Team Raven vs. Team Darren.
This was the first match decided through an essentially rigged lottery system. But people ignored that since it was simply a chance for them to satisfy their curiosity.
Soon, a teacher entered the practical ground and called out to both team leaders. "Raven and Darren, step forward."
However, before the students stepped forward, a series of footsteps were heard.
"Looks like I wasn't late."
Followed by a voice that tensed every teacher on the ground, including Vance, who was most probably responsible for falsifying the lottery.
Soon, every pair of eyes turned to the source of the voice, only to find Damien Vaise, the head, or headmaster of Cradle, walking toward them.
The teachers all knew who he was, but not all students knew. Especially a child known to be the dumbest.
"Damn, isn't that the guy who was onto us like a rabid dog during yesterday's class?" The thickhead Alex spoke, breaking the silence, causing every eye in the area to turn to him, some furious, some shocked, and some confused.
And Raven? Well, he just felt like he aged a few years.
'This fucking dumb bastard!' He growled inwardly, glaring at Alex, who stuttered under the gaze of everyone present, especially the glare from Raven and deadpan looks from Jake and Clara.
"W-What?" He glanced at the surroundings, his pupils quivering. "I-I did something dumb again, didn't I?"
"No shit," Raven growled, turning to look at Damien hoping not to get them a minus for Alex's behavior, but the guy just looked into his eyes and nodded, turning around.
"Huh?" Raven, seeing that, was left bewildered.
'Why did he nod at me?' His mind reeled, but as he felt some sharp glares on his back, he realized something.
'...that bastard.'
Damien had just made Raven an enemy of all those who wanted to leave a good impression on the headmaster.
After all, anyone who wants to get someone's recognition would get angry when they see someone else getting it without even doing anything.
So, by nodding at Raven, Damien had shown that he had acknowledged Raven's presence, making people hate them.
Raven could tell Damien was punishing his group without making it a serious issue. And he could do nothing about it since they were at fault.
Baam!
"Ouch! W-What was that for?!" Alex groaned in protest as he felt Raven smack his head as if taking his anger out on him.
"What else, you birdbrain? We got into trouble because of your mouth again." Raven huffed at Alex, making the guy lower his head.
Clara and Jake just shook their heads as they could also feel the gazes, few not even bothering to hide their intentions.
Their upcoming opponents of group Darren were the peak example of that type.
Damien, on the other hand, moved toward the judge seat where two seats were already occupied, leaving one for him at the center.
"The first match has been decided already, I see," he spoke as he settled on the seat, causing Vance, sitting on his left, to grip his chair's armrest.
"Yes, sir," replied Vance, making Damien nod his head.
"Must be some lottery for the first draw to be the match everyone was waiting for."
Those words hung in the air but no reply came.
Everyone knew what Damien was implying, including Vance, but no one knew what they should say in response.
It was Damien himself who broke the silence.
"Let's not delay the matches any longer."
With those words, he made it clear that although he knew what had happened, he had decided to keep quiet about it.
At what cost, however, no one knew yet.
.........................
After Damien gave the green light to the match, the training grounds became a sea of anticipation in a while.
The moment the groups were called into the arena, murmurs spread through the crowd like wildfire.
"Ah, group Raven's done for."
"Darren's group is filled with elites of the Ros Vaise family after all."
"I heard the Ros Vaise branch family is no weaker than the main branch."
"No matter how good Raven is, he alone can't win the match."
"Well, the record breaker is probably going to break another record today."
"Yeah. A record of losing the first match in his career."
Raven, however, ignored the noise, rolling his shoulders lazily.
His opponents were elites of the Ros Vaise family, one of the two main branches of the Vaise family.
But that didn't mean they were something he would be scared of.
He glanced at his teammates.
Alex was cracking his knuckles with far more enthusiasm than necessary while Clara was smirking like she was already plotting someone's downfall.
And Jake… Well, Jake had his usual blank, brooding expression, but Raven knew him well enough to catch the subtle shift in his stance. He was ready.
Across from them, the opposing team stood tall and confident, their leader, a smug-looking boy named Darren, stepping forward with a grin.
"Well, well. What a lucky draw," Darren said, his voice dripping with mockery. "I was hoping we'd get to put you in your place sooner or later, Raven."
Raven tilted his head, unimpressed. "Sorry, do I know you?"
Darren's smirk faltered, and Clara let out a sharp laugh. "Oof, that's gotta hurt."
Her comment, however, was like salt on a green wound, making Darren feel the heat rising on his cheeks.
But before he could explode, the teacher overseeing the match—Instructor Gale, a wiry man with a sharp gaze—stepped forward, raising his hand. "Enough talk. Choose your first fighter."
Raven turned slightly to his group. "Alright, who's going first?"
Alex raised his hand immediately. "Me. I wanna smash their faces in."
Clara elbowed him. "Go show them your brawn, thickhead."
And even Raven didn't see any problem with Alex going up first, but then—
"I'll go." Jake cut in, his voice calm.
His words made their eyes turn to him in surprise as Jake rarely spoke, much less take initiative to do something.
So seeing him step forward was shocking, but Raven didn't miss the glint in the guy's eyes.
