Expected and unexpected

The two of us just stared at each other as we were surrounded in these blue flames.

With how intense they were burning, no one was able to hear a single thing that we were saying, so we weren't able to forfeit in the end.

At the same time, it seemed like these blue flames wouldn't go out until they burned out on their own. So the only thing that we could do was wait for the blue flames to disappear.

Taking advantage of this, I looked at Kyoko and asked, "Why are you doing this?"

Kyoko looked back at me and said, "There's no reason for me to win. So if you win, everyone will know how great you are."

The way that she said this made it seem so natural, as if this was a fact that should be accepted by the world.

Though it wasn't something that I wanted in the first place.

With a bitter smile, I said, "It isn't as if I want this. I just came along because I had to keep the cover going. I don't want to stand out more than I have to."