the tower mages excitedly ordered drinks in the booth; in a matter of seconds, the booth that barely had people was suddenly filled to the brim.

    "how are you holding up, kiddos?" adhara asked gently.

    "we are doing fine," mckenzie replied, though he could feel a sudden pressure with the sudden amount of customers pouring into their booth.

    "you''re doing well do you want us to help out?" adhara said, placing a hand on his shoulder.

    "no big sis we are good but please advertise our booth to your fellow mages, the ones with the highest income have an award after all"

    "alright, i will; where is apollo, by the way?"

    "resting, he will be here in the afternoon"

    "i see"

    mckenzie and the others became busy; however, soon, one by one, their classmates began to return after they completed the event they joined in. until the four left for their respective event.

    the afternoon event came by, and apollo returned with alya and matilda; they will now man the booth. then, when night falls, the three are still occupied with their task since more people are flooding in.

    as the day ended, whispers about the previous first-year class began to surface. the sun had already set, and the night slowly crept in as alicia shared what she''d heard with apollo and a few others.

    "they say the seniors who were in our position were forced to leave because of pressure from the other classes," alicia said. "apparently, there was some kind of incident that made their class a target."

    apollo frowned as soon as he arrived and said. "what kind of incident?"

    "no one knows for sure, but some say it had to do with a bet," alicia replied, her voice heavy with unease.

    "i wonder what kind of bet is that?" apollo ponders while pouring tea for their customers.

    "i don''t think you have the time to think of that"

    alicia''s tone of voice suddenly changed, and this confused apollo.

    "my dear apollo, aren''t you forgetting something?"

    "me?...ah!"

    "that is right, matilda is already being taken care of by the senior witches of the tower so all that is left is you"

    "damn, who will help me again?"

    "you can choose me, our classmates, or the tower mages"

    the boy then weighed his options, and with great deliberation, he said.

    "i think you will tease me less than the others"

    "right, okay, i will help you," she sounded as if she had expected it, but apollo was glad she agreed, "at least she won''t tease me," he thought.

    among the events apollo had signed up for was a cross-dressing contest. he didn''t think much of it at first, but now, as he looked at himself in the mirror in front of him, wearing a flowing dress and a long wig, he was starting to regret it.

    "this is ridiculous," he muttered.

    "you look great," alicia teased, barely able to contain her laughter. after finishing her makeup on apollo, the little beauty now wants to praise her friend a bit.

    "shut up," apollo grumbled, his legs shaking while his feet were screaming due to the heels.

    "just why it has to be me?" he muttered under his breath, glaring at alicia, who was adjusting his wig.

    "because," alicia said with an evil grin, the pretty black-haired girl could no longer contain her laughter again, "you didn''t listen to the meetings. and because you look fabulous in this dress."

    the "dress" in question was an overly elaborate gown that glittered with every movement. coupled with a long, wavy wig and a touch of makeup applied by his enthusiastic classmate, apollo looked uncomfortably convincing.

    "i feel like a clown," he grumbled while looking at the mirror.

    "you look good," alicia corrected. "now, remember, smile and wave when you walk out. oh, and don''t trip on the hem and do well with the voice okay!"

    before apollo could protest, the announcer called his name.

    the first part of the event started and as apollo stepped onto the stage, a deafening cheer erupted from the crowd. his classmates screamed in support—or to tease him, he couldn''t tell.

    he tried to follow alicia''s advice, smiling and waving as he walked. unfortunately, his long dress snagged on the stage, and he stumbled forward, nearly face-planting. the crowd gasped, then burst into laughter when he managed to catch himself in the most ungraceful way possible. he reacted fast, but his reaction was a bit delayed due to the dress he was wearing.

    "smooth," alicia whispered from the sidelines, barely holding back her laughter though for a moment she was nervous.

    "i hate you," apollo mouthed back at her, causing alicia''s ruby-like eyes to form like crescent moons in the night sky. she was enjoying it herself, opposite apollo, who wanted to run away.

    despite his awkward start, apollo managed to reach the center of the stage, where he introduced himself.

    as he opened his mouth the crowd suddenly went silent. they were expecting an awkward boyish voice like the previous contestant, but to their surprise, a feminine voice matching his looks was heard.

    "wow" mckenzie couldn''t help but exclaimed when he saw how apollo gracefully introduced himself. even the other contestant was surprised and wondered if he was really a guy,

    right after that more segments entered the event until a talent portion was suddenly announced. it was really sudden, but for apollo, it turns out he didn''t even study the event he was going to earning a facepalm from alicia.

    "i told him to prepare," she mutters as she looks at him, eyes with expectation and concern.

    whereas apollo''s heart pounded as he stood before the microphone. he had no idea what he was going to do.; well, to be exact, he can do many things, but he doesn''t know whether it is appropriate to be used in an event like this. the other contestants had showcased impressive talents—dancing, simple magic tricks, even sword dance.

    "what''s your talent?" the announcer asked, smiling expectantly.

    apollo wondered. then, from the depths of his mind, a single, horrifying thought emerged.

    "i''ll... sing," he blurted out wanting to try something new.

    the audience erupted in cheers, oblivious to the fact that apollo''s singing voice was less than stellar.

    taking a deep breath, apollo opened his mouth and began to sing. suddenly, the crowd went silent while his classmates remained, staying among the crowd supporting him.