Chapter 455: Valkan Legion II
"The match is a draw due to the time running out," the referee announced as he separated Nero and Vilhelm, looking at them oddly. A draw was a rare occurrence, especially one due to reaching the time limit.
On one side, Vilhelm panted heavily as he looked at Nero with confusion, unable to understand how the fight had ended up like this. In the last few minutes, sensing the match coming towards an end, he had begun to attack with everything he had. Naturally, such attacks also increased the chances of him suffering from Nero’s attacks but it was a risk he had to take.
Yet the end result was still a draw, which confused him. It... almost didn’t make sense. Even those few who were watching the fight seemed confused by the outcome.
"Did you... lead to a draw on purpose?" Vilhelm asked, looking at Nero unbelievably. He couldn’t believe someone who proclaimed himself to be constantly at war would avoid pushing for a victory. But that only showed how immature his understanding of Nero was.
"No, I wasn’t aiming for a draw," Nero answered calmly, not strained in the least. "I was aiming to use you for training against faster opponents. I feel like this was a very successful training session. Feel free to come to me any time you want to challenge me, I won’t reject it."
Vilhelm felt dumbfounded, and somewhat insulted by Nero’s casual and cavalier attitude. Here he was, taking the man as a rival, and yet Nero was only treating him as a practice partner at best. The most frustrating thing was that he did not seem bothered by the draw, for he felt that he had gained much from the match.
On the contrary, Vilhelm felt like he had failed. Coming out in a draw felt even worse than losing the match altogether.
Seeing that Vilhelm had nothing else to say, Nero simply waved at him and left for the professors office. Vilhelm, meanwhile, struggled with an emotion of frustration he’d never felt before. He was being looked down on by the one person he was actually looking forward to forming a rivalry with, and it felt pathetic.
That’s not how things went in the books. In the books, he was supposed to gain the others’ respect and acknowledgment, and form a relationship of mutual understanding. They were supposed to help each other grow stronger. Instead, Nero saw his actions as if he was playing a game.