The third round had ended. Both the siren, Lucy, and the vampire, Armand, were in deplorable condition. Their clothes were torn and dirty. Neither had managed to knock the other out.
When the bell signaled the end of the third round, everyone turned to Luke and Wednesday at the judges’ table, waiting for their verdicts.
‘Damn… I didn’t pay much attention,’ Luke thought, putting on a serious expression as if he were deeply contemplating the battle between Lucy and Armand, who were staring at him expectantly.
He had been engrossed in his fascinating conversation with Wednesday and had completely forgotten to focus on the fight.
Luckily, Wednesday had paid attention. She was meticulous and perfectionist in everything she did. If she agreed to be a judge, she would fulfill the role flawlessly.
Through a telepathic message, she informed Luke whom they should declare the winner and the key points behind the decision, though Luke didn’t care much about that. His word was law as a judge; he didn’t need to justify his decision.
“The winner is Armand Rocher!” Ajax exclaimed after receiving Luke and Wednesday’s decision.
Armand shouted with joy, and his friends jumped into the dueling area to celebrate with him. Lucy frowned, her expression far from pleased.
“Objection!” the siren shouted irritably. She was not happy with the outcome. It had been a very close fight, and she didn’t trust two judges her own age, regardless of their reputation. Her words echoed in the air. The celebration from Armand and the cheering crowd came to a halt, and they turned to look at Lucy, who was soon joined by her fellow sirens and a triton boy who stepped forward to support her.
“It’s true. The fight was very even. From my perspective, Lucy deserved to win,” the triton boy said.
“We need judges with more experience. It’s not the same making decisions with the perspective that experience brings,” Lucy said sharply, aiming to cast doubt on the judges’ competence.
She didn’t attend Nevermore, so she only knew Luke and Wednesday by reputation.
Before Lucy could add anything else, she saw an object fly past at a speed too fast for her to react. It was a blur that grazed her cheek.
A second later, she felt a stinging sensation on her cheek. She brought her hand to the spot and noticed blood dripping lightly.
“Shut your mouth, siren. More experience? If you’d like, I can cut out your tongue in less than ten seconds. Would that satisfy your demands?” Wednesday said in an icy tone, her hand slightly pointed toward Lucy. She had thrown a small knife of darkness at her, one so quick that Lucy hadn’t even been able to react.
Lucy, with her hand pressed against her shallow wound, took a step back, intimidated by Wednesday’s words and unsure of what to say.
“Is that a threat? I didn’t think a judge would be so irrational,” the triton boy said, stepping forward to protect Lucy. It seemed the two had a close relationship.
The entire audience watched Luke and Wednesday and Lucy’s group with tense anticipation, swallowing.
Those who had played truth or dare with Luke and Wednesday couldn’t believe how foolish Lucy and her triton boyfriend were being. They were playing with fire-an extremely dangerous and a very impatient fire.
“As judges, we are the law. You cannot object to our decisions,” Luke said, extending his arm toward the triton.
The triton immediately felt an invisible pressure tightening around his neck. His eyes widened in shock, and he began clawing desperately at his throat, futilely trying to break free from the force that was strangling him.
A guttural growl escaped his throat as he struggled to breathe, his chest heaving laboriously.
As if that wasn’t enough, his body began to lift off the ground, his legs kicking in the air in a frantic attempt to regain balance. The sound of his choked gasps blended with the nervous murmurs of the spectators watching the scene unfold.
The triton tried to use his physical strength, which rivaled that of other outcasts his age, but Luke’s telekinetic power was far too overwhelming.
Luke had already reached ten tons of telekinetic force. He had achieved level five on the telekinesis scale Edgar had once taught him—an impressive milestone for someone his age, rarely seen in history.
With his telekinetic strength alone, he could incapacitate an opponent and kill them if they couldn’t counter his telekinesis.
“Let him go!” Lucy cried out in desperation, watching as her boyfriend dangled out of reach, his face turning increasingly purple from lack of oxygen. He hadn’t expected telekinesis to be so powerful that it could overwhelm him with a mere extension of Luke’s arm.
