Witching Hour.

Day 5 of The 129th Rasheul Great **** Tournament
05:26 PM

They did not do it. Katie and Uni, that is. They didn't try and kill Hebi-san.

I don't care. Say what you want.

The assassin pointed out a centaur. So what? That doesn't mean it has to be my centaur! What if the police would suspect a pair of humans? For **** or whatever? Should you assume they are your parents?
Your parents are humans? Right? So it just makes sense? No? Did not think so.
He pointed out a fake angel as well. So what? That in no way means it was Katie. What if Katie only pretends to be a fake angel? What if a real angel would pretend to be a fake angel? Who would be able to stop her?
Did you think about that?

Listen.
They are not murderers.
All right.
Fair. They participated in a **** Tournament.
That was a game.
This is real.

They would never hurt anyone. Not really.
And why? Just to...
To escape slavery...

They will remain slaves. Always. For as long as Snake Lady is alive.
The world is big. Yes.
But she could still find them.
Possibly.
It was not impossible.
Unlikely. But... It could happen. Then it would be over.

Would they do it? Would they have her killed? To be safe?
Would I do it? For that reason?

I'm completely fine.
Why do you ask?
Look. I just wanted to help them. I couldn't well enough resign them to slavery. I had no idea that people could lose their lives. Had I known what they would do once they got free, then...
Well, what'd happen then, that's neither here nor there.

The point is, no one got killed. Thank God.
Say what you want about the masterminds of this conspiracy, they did order their assassin to set the bomb off by as few bystanders as possible. Not like you could put so much as a scratch on Tournament Finalists anyhow. Not with an explosion of that caliber.
Which is not to say everyone got out of it unscathed. A couple of slaves ended up with a couple of bruises. One of the stragglers got a mild concussion.
That could've ended far worse.

The one who got the worst of that ordeal was actually Mully. Got one hell of a gash on his forehead. Didn't stop him from launching his rescue efforts first thing after he got off his feet.
God, I wanna boink him so bad.

When we met up he had his head wrapped around in bandages. Even though he didn't need them.
Look, the Tournament can fix up someone who got blown up into paste.
I know it.
He knows it.
Everyone knows it.
It's abundantly clear those bandages are just to show off what a badass he had been.
And it was totally working.

If I had my way I'd boink his brains out then and there.
"What are you thinking about?"
"Hmm?" I snapped out of my daze, looking up at him,"Oh, nothing important."
The knight in a quilted crimson doublet put down his chocolate milkshake, "But you have hardly touched your sundae!"

I looked down, finding myself stirring the ornate glass beaker on the cafeteria table containing my elaborate strawberry dessert, "Oh."
"Is the morning incident still weighing on your mind? Yes, it was startling. Positively rattling. No one should have to endure such a sinister plot. But now it is over. You are safe with me. Feel free to open up at your leisure. Talking about it will surely lighten your chest."

I looked up at him, my face sinking into a crestfallen frown.
Yeah, that's not gonna be possible. Can't exactly go blabbing that I was complicit in the plot to kill Hebi-san by freeing her slaves to begin with. Not that he'd be in a hurry to find some excuse to toss me in the slammer. Not really. Probably he'd sympathize with my fight, lawless or not, against slavery. But in the end, who did his confidence belong to? That's right! The Goldfish Knight. When asked, he'd probably fold like a garden chair at once. And then my fate would be in his master's golden hands.
Which would mean... What, exactly? Did he want his sworn enemy to be tossed behind bars? He did give Mully here permission to date me. Does that mean he'd also betray his commitment to justice for me? Or his desire to best those he saw as heretics?
Yeah, I wasn't in a hurry to find out.
At the very least, I couldn't bear for Mully to shoulder that burden.

So my lips were sealed.
But... I had to get this off my chest somehow.
I dug the spoon back into the cup, gently guiding the chill treat between my lips. It melted into a sweet cloud of strawberry in my mouth.
"So, mind giving some advice on something? Couldn't hurt to get a second opinion."
"Of course," Mully said reassuringly, "That is what I am for."
"Well... I have this friend... A friend of a friend, really. She wanted nothing more than to help people, and she knew exactly how to do that. Or so she thought. Turns out the situation was much more complicated than she imagined, and all she ended up doing was hurting people. Now she feels scared and betrayed, all alone. So... What would you say to this friend? Of a friend?"
Mully folded his arms.

