Chapter 5: the strongest Loli!

The first to meet me was honestly the one I wanted to see the look on her face the most.

Yet disappointingly she had a stern look as if almost none caring…it was Vessma.

But what struck me with amazement was the words she said next.

“You actually did beat that lizard…I’ll tell you what, you can participate in the 1v1 fights as you have proved that you can manage to carry your own weight, I’ll give you that…however the team battle you will not join in as I have no need for someone who uses physical abilities and I can’t seem to find a spot for you in the team that I will be managing…concerning tactics putting you on the team fights will be a risk I cannot afford to take…so feel honored that you won the chance to partake in this event…and I will make sure you regret it if you ever put our school to shame.”

Silence was what I had as an answer to her baseless accusations and void threats.

She walked away leaving me to my taught as Shiki and Yuna came in with the addition of a small person, the wizard hat girl.

Shiki was first to talk as he had a not so bright smile like he always did.

“Tell me Asura” he said “how come you are this strong… yet we ended up being almost killed by that mage back at school…”

I nonchalantly answered

“Well you must know one thing first…when I was training with my master I was hunting beasts almost all the time. And knowing their anatomy and their instinctive behavior is of absolute need. Striking weak points with sufficient power is all it need to bring down this monster. As for that guy…I was bound to struggle and for multiple reasons, first was the fact that I did not have my sword with me. And secondly I was not familiar with magic, as I spent almost most my life traveling with my master from mountain to another locating beasts and taking down rouge monsters that threatened small villages I never got to see a full-fledged mage so Albion was truly the first time I had a direct contact with magic and therefore I was hesitant and unable to make correct decisions”

“I can’t believe that you spent almost your entire life without having basic knowledge of magic…well anyway you did beat that thing…damn it now I want to fight it myself to see how I can fare against it…”

I answered

“Actually…something is seriously bugging me about that beast…I fought with a King class wyvern before…and it was far more dangerous than this…even more I think that the aura from some of the participant clearly states that if it was something of this level they would be more than able to take it down…I don’t know but I think that this wyvern is either weakened on purpose or something was interfering with it to not make it show its true powers.”

With shocked expressions Shiki said

“Y-you mean that that thing is now in a weakened state, what the hell!!! And there are people who can beat it…hah then why didn’t they join in on the game they could have won if they did…”

“I can answer that.” Said the little girl with the wizard hat. She had a confident look on her face and a haughty attitude but you can’t help but to think that she looks cute in those outfits.

We both turned to face her when she started explaining.

“The fact that other schools did not put in their best warriors to fight against the wyvern is simple…they knew that this particular event has no impact on the school event so they did not want to risk showing the abilities of their aces. Even if some schools did have participants join in on the games the last year those students must have developed their abilities and gained new powers and therefore they want the other schools to remain oblivious and none-updated on their newfound prows. The reason you were chosen for this game was exactly for this. You are considered as a first year no name so it is actually more beneficial for our school that you are able to beat the wyvern without us having to show one of our main aces to the audience.”

“So I was just being used so that Vessma won’t have to show more of our powers…I can’t say I liked the way I was manipulated but no matter now I get to fight some interesting guys in the fights to come…but tell me little girl what is your name?”

The second I said those words Shiki’s face contorted in shock and he almost snarled out laughing.

The girl turned red with embarrassment and screamed her lungs out while removing her hat as if throwing a tantrum.

“I am not a little girl!!! And for your information I am older than you newbie humpf… and my name is Eli Starsoul”

The way she is pouting is adorable so I unconsciously started petting her on the head which only made her steam from embarrassment and rage.

Realizing what I was doing, I slowly withdrew my hand looking at the almost tearing small girl.

She gave me a piercing gaze then walked away muttering something of the words stupid and idiot…

Shiki then patted me on the back saying

“I can’t believe how casual you are acting with people of noble linage do you not fear anyone?”

