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Pettiness doesn\'t even begin to describe what was happening here. I\'ve never seen such a brazen, shameless display of immaturity since freaking preschool. Took a shower of sand while playing in the sandbox from a big kid just cause I sat on the swing for too long. 

Right then, it was a deja vu moment twenty years in the making… only now it was an even bigger kid, bearded kid, in an even bigger sandbox. This animosity, resentment… and yet my only crime against him was simply existing. It\'s like his strong feelings for Amanda in turn, amplified even stronger feelings towards me.

He was conniving too, slippery bastard… he never in any instance threatened me, he never once got physical, he barely ever got within five centimeters… but that\'s just \'cause his strikes were invisible, intangible, no weapons were needed. His tongue was already sharper than any blade, blunder than any club. 

And he damn well knew how to use it.

"You\'re on a timer by the way," He grunted. "Just in case a contestant takes too long answering a question," He grumbled. "Like you," He very nearly insidiously smiled. "Ten seconds." 

He\'s out to make me look like the fool that I was dressed as by any means necessary. Nothing\'s more intimidating than a man in love and with a burning grudge, I would know… been there, done that. 

"Five seconds."

I went looking to Adalia for answers, but in spite of the otherworldly knowledge and experience she had at her disposal, the answer to the question eluded her still.

That\'s how I know it\'s bullshit. If she, of all people, was clueless, then who the hell here could answer a question like that on the fly?

"Hey, that\'s unfair," I said quickly, desperately thinking of ways to stall for time. "How come the other two had easier questions?"

"What\'s easy to a person… is subjective," Nick responded in that slow, dull voice of his. "What\'s easy for a person could be hard for another." 

I darted a finger at Leon. "How is knowing the name of the literal main character hard for anybody to answer? "

"As I said," A firm tone. "Subjective."

"But - "

"Three seconds."

"Hold on," spoke a voice, playful, whimsical but yet also just as firm and strong. "Nick, Recently-appointed scholar of knowledge bountiful, I\'m afraid the dear jester has made a point that I\'m all too wholeheartedly inclined to agree with."

The Witch, loitering all her time all this time by the wayside, crept slowly back into the fold, handling the staff in her hands like a diligent teacher would with a wooden ruler.

"That\'s not what I expected from you, Nick. I\'m a little disappointed. All our contestants are to be treated equally, it\'s common sense. What you showed just then was anything but… in fact, it kind of looked like you were setting him up for a sabotage."

Nick gave her a brief, parting glance. "Did it?"

"Oh, yes, indeed," The Witch nodded, cramming an overtly sweet smile into his peripheral view.  "And you know, considering the fiasco I had to deal with last year… I\'m sure you\'re already painfully aware that an accusation well-founded is the last thing I would want for myself this year. Right? Am I right, Nick? Hm?"

"Of course," said Nick at once, his expression a constant blank. "My apologies. I\'m not used to this just yet. I\'m still getting my bearings on the process. It won\'t happen again."

Her smile softened, and she pulled her head back. "No harm, no foul. Carry on."

Saved… and here I thought I was left to fend for myself, but as fate would have it, it seems I have been blessed with an unlikely ally by my side, and boy was she nice.

"And just for a show of good faith," The Witch continued, shifting her gaze towards me. "Five points to Team Wisdom anyway for a total of Seventeen… putting you once again back into the lead."

Very nice, indeed. 

"For future reference, by the way, the answer to the question is Trista, Berholm, and Pletz, also known as the Immortal Trinity," She said, a quick wink with her smirk. "Not so immortal, it seems."

Smart too. Can I have her on my team as well?

"Moving on…" Nick drearily proclaimed, fluttering through pages with a subtle displeased look under the hood. "Three, two, one - hands now."

Slow on the draw, both Adalia and I. Team Intelligence got the jump on us this time, and they weren\'t backing down from a genuine challenge this time. Eager to usurp the throne, Leon went with hard once more.