"So if I understand you correctly, your acquaintance is a sworn ally of righteousness?"
I cleared my throat, "Well, I wouldn't say sworn, but... Yeah, she wants to do what is best."
"And in pursuing the path of righteousness, she ended up facing a considerable trial, one that inadvertently led to the harm of others. Correct?"
"Well, yeah..."
"And because of that, she now is suffering a crisis of faith. Did I understand it correctly?"
"Yeah, you got the gist of it. So..."
He offered me a confident smile, "So, your friend has every reason to feel grief, by all appearance. Yet that grief should not be taken as an excuse to relent. The path of the righteous is one replete with trials. It is by design that the resolute of heart alone can tread it. So tell her not to despair, but rejoice. The pain she feels from her conscience is a sign that she has set herself on a righteous path! Tell her, then, to rededicate herself to her quest. To seek out whatever harm spawned from her actions, and right them when possible. Yes, all good men are united in their efforts to do good. They are united, also, in how they face adversity, and fall short as much as they triumph. But only great men are united in their resolve, as they rise up and continue walking. Or... Women, as the case may be."

After an unexpected answer like that I could do little but stare at him. My mouth opened to speak, but no words came out.
Whoops.
Seemed my eyes started leaking all of a sudden. How embarrassing.
"...Did I say something awry?"
"No, no. Not at all! That was perfect, actually. Exactly what I needed... What she needs to hear. Thank you so much."
With a satisfied smirk he chugged down his milkshake, "I am happy to be of assistance, my lady."
He slams the glass down, leaving a trace of milkshake under his nose like a mustache.
"No, really." I insisted, "Did you come up with that speech on the spot? Cause that was amazing!"
He chuckled, wiping the milkshake mustache with his elbow, "To tell the truth, I did not. Really, I have been pondering a similar issue for a while now. I myself suffered a shameful fate, for I bore witness to an injustice most grave. And yet assumed the role of a passive spectator."
I cocked my head, "Eh... I'm having a hard time imagining someone like you hesitating."
"It is the truth. Much to my enduring shame. It could have ended with immense tragedy?"
"But... It didn't? Right?"
He shook his head, "No. And that is the most shameful thing for all. For someone did intervene. Someone who was neither a knight, nor a true believer. She was willing to sacrifice her own life to see the innocent life spared."
I blinked, "Wait, are you talking about what I think you're talking about?"
"Indeed. I should have been the one to stand between Sanakia and the Holy Lance Jaivardhan. I should have offered my life to spare that most holy weapon the taint from innocent blood. Yet I found myself unable to resist my Lord. There was but one present with courage and valor to act truly chivalrous. Namely you, my lady."

"Oh... Oh!" I found myself in a giggling fit. Not sure what I was supposed to say in that situation, but goddamnit! A person like that got the impression that I was cool!
And why shouldn't he!
"Look, I get you're not happy with the role you played in that situation, but... We're talking about apples and oranges here. Your situation was more like picking a friend to side with. They're both your friends! You don't want to choose just one! You shouldn't have to choose just one!"
"You could say that. And perhaps you are right. Yet at the end of the day, we do not choose what trials we face. Indeed, can we truly call them trials if we do not struggle against them?"
I brushed the surface of my ice cream so the sprinkles all gathered in a dense cluster with the sweet sauce, "All I'm saying is that there's no point beating yourself up over that. Hell, I myself wasn't being chivalric back there. Not really. Just my own habit of being reckless and impulsive. God, I'm glad my friends didn't see me jump in front of a huge spear! They'd never let me hear the end of it! But you... You think what I was doing was cool! Didn't you?"
"In all honesty, no. I would not say what you did was cool." He straightened up the straw in his milkshake like a flagpole, "I would say what you did was hot."

Damn!
I was on fire that night!
He was on fire!
We were on the highway to score. There was no way that evening could go any other way at that point.

"Why, what have we here? My, color me encomiastic. The infamous Girl Genius, taking her time to walk her trusty bulldog. How... Adorable."
I peered over my shoulder to look behind me. Who should be there if not the purple magician herself, standing at the entrance to the cafeteria in all her bodacious glory. Crawling behind her and hugging her leg was one of the slaves she had donned in an adorable little catboy outfit, a large brass bell hanging from his pink collar. And little else. As it happened, it was none other than Fake Assassin.
I only got a glimpse of him for a second though. The moment our eyes locked he retreated behind the Wicked Witch, hiding behind her skirt.