I answered

“Huh so she is a noblewomen I should have guessed…but that question shouldn’t you say so for yourself you are acting casual toward everyone…”

Shiki then shrugged while saying

“Well technically I should be allowed to do that…well anyway let’s get going I was told that lunch will be served in a fancy restaurant near the stadium I really want to check out the menu of this foreign land”

I think this is the wisest thing Shiki has said today so I agreed letting him lead the way.

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(Elsewhere)

*Sounds of metal hitting metal*

In a grayish dark room there was a tall girl with emerald hair and an enormous bust swinging her devilish looking glaive on a steel wall each strike left a deep gash on it. Maiming it more and more with every swing

The glowing aura seeping from her body was enough to make any normal person flinch and back away in fear

“RAHHHHHHHHH”

*Clang*

“What the hell is going on here?”…

“I don’t know Rica… she has been like this ever since she saw that guy beating the wyvern…” (Jibi)

“What?!!...what the hell why would she do that…Jibi you have to wake her up from that trance…I don’t like that look on her face…it’s as if she is in ecstasy…”(Rica)

“No. I am not going to interrupt her especially when she is like that…we just need to wait for the principal she is the only one who can calm her down…” (Jibi)

“What is going on in here?” (Principal)

“Welcome madam principal…we were actually waiting for you to help us calm down Lori…she was acting strange after she witnessed the submission of the wyvern.”

The principal scratched her chin for a bit then said.

“… I think I know what is going on... Rica you are to join in on the team fight as for Jibi and Lori they will wait until the 1v1 matches. The rules this year have changed…the ones to join the group battle cannot participate in the solo battles so we need to secure as much points as we can in both games.” (Principal)

“Understood.”

The old woman skilfully approached the frantic girl and patted her on the head. The raging aura coming from her body started to organize itself while her breathing became organized.

She turned surprised by the woman behind her and quickly adjusted her posture and bowed saying

“I-I am sorry for disrespecting you Madam Principal…I just lost control…I promise to be more careful in the future.”

The old woman answered

“Worry not my dear, I am actually quite happy for you…as I have noticed you found yourself a new toy.”

When the words came out from the old woman’s mouth the girl’s eye shone for a bit then she said.

“I do think so too but I am afraid to bite more than what I can chew…this boy managed to beat that wyvern in less than 10 seconds a feat to be called a miracle for someone his age…However monsters are stupid and dumb unlike warriors so I do think fighting him will grant me the satisfaction I am looking for.”

“Oh I do think so too…and do not fear my child as I do know that if it was you that was facing that lesser wyvern you would have defeated it in less than that time.”

“Killing it… probably, but making it submit…I doubt that. However don’t worry Madam Principal if I ever got a chance to fight him I will make sure to not hold anything back…in solo fights we are not taming monsters we are vanquishing enemies.”

The old woman smiled saying

“I couldn’t have said it better myself, dear.”

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(Elsewhere)

In a room on the upper parts of a governmental building near the stadium a small meeting was held.

A long table that was centering the room with shaded figures carrying their discussions. Few of them were discussing the happenings that were transmitted via a magical crystal.

“Did you see that?”

“Yes. It was only momentary but he used that blade…do you think he is related to Greetman by any chance?”

“I don’t know wait a minute…isn’t Asilis here? He should be back from his mission, and if it is the same kid, he will be the one to tell us.”

Right after the man finished his sentence another person came in from a sliding door.

“Speak of the devil”

“Well if I am a devil then what are you Mr. Kiod”

Mr. Kiod shrugged at the retort and hurriedly asked his question.

“So is this the kid that you were inspecting?”

Asilis answered after taking a brief look at the crystal in front of him

“Yes it is…and Il be dammed this time if I don’t find out how he alone managed to repair the barrier…it has taken us years of hard labor to find the weakest link in the chain…and even more to lure those gores over there, and if the epidemic in Alikh was but a strike of fortune that boosted our plans forcing a lot of teachers to leave to help…this variable is too unpredictable to handle…I came here especially when I heard about his exploit and now I want to see them with my own eyes.”

