"Oh?" Somi perked up as Hyungwon and Hyunwoo climbed the bleachers' steps, coming towards her and Changkyun, who watched them come closer and closer until they were standing on the other side of Somi.

"You're not participating?" Hyunwoo worried brows evidence of the worry he felt for Somi as they creased coming close to touching.

"Somi has already finished" Changkyun explained for the young lady and Somi looked back at him.

"We finished," With her correction, she turned back to Hyunwoo and Hyungwon, nodding her head.

"Changkyun and I unlocked the first chest, the one in the very corner over there-" Her finger pointed towards the corner. The two new arrivals looked that way. "and received a chance card," She told them, taking the two by pleasant surprise.

"You got yourself a chance card then? What sort of chance card is it?" Hyunwoo inquired, back straight and shoulders broad as he sat down, fixing his jacket to stay in a neat perfection of no lines or creases. He looked to Somi, curious but showing no hint of the curiosity he held.

"We got Changkyun the chance to get more stars" Somi rose an eyebrow and reminded him of the inclusive words that she was using not to leave any of them out.

"Very well then," Hyunwoo nodded, ending his input to the conversation there.

"You're going to use it, right?" Hyungwon asked with a gentle voice, focussing more intently than he usually would on Somi to avoid looking at the gymnasium full of her classmates and their butlers.

"Well, I haven't asked, Changkyun, we're using the chance card are we?" Somi turned back to look at the butler still standing just behind her on the next step up, and he glanced down at her.

"That is your decision to make Somi. You're the cardholder" He replied, disgruntling Somi with the response.

"Yes, but it is your card, and I want the best for you, I'm trusting you to make the call you need to make for you" She shot back, giving the same disgruntling effect back to Changkyun.

"I-" Changkyun's eyes darted around the room, shooting to the teacher and his butler, the students, the chest in the corner, the roof, anywhere that was something he could look at.

"Then if you trust me so, I would like to use this chance for more stars, to better protect you" His head lowered into a bow and Somi's lips twitched, finger reaching out to boop Changkyun's nose. The action should have had Changkyun scrunching his nose, eyes fluttering, maybe even cheeks tinting in the shade of pink as he shuddered, and perhaps gave a giggle. But like a trained professional, Changkyun didn't move from his bowed posture. Even though the action did stir a wild storm of emotions in his chest that swarmed Changkyun's mind with troubling thoughts, he forced himself to push away, all so that he could focus on his surroundings and the nose booper in question with a clear mind.

"Then I trust you'll get those stars at the end of this lesson" Somi nodded, confident of her words, of the trust she was putting in Changkyun.

------------

"Well kid, are you using that card today? You can only use it in class, remember that" Mr Kang looked directly at Somi through the mob of students with their butlers standing over them. The other student, who had earned himself and his butler a chance card to battle for another students card, had declined Mr Kang's offer. On the other hand, Somi looked at Changkyun, making sure he was confident of his decision before she would speak.

Changkyun showed no signs of movement besides one glance down at Somi. She took that as an unchanging mind and looked at Mr Kang again. Her head bobbed, and Mr Kang gleamed with excitement as she answered him in a big voice to be heard from further away.

"We will use it today, sir."

"Daniel, organise the cage and get the swords, kid, choose your opponent and choose wisely" Mr Kang advised, looking back at Somi, she swallowed, nodding her head as chatter broke out around them now that their decision was known.

"Do you know who we're choosing?" Somi ignored the glances sent in their direction, gossip of their names forming as the class wondered if they would be competing against the silent moving butler next to the girl.

"You choose the opponent" Changkyun looked down at her and Somi's lips curled.

"I want you to choose who you go against" Changkyun's eyes discretely made a round of the room, monitoring all of the butlers with their people.

"Do you know the grades of the other butlers?" Somi asked him quietly, and Changkyun nodded.

"I know most of them," He informed her, Somi hummed, and she too looked around, meeting the eyes of several people that eyed them off.

"I know who I want to pick," Changkyun turned back to Somi, already lowering his upper body in a small display of a bow.

"Ok then" Somi nodded, standing to her feet and putting out her hand, lips quirking as she looked at Changkyun.

"Let's go down, shall we?" She mused, eyes flicking to Changkyun's hand that took hers modestly, leading her down the stairs.

"Who have you chosen?" She asked quietly, just between the two of them. Changkyun took the last step on the stairs first and turned, cautiously making sure that Somi finished the flight of stairs with no harm coming to her.

"The butler with the boy Sungim" Replied Changkyun quietly, Somi nodded, looking around at her classmates, for the Sungmin that Changkyun was mentioning.

