William glared at the giant Worm in front of him. He was currently in a weakened state and couldn't use his full power, but nevertheless the battle between the two raged on until the very world itself started to distort.
"Just surrender, Half-Elf!" the Worm said via telepathy. "Your resistance is futile! You can't fight the inevitable!"
William firmly held Stormcaller in his hands as lightning crackled from its spear blade.
"The only thing that is inevitable is your demise, Worm," William replied hatefully. "I will not forgive you for what you have done!"
With a shout William charged forward like a lightning bolt, while his opponent turned into a beam of dark light. The two clashed repeatedly, causing cracks within the world, but William didn't care.
He would kill the bastard in front of him, even if he died in the process.
-----
William abruptly opened his eyes and sat up from the bed, panting for breath. He knew he had a very bad dream, but he couldn't remember everything that happened. The only thing he could remember was him lying on the ground in a pool of blood.
"Will?"
A sleepy voice sounded beside him, as Wendy rubbed her eyes and sat up from the bed as well. She was wearing a one-piece, black, nightdress. This was the first time she had worn something like this while sleeping beside William. Spencer would definitely faint in shock if he saw it.
Unfortunately, William was still too shaken by the dream to appreciate his girlfriend's nightdress.
"I'm fine," William replied hoarsely, "Just a bad dream."
Wendy moved closer and gave William a hug. The red-headed boy wrapped his arms around her and buried his head in her chest.
Wendy's whispered words of assurance in William's ear as she patted the boy's head to help him relax his nerves.
Five minutes passed, and William's breathing stabilized. Wendy's voice, warmth, softness, and the delicate hand brushing his hair helped him to calm down. He continued to hug her as the tension in his body disappeared completely.
"In a few hours, the Inter-Division battle is going to start," Wendy said after she felt William's body relaxing. "Are you perhaps anxious about the outcome of the battle?"
"Maybe," William answered. "I've been suffering from anxiety this past week."
"Don't worry. I promise I'll take it easy when we meet in the arena later." Wendy lightly pressed on William's ears, hitting the pressure points in them to help him calm down more.
"Mmm" William hummed as he enjoyed the sensation of Wendy's soft hands on his ears.
"Feeling better?"
"A whole lot better. Thank you, Wendy."
"You're welcome," Wendy replied. She then looked at the clock hanging on the wall. It was only two in the morning and there were still four hours before sunrise.
"Let's go back to sleep," Wendy proposed. "We will need it before morning comes."
William nodded his head as the two lay on the bed together. Wendy rested her head on William's shoulder and placed her hand on his chest. William, held her waist firmly and closed his eyes to sleep.
Wendy was right. He would need all the rest he could get in order to prepare for the Inter-Division Battle that would be held at the Grand Coliseum in a few hours.
Although it wasn't easy, the red-headed boy was able to sleep after an hour. This time around, he had a dreamless sleep and woke up at six in the morning.
When he opened his eyes, Wendy was no longer beside him. The Half-Elf almost panicked, but immediately calmed down after he heard the sound of running water in the bathroom.
'What is wrong with me?' William rubbed his face with his palms in order to remove the last dregs of sleep from his system. 'Get a grip. Everything is fine. All is well.'
William gave himself some assurance before talking to the system about Carter's activities. Like always, the system didn't find anything suspicious and reported Carter's actions throughout the night.
'Maybe I should just kill him and get this over with.' William's eyes sharpened as a faint killing intent oozed out from his body. He was seriously considering killing Carter today, but decided to push it aside until after the Inter-Division Battle.
A professor dying during this important event would surely cause a big ruckus and an extensive investigation would be conducted. Although William was confident that he could cover his tracks, he was still inside the academy.
There could be someone powerful enough to detect the faint traces he would not be able to erase and link the crime to him.
This was something that he didn't want to have happen because it would cause many complications and would affect the morale of his Knight Order, family, and friends.
While William was pondering about his next course of action, the bathroom door opened and Wendy came out with a towel wrapped around her body. She was using a hand towel to dry her hair as she walked towards William who was sitting on the bed.
William extended his hand, and Wendy handed the towel to him. The Half-Elf then took over the role of drying Wendy's hair while the latter sat beside him.
"Isn't it hard to maintain long hair?" William asked out of curiosity.
"A bit," Wendy replied. "By the way, what do you like more, long or short hair?"
"Long hair. Please, don't cut your hair, Wendy."
"Don't worry. I prefer to have my hair long as well."