Kiod said in a taunting tone

“Huh knock yourself out. I would be doing the exact same thing if I screwed up as bad as you did, the Organization is not merciful enough to let anyone get a second chance but miraculously you have the chance to redeem yourself.”

Asilis decided to not reply to Kiod’s obvious taunt and sat himself down monitoring the crystal screen and swearing to himself to find out why this irregular is always ruining his plans.

Kiod then said

“By the way I have some very surprising news to tell you.”

Raising a brow Asilis asked

“And what would that be?”

“We have a guest at our basement right now. Your friend Osfor paid us a visit this morning and ended up with an extended stay hahahah”

Asilis who still could not fully understand what Kiod was meaning said

“What would Osfor be doing here?”

“Let’s just say he found something interesting and decided to occupy himself for a bit.”

“…I don’t know what you guys are scheming but that man is to not be underestimated, well whatever happens it will be on you. And right now I have one less place to be at. As I don’t want to meet Osfor right now.”

===========================================================================

Shiki and I were walking down a street while biting down on a falafel sandwich. At first we were going to eat in a restaurant that was near the stadium only to be shocked by the amount of people waiting their turn…as we realized that this event has brought too many spectators, finding a decent place to eat in is bound to be a challenge.

So we just had to fill our need for food by eating from a nearby stall that we still had to wait for our turn.

For this neutral zone it sure becomes busy when it’s this time of year.

“Hot, man these falafels are a damn delicious” said Shiki while ravaging his sandwich

“You should slow down a bit…anyway did you see Osfor sensei today…I taught he was going to be at our booth but he never showed up”

Shiki answered with some food in his mouth

“I don’t know man but it doesn’t matter Vessma may be young but she can handle the team well. They should be picking the members who will be competing in the group fights by now…both you and I will not be part of it…as she will mostly be picking her old team members. Yet I can’t seem to disagree with her.”

I said questioningly

“What do you mean? I think that she should keep some of the strongest of us to fight in the 1v1 this way we have broader chances to get more points”

He then answered while wiping his mouth

“Well you see for the group battle it is obviously the best decision to make as she is much more experience in fighting together with the school council members and she knows all of their quirks and habits. Plus the fact that even with our advantage with the 15 points earlier we are probably not going to keep the lead if we don’t score enough points in this game.”

“…what do you mean? Do you know the pointing system they will take for the group battle then?”

He answered right after he threw the paper that was holding his sandwich into a nearby trash can

“You see, the wyvern taming competition threw off our calculations. Because it had no pointing system they had to modify the way participants will gain points in the other events.”

I said while raising my eyebrow.

“Meaning?”

He said

“Well you see… now in the group battle the points earned will be based on how you manage to defeat your enemy. Each team will be designed a leader. If a member’s hit points reaches 0 the enemy team gains 2 points. The leader is worth a fixed 5 points.”

I said

“So the total points for a team is 13…well that should not affect us even if losing this game we will still have a good lead.”

Shiki shook his head saying

“No, you see…there is a catch. The leader’s roll is not just being the high priority target. He is also the deciding factor of the game. If the leader loses all his Hp. The ally team will gain double the amount of points for every team member that is left undefeated. Because they failed to protect their leader that is. And one more thing if a team leader was the one that dealt the finishing blow on the other team’s enemy leader the bonus will be 3 times the norm so you see where this is going?”

“…ah so this is not a game about pawns but about kings…this might be a bit too complicated. So a basic strategy for a defensive approach will be to lose every member then have the leader be the last man standing this way they will lower the point gain for the enemy team… and as for an offensive view the best option will be to have them defeat the leader first without taking out any of the other members…this game will rely heavily on strategy than brute force.”

Shiki then nodded smiling and said

“Yes you are right…therefore it is better to leave this one to Vessma as she is much more experienced with leading and tactician roles”

I answered telling him

“True… well I can’t complain I at least got a chance at the 1v1 I should probably try my best and make the best first impression I could.”

He said with a curious look on his face

“What do you have in mind?”

I said while shrugging

“Hehe you will have to wait and see.”

