Chapter 477: I Won’t Lose Frieden Academy’s airship slowly descended from the sky. It had finally arrived at the capital city of the Kingdom of Solara, Solivane. With most of them seeing the city for the first time, the First Years couldn’t help but gasp at the majestic sight of the royal palace. The structure inevitably stood out because its polished dome reflected the sun’s rays, bathing and dazzling everyone nearby with golden light. Its beauty did not lessen when night came. The dome released the light collected in the day and shone like a star. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶 Renard glanced down on the city, his expression calm and collected. However, a closer look would reveal his clenched right fist. He wanted to rush into a fight the moment the airship landed. When they finally reached the port, they found a few people waiting for them. Princess Xenia, Prince Edward, and those who escorted them to Solivane had all come to welcome their fellow students. The Student Council of Solara Academy, headed by their President, Matthew McKnight, also stood by, representing and safeguarding the prestige of their institution. The young man with red hair and green eyes eyed the descending airship with a confident smile on his face. Since the game plan was to foster stronger ties with Frieden Academy, he must ensure that they would enjoy their stay here. However, aside from them, there was an unneeded crowd waiting a good distance away. They consisted of the young nobles of Solara, who had come to check the person who had somehow gained their Saintess’s favor. Renard’s love rivals in the game, Emil Milan and Henry Moriz, were among them, and the moment he stepped down from the airship, the young man immediately felt the gazes of the two nobles lock onto his body. Seeing the two men stare at a particular student, the rest of the nobles followed their eyes and also looked in Renard’s direction. "Is that him?" a noble asked Emil. "Yes," Emil replied. "He is Renard Vale." The nobles eyed Renard from head to foot, as if trying to remember everything about him. After Alex had suggested that Emil and Henry duel Renard, the word had spread like wildfire back in Solara. However, the nature of the challenge had been exaggerated as it had spread from mouth to mouth. An originally simple duel had evolved to an apparent match to win Lady Celestria’s hand in marriage. The young nobles, who had once tried to court the Saintess, quickly flocked to the city of Solivane after hearing the news. If becoming the Saintess’s husband was the prize, they were willing to fight tooth and nail to emerge victorious. The owners of the Colosseum were quite happy, knowing they would make big bucks from this clash. However, when Alex visited them and demanded a cut of the entry fees collected, the organizers looked down on him and even attempted to kick him out of their office. But who was Alex? He was the undisputed Blackmail King of Frieden Academy! "If you don’t want to give me a share of the entry fee, that’s fine," Alex declared. "We will just use the Colosseum in Solara Academy. I’m sure their Headmaster and the Head of their Finance Department will be more than happy to get some money." The big shots of the Colosseum laughed at Alex, thinking that he was just a nobody. How could a teenager think that he had full control of the fighters of the duel? Dim Dim looked at these people with pity, thinking they really had no idea what they were talking about. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to call Alex Renard’s manager. And when it came to making profits, he was someone who wouldn’t spare a gold coin to pricks who thought that they could look down on him. So, with Matthew’s help, he asked the Headmaster of Solara Academy, Harry Patterson, for permission to use the school’s Colosseum. The Headmaster was more than happy to get sixty-percent of the share in commission and even decided to hold a three-day festival in the academy before and after the duel started. Recently, a giant chunk of their funds had gone to the renovation of some staff buildings, so this giant source of income was an opportunity that they wouldn’t want to miss! Also, since the high-ranking nobles of Solara were also looking forward to this duel, they collaborated with Alex to create a tournament-style setting. In fact, this arrangement had already been made several days ago, with Alex advertising that those who wished to join the duel must register for the tournament instead. Thinking that this was a good opportunity to scout some talents in the Kingdom, even the Duke of Dawn got involved. Since the father of the Saintess had approved of the event, many believed that he was really looking for a son-in-law! When the Colosseum’s owners heard that the duel would no longer be held in their place, they immediately looked for Alex and begged him to reconsider. They even offered him a seventy percent cut of the total revenue in order to get on his good side. But, who was Harry Patterson? "You dare steal my mone— I mean, our academy’s funds?! Courting death!" Harry hollered. And that was all it took to intimidate the Colosseum’s owners and send them running like their pants were on fire. In the end, the organizers could only regret their folly. The blame was on them, acting so arrogantly and chasing away the golden goose who had originally asked for a mere twenty-percent cut on the total profits. "Please follow us to your hotel," Matthew said after greeting the First Years. "Her Highness, Princess Xenia and His Highness, Prince Edward, have already ensured that your stay will be comfortable." Matthew glanced at Emil and Henry. The two teenagers nodded in understanding, aware that this wasn’t the time to create conflict. A stage had already been prepared for their duel, and all they needed to do was wait for three days. The members of Endless Horizon chatted with Renard while Alex made sure that no conflicts arose around this time. He also guided the students while Dim Dim, who was holding a small flag and a whistle and wearing its gangster sunglasses, was acting like a traffic enforcer and making sure that everyone followed them back to the hotel. When they were finally inside their respective rooms, Alex, Chuck, and Vaan went to visit Renard. "How are you feeling?" Chuck asked. "Do you think you can win the upcoming duels?" "I won’t lose," Renard replied simply. Those three words were enough to make his club members understand that he was determined to overcome all the challengers he would soon face and become the victor. "That’s good to hear," Alex replied. "Also, please take this letter. Lady Celestria personally asked me to give it to you." After hearing the young lady’s name, Renard took the letter with a complicated look on his face. Knowing that he would need some time alone to read it, Alex and the others left to give him private space to read and digest the Saintess’s letter. Renard read the letter at least three times, just in case he might have missed a hidden message. He then carefully returned the letter to the envelope before storing it inside his storage ring. The young man walked toward the window and gazed at the city of Solivane. A part of him regretted not going with Lady Celestria to Solara, but the other half was happy that he had stayed in Frieden Academy to practice two Martial Arts that had made him more powerful than ever before.