"I have no idea who that is" She admitted in the same quiet voice when she came up blank.

"I advise that you learn the names of your classmates, Somi" Answered Changkyun as their teacher looked upon them expectingly.

"I choose to challenge Sungim" Voiced Somi, looking to Mr Kang with a smile, she turned it towards her classmates, it dimmed until her lips were in a straight line. A male student stood up, matching the height of his butler.

Like an earthquake struck, the ground shook. Somi spun to look for the cause, Changkyun put out a ready hand to catch her if her surprise knocked her from her feet, and he turned back to look at the cage with no reaction, unlike Somi. fell open, but she quickly disguised it as a of her lips and cleared , standing closer to Changkyun as Sungim, with the shadow of his butler, now stood next to her. He didn't spare a glance her way. His eyes too were pinned on the cage that had been lowered to the ground, extreme in size and immense in weight, it made its presence known to the class filling the gym. Somi steadied her gaze and turned it to Changkyun, who looked back at her, calm and collected, almost expressionless, expertly hiding emotions that Somi nor anyone around them was able to pick up on.

"Butlers, enter the cage and collect your swords" Mr Kang's voice rang louder than the mutters and whispers of the students behind them. Changkyun bowed to Mr Kang and promptly stepped away from Somi. Her head flicked to him, feet ready to follow as he and Sungim's butler entered the cage without looking back.

"May the best butler win" Somi was pulled out of her need to chase Changkyun by Sungim. He smiled, offering his hand to Somi. Uncertain at first, she shook Sungim's hand, he bowed and walked away, standing behind his butler outside the cage. Somi swallowed the lump in and moved, doing the same thing as Sungim. Her eyes couldn't help but widen as Daniel, Mr Kang's butler shut the cage door and chained it, padlocking the chain in place. She gave another swallow and looked at Changkyun’s back. The sword in his hand was large, it looked grave in weight, and it shone under the lights of the gym, captivating Somi.

Changkyun moving was the only thing that pulled her out of that captivation. She looked up to meet his eyes that had searched for her so soon.

"I'm here," Somi nodded, stepping forward and wrapping her fingers around the bars of the cage. Changkyun's head bobbed in response, his eyes steeled over, becoming rigid and tense. It had Somi's mouth going dry, confusion filling her as she caught her breath and Changkyun held up the sword, readying himself in a defensive stance.

Raising his hand, Daniel pointed a finger to the ceiling. When he lowered his hand, and his finger pointed to the floor, a bell chimed, and the butler smiled.

"You may begin."

"You can do this Changkyun" With a whisper of affirmation, Somi focused with keen eyes pinned to her butler. Sungim's butler was the first to make a move that Changkyun was swift to block and step away from. With a turn of his whole body, Changkyun slashed the sword towards his opponent. It connected. The connection was hardly enough to put a rip through the other butlers clothing. But it still warranted sharp, surprised gasps of eagerness from the crowd who were leaning forward on their seats to get a closer look at the action.

A directed jab was sent straight forward. It connected with Changkyun's shoulder in the same way Changkyun’s hit had landed, merely cutting through his clothes inconveniently. Changkyun steadied himself and prepared himself again, taking the fight from its slow pace and throwing it into a match of speed and precision. He ducked, making an obvious move for his competitors lower half. He changed it at the last second to a roll that put him behind the other butler. He made a long, dark slash on his back and jumped away from the reach of his opponent. With eyes narrowed, he waited to be face to face with Sungim's butler again.

"Go Changkyun" Swords clashing and clanging against one another was the dominating sound in the gym. It almost brought pain to the ears of Somi, who didn't back away from the cage. She kept her grip on the bars tight and her eyes on Changkyun, putting all of her trust and concentration on her butler.

When the sword's hilt was used against Changkyun, he gasped, he couldn't hide the pain and Somi bit down on her lip in worry. It made his legs lose their strength. He dropped to his knees, trying to breathe as he looked up.

A long rip was put through his arm, and his eyes grew big. Mouth clamping shut to stop any cries of pain from showing. With his good arm, Changkyun swung his sword back. It lodged into the other butler's legs and pulled back sickeningly slick as the butler stepped away. Everyone in the room could hear the sound it made. It made Changkyun's stomach churn. But he knew there was no other choice but for him to get up and keep going.

He grunted, his face contorted. Only to snap his eyes wide open again. Breath knocking out of him as his head shot up with the bright lights shining directly in his eyes. He could feel every movement and every tear through his skin made by the sword of Sungim's butler.

Changkyun could feel it slicing through the