The Art of Persuasion
Lunchtime. An empty magic engineering classroom. Hanon Airey, Sharin Sazaris, and Isabel Luna stood frozen, facing one another. Of those three, Hanon was me.
Through the window, the bright, cheerful voices of students drifted in. It was the sound of children returning after having their lunch. Amidst the heavy silence that hung between us, it was Isabel who finally broke the quiet.
"...Why are you two together?"
Sharin, Isabel's best friend. Me, Isabel's rival. To make matters worse, while everyone else had gone to eat lunch, we had deliberately met up alone, sharing bread and chatting intimately. This scene was more than enough to stir a complex storm of emotions inside Isabel.
Even for someone like me, who believed it was foolish to view every interaction through the lens of romance, it was painfully obvious how this situation looked.
"I received a proposal."
It was Sharin, not me, who answered Isabel's questioning look. The stiff, frozen expression she had worn after hearing my earlier remarks was completely gone. Instead, returning to her usual whimsical self, she pointed a finger at me.
"He asked me to join his team for the upcoming group competition."
Hearing Sharin's words, Isabel's eyes widened into perfect circles. She clearly hadn't expected me to make such an offer to her best friend.
"...Were you two really close enough to suggest forming a team?"
Most of the times Sharin and I met were in the evening. Since Isabel was always busy training intensely during those hours, she had no idea what Sharin did with her nights. Naturally, she remained completely unaware that Sharin had been meeting me to teach me Magic Engraving.
"Yeah. Hanon likes me a lot."
What kind of ridiculous nonsense was this? I stared at Sharin in utter disbelief before turning my head away. When I did, I saw Isabel staring back at me, her jaw practically hitting the floor. There was no doubt about it—she was completely misunderstanding the situation. Hearing that her rival supposedly liked her best friend was bound to elicit such a reaction.
"I-Is that really true?"
Why on earth was she taking this so seriously?
"It's nonsense."
When I flatly denied it, Isabel's lips parted soundlessly before she turned her gaze back to Sharin. Sharin merely offered a lazy smile, remaining silent.
This girl...
Through this brief exchange, Sharin had indirectly revealed the depth of our connection. Our relationship was close enough that we could trade such playful banter. Normally, Sharin never associated closely with others. True to her whimsical nature, she was the type of person who might seem friendly one moment, only to turn cold and distant the next. Thus, Isabel was the only person she truly considered a friend. Yet here she was, showing off a bond close enough to joke about right in front of Isabel. It must have been a massive shock to her—especially since that close companion was none other than me, her rival. It was a double whammy of disbelief.
"Uh... Ah... Uh..."
Perhaps that was why Isabel seemed to have completely glitched out. When I glared at Sharin, she shot a look right back at me. Though her eyes curved upward, her gaze was icy cold. Ah, she was angry. To Sharin, her father was a subject that stirred deep emotional turmoil. But I had no other choice. To ensure the upcoming acts of the story proceeded smoothly, I absolutely had to achieve top results in the group competition. And to do that, I needed Sharin on my team.
I'm desperate here, too.
It would be difficult to ask her to understand my position.
"I... I also came to ask Rin to join my team."
At that moment, Isabel snapped out of her daze and returned to her original purpose. Just like me, she had heard about the group competition from Professor Beganor and rushed over. The reason she arrived later than me was likely because I had no one to hold me back, whereas she was constantly surrounded by people she had to talk to first. The real issue, however, was that Sharin was highly likely to side with her best friend, Isabel.
"I'm sorry, but I made my offer first."
"But accepting the offer is entirely up to Rin."
Knowing this, Isabel refused to back down. Furthermore, I could sense a strange competitive spark igniting within her. She was determined not to let her rival steal her best friend away. This was troublesome. If Isabel went all out, I had no way of winning this tug-of-war. I glanced at Sharin. She looked back and forth between us, her expression thoughtful.
"Alright."
Having made her decision, she raised a hand toward me.
"I'll go with Hanon this time."
"Rin?"
Isabel looked utterly devastated. However, Sharin showed no signs of changing her mind. Stumbling backward, Isabel finally turned around.
"Rin is a dummy."
Calling Sharin a dummy, Isabel fled, drenched in sorrow. I never expected her to actually choose me. This outcome was a surprise even to myself.
"I didn't think you'd choose me."
"You kept your promise to me."
The promise with Sharin. In exchange for her helping me, I had promised to give Isabel a reason to live.
"I know you were the very first to run after Bel a week ago."
So she knew. Sharin had also gone to the city walls to look for Isabel. She must have spotted me back then.
"Consider this my reward for that. As for my father..."
Sharin's hair fluttered slightly.
"I'm a little angry. I don't know how much you actually know, but you spoke out of turn."
Seeing her reaction, I quietly bowed my head.
"I'm sorry."
I offered a deep, sincere apology.
With Sharin secured as our strongest rear guard, the backline was looking incredibly solid. All that remained was one more rear-guard slot and a healer. Surprisingly, the final rear-guard position was filled much easier than expected.
"Hey, King-non, how about putting me on your team?"
The next day, right after morning classes ended, Card approached me and made the offer himself.
"What's gotten into you, asking to join my team?"
"I heard Sharin joined. Where else am I going to find a better team than this?"
Sharin's power was off the charts. Once word got out, people would naturally clamor to join us. But how had Card already caught wind of this? The guy's ears were incredibly sharp.
Well, he is in a position where he can't afford to be hard of hearing.
Knowing Card's background, it made perfect sense that he was so well-informed.
"Besides, my magic isn't really suited for raw firepower. It's much better for me to latch onto a team that already has plenty of damage dealers."
Card was a utility mage. Having used him during my playthrough of the Flame Butterfly Chapter, I knew this fact all too well. With both Sharin and Card on board, our team balance would be exceptionally stable.
