My Joker System: From Low Mana Trash to the Mightiest Wizard!-Chapter 119: Confused Crowd

Vyse smiled and waved to the crowd, relishing his victory, despite it being expected by the masses.

The cheers and applause inevitably died down, and it was then that the top sophomore suddenly turned to Hal, locking eyes with him.

However, there was no animosity in his gaze, only intrigue and interest.

Vyse then urged Akari to come closer and hand him the microphone before speaking:

"Hal Fennec, the renowned one-star wastrel of the academy. I think I’m calling bullcrap on that. Hahaha!" Vyse laughed.

"You’ve long caught my eye, and I had one of my lowerclassmen observe you from the shadows. It seems my hunch was correct that you weren’t as simple as you looked. It’s quite a regret that I wasn’t decisive enough to recruit you into our student union immediately, but... how about you join us if I win, hmm?"

Hal didn’t reply for a while, probing Vyse’s intentions with his gaze.

The guy didn’t seem to have any ill intent and was, in fact, sincere with his invitation.

They were required to choose a student union to join before graduation, anyway...

"Hmm...but what if I win?" Hal asked, drawing gasps from the crowd.

Did the dark horse just fancy his chances of winning?!

Wasn’t this a slight giveaway of how capable Hal Fennec actually was?

"W-W-What’s this?! The two students of the Grand Magic Academy are having a small bet?! Also, Hal Fennec didn’t deny that he’s a mere one-star student?! What is happening?!" exclaimed Jhow from the commentator’s desk, clarifying the situation for those seated farther away who couldn’t hear Hal, as he had no microphone.

"Ahh! Hahaha. You believe you have a chance to win, huh? Even after what I just showed, and the thought that I might be hiding more... hmm..." Vyse responded with a lighthearted laugh, seemingly pondering as he rubbed his chin with his thumb and index finger.

"Well... I shall respect that, as no one knows you better than yourself. What do you want from me, then?"

This time, it was Hal who couldn’t respond for a while, deep in thought.

He didn’t really know what he needed right now...

Well, in fact...

He did...

"Then, how about you become my underling if you lose?" Hal blurted out, not having thought through the repercussions of what he was asking.

Vyse was taken aback, not expecting the offer, and fell into deep thought himself.

Only after a few moments later did he respond with an odd question:

"How far do you intend to go in this tournament?"

"I kinda need to win the whole thing, so I’ll be going for the championship," Hal replied without hesitation.

The entire venue fell silent for a moment after hearing his words.

An instant later, it erupted in a variety of reactions.

Some booed in disappointment and displeasure at his arrogance, while others cheered in excitement.

Akari was naturally among the latter.

"Hahahaha! If you succeed, then I shall be your subordinate until the day of my graduation. Deal?"

"Deal."

The agreement wasn’t as disadvantageous for him as it seemed.

After all, all he needed to do was join Vyse’s student union, which he would have had to do anyway to graduate.

While this meant giving up the freedom to choose, it wasn’t too bad when exchanged for the chance to have the top sophomore of the academy as one’s underling.

He hadn’t really thought about what he would use Vyse for.

However, having the young master of a prominent Wizardry Clan on his side—especially one who was extremely talented despite not being part of the aristocracy—should grant him a decent network within the academy.

Perhaps this way, he could get word of those trying to ruin him before he had the chance to grow into his full potential.

That was really all Hal could think of for now, as this interaction with Vyse had been rather unexpected.

In any case, having such a high-profile subordinate could only be a boon to him, no?

The top sophomore then descended the stage with a strangely satisfied smile; it was difficult to know what the tall young man was thinking.

"W-What did we just witness?! This tournament is turning out to be more fiery as we proceed into the later stages! Oh boy, I’m sure the other competitors didn’t like Competitor Hal’s confident words just now... Fortunately, we don’t have to wait long to see whether his claims were mere delusions or serious.

I believe it would be best to let the contender himself do the talking with his skills, so let’s proceed to the next match.

Competitor Hal, seeded 16th! Competitor Larena, seeded 17th! Please come to the stage!"

Mana-woven words then floated above the stage as Hal and his opponent—a young woman who was a fair bit shorter than him, with long, wavy purple hair and the ruthless gaze of someone who seemed to have already experienced a close brush with death—ascended:

"106th Match: Hal Fennec, 16th versus Larena Magdalena, 17th."

Arriving at the center of the main stage, the two competitors locked eyes.

Larena’s eyes certainly had a hint of anger in them.

The young aristocrat, however, seemed to not be too fond of empty talks as she simply stared daggers at Hal without ever speaking a word.

Hal preferred things this way, so he didn’t find his opponent unlikeable.

In the next moment, a timer appeared above the stage, counting down:

"10, 9, 8..."

...

"2"

"1"

As soon as the counter hit zero, Larena furiously bared her fangs.

Three rocky pillars emerged from the ground and thrust toward Hal, followed by the sudden rise of a reinforced earthen wall behind him, aiming to trap and crush him between the pillars and the wall.

’Hoh, her casting speed is quite fast...’ Hal mused as he slipped forward using [Licht Step], weaving between the two pillars before firing a vicious [Piercing Light] that caught the purple-haired lady off guard.

Larena still managed to defend herself by masterfully casting a weaker version—Earthen Wall—sideways, forcing Hal’s spell to pierce through a thick layer of rocky soil, its power diminishing by the end.

His spell was stopped.

However, that wasn’t enough to stop Akari and the crowd from going wild.

"L-L-Licht Step and Piercing Light!! What’s going on?! Wasn’t Competitor Hal a summoner?!"

Updated from fr𝒆ewebnov𝒆l.(c)om