'Look at him being angry for me,' smirked Raven as he could see anger flashing in the guy's eyes.
It seemed that he was still angry about the earlier comments.
In the end, Raven nodded. "Fine. Don't lose."
Jake didn't react and stepped into the arena with the same expression he always wore—quiet, composed, and vaguely uninterested.
Darren, with hatred in his eyes, motioned to his own team, and a bulky boy named Troy walked forward. He was at least a head taller than Jake, muscles tense with anticipation.
"Beat the shit out of that bastard." He barked, and Troy, trained by the Ros Vaise family to defeat assassins, looked at Jake and scoffed.
"Don't worry. An assassin like him can never defeat me—"
"I said. Beat. The. Shit. Out of that guy," Darren interrupted with a growl, making Troy pause.
The guy stared at Darren for a second before glancing at Jake, who had a similar build to an assassin, and with a nod stepped forward.
"As you wish."
As Jake and Troy were in the dueling circle, Instructor Gale raised his hand, explaining the rules.
"Verbal surrender, inability to fight, or stepping out of the circle would be registered as defeat...."
.........................
Meanwhile, among the judges.
"You know why I was late, Vance?"
Damien, leaning on his center seat, suddenly asked as he stared at Jake and Troy.
Vance frowned at the sudden question but answered nonetheless. "No, sir—"
"Of course, you don't," Damien spoke before Vance could complete his words. Ignoring how Vance's jaws clenched, he pointed at Raven. "I went to meet that guy's caretaker, who had been teaching his group before he came to Cradle."
Damien's words, however, made Vance turn to look at him. He was always ready to listen to anything related to Raven.
He waited for Damien's next words, but when he heard them, he almost lost his cool.
"What I want to know is who you think would win."
'Why the fuck are you randomly jumping from one thing to another?!?!?!' Vance felt like pulling his hair, but he took a deep breath and replied to the guy's question as if it were the most obvious thing.
"Troy will win. Jake feels like an assassin, and Troy is a perfect counter for assassins. His defenses are too tough for assassins to pass through—"
Damien hummed at his words, stroking his chin before he shook his head. "Enough. I just wanted to know who would win, not why they would win."
Being cut off by Damien again made Vance pop a vein on his head but he was used to it, so he didn't react.
As he saw Instructor Gale finishing his explanation of the rules, he added, "Though, I would say that your prediction is wrong. That Ros Vaise kid is going to lose."
Vance frowned but didn't comment on it. 'We will know soon anyway.'
Damien knew what Vance must be thinking so he also stayed quiet as he already knew many things about Raven's group that others didn't.
One of them was—
'That Jake kid isn't an assassin.'
But there was no need to say it for now.
He focused back on the match as Instructor Gale, after finishing his explanation, took a step back and commanded. "Begin!"
Troy wasted no time. Using his physical superiority, he launched forward like a charging beast, fists swinging.
Jake, however, barely moved.
At the last second, he shifted to the side, avoiding the attack by a hair's breadth.
Then, with surgical precision, he grabbed Troy's outstretched arm, twisted his body, and used the momentum to throw him over his shoulder.
Troy slammed into the ground with a loud thud.
The watching students gasped.
"Did he just—?"
"He took him down in one move?!"
"Why would an assassin not dodge? He feels more like a striker!"
"Is he not an assassin?"
Jake exhaled slowly, releasing his opponent. "Get up," he said, his voice even.
Troy, humiliated but not defeated, scrambled to his feet, eyes blazing. "You got lucky!"
This time, he was more careful, advancing with measured movements. He feinted left before swinging a powerful right hook—only for Jake to duck under it effortlessly.
Then, Jake moved.
Just one step forward and a sharp palm strike on the ribs, then a second, faster blow to the sternum.
Troy choked, stumbling back, and before he could recover, Jake swept his legs out from under him, sending him crashing to the ground once more.
Silence.
Then, Instructor Gale spoke. "Winner: Jake."
Raven's group remained unfazed as if they had expected this. The opposing team, however, looked furious—especially Darren.
Jake, however, didn't even glance at them, walking back without a word.
Alex grinned, slapping his back. "Damn, man, every time I see you do that, I'm reminded of never pissing you off."
Jake ignored him, eyes flicking to Raven.
"Good work," Raven said simply. 'Krav Maga really does suit him,' he muttered inwardly, proud of himself for making Jake as he was.
Jake nodded once, taking his place beside them.
Across the battlefield, Darren scowled. "Tsk. Fine. We're not done yet. Next!"
Raven, hearing him, smirked. "Why don't you show them how to use power correctly, Alex?"
Clara stretched, her smirk widening. "Yeah. Show them that you're not just dumb."
"Couldn't you have not said anything, Clara?! His words almost made me look like a main character." Glaring at Clara, Alex stomped, huffing as he stepped into the circle.
Vance, on the other hand, seated beside Damien, could feel mocked even though Damien was yawning to himself.
To Vance, it was like Damien told him that the matches went as he predicted—so much that he was bored.
'They were just lucky, you bastard!' He barked inwardly, glaring at Darren, who trembled, knowing that losing again would bring more of Vance's fury.
The poor guy, however, could only bark at his subordinates, hoping this round to be better.