“Ladies and gentlemen. I would like to have your attention!” said the announcer as he was this time in the middle of the stadium. He was tall and handsome with a sharp looking haircut that had nothing to do with being stylish and was boldly pointing backwards making his entire hair look like a cone with his head as base.

“You all must have enjoyed the unexpected turn of events that we all saw. The young warrior from Alsa that singlehandedly managed to subdue the ash wyvern. However I have one thing to confess. The truth is that that wyvern was drugged and was restrained from the use of some of his deadly attacks. As I have said before it did kill a couple of royal knights before it was captures and to insure the safety of the participants and still make an entertaining show we had to do this. BUT. This does not mean by any chance that the victory the little Alsian had over this beast to be less honorable. As if all of you have witnessed the beast even while restraint it still managed to beat three of the other participants”

The audience started murmuring between themselves agreeing with the statement of the announcer.

“The reward of this victory will be given to the young warrior by the leaders of the four great countries in tonight’s dinner party that will be held in honor for the participating schools”

The audience was struck in awe as they could only imagine what would the leaders of each country will gift the young warrior for his efforts.

“And now without further ado we will commence our third and final competition of the day. The group battle competition. The schools that will participate against each other will be as follow. Astora VS. Alikh. And Astarte VS. Alsa. The competition will be held like it was done every year. And the winning teams will challenge each other after the first battle is over for more points. As for the teams that lost they will face each other for half the points this way they might have a chance for a comeback.”

The audience was still restless after hearing the explanation of the commentator as he added even more information.

“So this year the leaders will be worth a fixed 5 points and the subordinates will be 2 points if team A took down a member of team b they will gain 2 points and if team b managed to takedown a member of team A they will nullify the team A advantage by making the scores 0-0 again. When the leader of any team is down the fight is over. However if a leader takes down another leader the bonus added will be three time the points of every remaining team member’s worth plus the leader’s original worth. So protect your leader well everyone.”

(Asura Pov)

‘It is almost the same as Shiki said…well he still didn’t mention that if each team lose a member the advantage is nullified…this is probably for not making a team gain too many points as the maximum amount of points per game can reach 29 point. if the leader of a team beats down another before taking down any other member that is…it must be extremely difficult as the first propriety of anyone will be to protect their leader the minimum loss on the other hand will be 5 points if a leader manages to stay last whilst both team members have been defeated…and this too is difficult to have…quite the sophisticated game they made huh’

I was standing inside our booth it was quite comfy as it was enhanced with air conditioning tools and luxurious looking chairs and couches.

In front of me was a crystal that projected the upcoming match. The first was being our school against Astarte.

The announcer finished explaining how the games will run then suddenly teleported out of the platform

Right after that both teams were teleported in front of each other.

Our members were consisting of the redhead Vessma the big macho guy with Zeles in the middle at the left of Vessma was the little Eli and yes she was still wearing her wizard hat.

The right of the big guy was the cool beauty girl that we met the day we were sparring and she was the one that Shiki was able to beat to get his spot in this competition.

The enemy team however had if I could not mistake the same spear guy with the two that were with him in the race event. There also was another guy with twin blade weapons at his sides. Yet the most eye catching was the small girl that was in the middle of their compo. She was…petit she really didn’t look any older than a 12 year old almost exactly like Eli yet with her hair color as red as Vessma and if I am not mistaken she too had some freckles on the side of her nose…but I can’t be too sur. Yet what was interesting was not her physic but it was the ridiculously long and large of an ultra-great sword that was on her back. It lacked elegance and looked like a giant lump of steel but the way she was holding it was as if to say that it was weightless. Carrying that thing with ease is proof enough that she is skilled. She had a wristband that had a crown on it same as Vessma probably it was designed to show who is the leader.

The arena flashed in white then everything changed.

The entire platform was coated in a magic blue hue that started changing the aspects of the terrain. Trees started sprouting and a small river began to form in the middle of the terrain.

The two teams were teleported to the sides of the rectangular platform before the announcement of the beginning of the game.

