•••••Raven's POV•••••

Since I was a kid, I have always wondered why I always feel like I do not belong in the Asano Family. Every time I see them laughing at each other, it felt so different compared to when I joined them.

I do not usually go out, either. Everywhere I go, I always have well-trained butlers tailing me. Ethan used to play with me, but only once in a very bright blue moon. He was always busy training and learning about how to manage the company.

Personally, I never grew up a normal teenager. I missed a lot of wonderful things in life. My best friend used to show me the beauty of the world. However, when she died, I have lost everything. She was a legit good samaritan that deserved to live more than I do. Yet, she was taken away from me-from the world whom she loved so much.

Unlike me, she valued life. That is why the moment she was gone, I swore to myself that I would go to Blandon High and find the person who killed her. I was certain that the person who slaughtered her was wearing the school's uniform with its logo. I could never be mistaken.

However, I was blinded so much by that goal that I never realized the person who kept on lying in front of my face all these years. I could have trusted Ethan even more. But after reading his mind and seeing that piece of his memory, I do not know what to do anymore. My head hurts. It hurts like that time.

I could have killed Ethan when I learned that I had a biological brother, and he has another name. However, I did not. After all this time, I realized late that Ethan gave me so much memory to remember him by.

"You look like in deep thought." I came back to my senses the moment I heard the bitch in front of me spoke. "You sure you don't want to back out? I don't like you to surrender in the middle o-"

"Why would I back out? Can't you let that in through your thick skull?" I looked at Headmaster who was watching. "Hey, Jerkass! Aren't you going to bell the ring or anything?"

The member of The Black Diamonds, especially Sniper, their leader plastered a smirk on their faces. Sagurano, however, gritted her teeth and was clearly irritated.

The headmaster nodded to someone right below us, and he ran towards us. He cleared his throat first before speaking.

"The rules in this battle are simple. First, you will claim the victory once your opponent will stay down after I count her ten seconds," he said. "or if you kill your opponent directly."

"Ten seconds, huh? Don't you think that's too long? I can knock this girl off in less than five seconds." My opponent suddenly spoke. She turned her gaze to the proctor. Then, she looked at me anew. "Oh, wait, why should I wait for ten seconds when I can kill you in an instant?"

"Well, aren't you full of yourself? Why don't you just let the young man finish so we can start?" She scoffed to what I said.

I signaled the proctor to continue, and he startled. Though, he nodded eventually.

"S-Second, you can also claim the victory if your opponent will give up." I looked at my opponent seriously as she battled with my stares. "Lastly, you can do whatever you want. I'll be the official in this match, but I won't butt in unless it's time for me to declare the winner."

"By everything, do you mean..." I closed my eyes and sighed. "Well, never mind."

I prepared myself so much for this. Even after knowing the truth that I had a brother, my goal still has not changed. My vengeance comes first, and if I have the time, I will go and see my brother.

"W-Well, I guess both of you are ready." The proctor took a step back away from us. "Let the match, begin!"

The moment the bell rang, it was also the same moment when my opponent attacked me. I jumped backward to evade that attack.

"Oh? Aren't you faster now?" She stood up straight. "Glad to see you again, Raven Saldoviana."

"I don't think we've met," I said.

She positioned herself as if she was going to perform magic. It was a unique pose that I could rarely see from anyone.

"Bloody Astra Art: Thread Cubes!" Suddenly out of nowhere, I saw sharp, thin threads in the shape of squares coming my way.

I dodged it successfully, however. It was a powerful technique. I have never confronted someone who governs threads before.

"Oh? Your threads are durable. I bet it can't be cut or torn." I looked at the enemy again as she chortled.

"Of course, they are. They are built to slay devils like you." She positioned herself again, so I prepared myself, too. "Now, Raven, show me your art."

If you possess normal eyes, you would only see dirt around her. However, in my case, it is completely different. With my eyes, I could see her whole body engulfed in a very dark aura.

"Stop resisting," She extended her right arm with an open palm. "and use your power."

I scoffed. She was way too persistent. She wanted to see my power that bad.

"Bloody Astra Art: Hundred Needles!" My eyes widened when a magic circle suddenly appeared before her hand and hundreds-no, maybe thousands of sharp needles came out.

It was too many for me to evade it all. I had no other choice but to also extend my arm with an open palm.

"Adamantine Shield!" A magical circle also appeared right in front of my palm, and the moment my shield appeared was the timing moment when the needles hit it.

That almost got me.

"Not bad." She executed a sarcastic clap. "Not the art that I was expecting, but at least you used magic."