Nick shut the book. "Terestra\'s reign of terror originated somewhere in the far east, from continent to continent from east to west, one by one they fell… save for one, a single country, a single kingdom that took the threat seriously, remaining as the last bastion of hope against evil for decades to come. What nation, and what countermeasure was utilized to thwart Terestra\'s advance?"

This one sounded familiar, like vaguely familiar. I think I knew this, the answer was at the tip of my tongue, I just couldn\'t - well, it didn\'t matter, I wasn\'t answer-giver regardless. I just have to cross my fingers and hope Team Intelligence couldn\'t live up to their name.

But alas, it seemed even Leon knew a thing or two about a thing or two. "Astra was the last country and kingdom to fall. By collaborating with the Seven Churches, they erected a great barrier across the continent by sacrificing seven bishops representing the Seven Divines, and burying them in guarded tombs deep in the earth. As a result, neither Terestra nor anyone that was in league with her could ever step foot onto the land without risking total decimation."

Nick nodded subtly at him, seemingly genuinely impressed. "Well done. Team Intelligence in the lead with Twenty points."

The applause Leon and his secretary received was a loud one this time, mostly due to the onlooker behind peeking through the entranceway… and just cause he could, and just cause he\'s him - Leon bowed and bobbed, waving all around. Took a while for things to settle.

Next round Team Wit sought to impress, beating us out only by a sliver of a second. Through the giggling and the smiling, hard was their choice. No surprises there.

"A Succubus is a demon that relies on deception and desire to achieve their goals. Throughout history, they\'ve influenced a great many individuals with their charm and beauty. However, it can also be used against them. How?"

Me, I got nothing to say to that. I was in cahoots with one, and even I didn\'t know the answer to that, and apparently neither did the twin gigglers. After a series of quiet \'umms,\' and croaky \'aahs\', they eventually ran down the timer, losing points, and giving way to a game mechanic that hasn\'t yet been introduced.

"Shall a team fail to answer their question, another team can choose to do so," said the Witch, her gaze scouring from right to left. "Team Wisdom, would you like to give this one a go?" 

I shrugged, Adalia tugged at my sleeve, staring \'no, don\'t\', so ultimately we passed on the opportunity. 

"I\'ll answer that…" For the first time, the weary-looking woman to Leon\'s side rose her arm up high. "There\'s a known instance where a Succubus could love instead of lust. Since it is in the very nature of the demon to sway the hearts of men towards them, if one somehow could remain immune to the demon\'s advances - it causes a bit of confusion, some wires get crossed, and there\'s a chance the Succubus could end up the one being enamored though rare as it is." 

"Very good!" The Witch exclaimed, clapping the loudest among the roaring applause. "I don\'t expect many actually knew that detail about Succubus. Well done."

"Well done, indeed," Leon said, beaming at her with pride. "Don\'t think even I knew that. But then again, you did cosplay one last year, didn\'t you?"

Speaking of not knowing. What the hell. What? If a person remains unfazed to a Succubus\' advances, it could backfire and the Succubus could end up failing for that person instead. This sounded familiar, a firsthand experience type of familiar.

So is that why Irene…? Her falling in love with me, did I do that or did she? Was it a natural thing or did I just inadvertently take advantage of a biological flaw in their make-up?

Her affections towards me weren\'t something I ever thought I would be questioning in the thick of things… but nevertheless, here I was. And now I just have to ask, did she actually love me for me, or did she love me because of me?

"Five more points to Team Intelligence," Nick said, nodding once. "Next question… three, two, one..."

I almost missed raising my hand, I did miss being first. Team Intelligence was an unstoppable force of speed. They got it again, and this time I didn\'t even hear the question being asked… but I did know they ended up being right on that one too.

Thirty point lead now. And we were still maintaining a faltering Seventeen.

"Are… you… okay?" Adalia asked, tugging at my sleep again. "You look… distracted..."

I blinked, shaking my head. "Just thinking. I\'m good."

She didn\'t look too convinced, and I wasn\'t sure if I was myself. Regardless though, we have to win this thing. Distracted or no.