Merlin moved before he could think. His fist connected with Sangook’s cheek. The boy fell to the ground, stunned, and Merlin jumped on him, punching him a second time.
“Get off of me, you bastard!” Sangook growled as soon as his wits returned, reaching to grab Merlin, but his hands slipped off from the latex battle wear Merlin wore. “What the hell do you think you’re doing? I’ll kill you.” His face squeezed like a piece of wet cloth hammered out to dry, and his eyes were dyed red with fury.
But Merlin wasn’t afraid. He had never been afraid of the boy, and now he couldn’t even imagine himself being. The lad was pitiful. And perhaps that was why he was unable to control himself any longer.
“Behave yourself!” Merlin voiced, pinning Sangook to the ground with both his hands. The boy wriggled underneath him, trying to pry free, but Merlin was far stronger than he was. “Why would you say something like that?”
“Who are you to tell me what to say? Get off me right now, or I’ll kill you.” He turned his gaze towards Hakyun who was standing a few feet away watching them with furrowed brows. “Both of you!”
“You won’t be killing anyone, you fool,” Merlin argued. “And you better keep your mouth shut or I’ll punch you again.”
Sangook gritted his teeth, pissed off.
Merlin had managed to hold himself back quite a bit despite his rage, so Sangook wasn’t exactly bleeding a stream of blood from his nose. There was a trickle, but it could have been worse.
Merlin had tried, really, to ignore Sangook’s grumbles after the team selection. But the more they advanced towards whichever instructor they were supposed to meet, the more the words the boy uttered infuriated him. He went on and on about how Hakyun was so weak to be placed on the same team as him, and how it was absurd that a Deficient Mage was tagging along as well. It was almost like he had forgotten completely about the fact that Merlin had defeated him when they had fought, but that was probably a fuel to his irritable nature.
It only got even worse. And Merlin had his fill when the boy insisted that he would have been better off alone.
“No one can be better off alone,” Merlin insisted. “Take that back.”
Sangook’s eyes narrowed into slits. Merlin felt mana pulse through the boy’s body, and the Grimoire strapped around his waist wriggle, trying to set itself free.
“I will only say this one more time. Get. Off. Me.”
Merlin’s forehead creased.
What was he doing? Why was he even bothering with this guy? He should just get off of him and let him do whatever he wanted to do. He was not obligated to try to talk some sense into some golden spoon brat. But he couldn’t pretend like he had not heard the conversation between the lad and his father. He couldn’t get it out of his head.
Merlin pressed down hard into Sangook’s shoulders, shifted his knee slightly and rested them on the boy’s grimoire.
Choi Sangook snarled.
“I overheard your discussion with your father,” Merlin continued. “I won’t say I understand what you’re going through, but haven’t you realized yet that the whole reason why we Mages are always placed in teams during most of our practical classes is because we all need each other? No Mage can do it alone. And even though I hate you so much, I will not let you jeopardize the tournament because of your selfish desires.”
Sangook fell silent, wearing a dazed expression. His pulse paced, as varying emotions flashed through his face. Then it settled on aggravation. He clenched his jaw, drove his knee into Merlin’s groin, and turned Merlin upside down, landing a punch of his.
“You little…” He punched Merlin again. “How dare you eavesdrop on me?” And again and again.
Hakyun frowned when it went on for a couple more seconds. But when he shifted to approach, Merlin signalled for him to hold on. As Sangook was about to land another punch, Merlin grabbed his arm into a lock and held it in place.
“Let me go!”
“Is this fun to you?” Merlin asked, his left cheek bruised, but he barely felt any pain. “Do you enjoy bullying and pushing others away?”
Sangook jerked back slightly. “What gives you the right to ask me any question? What do you know about me?”
“Nothing,” Merlin replied. “But I do know it’s nonsense to continue to let adults dictate how we live our lives. Don’t you think so?”
Sangook’s brows twitched. “Stop talking about something you know nothing about.”
“Then do you enjoy it?” Merlin asked, his stare burning into Sangook’s. “Do you enjoy bullying those who try to become your friends? Do you enjoy loneliness?”