"Oh! Haha!" I waved my hand dismissively, "Look, I'd love nothing more than to exchange banter with you. I kind of got other stuff going on though. In case you couldn't tell I've got myself a date. So I'd appreciate it if you left us to our romantic encounter, and save all your no doubt terrific quips until our match tomorrow. Unless you wanna join the both of us in the sheets. Hey, Mully! It's fine if I brought along another bed-buddy right?"
"Uhhh..." His eyes shifted between the both of us. Like for any guy, landing a threesome with two gorgeous ladies would be a dream come true. But I bet dollars to dime that the chick who evaporated them earlier won't be part of that dream.
"Actually I do have something to discuss with you, my dear. Something of utmost importance. Your little date will have to wait for just a little bit, but I promise it shan't take long."
"Oh, but this won't take long either. Give us ten, fifteen minutes tops, and you'll be able to join us in Mully's bedchamber!"
She gave an exasperated sigh, "How... Very amusing. But I insist. Please. This is Tournament matters. Surely a few seconds of something as urgent as our upcoming fight cannot possibly compare to your entire night of grooming the mongrel who happened to stick to your leg?"
I chuckled impatiently, "Look, I know you think you're..."
"My lady, please." Mully rose up, "Let me handle this."
"It's all right, Mully."
"It most certainly is not all right! If this crone insists on harassing you for merely being her next encounter, then I'm sorry but she will have to answer to me!"
The knight grabbed the hilt of his sword, the very sword regretted not talking him out of like his armor.
"Leave us be, Crone!" He spat out, "Whatever gripes you may have with this fair maiden, you may back down now! Do not presume because you bested me once that I may be brushed aside lightly! Now I am ready for your little tricks! Do not think that because of your magic, you..."
"My dear. Please." The witch smiled throughout the knight's harangue, raising her hand in a snapping gesture, "Please. Will you let the grownups talk?"

SNAP!

Day 5 of The 129th Rasheul Great **** Tournament
05:31 PM

Mully froze in place.
Just as he drew his sword.

Same thing for all the guests, for that matter. I looked left and right. One waiter was caught wiping a table. Sylph's feet were propped up at another table while gorging on a donut. One of the maids balanced coffee cups and saucers on a silver tray. The guy behind the counter poured up some coffee in a cup, and even the coffee remained suspended in the air without a drop spilled.
Basically the only one who hadn't turned into a statue of themselves was her and me.

I clapped my hands "Ooh, neat trick!"
She gave a satisfied smirk, "Indeed. Now you shall lose not a single second of your little date. Does this arrangement work for you?"
I stood up, glancing towards Mully. His mouth stayed open, ready to unleash yet another not-very-gallant roar. I waved my hand before his unblinking visage.
"Well... It's not quite the moment I'd choose to turn into a living photo myself, but sure. If I had magic I guess I'd also make the world slow to a stop every once in a while."
"Honestly, I'm surprized you cannot turn the world stationary at will with that... Science of yours."
"Oh," I smirked, "I totally can! Doesn't make it a good idea though. It's not like what you do, where time has timed out but physics progresses as if it hasn't. Like, the ground stops moving when time stops. But I won't. So then I'd fly off the ground and become a big splat on Mrs Andersson's windshield. Boy, am I glad I tried that out on a carton of eggs first!"
"Ah," The Witch rested her hooked finger under her lip, "The results of you efforts then are determined by natural laws. And so you are still constrained by them. I suppose that's the limits of your science, being unable to truly subjugate nature, merely compelling it to act in your favor for the time. No mind over matter. Just matter."
"Oh, I wouldn't say that!" I chuckled, "The mind still got its role to play. It's gotta learn. And it's gotta dream. To do science you need both! I mean, just cause you know something, that doesn't mean you know how to use it. It's a neverending exploration of outside and inside! All at once! Fueled by curiosity and an insatiable appetite for knowledge. That's what's great about science! Cause once you know the how, you get to determine the why!"
"All I hear is how you relented to your own limitations. Learning to be comfortable in your own weakness. Darling, you've got no idea what it feels like to truly create a way to success. Your ways have only ever been discovered. It's not real power. The world doesn't actually bend to your whim. You're the one that bends to the whims of the world."
"You're wrong." I stated calmly yet sternly, "Science is about more than control. It's a way of defeating... Yourself!"

I let out a loud sigh and shook my head, "Listen, I didn't come here to be number one, or whatever. I came here because I was curious! If my babies don't work, I wanna see exactly why they don't work! If your magic makes you invincible or whatever, then that's great. Still, I wanna try out what that invincibility truly means. I don't care that I'm squishable myself. In fact, I'm well aware that I'm one EMP away from being completely disarmed all the time. But until then, the world is gonna be my oyster!"
She looked at me curious, "What's this... EMP of which you speak?"
"EMP? It stands for Electromagnetic Pulse!"
She cocked her head.

"Well, it's an oscillating... I mean, the electric **** and the magnetic... You know what?" I sat myself back in my chair, "I'm getting ahead of myself! Let me start from the beginning. It'll go real quick! I promise! Go ahead! Have a seat"
She lowered herself on Fake Assassin's back, sitting down with crossed legs.
Oh, it was gonna be great! I so rarely get to talk about science! And I always enjoy breaking these tough concepts down into digestible explanations!
"See, you ever wondered where the light goes when it gets dark?" I started, "An innocent question, you might think. Has a really obvious answer. But what if I told you that the light doesn't actually go anywhere? Your eyes deceive you into thinking it's dark, but the light's still there! You see, here's the thing..."