"Hmm..."
As I hesitated, Card's eyes began to sparkle expectantly. Seeing a massive guy acting all cute and sparkly was an eyesore, making my brow furrow in disgust.
"More importantly, what about your usual team?"
Card had a regular group he usually teamed up with. When I asked about them, he rubbed his nose sheepishly.
"One of the girls on my team confessed to me, so I just bailed."
I stared at him, utterly exasperated. Card, however, put on a deeply wronged expression.
"I couldn't help it! I don't want to date anyone right now; I just want to live a free life. But staying on the team would've just made things awkward and ruined the mood, you know?"
"Princess Sweet Potato, doesn't it sound like a piece of trash is speaking?"
As Card played the part of a tragic male lead, Seron, who had approached unnoticed, glared at him with pure contempt. Card simply winked at her in response.
"If Seron confesses to me, I might actually consider it."
"Shut up before I rip your mouth open."
Seron hissed like an angry cat, her hair practically standing on end. Her reaction went beyond mere contempt; she clearly wanted absolutely nothing to do with him. Card, finding her reaction highly amusing, laughed and turned back to me.
"Of course, since I want to remain friends with King-non, I'd have to reject you anyway."
"Do you want to die? Why are you acting like it's a given that I'd confess to you?"
Seron looked ready to punch Card, but then she stole a glance at me.
"And wait, just in case... Princess Sweet Potato, you don't like me, do you?"
Oh, for Christ's sake.
"Sorry, but my type is a tall, manly, handsome guy. Princess Sweet Potato is light-years away from being manly. So, no way."
"Right, don't you worry. Starting today, I won't even perceive you as a human being."
As I rolled up my sleeves, Seron squealed and pretended to run away. Seeing how naturally we traded these playful jabs, it felt like we really had been hanging out for a long time.
"So, what were you guys talking about anyway?"
Since her morning class had been a practical training session, Seron had received separate instruction from Professor Beganor and arrived late. That was why she had no idea what Card and I were discussing.
"I'm going to join King-non's team."
"Ugh, gross."
Seron immediately grimaced in disgust. Seeing her reaction, I tilted my head.
"Why do you care?"
"What do you mean, why do I care? If a guy like him joins, the team atmosphere is going to get totally weird."
"Right, but why are you the one worrying about that?"
I asked with genuine curiosity. Seron blinked, then tilted her head in imitation of me.
"Well, that's because..."
Seron started to speak, but her words trailed off as her eyes slowly widened.
"Hey... Hey, Princess Sweet Potato, you're joking, right?"
"Yeah, I'm not a princess sweet potato."
"Come on, don't be like that. You won't be able to find a front-liner without me anyway."
"Our team's rear guard is already set. It's Sharin."
Seron's jaw dropped. The moment the name of the second-year Magic Engineering top student—the one hailed as the genius of the century—was mentioned, her entire demeanor shifted instantly.
"Sh-Sharin Sazaris? Why would she...?"
"I have my ways."
Having already recruited Aisha the greatsword master, Poara the contractor of the Spirit Sovereign, and even Saint Sarmiel in the past, I had a proven track record. Seron couldn't bring herself to doubt me this time.
"With Sharin on the team, front-liners who want to join will be practically lining up out the door."
Word hadn't spread yet, but it wouldn't take long. A massive crowd of aspiring front-liners would soon be begging to join. Realizing this, Seron's lips parted soundlessly.
"U-Uh... then what about me?"
"That's why I've been asking you this whole time. Why are you worrying about our team?"
I offered her a bright smile. In response, a flush of red slowly crept up Seron's forehead. She was finally starting to realize her predicament. Reaching out, she grabbed a tight hold of my collar.
"P-Princess Sweet Potato, don't do this to me."
"Seron, shouldn't you start looking for another team before it's too late?"
"Ah, seriously, I was wrong! My-my grades have been great lately, and my skills are totally decent! Why are you being like this, really?"
"Right. With skills like that, any team would be glad to have you."
Tears began to well up in Seron's eyes. Sniffling, she gripped my collar tightly with both hands.
"Sweet Potato... no, Hanon, please. I don't have anywhere else to go. Please? Pretty please?"
"Seron, if you're going to ask for a favor, you should use polite, formal language."
"Ugh... Please. P-please let me join the team."
"Your head is still held too high. And what's with that tone of voice?"
"I beg of you! Please, please let me join the team!"
Seron bowed her head deeply, her shoulders trembling. Watching her, I reached out and gently patted her head.
"There we go. That's how you ask for a favor. Good girl."
The other students stared at us with bizarre looks. But I didn't care. Since we were already labeled as the "troublemaker trio," being looked at strangely was nothing new.
"Uaaah! Aaaaargh!"
At that moment, Seron snapped her head up. Looking at me with a tear-streaked face, she grabbed my collar and began shaking me violently. Did I tease her too much? She seemed completely broken. Still, she clearly didn't want to be left out of the team, as she merely huffed and glared at me without saying a word.
"Seron, if we take first place in this group competition and you play a big part, your parents will probably give you a massive allowance, right?"
Seron's shoulders flinched. She was someone who constantly relied on generous allowances from her parents. To her, pocket money was her lifeline.
"And with Sharin on our side, securing at least a top spot is practically guaranteed."
Seron carefully smoothed out the wrinkles in my collar. Then, her teary eyes began to sparkle with excitement. She had already received immense praise from her parents after the incident in the Gray Forest. I had heard her allowance had been bumped up because of it. Naturally, if she performed well again, her pocket money was bound to skyrocket.
"I-I'll do my absolute best."
"Good. Let's aim for first place."
Seron had become completely docile. Watching this, Card let out a low whistle.
"You're getting better and better at taming her."
Taming? Please. This was just smooth communication.