Chapter 109 - Why?

"I must say, I expected nothing less from you," Elior said with a laugh, watching the incoming Delinquent-looking boy.

"Thank you." Shin laughed as well. He had worked so hard for the last month, and he finally achieved what he aimed for. He did use some underhanded tricks, but none can deny his hard work. He rested his butt on the seat and felt a large load off his back. 

"How did you do that?" Enna asked, and the others appeared curious as well.

"Like this?" Shin continued to laugh as his phone appeared on his palm out of thin air. "It's magic."

Ileana snorted. "We all know it's magic. Just tell us how you can do that?"

"It's most likely the guardian's inventory," Aanya, who had better knowledge, answered. "Though I must admit that was really a useful tactic you have used. Who would believe that a first-order apprentice has guardian's inventory and uses it during a confrontation."

"It's a prize from Trial-zero," Shin added with a nod. 

Ileana looked at her ring unconsciously when she heard that. It was a prize from trial-zero as well, though she never used its feature, nor did she understand it clearly.

The matches continued. It was Katherine's match next and she will most likely win without lifting her fingers. That one scary ability she got. Elior did not wait in the dressing room to enjoy the matches, though. He stood up and made his way out of there. 

"You guys enjoy the show. I have something to do." He left saying that.

"Where are you going?" Ileana yelled from behind, but Elior was already gone. 

"He's most likely going to bring my big surprise," Shin added, resting almost limp on the seat. Though the match was not tense, he had done a lot of hard work. A lot more than what he usually does, and it all is bearing fruits now. 'I will go to the next trial.' He thought and paused. 'Why though?' 

After he accomplished his goal, why does he feel so . . . empty? Why does it appear like it was for nothing?

He remembered practising all that hard because the academy did not fight on their own, even in those test dungeons. At that time, Elior had mentioned that only in the trial would they be able to train freely without any fear of death. At that time, that was all Shin had hoped for. But why? To prove to my parents? But he could do that going slowly as well, as his mother had wished for him.

At that time, he thought it would be great defiance to his parents. He worked far harder than his parents were able to make him do. All that for what? Just to kill some monster and level up? Yes, to hold the power of mana is far more tempting than it appears on the outside, but is there only that? He can't say he did not like to get drunk in the power of mana, but is there really nothing else?

His eyes unconsciously drifted towards Enna. He thought if he became a guardian, girls would fawn over him like flies fawn over shit. That was somewhat true, but it was not for the ones he would like to fawn over him. But he can't say he dislikes that. 

All of that was cool and all, but that was not why he had worked so hard. He said yes to the one that brought him to the academy on a whim after the trial, but why did he work so hard? He did like fighting, he did like how others revere an apprentice on the outside, he did like to hold to mana, but he can get all that without working this hard. 

Shin never considered himself an ambitious person, nor did he work for anything worthwhile other than some comfort. 'Why did I work so hard?' the question was appearing in his mind now just after he had succeeded. He could figure out Elior had a large influence on him. A friend he met when he was hanging upside down on a tree. He never knew they would be this great friend, but was he doing all that for friendship?

He had done many other things for friendship. Did many illegal things that involved the disappearances of a few people.

'Perhaps, I thought, my parents will give me more affection if I become guardians like them and that too without their help,' he thought. That actually happened. His parents noticed him more often now, though his father asked nothing other than how his studies were going on, how his training was achieved. His mother, however, made time to see him twice, though he got into arguments both of the times. 

"Shin?"

'Will I work this hard still, knowing I will most likely not get their affection?' he wondered. 'Well, I am not a child anymore. Will I still do all these just to annoy them so that they will notice me more?'

"Shin?" said Enna again and this time nudging his shoulder. "Where are you lost at?"

"Eh." Shin got out of his trance and found the others were giving him looks. "I was thinking something."

"Well, it must be something very profound that you have not heard all my yelling," Enna joked.

"I have a question," Shin said, cracking a little smile at her jokes. "Why do you guys fight? Why work so hard when you can do something else too?"

Enna knitted her brows at once, hearing the question, and it was not only her. The others were similarly startled by his sudden questions. 

"It is an odd time you have chosen to ask something so philosophical," Ileana commented. 

"Just answer the question, will you?" 'Perhaps I'll get some motivation that I lost so suddenly.'

Ileana turned silent. She blinked twice and looked at others. Pondering for a few seconds more, she opened her mouth. "Curiosity," she muttered. "Yes, Curiosity. It all started with my curiosity. I wanted to learn as much about this supernaturalism as I can. If I have to learn to fight, I'll do that steadily as well."

Shin frowned. It seemed like a sound reason, but he did not like it. He moved to the person next to her.

Lara, who was more silent of the bunch, still held on to her frown. Why does she try so hard? The answer was easy for her. "My father taught me that life is short, so we should make the most of it when we can." She paused. "I try to abide by the rule." 

That was another sound argument, but was there just a fight in life? "But you can do other things?" he asked. "Other things than playing sword?"

Lara went to her natural silence for a moment. "Well, sword is the only thing I am good at."

Shin did not like that answer as well. His eyes moved to the next person.

"Don't look at me like that," Enna murmured. "I am a healer, and of all things, I like to cure people the most. I like to work to the best of my abilities and heal as many people as I can. As for reason? I don't have one. I just do it as it fits me the most."

"That sounded like the stupidest reason," Shin muttered. "But I'll give you a pass for your cuteness."

Enna snorted at his words, and he moved to the next person. Aanya. He had great expectations from her since she had seen more parts of the universe and held more experience. "Senior, why do you try so hard?"

Aanya paused, licking her lips. "Because I was chosen for this," she said and stopped, evidently not wanting to talk more about it.

Shin recalled he heard something like this before.

"That is another stupid reason," Shin wondered and looked around. He wanted to ask Elior next, but he was not here currently. So he chose to ask the few others that were here. 

Leroy was not here, so he could not get his answer, but he got others. Hassan said he worked hard to make a better world for his family—no lofty goals of freeing the world. Peter said it was to make his parents proud. Shin asked a couple more, but none of their answers satisfied his needs. 

The matches continued on the other end, and even though the matches were meant to be lengthy, they did not actually. Some matches did not even take half a minute—that was the difference between the students.

After all the 16 had their matches, 8 of them were eliminated. Fortunately, the three freshmen are still there in the tournament, but not for long. 

"Shin, it is your match again," Enna said. "You already showed your trick, but fortunately, it is against Elior. So you will unlikely need the bed." 

Shin cracked a smile and stood up. He was not even sure of the meaning of his hard work, but he tried to excite his mind, thinking about the surprise Elior had promised him. 

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The book seemed to be straying away from my outline for a bit.. We will get to the trial in a couple more chapters.