“HYERGH!”

Ceylica’s right arm shoots down at me, rushing to bruise my beautiful face.

And just as she does, I grin, both hands in my inner jacket, revealing two separate weapons at once.

“WHAT?!”

Bearing the brunt of pepper spray, Ceylica flinches backwards, eyes shut in irritation. Without a second’s worth of pause, I follow up, abusing this millisecond worth of weakness as I shift my body to the side, drop my pepper spray, pull her right arm in, and with a click─

“TASTE THE POWER OF CAPSICUM AND ELECTRICITYYYYYYY!”

─Send my stun baton straight into her neck.

“YE BASTARD!”

With an almost violent shudder, Ceylica pulls two steps backwards, hands clawing at her face.

The drones follow up soon after; four in line formation; three launching darts connected to a battery, and one camera trained, capturing this for all to see.

“RAGHH─”

“Shoot.”

Under my voice command, the drones then activate their intended functions, sending electricity through the darts as a loud crackling buzz emanates through the air.

“Heh.”

No words come out of Ceylica now.

Only groans, shrieking in release as 10,000 volts are delivered and spread throughout all her body.

Technology is a scary thing.

Still.

Dishonourable or not, it’s not like I violated any rules. After all, the omission of external factors only extended as far as to other students, not tools. In the end, it’s not my fault Ceylica didn’t read the fine print.

“It’s just bad luck.” I console. “An unfortunate turn of events that led you to fight the greatest weapons manufacturer in the world.”

“...And?”

When that word escapes her─Ceylica’s head flicks upwards, her black sclerotic eyes staring straight into my soul. Even so─all I can do is watch, conceding but the smallest fraction of respect.

“And, what if yer the greatest weapons manufacturer in the world?”

“Hm?”

“Titles are meaningless. They change over time, foldin’ to one challenger after the next.”

Ceylica’s body shakes in greater intensity, increasing in unparalleled increments.

“But…” She yells, “FRIENDS ARE FEREVER, STICKIN’ WITH YE TILL THE END OF TIMES!” Ceylica grabs at the taser lines behind her, “AND, AS LONG AS THEY BELIEVE IN ME… I WON’T EVER LOSE!”

The half-demon reaches her decibel breaking point. Her spirit culminating in one last ditch effort as she swings her arms, pulling the three drones with raw force alone and sending them crashing into the ground.

Perhaps, now, in an almost serene realisation, I find myself wordless, at long last, acknowledging this woman’s sheer tenacity.

“I see.”

Then there is only one thing left to do.

Relinquishing my stun baton, I meet Ceylica’s eyes. The instant I do so, I inhale, gathering my senses and waiting for my opponent to come for one last rush of fisticuffs.

“...”

But that doesn’t happen. Unexpectedly, Ceylica only raises her arms, body firm as if free from carnal rage. Though I’d doubted its possibility, it seems that rational thought has returned to her, like a Crilandese monk who’s finally achieved enlightenment at long last.

“Pharnom.”

My muscles tense.

The half-demon dashes forward, right leg spurring her speed. I retaliate with an oblique kick, hitting her kneecap with the sole of my foot.

Stolen story; please report.

“Harh…”

A wince of pain leaves her throat. Less than a half-second later, she presses on, sending a simple right straight.

“Hergh!”

The blow is faster than I can react. Flying through the air like a bullet, it implants straight into my jaw and, as if on surgical cue, removes a tooth from my mouth.

“...”

Dulled as my sense of pain is, I waste no time recuperating. With no less than all the force I can muster, I send a left hook back, hitting her straight in the abdomen. The sharp exhale of breath immediately follows. Then, as if on rhythmic cue, Ceylica punches me back, square in the face again.

“LUCIUSSSSS!”

“CEYLICAAA!”

Our next exchange is an affront to all martial artists in the world. Devoid of technique, sense, and intention, we lash out at each other like rabid beasts, exchanging knuckles in place of words; blood and bruises erupting like localised disease.

“Hah…”

We exchange three blows respectively.

Every muscle in my body aches. Blood taints my mouth like a bad stain. The bones in my hands cry, erupting in anguish with every contraction.

“But…”

No matter how bad it is for me, the same must go tenfold for Ceylica. Even with a demonic body, that woman can only take so much, right? As if to clear my doubts, I slowly lift my head and cast a glance at the woman two heads taller than me, grinning at the sound of her strenuous pants. And so, grasping the situation at last, I smile.

