## Chapter 165 – Collusion (10)
It felt like a bomb had dropped on my already confused mind. Number 25 possessing the qualities of a Demon King? He certainly had special talents, but that was all within the realm of what I could comprehend.
Lahart calmed the other Demon Kings and sat back down.
“Let’s proceed with the tournament for now. We’ll decide his fate later.”
Veronica pouted, making her annoyance obvious.
“Honestly, there’s no need to even watch, is there? If that kid really has the qualities, no ordinary student can stand a chance. Victory is practically guaranteed.”
Orca seized the opportunity and chimed in from the side.
“Kid? Are you talking about the guy sitting next to me?”
“One more word and…”
Leaving behind Orca, who relentlessly provoked, and Veronica, who always reacted strongly to the provocation, the other Demon Kings remained lost in thought.
Aser was especially confused by the current situation. Why did these things keep happening to Number 25? Aser had simply bought a slave who suited his tastes. Along the way, he developed genuine feelings and just wanted to enjoy simple, everyday life with him. But reality wasn’t so easy.
Number 25 was the last descendant of the vanished dragon and possessed special talents. Moreover, he had a special connection with Low, the Demon King of District 2, and now, of all things, the qualities of a Demon King? If this wasn’t a cruel twist of fate, what was it? Was having feelings of love such a great sin?
Aser barely managed to suppress the urge to tear his hair out and scream.
Lahart opened his mouth with amusement.
“It’s too early to say victory is guaranteed. There’s still that child, isn’t there?”
“That child?”
“Yes, Claire. I believe everyone knows about the talent who hasn’t lost a single championship since entering the academy?”
Even Demon Kings who weren’t interested in discovering talent often noticed outstanding students when watching the tournament each year, and a student who always won was bound to stand out even more.
Clara clapped her hands and said in a cheerful voice.
“This tournament is great because there’s so much to see. Are you saying Claire might lose for the first time?”
Lahart smiled and replied.
“That’s right. And if the boy loses to Claire? Then it means what we saw was wrong. Well… I personally hope the boy shows a good performance.”
“I’m starting to like him more and more. He’s cute, after all. I want to give him a hug.”
Two people reacted simultaneously to Clara’s words.
“Absolutely not!”
One of the overlapping voices was, of course, Aser, and the other was an unexpected person. Clara narrowed her eyes, opened them wide, and asked Jane, who was glaring at her.
“Jane? What’s wrong all of a sudden?”
Jane, realizing that many eyes were on her, made an effort to regain her composure, then crossed her arms and sat down.
“Ahem… I want to use beauty as material for my art. I don’t want to give it to anyone else… That’s all.”
Veronica rolled her eyes and said in a blunt tone.
“I don’t like it. How can someone so slender even use their strength properly?”
Due to the nature of the district she governed, she preferred people with good physiques rather than someone as thin as Number 25. However, Aser offered a rebuttal, as if he couldn’t ignore her opinion.
“He’s much stronger than you think. Especially at night…”
Realizing he had misspoke, his voice grew quieter, so fortunately, the last words weren’t heard by the other Demon Kings. Aser looked at the waiting room where Number 25 was with a heavy heart. It wasn’t that he wanted Number 25 to lose, but he didn’t want him to become more famous and attract the attention of other Demon Kings.
Was it too greedy to want him to be his own man… or at least, to hope that no other women would hit on him? He could somehow tolerate Charlotte and Low, but anything more than that was too much. Aser couldn’t even hear the announcer’s voice signaling the start of the next match.
●
Back in the waiting room, Number 25 anxiously waited for Saruk. He hadn’t intended to, but he had ended up interfering in Saruk’s match. It was practically a 2-on-1 fight, wasn’t it? A cowardly act. Even a fool knew that if anyone questioned it, there could be disadvantages for both Saruk and himself.
Soon, Saruk sat down with a dazed expression. He sighed deeply, as if he were about to bury his face between his knees, then asked without looking at Number 25.
“That just now, Ryu, was that you…?”
However, he shook his head, as if saying that wasn’t right.
“No, it wasn’t.”
Number 25 couldn’t say anything to him. Saruk was silent for a while before speaking again.
“I know that I didn’t win the match just now with my own strength. I was upset at first. It felt like my efforts were being denied. I wanted to win fair and square with my own skills, but in the end, I borrowed someone else’s strength, didn’t I?”
Number 25 lowered his head, trying to convey his apologies. But Saruk said something unexpected before he could.
“Thank you.”
Surprised by the unexpected words of gratitude, Number 25 stared straight at Saruk with wide eyes.
“Huh? Thank you?”
Wasn’t what he had just done a force that denied Saruk’s efforts? Even though it wasn’t the result Number 25 had wanted, it was still true that Number 25’s power had intervened.
Saruk smiled sheepishly, as if he had read Number 25’s simple thoughts, and continued.
“Actually, I’ve been thinking a lot on the way here. What should I say to you when I see you… At first, I was a little upset with you. Did you not trust me? I even thought that. But I don’t think you did it with malicious intent. The you I saw is a really good guy.”
“But…”
“And I decided to change my mind. If I can become stronger by borrowing someone else’s strength, that’s fine. It could become a power to protect the people around me.”
Number 25 could roughly understand what Saruk meant. He was asking if Number 25 could lend him his strength in the future as well.
His own faction, the words Charlotte had uttered, came to mind again. Saruk was definitely someone Number 25 could trust as a close aide, second only to the women in his life.
“Just as you roughly know what I’m thinking, I know you well too. It’s a bit awkward, but please take care of me in the future.”
Seeing Number 25’s reaction, Saruk erased the anxiety he had felt until now and shook Number 25’s hand tightly with a bright smile.
“Ah, of course, I won’t rely on you all the time. I’ll only ask for your help when there’s really no other way for me to win on my own.”
“Are you done talking?”
It was Claire who had interrupted the heartwarming friendship between the two. She had approached without a sound and was looking at Number 25 and Saruk with a puzzled expression.
“Why are you two guys holding hands for so long? Are you two perhaps… you know?”
“N-No, it’s not like that!”
Claire chuckled and lightly patted Number 25’s shoulder.
“Just kidding.”
Saruk let go of Number 25’s hand and looked at Claire, asking.
“What brings you here?”
Claire tilted her head, treating Saruk like a strange person, and replied in an obvious tone.
“What brings me here? Have you forgotten that I’m also a participant in this tournament? It’s not that strange to be in the waiting room.”
“I thought the president would be resting in a better private room.”
Claire’s brow furrowed slightly at Saruk’s words. It was a small change that wouldn’t be noticed unless you were paying close attention, but it clearly showed that she was in a bad mood.
“I don’t want such privileges. I’m also a participant, a student. It’s good to use the same waiting room if possible. I can get a lot of information, you know.”
After finishing her words, Claire took out a piece of paper from her pocket and handed it to Saruk.
“This is why I came to find you.”
Lahart’s seal was clearly stamped on the paper Claire had brought.
“It seems the Demon King wants a slightly more interesting match?”
Now that the preliminaries were over, Claire, who should have been in the same group as Number 25, had been moved to the opposite side for no reason, and her first opponent in the round of 16 was none other than Saruk.
“I’m looking forward to the strength you showed earlier. Let’s not hold back.”
It wasn’t a confident tone, nor was it a tone full of certainty that she would win. It was just a calm attitude that regarded Saruk and herself as the same participants, wanting only a fair fight, which made Saruk even more nervous.