I looked at my hands. I never thought I could do it. I could hear how the crowd gasped the moment I summoned that shield. I have not used magic for quite a long time. I never even expected that I could still use it.

"Say, let me ask you one thing, Raven." My enemy caught back my attention. "Don't you think something's familiar and odd?"

My forehead creased. Maybe she was just trying to trick me, but I guess not. She was better than anyone who would do that, I know it.

"Familiar, how?"

"Who knows, why don't you guess it?" She took a step forward. But we were still a little too far from each other. "For example, how can you use magic in the first place if the royal bloods are the only ones who know how to do that."

What she said made me flinch. Indeed, it was very odd because I knew how to use magic. But then, Ethan taught me when I was a kid. He trained me.

"Let's just say my guardian taught me. What about it? It's just simple magic," I said.

"Right, simple magic." She let out a chuckle again. "Then, have you noticed something else?"

Her gaze became very serious, and it was getting into my nerves.

"Look, I do not know what you are trying to imply here but," I reached out for my knife and spun it around my finger. "our match is still ongoing."

I did not wait for her response and immediately went to her to attack. She managed to evade my attacks, but I was faster than her.

"Thread Cubes!"

"Too slow." Before the threads would get to me, I moved even faster and went through my enemy.

I looked back at her, and I saw how she grunted in pain. She turned to face me with angry eyes. She was not that severely wounded, however, I knew I caused her quite a pain.

"D-Damn... Hindi ko nakita 'yon," she said.

"Hey, can I ask you a favor?" I sighed. As much as I hated to admit it, my enemy was formidable. She was no ordinary assassin. "Can you stop telling me to show my art? I mean, nakakairita na kasing pakinggan, e. I do not know what you are talking about, so stop asking for the impossible."

I was perplexed when she suddenly burst into laughter. Umayos siya ng tayo na para bang hindi ko siya nasugatan kani-kanina lang.

"You're funny, you know that? It's so funny how clueless you are," she said that immediately irritated me. "Here's a friendly tip, Raven. For the questions that are running wild inside your mind, I have all the answers."

"And? What are you trying to convey?"

"If I win, I get to kill you. I'll be ruthless, without any doubt. Ipapakita ko sa buong estudyante dito sa Blandon High kung paano pumatay ng isang demonyo." Her voice was indicating anger. I knew she held a grudge against someone, and she sought for vengeance, too.

In that case, I sussed out na parehas lang pala kami ng nararamdaman. Tiningnan ko siya ng maigi.

"And if I win?"

"That's truly predictable." Her mask was starting to annoy me. "Sasabihin ko sa'yo ang totoong pagkatao mo."

Nagulat ako sa sinabi niya. She was too confident of what she just said. Alam kong hindi siya nagsisinungaling. Only fools would do such a thing in front of me.

"Are you mocking me? How would you know my real identity in the first place?"

She speaks na parang kilalang-kilala niya talaga ako since birth. Based from her stature, body, including the mask, I do not think I have seen her somewhere. Sigurado akong hindi ko siya kilala. Hindi rin pamilyar ang aura niya kaya there is no way she knows who I am.

"Ethan Asano is not your biological brother. You have a real brother, at kilalang-kilala ko kung sino 'yon." With that being said, I heard almost everybody in the stadium gasp.

Nanlaki ang mga mata ko. Walang nakakaalam except sa mga kaibigan at mentor ko na magkapatid kami ni Ethan. Most importantly, I told none na may totoo talaga akong kapatid.

"Where did you learn that?" I gritted my teeth. I needed to calm down.

"Aww, that's a different story. Gusto ko lang ipaalam sa'yo na hindi ako nagbibiro. Everything's serious here, Raven." Nakakairita na talaga siya. "I know yourself better than you do. So, what's it gonna be?"

I tried to think things through. Hindi ako dapat magiging kampante kahit na anong mangyari. I could not even assure that I had the upper hand. Ngunit, base sa tono ng pananalita niya, alam kong hindi talaga siya nagbibiro.

If she knows about my real identity, she must have been from the royal bloods.

Napasulyap ako sa Headmaster at sa The Black Diamonds na nakatingin lang ng maigi sa labanan namin. I did not sense anything bad coming from them. It was like they got so occupied by the match.

Napatingin ulit ako sa aking kalaban na naghihintay lang sa sagot ko. If only I could read her eyes and comprehend her emotions, pero hindi. Hindi ko siya maintindihan. It was like she does not have any feelings at all.

I sighed. What an abject pain.

"What a drag," I said. "Fine, whatever. Just show me what you got."

