yet necessary concept.

Survival.

Being pushed into the wilderness at such a young age taught him several things, but the most important part he learned from those days was how to exploit even the slightest opportunity at a disadvantageous position.

The moment he knew who his opponent was, Ryan knew he wouldn’t be able to win against her through normal means. And the way she began her onslaught, made it obvious that unless he exploited the only ace up his sleeve, he wouldn’t be able to win.

As such, he went for the win and paralyzed the girl.

However…maybe he underestimated the S-rank warrior a little, and in the end, he was labeled as the loser—just as everyone expected.

“Don’t make that face, son. You did great.” The instructor of the third year was present in the infirmary as he saw Ryan getting treated by the nurse.

Once the nurse was done patching him up and left, the raven-haired heaved a sigh before saying, “I disappointed you and my team, sir. I should have done better.”

The lanky instructor shook his head, “You already did your best. I couldn’t have thought of anyone else other than you, pushing Valerie to the verge of defeat.”

Those compliments made him feel better, but it would have sounded even better if he had won.

“Fuu~okay, since praising you didn’t work, let me give you some news to cheer you up.”

Ryan raised his brows and looked at the older one, “What news.”

The instructor, with a grin, extended the information he was forbidden to reveal, “It seems they have selected you for the tournament.”

Ryan’s eyes widened, “Really?!”

The man pressed his finger against his lips before shaking his head, “Nothing is one hundred percent but I have heard from the Headmaster about the selection committee’s decision.”

Ryan felt his wounds no longer hurting as much as he looked at the man with his eyes burning a little.

‘I did it, Master…’

———**———

“Are you okay, now?” Austin asked as he helped Valerie sit on the bed.

They were also in the infirmary but in a different room.

Valerie was given a medicine that would help her recover. She didn’t receive any severe wounds except for the muscle pain in her stomach.

The nurse said that she would probably recover by tomorrow.

“I feel fine…” Valerie assured him, “It doesn’t hurt that much.”

Austin helped her drink some water, before asking, “Do you still feel the effect of the Shard?”

Valerie shook her head, “No, it disappeared back in the arena. I can move myself fine now.” To make her believe in him, she even moved her arms in a circular motion.

Seeing him getting worried for her, was making her both happy and sad.

However, she didn’t express her feelings and used her time to assure him as much as she could.

After a bit of pause, Valerie slowly asked, “Were you…disappointed…seeing me lose?”

It was the first time for her to struggle in a battle after a long time. And in front of Austin, it might be the first time after she awakened her Shard.

Seeing his pride and confidence in her skills, made her feel that he might be disappointed to see her struggling against someone who was a rank lower than her.

However, “We all are warriors, Valerie. No one came here to lose, so naturally, everyone would use any means to win this. And under such circumstances, it is natural for even those to fall, whom people believed to be the undefeatable.”

Cupping her cheeks, he said, “It’s not just about meeting expectations, it’s about giving it your all. And today, you showed strong reluctance to lose, and that makes me proud of you.”

Austin didn’t use flattering words nor did he add anything that he didn’t mean.

It was a bit shocking to see Valerie fall into a battle since he didn’t know Ryan’s Shard ability, but that doesn’t mean he was disappointed in her.

Yes, if she had just accepted her defeat right there and then after falling, then Austin might have felt dissatisfied with her performance. And as her lover and friend, he would have told her right away.

Valerie lowered her gaze, before uttering, “I want to confess something…”

Austin raised his brows before removing his hands from her face, “What is it?” The way she just said that he knew it was something serious.

Valerie bit her lips and hesitated for a moment…however, she knew that if she hid it, she wouldn’t be able to look at herself in the mirror.

“…just when I was about to slide out of the arena…something stopped me from behind…it was an invisible force and remained just for a moment, which I capitalized and attacked Ryan.”

Valerie was ashamed of herself for claiming victory when she received help from something unexpected. And the person in front of whom she confessed her sin was the only person whose judgment she could accept.

Austin heaved a long sigh before he looked at the system screen,

[Absolute Barrier timer: 28h 37 min]

…at that time, he subconsciously used the Absolute Barrier to stop Valerie from getting eliminated from the battle.

He was torn between the thought of whether to tell her or not when suddenly,

“Austin, your match is up.” Rhea entered the infirmary and informed him.

Austin exhaled an audible breath before getting up.

Turning his eyes back to Valerie, he asked, “Want to come and see me win?”

Valerie smiled fondly at him before nodding and holding his hand.

Rhea suddenly asked, “Is it really okay to bring her?”

Austin nodded, “Yeah, it’s fine. After all, I can’t miss this opportunity to impress my lady.” Austin had a teasing grin on his face as he squeezed her hand and pulled her closer.

Valerie blushed upon hearing those words, as she looked at him shyly.

“…it’s a crime to be around you guys….” Rhea sighed.

——–**——–

Morkel was in his office room, currently reading a letter last sent by Aiden.

Recalling back on his conversation with the First Prince, Morkel felt quite disturbed about something.

“You ‘need’ to remove Austin otherwise, he would never let you become one with Rhea,” Aiden spoke those words with utmost conviction.

“He is just ‘pretending to be with Valerie,’ but in fact, he is still ‘after Rhea’.”

Those words just etched in his head, and Morkel became sure that Austin was indeed putting up an act so that he could pursue Rhea in secret.

“You think about it yourself…how, out of nowhere, my brother became so close to the girl whom he hated for this long?”

Aiden gave him a reason not to trust Austin and believe what Aiden was suggesting.

“Then what should I do?” Morkel asked; a bit unsure whether to directly come in the way of the Second Prince.

At that moment, Aiden rested his hand on Morkel’s shoulder and told him, “You just need to keep a watch on Austin and report everything about him to me. Once I get the whole idea of what he is up to, it wouldn’t be much of a problem to let father know.”

Morkel raised a questioning brow at that time, “And what if…he really is not pretending?”

Aiden never let go of that smile from his face..but in that moment, that smile looked a little strained, as he repeated, “‘Austin is evil’ and ‘he will snatch your Rhea if you don’t do anything’.”

That was the last conversation Morkel had with Aiden. And after that, the Professor began exchanging letters with him, sharing Austin’s activities in the academy. The recent news of Austin being involved with the demons and his constant training with Sebastian and Valerie.

And then the meeting with the Headmaster followed by rescheduling his and Valerie’s match to the first day.

Morkel did as Aiden asked him to…however, in a corner of his mind Morkel always felt that Austin’s movements were not towards Rhea. He doesn’t even care about what she feels.

True, there was friendship between them; proof was when Austin asked Valerie to help Rhea with her spell activation.

When Austin recently made contact with Morkel, revealing his intention and his knowledge about Aiden’s scheme, Morkel felt that he might have missed the mark completely.

‘Which Prince should I trust…’ Morkel was in a dilemma; however, considering Austin’s growing influence on Rhea, he knew that the boy could manipulate her into believing things that weren’t even true.

Austin is, unexpectedly, good at manipulation.

The blond Prince knows something that will make Rhea feel indebted and leave a very strong impression.

‘The more I think about it, the more I feel Austin is a safer option….’

Now, the question arises: what would he say to Aiden?

‘Hmm…a little misinformation wouldn’t hurt….’