Lewd System: Every Scream and Moan is EXP

Chapter 278: Chapter 278 : Zharina’s Regrets

Sianna didn’t turn around. Just stood with her back to him. Knowing that only absurdity would follow from his mouth.

Jax said. ”I am absolutely enjoying this world. I love every single time it tries to challenge me. Defeat me. Only to choke on the very script it wrote for my downfall. Only to realize that my defeat is the one luxury this universe simply cannot afford.”

His grin could be heard in his voice. ”And then it watches me win with the very odds it thought were enough to bury me.”

Sianna looked at him from the corner of her eyes. ”You are insane. It’s really annoying to stand here a second more.”

Jax laughed. ”Then my queen, it’s going to be really hard for you to stay at his side and obey your two-day master.”

She didn’t respond with words. Only the murderous aura leaking from her body communicated what she was feeling as she walked away.

And the moment she was gone, a slap cracked across Jax’s face.

Elira. She looked furious. Tears already forming.

”Why did you do that?! Why did you throw your life away just like that?! No, why do you ALWAYS throw your life away?! First your situation with Professor Zharina and now you bet on yourself again!”

Her voice cracked. ”If you don’t care about yourself then at least remember there are people who will get hurt just watching you in misery!”

She grabbed his collar. ”You had no idea about the tournament standings and yet you wagered everything! Why?! Tell me, why did you—”

Jax grabbed her head gently. Wiped the tears forming at the corners of her eyes with his thumbs. And said. ”Because I believe in you two. I believe in my other girls. I know there is no way someone like these morons would give you a hard time.”

She went soft immediately. Her grip loosened. ”Even if we win, what about the—”

Jax cut in with a grin. ”Then we will do rock paper scissors between all of you. Because I won’t allow nepotism among you five to steal the spotlight.”

She didn’t know why her face broke into a smile seeing him smiling so brightly. As if the man who had just been sentenced to enslavement was the happiest person in this garden.

Jax patted Seraphina’s head with one hand while hovering his other hand gently on Elira’s face. ”Both of you did well. You have made me proud.”

He looked at the two fathers watching from the distance. Then added. ”Now just the last steps remain.”

Seraphina hugged him tightly. ”Thank you, Professor. I can’t express how grateful I am.”

Elira smiled. The kind that carried more than words ever could. ”Your bet has given us another reason to win tomorrow. So I will serve you the victory as a token of gratitude for everything you have done.”

Apart from these three, everyone else in the garden knew the truth. That what Jax had just committed to was suicidal. And one among them was Zharina. Standing there. Looking at the professor and his students with an expression that even she couldn’t fully explain to herself.

-x-X-x-

Then finally came the next day.

And just like yesterday, Professor Zharina was staring at Jax. Who was surrounded by his girls as usual. There stood his complete roster. Elira and Seraphina in their academic runic gear, ready for what was coming. While the others, Lilith, Astrid, Seris, and Professor Roxana stood beside Jax who was wearing a full-body metallic armor minus the helmet for now.

And seeing him enjoying himself with his girls made Zharina’s chest tighten. There was no fear in his eyes. No defeat. No anxiety. Even knowing exactly where he stood on the leaderboard. Even knowing there was no mathematical way out other than spending the rest of his life as a slave to the Bloodmond house.

And yet there he was. Teasing Lilith who had gone beetroot because the crowd was cheering louder for her than the actual participants stepping into the arena.

Watching that scene, Zharina thought. ’Why does it feel like I have already been defeated? Instead of a guaranteed win, I am feeling utterly crushed by this professor.’

She recalled how this tournament had gone. The tournament she had designed as her revenge had been completely overshadowed by Jax. Every move she made, he had a counter. He had turned her battleground into his stage.

She recalled why she chose to become a professor in the first place. Why she didn’t chase luxury like the others. She had been offered a high-ranking position in the top guild. A guild far stronger in terms of raw military power, with even Claude Aleris’s army ranking them at the top.

But she turned it down for the resolve and oath she made.

She looked at the sky and muttered while clenching her fist. ”Master, I have failed.”

Then her eyes found Jax again. And she smiled. The kind of smile that carried something she hadn’t felt toward him before.

She thought. ’Even if this bastard is completely corrupted, he still fought for his students. Whether it was putting his life on the line or betting his entire future, he stood in front of them. And he did it with this smile.’

’Now I know why I feel defeated. Now I know where I went wrong. I manipulated the strongest students to join my roster just to win a bet. While this bastard didn’t care about the bet or the tournament. He fought for the misery his students were drowning in. The darkness they carried. And he lit up their world. Their future.’

Her smile settled into something that carried genuine respect. She sighed.

’Fine then, Professor. I’ll do what I should have done from the start. Fight my own battle instead of dragging students into it.’

’So let’s change some odds.’

She picked up her helmet. The same model as Jax’s. And put it on.

Then the announcement echoed across the entire arena. The voice of the head announcer booming through every runic amplifier in the venue.

”Ladies and gentlemen! Honored guests from across every kingdom and academy! We have arrived at the moment you have all been waiting for! The grand finals of the Inter-Academy Competition! The match that will decide not just a winner, but the legacy of this year’s tournament!”

A massive leaderboard materialized above the arena for the entire world to see. At the top sat Zharina with one hundred and forty points. Then Jax at one hundred and thirty. Followed by Aerisya Velith Elunar at one hundred and six. And so on down the line.

The announcer continued. ”Once again, Astryx Academy has dominated this tournament and shown the world what a treasury their ancestors left behind! The top four spots have been locked by Astryx Academy alone! And while the battle for rank one and two is still underway, one thing is absolutely certain. The winner will be from Astryx Academy!”

The crowd erupted.

”And to make the finals worthy of the spectacle it deserves, the theme for the final event, the Survival Games, has been decided along with its arena!”

A projection of the battleground appeared above the leaderboard.

”The theme is a twist on the classic capture the flag! But instead of a flag, each team must capture the opposing team’s mentor! That’s right, the professors themselves are on the line!”

The crowd went insane.

”And the battleground? The very field where one hundred years ago, the bloodiest battle in recorded history was fought! Where the allied forces of the Dragonkin Empire and the Vampire Kingdom clashed against the Witch of Calamity! Where roughly one million warriors gave their lives for the peace this world enjoys today!”

-x-X-x-

[A/N: Thanks Ordici_T, Harpo86, Littleboy18794, Haldabar1, Mario_1359 and Riebee for dropping the golden tickets your appreciation means a lot.

(👍🏻ᴗ _ᴗ)👍🏻]