She burst into laughter again that made me raise a brow. Pagkatapos, nanlaki ulit ang mga mata ko nang bigla na lang siyang nag-appear sa harapan ko. She was too close to me already, and it was too late to avoid her attack in time.

"Bloody Astra Art: Needle Venom." A needle with a very sharp end appeared in her hand and without any hesitation, she pricked my arm.

Napasigaw ako sa sakit at napaatras sa kanya.

"Raven!" I heard Blade's voice from the crowd, but I could not even look at him.

Hindi lang pala threads ang kaya niyang kontrolin, kundi pati mga needles rin. Dammit, I should have known! Inseparable naman talaga ang needle and thread.

"The needle I used to prick your arm was drenched in deadly poison. It may be small, but it was terrible. Ang bilis lang kumalat ng lason kaya for sure, nag-e-enjoy na 'yan sa loob ng katawan mo." She chuckled. Obviously, she enjoyed seeing me suffer. I should have known that the needles were poisonous. "Not just that... Now that the poison's in your body, I can easily manipulate your body whenever I want."

Nanlaki ang mga mata ko nang mas lalo ko pang naramdaman ang sakit sa buong katawan ko. I got down to one knee because as time went by, the poision inside of me became arduous to bear.

My vision started to blur. I could hear muffled voices of Blade and Maura. I could not say if they actually screamed or maybe it was just my imagination. Ang tanging alam ko lang ay napakasakit na talaga ng buong katawan ko.

Raven, you're a gifted girl.

My eyes widened when I suddenly heard Ethan's voice in my mind.

"Oh, look at you. You look miserable," my enemy spoke.

I could barely even see her walking towards me. My vision was way too blurry to clearly see a thing. Not to mention that my mind was spinning.

Just take a deep breath, and you'll realize how unique and gifted you are.

"S-Shut up..." I clenched my fist that I used as a pillar to steady myself on the ground.

Galit pa rin ako kay Ethan. Galit na galit. He hid the truth from me just to protect me. He told me a lot of lies that I lost count how much he did it just to keep me safe. I never wanted that. Feeling ko isa lang akong burden sa kanya.

I left him and Japan without any hesitation at all. I left at ease, without any problems. I got blinded so much by my hatred towards him and by this match.

Ethan told me nothing about the whole truth of myself yet. However, he told me that he would right after I win this match. He would bring me to my real brother, and he will be the one who will tell me everything.

I believe in you, Raven. I know you're not the devil that they think you are.

I gritted my teeth. Ayaw kong marinig ulit ang boses niya.

I tried to calm myself down and take a deep breath. I was surprised when I felt something burning inside of me. It was as if another soul was inside of me. I could feel its hatred.

"Any last words, Raven?" Wait, I can hear my enemy clearly now.

Huminga ulit ako ng malalim at nang ginawa ko iyon, mas lalo ko pang naramdaman ang unti-unting pagbalik ng mga senses ko. Gumaan rin ang pakiramdam ko na naging dahilan upang makagalaw ulit ako ng maayos.

When I felt like I could handle the posion, I slowly stood up and I heard the crowd’s reactions. I did not mind them and fixed myself a little. Sobrang gaan na talaga ng pakiramdam ko.

"W-What the hell? H-How are you able to stand l-like that?" Napatingin ulit ako sa kalaban ko. Kahit na nakasuot pa siya ng mask, I knew very well that she was surprised, just like the whole crowd. "T-That poison should be devouring you alive right now!"

"Oh, you didn't know? I thought you knew me more than I know myself?" I raised a brow at her. I could see her hands trembling, but she curved it into a ball to stop it.

"Shut it, you goddamn bitch!" She promptly attacked me recklessly.

"You're being foolhardy now." I got my knife and stabbed it into her arm before she could even use her magic.

She grunted in pain and took a step back. Alam kong malakas siya, pero madali lang siyang ma-distract. I noticed rin na napaka-short-tempered niya kaya hindi niya ginagamit ang mahika niya ng maayos.

"D-Damn you, Raven... I-I will kill you!" I looked at her wound. It was not healing, meaning she does not have any regeneration ability. "Sabihin mo nga sa'kin, how can you still move like that?"

"I heal faster, silly. My regeneration ability is faster that your poison. It stopped before it could completely spread," I explained.

To be honest, I forgot about my regeneration ability. Nagulat kasi ako sa nangyari kaya nawala sa isipan ko ang kakayahan ko. If I did not remember what Ethan told me, I would have been dead by now.

Napahawak ako sa puso ko. Ramdam na ramdam ko pa rin ang init sa buong katawan ko kahit na nawala na ang lason. The needles and threads that my enemy used were also drenched with dark energy and hatred.