One of the triton’s friends began walking quickly toward Luke, intending to stop him. His logic was that if Luke was focused on choking and immobilizing his friend, he wouldn’t be able to deal with him at the same time.
Halfway through his walk, the triton felt something wrap around his right foot. A force yanked him in the opposite direction, and he fell face-first to the ground. His face slammed against the cold, hard stone floor.
Xavier stood off to the side, holding a whip he had quickly drawn with a pencil he carried everywhere. He knew Luke could defend himself, but he wanted a little action.
“Let him go! We understand, we accept the result of the fight!” Lucy screamed in greater desperation, as her boyfriend’s expression worsened and his movements grew weaker. Suddenly, the dry sound of a snap echoed through the air, reverberating in her mind like a fatal blow.
Lucy watched in horror as her boyfriend’s neck grotesquely twisted to the side. His arms fell limp, and his body stopped struggling, floating lifelessly several meters off the ground.
“No… NO!” Lucy screamed with a heartbreaking cry, bringing her hands to her face as her body shook with pure despair. Her cries rang throughout the dueling area.
The onlookers stared at Lucy in confusion.
“You bastard! You murdered him!” Lucy screamed, tears in her eyes. She never thought Luke would be so psychotic. It had just been a defiant comment, nothing more.
Murmurs began to spread among the spectators.
“Murdered? What is she talking about?” a girl whispered, furrowing her brow as she looked at the triton floating, clearly alive.
“Has she gone crazy?” murmured another, noticing how the triton, although visibly scared and gasping, was still frantically moving his eyes in search of help.
“Murdered?” Luke repeated, his tone mocking as he raised an eyebrow. “What a vivid
imagination you have.”
“Looks like the stress is getting the better of you,” Wednesday commented coldly. “Look at him. Your partner is still breathing.”
Lucy blinked several times, trying to process Wednesday’s words. She looked back at the
triton, this time with more attention, and what she saw left her pleasantly surprised, but also
confused.
Her boyfriend was still alive, even had stopped being choked, and was now just immobilized a
few meters off the ground.
“What… how…?” Lucy murmured, taking a step back as her tears continued to fall.
Luke let out a small laugh. “An illusion,” he explained, dropping the triton to the ground, where he collapsed to his knees, clutching his neck and gasping heavily.
“Just a little joke from me,” Luke added with a faint smile.
The atmosphere froze. Everyone watching now understood why Lucy had screamed in agony
and cried just moments before. A lot of the onlookers exchanged uneasy glances over this
“little joke.”
“A joke?” a girl whispered, clearly horrified.
“That’s not a joke… he’s messed up in the head,” a boy commented quietly, trying not to draw
Luke’s attention.
“He made her believe he killed her boyfriend! Who does something like that?”
The murmurs from the crowd mixed with Lucy’s sobs as she continued to look at Luke as if she
were seeing a monster.
‘A joke…?’ Xavier thought, looking at his best friend with a strange look. It seemed like spending a whole summer with the Addams had taken its toll.
Although the outcasts were known for having a firmer resolve than normies when it came to violent matters, what Luke had just done crossed a line even for them. Making someone believe, so vividly and cruelly, that their boyfriend had died was a joke that went too far.
This was due to the fact that this generation of outcasts was not like the previous ones. While they still differed from the normies in their mindset and environment, they were much more exposed to the technology and cultural influences of the normies. As a result, they were more sensitive than previous generations.
Still, not everyone was horrified by the joke, just the majority of the people present. “That was a good joke,” Wednesday said with a slight tilt of her head. “Though, if you ask me, I would have made the illusion last longer. The trauma would be
more interesting and effective in the long run,” she added in a completely normal tone.
Some of the onlookers turned to look at her, stunned. With this comment it was already clear
that they were a couple of psychopaths.
“I will keep it in mind,” Luke said. ‘Don’t take note,’ Xavier sighed lightly, bringing a hand to his face.
Ajax quickly made sure Lucy and her friends left the area so the next semifinal could continue.
Finally, the semifinal between Eugene and Nao began. Many cheered for Eugene for not quitting despite having an injured arm. Even Nao seemed a bit surprised, although she said nothing. She wouldn’t show mercy, no matter that they were psychic peers.
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