Chapter 89: Gotta Keep Participating in the Selection

If it was to test Field’s attitude, then it explains why Sistem would set up such a scenario.

Field finally realized that all her actions had already revealed her close relationship with Liakade.

This is bad…

Field frowned in frustration.

No matter what Sistem was planning, having this kind of weakness in her hands made Field feel uncomfortable.

“What’s wrong?”

Liakade saw Field’s expression suddenly change and thought something was wrong.

“It’s nothing, just remembered something.”

Field waved her hand, indicating she was fine.

She didn’t want Liakade to know her current thoughts, nor did she want Liakade to get involved in her conflict with Sistem, so Field decided to keep her feelings to herself for now.

Come to think of it, Liakade was really too dense.

Even Sistem could see that Field’s attitude toward Liakade was strange, yet Liakade herself hadn’t noticed.

But maybe it was because there was someone with even more obvious feelings, like Alice, by her side, so Field’s thoughts were less noticeable in comparison.

“It’s getting late. We should get some rest.”

Liakade glanced at the clock on the wall.

They had chatted for a long time, and it was time to return to their own dormitories.

“Tomorrow is the Festival Flower Election. You both have nominations, so rest well and prepare.”

“Mm.”

Field nodded.

Although she was annoyed that Sistem had something over her, there was nothing she could do about it now.

She pushed the matter to the back of her mind and focused on preparing for the election.

“Ah.”

Alice let out a regretful sigh.

“It’s a shame Miss Liakade wasn’t nominated. It would have been nice if she could participate too.”

“Haha, if Liakade really went up there, no one else would stand a chance.”

Field laughed at that, clearly recognizing Liakade’s strength.

“Don’t tease me. There are plenty of people in the Academy who don’t like me.”

Liakade rolled her eyes helplessly, then pushed open the dormitory door.

“See you tomorrow. I’ll be cheering for you both from below.”

“See you tomorrow.”

Leaving those words behind, Liakade gently closed the door.

The so-called Festival Flower was similar to a school queen, but with some subtle differences.

First, you had to be female.

Second, you needed a good reputation and high popularity in daily Academy life.

This alone disqualified Liakade.

Additionally, performance in earlier Festival activities was considered.

Both Alice and Field performed well and naturally received nominations.

The first round of selection involved going on stage, introducing yourself, and having students vote—much like the process in her previous life.

However, the second round was completely different.

In her previous world, such contests usually had girls show off their talents—singing, dancing, playing instruments, things like that.

But here, the girls didn’t compete in talent.

They competed in – combat ability.

Yes.

After the first round of showcases, the top ten girls were selected for battle.

They were split into two groups: 1, 3, 5, 7, 9 in one group, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 in the other.

The top two waited at the top.

The lowest in each group challenged upward, and finally, the true Festival Flower was decided.

So, in another world, you not only had to be good-looking, but also strong.

***

In the original story, Irina Zi and Sistem were the Festival planners and judges.

Judges couldn’t participate in the selection, so Irina Zi used her authority to nominate Liakade to target Alice.

She even made her enter the top ten and ordered Liakade to go all out against Alice.

Even the judge for that match was bribed by Irina Zi.

If Sistem hadn’t noticed something was wrong and stopped it in time, Alice might have been crippled, and Liakade would have been disqualified.

In the end, Field and Alice met in the finals.

Field chose to surrender, letting Alice win the title of Festival Flower and receive the Grade Director’s reward.

But all this had nothing to do with Liakade anymore.

Now, both the planner and judge were Sistem, and no one was arranging for her to sneak in.

Tomorrow, Liakade only needed to cheer for Alice and Field from the sidelines.

Thanks to two months of Liakade’s guidance and training, Alice’s Level had risen even faster than in the original.

Now, she was around LV.26, already surpassing the average for first-year students.

With the Light Attribute boost, Alice shouldn’t lose to any other student in the tournament.

This talent made Liakade sigh in admiration—it truly suited the main character.

Field was doing well too.

After all, Liakade promised to be Field’s sparring partner until she could defeat Sistem, so her Level increased quickly as well, now at LV.41.

However, Liakade herself had hit a bottleneck, only leveling up once in two months.

Now she was LV.56, but with the Demon Bloodline boost, her real combat strength was likely stronger than a Court Magus.

Though Demons were currently lurking in the Royal City, Liakade wasn’t worried.

If Alice kept improving at this rate, she’d be strong enough to solo the Demon King before graduation.