Sangook’s hand clenched. He tried to move his arm, but Merlin had it locked tight, and his other free arm was the only thing that kept Merlin pinned to the ground. He bit his lower lip.
“I don’t need friends,” he replied. “And if it is compulsory that a Mage requires to team up with others forever to succeed, then I’ll be the first Mage to be independent. I will become strong enough that I do not have to leave my back up to someone I don’t trust. Because I don’t trust anyone.”
“Idiot,” said Merlin. “There’s a reason the cold weather is always harsh. Such a life is not desirable. And I know you know that too.” He bit his lower lip. “If you freeze everyone out, then who will provide you with the warmth you want?”
Sangook jerked back and a dazed look took over the furious expression on his face.
Merlin was the same.
He was surprised that he had said something like that. But his surprise was quickly put aside when the hair on his neck stood firm. His eyes shifted from Sangook, flashing towards the trees flanking their path just a couple steps away.
“Fascinating,” the person leaning on the tree said, and it was then that Hakyun and Sangook noticed them too. “I was wondering what was keeping you guys, and it was a friendship bout? I’m impressed.”
Sangook was a hotheaded idiot, but what he wasn’t was foolish. He immediately pulled himself away from Merlin, anchoring his full attention on the blonde figure, who, a second later, they recalled to be Dr. Eleanor Wright. The supervisor of Crown Academy’s students.
Merlin jumped up from the ground, Hakyun unbuckled his Grimoire from his waist strap, and Sangook did the same.
Their goal had come to them.
Dr. Eleanor shifted away from the tree and onto the path. She smiled pointing at Merlin.
“I liked your speech,” she said. “Teenage vigor. Hmm. You just have to love it.”
“Where’s the key?” Sangook asked impatiently as his Grimoire took flight.
Dr. Eleanor raised a brow at him. “Seriously? You were not expecting me to just feed you that information, were you? You’ll have to defeat me to get it.”
“Exactly,” Sangook said. “Where did you hide it? I don’t want to have to rummage through a lady ‘s body after she’s been knocked out. I’m not a creep.”
Merlin blinked owlishly, momentarily wearing an incredulous look.
Choi Sangook being a gentleman… How surprising.
Dr. Eleanor smiled. “I like your confidence, Prestige Academy student.”
“It’s Choi Sangook to you.”
“...But what makes you think you have any chance of obtaining the key and getting past me?” She sighed, resting a hand on her waist as she angled her body. Merlin studied her demeanor. “I hate to sound like a Karen, but I’ll be doing the very best in my power to ensure that my academy retains its spot as the first ranked Mage Academy in the world. Of course, I’ll ensure not to leave you three bedridden, but I’m going to make life very tough for you.” She glanced at Merlin and tilted her head softly. “Well, then. That is all for pleasantries. You may start.”
###
Dr. Elias Namgoong was seated cross-legged on a chair made of water, his gold plated cane resting on his thigh as he stared at the students of Nikita Academy. They stood some ways away from him, caution in their eyes as they scrutinized his every twitch. Then the boy in their lead, Ivan, turned his dark gray eyes towards the bubble of water floating a couple of feet over Dr. Elias. There was a silver key inside.
“Aren’t you being too lackadaisical?” Ivan asked, his expression almost too plain.
“Am I?” Dr. Elias replied, his tone flat. The Russian students said nothing and he stood up from his seat of water. Immediately, it compressed into a large bubble, rising to the air and hovering there. “I will apologize in advance. I’m not really one to derail prospects from their path to success. But there are ten of you, and I’m a tad too splenetic at this moment. What I’m trying to say is I might exert a lot more force to stop you guys than I might have used otherwise. Surely, you can understand that, right?”
Ivan narrowed his eyes. He glanced at his smartwatch, checking how many minutes had passed since the tournament had begun, and channeled his mana. His Grimoire took flight. In the same instant, the rest of his mates did the same, every single one of them prepared for battle.
“Exert as much force as you wish,” he said.
“Splendid.” Dr. Elias nodded. And then he covered his Grimoire with a bubble of water without as much as flexing a finger. He leaned on his cane and smiled. “Have at me then, will you?”