After drying Wendy's hair, William went to the bathroom to bathe as well. Half an hour later, the two were fully dressed. They shared a parting kiss before leaving the room since Wendy still had to return to the Magic Division and wait for the tournament to start.
William, on the other hand, went to Dining Room of the Solaris Dormitory.
The majority of students were already there, but not all of them had an appetite. Anxiety could be seen on their faces, which was perfectly normal because they would be fighting against the Magic and Spirit Divisions. This time, they wouldn't be sparring, but fighting for real.
The moment William entered the Dining Hall, all eyes locked unto him. He gave them all a brief nod as he walked to his seat and ate heartily. Unlike the rest of the Martial Class, he was confident that he could beat anyone he faced in the arena.
Seeing that their commander was enjoying his meal, the rest of the students also regained their appetite and started to eat. The instructors, who saw the change in the students' mood, nodded their heads in relief.
They had already tried earlier to cheer the students up by offering rewards, but it didn't help their cause. Fortunately, William's confident actions inspired them to eat their breakfast in preparation for the big fight ahead.
Another hour passed as the students of the Martial Division walked towards the Grand Coliseum of the Royal Academy. Each Division had their own Coliseum, but the Grand Coliseum was the biggest of them all.
This was where the major events of the academy were held and it could easily seat more than three-hundred thousand spectators.
William was in the lead and he walked with even steps and radiated confidence. Soon, he stopped and stood still at the entrance of the Grand Coliseum that was reserved for the First Year Martial Division students.
William turned around to face the students under his wing and smiled.
"Are all of you ready to beat up some snot-nosed pansies?" William asked.
Only a handful of people said Yes, and they were mostly the officers under William's Knight Order. Clearly, the majority of the students were not confident in their chances of winning. William crossed his arms over his chest and decided to give them some encouragement.
"Sons and daughters of the Hellan Kingdom," William said in a confident manner. "And also comrades that came from foreign lands. My brothers and sisters in arms."
William placed his hands behind his back and scanned the anxious faces in front of him.
"I see in your eyes, the same fear that would take the heart out of me.
"A day may come when the courage of men fails, when we forsake our friends, and break all…"
-----
< Ding! >
< New Title Acquired! >
< Title: Copyright Infringement! >
"People die if they are killed."
-- Receives +5 Enhancement Bonus to Agility
-- Receives +5 Enhancement Bonus to Vitality
-- Receives +5 Enhancement Bonus to Intelligence
------
William almost choked on his saliva when he saw the notification that appeared on his status page. He then cleared his throat and continued his speech.
"In life, we will encounter many defeats, but we must not be defeated," William said firmly. "A few years ago, the disciple from the Misty Sect defeated me in a duel. Back then, I felt really depressed and was on the verge of giving up."
The ears of the students perked up because they remembered the day when William arrived at the academy for his Knighting Ceremony. There, he dueled the disciple of the Misty Sect, Kingsley.
"I trained hard. Very hard…," William raised his chin in arrogance. "Even if all of you combined all the training that you have done in the past four years of your lives, I daresay that you wouldn't even come close to the training, and suffering, that I experienced in those four years."
"Because of this training, I was able to easily defeat that disciple of the Misty Sect in our rematch. I will not lie to all of you. Punching that bastard felt good." The Half-Elf smiled evilly and it made the students of the Martial Division smile as well. "Did you see how far he flew after taking a single punch from me? That my brothers, and sisters, is the sweet taste of revenge."
William then turned around to face the Grand Stadium. He still didn't move from where he stood because he was still not finished with his speech. "Today, we may encounter many defeats, but you must never be defeated.
"Just remember the name of the person that beat you. We will gang up on them after the tournament, and drag them to the back of the academy to beat them until their parents won't be able to recognize them anymore.
"Let's go. Make sure to raise your chins and show them the might of the Martial Division. "
William walked proudly towards the entrance of the stadium, while the students of the Martial Division cursed him silently. After saying all those encouraging words, their shameless commander ruined it all with the ending of his speech.
Ganging up on a single person? How shameless!
Kenneth chuckled as he walked towards the entrance of the Grand Coliseum. Priscilla sighed while holding her forehead, as she, too, walked towards the entrance. Spencer and Drake exchanged a glance at each other with a smile, before following their shameless Commander.
It didn't take long before the rest of the Martial Division marched towards the entrance as well. They were no longer feeling anxious. Instead, they were now looking forward to the great battle that was waiting for them.
Their commander was right. They may suffer losses, but they must never be defeated.