Our team grouped around Vessma in order to listen to some final instructions as for Astarte they were somehow acting weird. None of the participant showed any signs of excitement or hesitation almost as if this was an everyday thing.

The commentator used a spell that resembled a firework being launched in air announcing the beginning of the third game of the day.

It was large and bright enough that it almost shone like a second sun. Both teams saw and knew that the game begun.

Vessma who was in the middle begun by chanting something.

An orange circle on the ground appeared in front of her. It started gaining more color the longer Vessma chanted. Then a humanoid fire golem appeared from within it rising bit by bit as if it was escaping from a hellish inferno.

This one was larger and bigger than any of the golems that Osfor summoned the other day at the fairy forest. This one had more presence it exerted stronger flames and was more defined. Is features had more of a barbarian look to it. It stood 4 meters tall towering over all the team. A sight like that would make anyone flinch and terrorized in fear but the fact that the team was not showing any of that and this was probably due to the fact that they have seen this many times before.

Zeles and Eli started carefully running to the east side of the artificial forest hiding behind trees and casting spells probably to detect enemy presence.

The big guy stayed near Vessma and the cool girl left heading in the south-west direction alone while casting several spells making water orbs float in air. Probably an alarm of some kind.

The big guy smashed both his hands into the ground and closed his eyes. This is probably a method to sense approaching enemies.

“Hmm…I can’t seem to understand the strategy Vessma is trying to use”

Shiki then answered my not too quite way of thinking

“She is using a defensive approach to this game. She will try to make the enemies come to her instead of chasing them. As you know weapon users are very difficult to handle in close quarters and by making the team place traps and use sensory spells to figure out where and when the enemy will make their approach she will have the upper hand in this fight. At least that is in theory”

I answered with a doubtful tone saying

“I have seen how mages can handle themselves in fights especially with the way everyone was acting on the day I had that massive spar…but seeing those guys over there I doubt that going by the book trying to force them to come in range with traps and spells then showering them with spells will work…especially that little girl. She looks…experienced. Euhh…that came out wrong I what I mean to say she looks skilled and this type of thing will mostly be expected at least to a certain degree.”

He then said with a playful tone

“Hehe well even though they could expect this, handling Vessma with her fire golem suit plus the assistance of Zeles and Roid is almost an impossibility. Having Eli as a long range caster and Bella as support that team is almost invincible. Let’s just watch what will happen.”

I answered with a nod then proceeded to watch the crystal screen.

Movement was spotted on the enemy camp as all five of them advanced with massive speeds in a V shaped formation with the little girl leading the charge. She had her gigantic sword over her right shoulder and had her left arm spread in front of her.

She was agile as she managed to dodge any incoming obstacle by nimbly jumping over it or using a tree branch as a ledge then jumped for another tree. Her team kept with her pace and walked right behind her not missing a single step or making noticeable noise.

They all started jumping from tree to tree and fully abandoned traveling through ground.

If they kept going in that direction they will soon meet with the Cool girl’s traps or as Shiki called her Bella…if they were to find her alone she will be done fore as they will be able to blitz her without her even reacting.

The little girl slowed down a bit making the twin bladed guy in the lead by swapping their locations

He jumped ahead right into the trap network that Bella created.

Some of the water orbs started moving and headed toward the twin bladed guy.

He didn’t even care to dodge as he fluidly sliced through two of them and jumped forward slicing through many more. Making the orbs burst harmlessly each time he sliced through them the group behind him kept going. His blades had a weird glow to it each time it struck one of the water spheres.

Looking back at our camp I noticed Vessma was panicking a bit turning to ask Shiki what went wrong he too had a grim look on his face…this doesn’t look like it was planned.

Deciding not to ask Shiki what was going on I kept my eyes on the screen.

I noticed when Zeles and Eli came back near Vessma who now jumped into the golem’s hand. He picked her up and opened a space in its chest placing Vessma inside him. She is probably not going to be damaged by the flames from her golem so she took a comfortable position inside it.

The enemy team fully cleared the trapped zone they advanced with the same speed like before.

Making the little girl again as the frontline.

