"You can know about that?" Selina asked, surprised this time.

"Not for certain, but Arthur said we can know the probability of what our affinity is through our parents' affinity to elements. He said I'm gonna have an affinity with Water Element through my mother as Marquis Chronos' DNA is more dominant than Count Erthe's which my father comes from. By the way, my father affinity is Earth Element and Arthur said the probability of me having Earth affinity is also not zero." Alexa began explaining to Selina.

"Arthur, for example, has an affinity to Fire Element through his father who also has an affinity to Fire Element. Isn't it incredible for him to know about that?" Alexa said while drowning in her own world. Her green eyes shining like two emerald stones.

Selina thought for a moment, then walked to the direction of Arthur. When she is exactly in front of him, she asked him a question.

"Excuse me, I heard from Alexa you can know about our affinity to certain elements even before our Signum Ceremony. Is that true?"

"Not exactly one hundred percent, but yes I can guess your affinity," Arthur said while looking deeply at Selina.

Selina was a little confused by the gaze Arthur gave her. But, Selina decided to ignore it.

"Do you remember me?" Arthur asked Selina a strange question.

"Isn't this the first time we meet?" Selina asked while tilting her head to the right.

"Hmm…"

Arthur only murmured and his eyes turned a little dark, but Selina didn't notice.

"So, can you tell me about your guess on my affinity?" Selina asked full of hope. Her big dark brown eyes shining in anticipation.

"Why should I?" Suddenly Arthur's personality took 180° change.

'Why has his behavior suddenly changed?' Selina thought, adding to her confusion.

Selina dumbfounded at the change. But as an older person inside, Selina decided to be tolerant and ask again.

"But you already guess our other classmates' affinity, why you don't want to do mine?"

"You're different from others," Arthur answered indifferently.

"Different in what?" Selina asked Arthur.

"You're my… rival!" Arthur answered in a high voice at the end of his sentence.

"Rival?" Selina tilting her head.

Arthur sighed like sorry for something and then said, "As we are of the same S class mana amount category, you and I are rival from now on."

"Haa?" Selina was stunned silly at his reasoning.

==========

Since then, Selina and Arthur often fought like dogs and cats. They fight even for trivial matters. Usually, fights begin with Arthur provoking Selina by calling her 'Lady number 2' as Selina is always in second place for every exam in both theory and practice at the Seraphium Royal Academy. Arthur always occupies the first place.

Like what is happening right now, Arthur provoked Selina after the final scores of their first year final exam were announced on the notice board.

'Please God let me be in first place this time,' Selina prayed then opened one eye to peek at the exam scores on notice board.

There written Arthur Fotia Rosenfeld in the first place and Selina Hua's name right below, indicating Selina is back in second place. Selina fell on the floor lamenting her fate.

"How can it be? I'm sure I answered everything correctly without any mistakes…."

"Number two again, huh? Suck to be you, Lady Number 2," Arthur scoffed from behind Selina.

Selina gets up immediately from a slumped position and replies to Arthur's words.

"Next time, it will be my win!" Selina said passionately.

"Are you sure?" Arthur asked while smirked at Selina's statement.

"You! Just you wait," Selina pointed at Arthur's face, her face is red in anger.

"I have better things to do than wait for you," Arthur said and brushed Selina's finger from his face at the same time.

"You…! You…! Arrgh…." Selina pulled her own hair, so annoyed because of Arthur's words.

Selina could not say anything in reply but curse Arthur in her heart. Even though Selina is already a teenage girl inside, but for some reason every time she interacts with Arthur, it seems as though she is back to being a child who is easily provoked. Well her body is still six years old so it doesn't matter. But Selina felt ashamed of losing to a six years old child in her studies.

Events like this often occur so that other students and teachers leave Selina and Arthur to argue. Initially, Selina thought Arthur liked provoking her because she was a commoner, but it wasn't the case because he was good friends with Jackson Ragurd who was also a commoner like her. It is also not because she was a girl as he is polite and even act gentlemanly toward Alexa and other girls.

"Arthur, can you not provoke Selina? It was bad enough that she is always behind you, but you always come and teasing her 'Lady Number 2'?" Alexa reprimands Arthur.

*Prick! Prick!*

Selina felt two invisible arrows attacked her from the results of Alexa's words.

'Can you not adding the last part to your sentence, Alexa?' Selina wept in her heart.

"Well… she is not as elegant as you are, my lady," said Arthur while kissing the back of Alexa's hand.

Alexa's face immediately turned red. Then Alexa tried to cover her red face by covering her face with both hands and hiding behind Selina. Selina looked at Arthur flatly.

"What?" Arthur asked as his smiling face disappear and turn into a flat face just like Selina's expression right now.

"Oh, nothing," Selina replied expressionlessly.

"Were you staring at me this entire time? How disgusting," Arthur mocked Selina.

"Kuh!" Selina choked on her spit.

"W-Who is staring at you this entire time?" Exclaimed Selina in a high voice. Her fair face becomes red in anger and shame.

"Let's go, Alexa! We better not make this narcissistic's head bigger than it should be." Selina pulled Alexa to go back to their classroom.

After the figures Selina and Alexa disappeared from the view of Daniel, he approached Arthur.

"Why do you always have to provoke Selina like that? If you keep this up, she will hate you." Daniel asked Arthur. His face showed a confused expression.

"I'm glad to see her angry face. She never failed to amaze me. What's more, she's the only girl who isn't captivated by my appearance," Arthur explained to Daniel.

"…."

Daniel only fell silent after hearing Arthur's reason. He knew there was another reason behind Arthur's behavior towards Selina that was different from the other girls. But he decided not to think about it anymore.

==========

- On Selina and Alexa side -

"Why do you always have to fight with Arthur, Lina?" Alexa asked.

"But he is the one who always provoking me, Alex…" Selina sulked.

"I know you're a person whose thoughts are mature Lina. You usually won't be provoked by such provocation, but for some reason, you always lose your mind and end up being provoked by Arthur. Don't you think it was because you fell for Arthur?" Alexa teases Selina.

"No way! I couldn't fall in love with a playboy, especially with that Rosenfeld!" Selina shook her head hard.

"Haah… up to you." Alexa sighed then shrugged resignedly.

It is almost a year since Selina attending Seraphium Royal Academy. There is no other change in herself except she is always number 2 when it comes to everything that they learned in the academy. That Arthur Fotia Rosenfeld always comes first in the exam. The first time they have an exam to determine the rank of everyone in Class 1, that Arthur comes first and Selina in second place.

That time Selina still not feeling threatened to become a top scorer and get a letter of recommendation from the school to the 10th division of Blue Lyre, because she thought she was not working hard enough. The second time, it was the same then Selina's competitive nature kicked in. She studied hard and training her mana to follow the path more smoothly, her best friend Alexa even said she is forcing herself too hard but she still did it.

The result? It was the same, she is in second even with all of her hard work. Since almost all students in Seraphium Royal Academy know about Arthur, inevitably they also know about her failure to beat Arthur in exams. Afterward, she got some new nicknames from all students of Seraphium Royal Academy like 'Lady Number 2,' 'Second Place Lady' or simply 'Number 2'.

Time passes and next September is Selina's second year at Seraphium Royal Academy. It also meant that the time for the Signum Ceremony was getting closer.