"Hey, listen to me." Lumapit ako sa kanya, at itinuon ko ang kutsilyo sa mukha niya. "Do you... hate me?"

I saw how she blanched. Her other hand that was holding her wound started to shake.

"Why do you think that?"

"Your action and words are kind of obvious," I said.

She averted her gaze from me and slowly stood up.

"Is it a question that I must answer?" she threw back a question right at me. I just shrugged my shoulders. I knew she got the idea. "Then, I choose not to answer. I'm not obliged to do it."

"Suit yourself." Hinanda ko ulit ang sarili ko dahil parang bumalik na ang seriousness niya sa laban.

Bigla niyang iginalaw ang kamay niya. To be frank, I did not know what she was doing. It was like, she was just waving it for no good reason.

"Dammit, peste 'yang regeneratiom ability mo! Hindi ko na ma-control ang katawan mo!" She sounded so infuriated.

So, that was the reason why she kept on waving her hand. She was planning to manipulate my body using the poison she implanted in my body.

"Well, that doesn't matter. Tingnan natin kung kaya mo ba ito." She got a cloth from her pocket and wrapped it around her wound to stop the bleeding. Then, she positioned herself again. "Astra Grand Art: Gōmon Hebi!"

My eyes widened in surprise the moment a saw a big magic circle under her feet. The light coming from it was brighter than I thought it would be, so I could not help but step back.

The magic circle and the light coming from it lasted for another minute. Nang mawala na ito, mas lalo pa akong nagulat nang makita ko ang isang napakalaking ahas sa harapan ko. It was no ordinary snake. The snake's body was made in thread, and its face was very intimidating.

Narinig ko kung paano napasigaw amg mga tao sa loob ng battle stadium. I gritted my teeth as I diverted my gaze to my enemy.

"What the hell are you doing?! Ang daming tao dito, you could have hurt them! What were you thinking?!" I was so irritated. A lot of people inside the battle stadium who has nothing to do with us will surely get involved.

Tumawa naman siya sa sinabi ko.

"Since when did you start caring about other people? Sa pagkakaalam ko, wala kang pakealam sa ibang tao. Sarili mo lang iniisip mo!" She made me clench my fist so hard.

I was about to attack her, but the enormous snake she just summoned blocked me and protected her.

"This thing only listens to me alone. Tingnan natin kung kaya mo ba siyang kalabanin." Biglang umatake sa akin ang ahas kaya napaatras ulit ako kaya nakailag ako.

I gathered up all my energy in my feet and kicked the ground to send me flying right into the snake's direction. I aimed without any flaws to its heart and when I did, I was surprised when my knife did not pierce through. Its skin was way too thick.

Hindi ko namalayan ang paggalaw ng ahas, at biglang may lumabas na mga spikes sa skin nito. Hindi ako nakailag kaagad at natamaan ako. Natapon ako palayo sa kalaban.

"Oh? Not even the almighty Raven Saldoviana can pierce through the snake's skin. Its way too powerful than you've ever imagined," I heard my enemy said.

The snake wounded me, but it healed faster. I tried to clear my mind and studied the snake. If I can not kill it using a knife, then wala akong ibang magagawa kundi gumamit ng mahika.

Huminga ako ng malalim. Hindi ko inexpect na darating ako sa point na gagamit ulit ako ng mahika. I also did not expect less, though. If hindi ko tatapusin kaagad ang ahas, maraming tao ang madadamay.

I was about to use magic nang bigla na lang nawala ang ahas na parang bula.

Following that ay ang pagbagsak ng kalaban ko sa lupa. It was very suspicious because the wound I caused her was not severe and yet, I heard her grunted in pain.

"D-Dammit... N-Not now!" she said as the wound that she wrapped in a cloth started bleeding again.

Lumapit ako sa kanya para tingnan kung ano ang nangyari sa kanya. Nagulat ako ng bigla siyang napaubo ng dugo. Her blood fell onto the ground and the moment its smell reached my nose, biglang umikot ang paningin ko.

"W-What's going o-on?" Na-out of balance ako at napatumba rin sa ground.

My opponent did not say anything. Kahit siya ay nag-re-resist rin sa sakit na nararamdaman niya.

"Stop this fight now." I abruptly heard a voice.

I felt another familiar presence from the side where the headmaster and The Black Diamond was. Even if I was feeling dizzy, I diverted my gaze to their direction. Bahagyang nanlaki ang mga mata ko dahil sa nakita.

There was a man pointing a gun at the back of the headmaster's head. His aura has changed. But I knew completely who he was.

"Hades..."