Zeles begun casting his spell that made multiple wind spears to be hanged in midair.

When the enemy team was in view the big guy Roid opened his eyes and further pressed his hands into the ground making two gigantic hands sprout between the enemy team and our allied team they must be to hinder the advancement of the enemy team.

The hands collapsed on the Astartian team but to no avail as they nimbly spread dodging and escaping the area of effect.

Zeles Shot forward his spears that were met with well precise and perfectly aimed counters from the enemy’s weapons making every shot bounce off or simply break in contact with their weapons while still maintaining their speed.

Not a second before the little girl Jumped forward making the ground beneath her burst as if it was made of sand. She propelled herself toward the chest area of the fiery golem.

Not ones to take any risks Zeles summoned a green Mahojin in front of him making several large bird like creatures fly toward the little girl. With the addition of Bella who too was shooting a shark like spell that was made of water aimed directly at the girl. These two shots were going to shoot her down and probably end this game in our favor.

Yet something was really bugging me about this. Considering the fact that this little girl was carefully calculating her steppes her approach seemed a bit too amateurish as this was going to be an inevitable outcome of that frontal charge. Even if she had enough confidence in her skills I don’t think she should have jumped in like that without a plan.

I could almost hear Vessma laughing at the naivety of the little girl from within her fire golem.

Right before the two spells struck her, an unbelievable thing happened. The twin bladed guy jumped forward and swung both of his blades In an X motion making both the spells from Zeles and Bella burst out. The little girl continued her approach from midair despite the apparent shock on Zeles and Bella’s faces. She spun horizontally making the force of inertia add more power to her swing.

The little girl even made a cutesy yell when she was swinging.

The second the Ultra-great sword struck the chest of the fire golem it broke it in half sending the clearly unconscious and unsuspecting Vessma flying tens of meters away.

The damage was immeasurable as if striking a glass door with a steel pipe.

Our team was clearly unable to understand what happened because the sheer force that Vessma was attacked with none could even thinking that that frail looking body was able to produce it.

Zeles was the first to act as he darted toward the direction of where Vessma was thrown. The other on the other hand started looking at each other. Then they focused their look on the little girl.

Right before they could start their attack the announcer interrupted shouting.

“W-What was that!!!? WHAT AN UNEXPECTED OUTCOME. THE FIRST OF THE GROUP FIGHTS HAS ENDED IN LESS THAN 1 MINUTE AND THE OUTCOME WAS EXTRAORDINARY. THE INSTANT DEFEAT OF THE ALSIAN TEAM… I never even saw this coming thinking that the heir of the noble house Stronghold would be eliminated in one strike TRULY MAGNIFICENT!!”

Hearing that our team members drooped their shoulders and canceled their spells

The announcer added

“THE WINNER OF THE FIRST GROUP FIGHTS AND TO BE QUALIFIED FOR THE NEXT GAMES IS THE ASTARTIAN TEAM BY A WHOOPING 29 PERFECT POINTS. 5 POINTS FOR THE LEADER AND THE TRIPLE AMOUNT OF POINTS FOR EVERY REMAINING ALSIAN PARTICIPANT”

*loud cheers*

“And now for the next event the team from Alikh will be facing the team from Astora. Let us all watch”

Once he said that the forest started disappearing and a platform showing both teams in front of each other.

A smirk was showing on the little girl’s face as she was clearly saying something taunting to our school members.

Zeles was Holding Vessma in a princess carry position as she was clearly still unconscious.

Frustration was clear on our team members as they could say nothing back to the small girl.

She shrugged and turned back to her team. A bright light illuminated the platform teleporting everyone back to their quarters as I saw that all our members appeared behind us.

I was thinking of rubbing the humiliating defeat that the redhead just got but seeing the look on the rest of the team was enough to talk me out of doing that.

A medic team soon entered and started checking on Vessma who still hadn’t regained her consciousness.

Shiki went to speak with Zeles probably to understand what happened from his point of view.

Seeing that I decided to walk away from the room as an awkward silence was permeating the air.