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"A compromise?"

"Yes," I affirmed. "I can assist you with your issues concerning your mother. I can even provide aid in searching for a cure for her illness. I have skilled individuals under my command whom I can direct to aid in the search."

Zeruel stared at me in shock, her disbelief evident. It was understandable; there was no way I should have known about her mother\'s illness or her financial struggles. She must have been thinking I was some kind of stalker, especially after my confession to her and admitting my feelings.

"Don\'t be so surprised, or defensive," I reassured her. "As I mentioned, I have a team of skilled individuals working for me. I\'m not prying into your personal life because I\'m infatuated with you or anything like that. My interest lies solely in your abilities and talents. But let\'s focus on the matter at hand.

I want to propose a compromise, and as part of the deal, I\'ll cover your mother\'s medical bills at the sanatorium and arrange for her to receive treatment at a facility with advanced medical technology to further research her illness."

At my words, Zeruel swallowed hard. Humans tended to grasp at any lifeline offered when they found themselves in dire straits. When faced with despair, they sought solace and support wherever they could find it. Though it wasn\'t always so simple, humans were driven by such instincts.

Confronted with an opportunity to cling to hope amidst her despair, Zeruel wouldn\'t be able to think clearly; her only instinct would be to seize it.

But humans were also naturally suspicious creatures. They would inevitably question the motives of those offering them help.

"What\'s in it for you?" she asked, her voice tinged with skepticism.

A natural inquiry. What was in it for me? Truth be told, there was nothing in it for me. Or perhaps it was more accurate to say that my only motivation was necessity. In order for her to believe that I was truly going to cover her mother\'s sanatorium bills, I needed to first push her to the brink of despair.

Additionally, I needed to provide a reason for my actions beyond simply stating that it was a requirement to assert dominance over her. It was as simple as that.

"Simple," I replied. "I want you to sell the ticket to me."

She blinked, confusion evident in her expression. "The ticket?"

"That\'s correct. All you need to do is sell it to me, and I can ensure your mother\'s sanatorium bill is covered, along with assistance for her illness. I understand that you may not trust me entirely, but I assure you, my intentions are genuine in wanting to help you. Just stop considering participating in the King\'s game and sell me the ticket."

The King\'s Game commenced as soon as the tickets were randomly distributed to the one hundred participants. This initial phase resembled a mental chess match, where those who didn\'t receive a ticket but desired to participate in the King\'s Game had to negotiate or resort to coercion to obtain one from the ticket holders.

The King\'s Game wasn\'t solely about physical prowess; it also tested one\'s cunning and intellect.

Right now, what I was doing could be seen as a form of coercion, albeit with good intentions. In reality, it was more of a compromise, a way to persuade her to give me what I wanted by offering her incentives in return.

"Why... do you want it?" she inquired.

Fair question. Why did I want a ticket? After all, I already had one, so what was the purpose? It must have been because of Shredica. For some reason, I wanted her to succeed. More specifically, I wanted to witness a skillless individual rise to the top and see how far she could go.

Lately, she had been capturing my interest more and more. It wasn\'t far-fetched to think that, for some reason, I felt Shredica was destined for greatness.

I didn\'t want to disclose the true reason to Zeruel, though. "For personal amusement," I replied. It was intentionally vague, but not entirely untrue. It was amusing to see how far Shredica would go to achieve her desires, after all.

***

The next day...

I asked Shredica to meet me after school at the bench near the fountain. I waited for her for an hour after school, and finally, she arrived, looking as sullen as ever.

"What is it?" she asked.

Even though she was the one who arrived late, she seemed more irritated than I did.

"Would you mind coming with me somewhere?" I asked.

"I don\'t mind, but I have a feeling you\'re going to try something shady, so I\'ll pass," she replied, turning to leave.

I watched in shock as she began to walk away, momentarily stunned. But then I quickly snapped out of it and called out to her, "Wait. This is about your ticket," I said. "I want you to come with me to retrieve it."

At that, she halted, appearing ready to listen to me. She turned to face me, raising an eyebrow, her purplish eyes glaring at me, as if sizing me up.

"How did you manage to get a ticket?" she inquired, placing a hand on her hip. Shredica wasn\'t particularly busty, so her gesture didn\'t captivate me in any sensual way.

"Let\'s just say I used a bit of coercion," I replied. "After all, the King\'s Game is as much about mental manipulation as it is about physical prowess. It\'s about finding ways to persuade the ticket holder to relinquish it to you. That\'s all there is to it. Now, shall we proceed?"

"Alright," she agreed.

As we walked, I sensed someone trailing behind me. I didn\'t bother turning to look; it was someone from our class, half-hidden behind a tree. Shredica must have noticed them too, but she remained silent, not acknowledging their presence. Were they planning to follow us like this? If they kept it up, they\'d only raise suspicions. But whatever.

Having them around like this might actually be useful.

While we continued walking, I couldn\'t help but ask Shredica, without turning to look at her, "How\'s it going with the King\'s game?"

"Well, I asked an administrator, but he said I need to get a ticket first before I can talk to him. I\'m betting even if I do, they won\'t let me participate," she replied.

That\'s true. Administrators can be stubborn assholes who believe your worth is solely based on your skills. Without them, you\'re nothing in their eyes. You\'re not even considered a person.

"Try asking Administrator Galdea. She\'s the most understanding out of all the administrators," I suggested to her.

"From someone who supposedly is normal, you sure seem to know a lot of stuff even I haven\'t heard," she replied suspiciously.

"I read newspapers, so obviously, I\'d know. Did you know she was the one who processed our admission to the academy? Well, obviously not, I guess. I figured you\'re not into that kind of stuff," I explained.

"I guess you\'re right," she conceded.

Hmm? Was she actually admitting it? Did I imagine things?

I resisted the urge to touch her forehead to check for a fever because it was unusual for her to admit fault.

After walking for a while, we finally arrived at the location where I was supposed to meet Zeruel. She would sell me the ticket in exchange for covering the bills that had piled up and that she couldn\'t pay anymore. Additionally, I promised to find a way to help her mother recover from her mysterious illness. However, when we got there, we were met with a catastrophic scene.

The sanatorium was ablaze, engulfed in a massive fire. Dark smoke billowed into the sky, resembling a looming storm cloud ready to burst. Despite the efforts of many mages, the fire raged on, too large for water magic to extinguish. Onlookers watched in horror as the structure was consumed by flames.

In the midst of the crowd, I spotted someone familiar: Zeruel\'s younger sister. She was screaming frantically, her voice carrying across the chaos.

"My mother...! My mother is in there...! And my sister...! Help, please! Someone...! Ahhh, s-save them please...!

My sister is trapped too! Help them, please!" She struggled against the people restraining her, her desperation evident. If they hadn\'t been holding her back, she might have leaped into the fire herself.

From her words, it was clear that Zeruel and her mother were still trapped inside the sanatorium. How did this fire even start, though? Was it an accident? Or natural? No, this wasn\'t natural; it was most likely man-made. An arson.

The fire was too massive for it to be anything else. If that was the case, then someone had done this. But why? I came to a conclusion almost immediately.

"...The ticket," I muttered to myself.