No need to fear the little minions hiding around.

Thinking this, Liakade felt a bit sleepy.

She finished her bath, changed into pajamas, and was about to turn off the lights when a knock came at the door.

“Knock knock knock—”

“Who is it?”

Liakade had a feeling of déjà vu.

Hadn’t this happened just a few days ago?

It couldn’t be Sistem again, could it?

Liakade opened the door.

The familiar sight of long chestnut hair greeted her.

It was indeed Sistem.

“Her Highness Sistem… It’s so late. What brings you here again? Sigh… Come in and sit.”

Liakade sighed and helplessly invited Sistem inside.

“You’re so polite this time.”

“I think it’s a bit rude for Your Highness to visit so late…”

Hearing Sistem’s words, Liakade couldn’t help but complain.

“Hehe, Miss Liakade is joking.”

“I’m serious…”

Liakade shook her head, poured a cup of warm water, and placed it on the table in front of Field.

Sistem’s habit of visiting at night reminded Liakade of someone from her past—Irina Zi.

But Sistem was much better than Irina Zi.

Though she held high status, Liakade could speak freely in front of her, and Sistem’s attitude when asking for help was sincere.

In comparison, Sistem seemed much friendlier.

“There’s only plain water, nothing else to drink. Sorry for the poor hospitality.”

Liakade grumbled, hands on her hips, watching Sistem.

“So, Her Highness Sistem, what brings you to me so late?”

“Isn’t the Festival Flower Election tomorrow?”

“Yes, what about it?”

“I want you to participate.”

“Sure… Huh? Me?”

Liakade pointed to herself, crimson eyes full of confusion.

“Wait, didn’t nominees have to have a good reputation and no record of misbehavior? I don’t meet the requirements at all.”

“Even if you don’t meet them, I’m the planner. My word is law. I can nominate you.”

Sistem declared, thoroughly unreasonable.

“Wow, Your Highness, please don’t abuse your authority like that. What about the person who was supposed to be nominated? What if she could have won the Festival Flower?”

Liakade protested Sistem’s actions and sympathized with the person being pushed out.

“I don’t think there are any girls in the Academy who can beat Field in combat, except for you and me.”

Sistem analyzed logically.

“That person you mentioned could never have won the Festival Flower, so go participate. This is my second request.”

“Uh… sigh, since you say so, I’ll join. There’s no requirement for ranking, right? It’s fine if I’m eliminated instantly, right?”

“No problem.”

Sistem smiled sweetly.

Though she said it was fine, she’d already dug a pit for Liakade—she’d make sure Liakade fought to the end.

“By the way, I didn’t expect you to be so close to my sister.”

Sistem changed the subject to Field.

“How did you become friends with her?”

“Uh… I’m not sure either.”

Liakade thought back.

Their first meeting ended in a duel.

Field threw a tantrum after losing, but Liakade comforted her, and after that, their relationship improved.

“I see…”

Sistem sounded a bit disappointed and stared curiously into Liakade’s crimson eyes.

“You, what’s so special about you?”

“What charm could I possibly have…”

Liakade awkwardly raised both hands in surrender.

“I don’t have a good figure or height, my hair color is weird, and the only thing I have going for me is magic.”

“Then why do so many people like you?”

Sistem asked in confusion.

“Huh? A lot of people like me? Since when?”

Liakade was shocked by Sistem’s words.

“Her Highness, please don’t joke. Aren’t I called the ‘Curse Child’ at the Academy? Who would like me?”

“It’s fine…”

Sistem shook her head.

“You know, your reputation at school isn’t that bad anymore. Haven’t you noticed?”

Liakade clearly misunderstood Sistem’s point.

She’d actually been asking why Alice and Field liked Liakade, but Liakade took it as general popularity.

“Hmm…”

Liakade thought for a moment.

“It does seem a little better.”

She recalled that when their shop needed help, many people were willing to lend a hand.

And when she went on stage today, she vaguely heard people in the audience supporting her.

Her reputation really had improved a lot.

“All right, let’s leave it at that.”

With that, Sistem stood up to leave.

But before she left, she turned back to Liakade.

“The winner of the Festival Flower Election will get a special reward in addition to the Grade Director’s prize. I think you’ll want it.”

With those words, Sistem strode away.

“Hmm? What kind of reward would I want?”

Come to think of it, this Festival was really busy for her.

She participated in all three events—more than the original did.