“Looks like I win.”

Timing my words with one final blow, I rotate my hips and, using the centrifugal energy generated─send a bone-shattering blow straight into Ceylica’s stomach.

“...”

A bitter sensation courses through my metacarpophalangeal joint. Slowly, I retract my now broken hand, catching a glimpse of the bones protruding. It takes a second for it to register, but whatever adrenaline high I’m on renders the sight no more than an aftermage, moving me on to my next train of thought.

“You there, Ceylica?”

Her ensuing silence speaks for itself. No words, save for those of the crowd, come in reply. The half-demon who opposed me for the better half of ten minutes finally topples, falling to the ground like a wayward domino.

“Hah.”

I exhale in relief. The pressure in my skull, bones, and muscles floods back all at once. It’s an uncomfortable feeling, a grim reminder to finish what I’ve set to do, and quickly, nonetheless. For the next few seconds, I let the air hang still with question, letting the sight fully engrave itself into the memory of those watching.

Standing victoriously for but a zeptosecond more, I then jolt my left arm in the air, making my proclamation as I do so.

“Rejoice, my fellow students; justice has prevailed in this free and fair contest.”

I stand expectantly before the crowd awaiting their cheer and applause. Yet I am met instead by shaking heads, whistles and boos.

“Free and fair, my ass, you capitalist, you stuck-up fraud!”

“Yeah, Luciusofraud!”

“LUCIUSOFRAUD! LUCIUSOHACK! LUCIUSOCHEAT!”

“Imagine relying on drones, FRAUDDD!”

Well, communication was never my forte. I guess there is a reason why I employ Morgana, after all.

Sighing, I prepare my best smile before continuing.

“Celiyca agreed that, should I win our small contest, she would hand over all of her gang’s duties to me. In other words, I now “own” most of the convenience stores on campus.”

“Capitalist dog! Stealing stores away from others!”

The jeers intensify as the mob grows ever larger. Amidst their increasingly grating sound, I fight down the urge to fall into unconsciousness, the pain and headache catching up to me all the while.

“But wait. You see, as the true capitalist that I am, I believe in free and fair competition. I thus intend to break up this unlawful monopoly by simply handing each store to the individual students who run them. As competition grows, prices will fall, and the quality of goods will increase!”

A dark-skinned student raises his hand while pushing up his glasses with the other. “If I may,” He speaks quickly, “How exactly will you ensure that these stores do not form a new monopoly by being gobbled up by other gangs?”

“Ah, but my friend, it is most simple. Tell me do you know of the new online snacking store that forced Celyica’s gang to bring her prices down?”

“Indeeed, Snac-Line products are cheap and of superior quality.” The boy nods.

“Well, I happen to run said store.”

At this revelation, many of the angry glares transform into those of admiration. Its change is both sudden and borderline comedic. The booing and whistling cease as students intently listen to the conversation.

“You see, the stores with the lowest prices will be given exclusive access to premium, industrial suppliers. In other words, in exchange for competing with one another, store owners will be rewarded with access to cheap goods. However, should some decide to begin swindling students again, a mere word from my part will collapse their business. Store owners can thus choose: either join my new alliance and access cheap goods, or stay in their obsolete gangs and lose all of their market share!”

“Wait… That just means everything’s gonna be cheaper!”

“Exactly, my friend! No more 200 point toilet-paper!”

Caution claims the gaze of some. Amongst those watching, a decent chunk no doubt pledge loyalty to Ceylica, owing to her a well-founded degree of respect. Many, though, do not. Amongst them, instead grows a greater understanding; as students mutter amongst themselves, and soon come to the realisation of my virtue and genius.

“Cheaper goods, huh…”

“I’m not gonna have an excuse for not buying my girlfriend a birthday present anymore…

And as the finishing blow, I add the cherry on the cake.

“To celebrate this great day of liberalisation of the Althiaez Academy market, I hereby declare all Snac-Line products to be 50% off for the next three days! And all stock that is not sold will be given to the stores that sign up to my new free-market alliance.”

And with this, I press the button in my pocket a final time. With flashing disco lights, a small squadron of drones emerges from the distance, showering the crowd with snacks and gifts. As students cheer and trample one another to snatch a sugary delicacy, a desire for rest seizes my body. Without care for proper backrest, I fall, closing my eyes as sweet, sweet nothingness overrides my consciousness.