Miss Witch Doesn't Want to be a Diva

The first match had ended, and there was a brief intermission in the arena, while Tilan made her appearance in the preparation room of Edith Academy.

She had actually overslept and arrived just under ten minutes late, awakening to find that Valeria had already lost.

Lying in bed, Valeria, who had just finished being treated, covered her face with a blanket, not wanting to see anyone. She felt extremely ashamed; losing the match was one thing, but being helped off the stage at the end was just too embarrassing. She screamed inwardly; she hated this kind of pretense of being weak and innocent, it was just like those shameless people who seduced men.

Valeria had always aspired to be like that mature, strong, and irresistibly charismatic big sister figure, even choosing clothes and styling herself in that way. Unfortunately, her bust size and height didn't quite support such a grand image, so to outsiders, she appeared to be a haughty little brat pretending to be more mature, something she would never admit.

Embarrassing, embarrassing, embarrassing...

Valeria tossed and turned under the blanket, wishing she could smash her ten-minute-younger self. She now dared not watch the replay or hear others discussing it.

As she was still trapped in her emotional state, a clear voice came from outside.

"Where's Valeria?" Tilan looked around.

"She's hiding under the blanket, see, that tangled mess in the corner is her," someone directed the black-haired girl, and now the keen-eared Valeria stopped moving, her body stiffened, not wanting to move.

Tilan is coming to see me and talk to me. No, no, no, what if she asks me what I was feeling or thinking at that time? How should I answer? I'm already scared to face her during practice, and now there's this weakness in my heart. Surely, it will be seen through by Tilan the Songstress. If Tilan teases me and tells our classmates, I would never be able to look them in the eye again.

Valeria grew increasingly fearful, wanting to pretend to be asleep to avoid confrontation, yet she knew this tactic was full of flaws, leaving her no choice but to stubbornly persist.

Tilan approached, saw the stiffened blanket, and the strange emotions emanating from within. She tilted her head, a bit puzzled, thinking that Valeria was still ashamed of her own failure and letting the team down, so she placed her hand on the blanket and gently stroked it a few times before she began to slowly lift it.

Torn between continuing to feign sleep and clinging to the blanket to prevent Tilan from opening it, Valeria hesitated for several seconds. In the end, feeling that pretending to sleep while gripping the blanket was too fake and shameful, she abandoned the act, released the blanket, then sat up, still wrapped in the blanket, only revealing her head.

"Are you feeling better?" Tilan asked Valeria.

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"Yes, somewhat better," Valeria replied, looking away, not daring to look directly at Tilan, thinking that not even a Songstress could read minds.

"It's okay, losing is not the end of the world," Tilan consoled her.

"How... how can it be okay?" Valeria lowered her head quickly upon hearing this. Everyone had been training hard, constantly studying various combat techniques, and she had lost the very first match.

"Failure is just that, failure. Just keep moving forward and keep trying," Tilan genuinely didn't care about winning or losing. Perhaps after her trip to the Central Star Domain and seeing centuries of history shift and change, student competitions now seemed to her like children's games, not worth much concern.

"As long as you still have spirit and are willing to keep trying and walking this path, losing to one or two people doesn't matter. The achievements and progress you've made along the way are your best medals and rewards." Tilan said as she embraced Valeria, gently patting her back to ease her tension and help her let go. She then hummed a simple tune to encourage Valeria.

Gradually, Valeria's emotions calmed down, and she felt that her earlier nervousness was a bit funny.

She wiped away a few tears from the corner of her eye, blinked, and sat up straight on the bed.

Seeing that she had returned to normal, Tilan slowly released her, letting Valeria continue to rest on the bed. Before leaving, Tilan gave her palm a gentle pat, nodded at her, and then turned to join the other students who were preparing for battle.

Watching the retreating figure of the girl, Valeria felt dazed. She slowly lowered her head, looked at her palm, and felt the residual warmth and a faint scent of flowers.

She pulled her hand back inside, tightened her grip on the blanket, and then slowly lay down, thinking about what Tilan had said, her eyes gradually closing.

It felt good to have someone like that... I was indeed still too childish, not yet fully grown.

In the future, I too want to be a strong girl like Tilan, composed and unwavering. She thought to herself, daring not to express these thoughts aloud, as that would seem frivolous.

And with that, she slowly drifted into sleep, dreaming about the future, where she seemed to become an extraordinary person and did many great things alongside Tilan, becoming famous in her hometown.

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The break flew by in a flash, and it was time for the second showdown between Edith Academy and Lelisa Academy.

"So, let's see the main characters of this round!" The host's booming voice filled the arena, and the doors on both sides opened, allowing two figures to step onto the battlefield.