Luckily they were taken to what looked like a training ground. The candles led them to a spacious room underground, outfitted with a round training mat the same size as the dueling rings in the Guild District’s training plaza. Somehow, Layil was already waiting for them.

He sat in a similar sprawling manner in a smaller, less throne-like chair this time. He greeted them with a smile.

“I’m glad to see no one has run off,” Layil remarked.

“We are no cowards,” Xujen said.

“Evidently. Let’s get right to the first match, shall we? Though, I’d like to add on one extra rule, if you don’t mind,” Layil said. Of course, none of them could object, so he continued without a pause. “Instead of a best-of-three, we’ll have five matches, because only five of our members are available. And since it won’t be a best-of, all five matches will play out no matter what.”

“So, who’s going first?” Otto asked.

“That one seems eager to fight,” Layil said, pointing at Xujen.

Xujen walked right into the ring without hesitation. Curt wondered how the man kept his cool. It didn’t seem like anything intimidated him. His opponent hadn’t even shown up yet. Maybe ignorance was bliss.

“Hang on,” Bauph interrupted. “There’s no False Life Circle here. How are injuries going to be handled?”

“Oh.” Layil looked down at the mat that was free of inscriptions. “I’d rather not bother with the Holy Order. Besides, you know how to heal, don’t you?”

“You expect us to fight like this?” Tera stared at Layil in disbelief.

“Our side will be fine,” Layil replied calmly. “But I wouldn’t recommend any of you to hold back.”

“And I won’t,” Xujen said.

“This is too dangerous,” Tera hissed. “It’s hardly a duel.”

“We don’t have a choice,” Mahku said, gently. “A man’s life is at is at stake here. We cannot retreat now.”

Jesse nodded. “We’ll show ‘em what it means to mess with Point Blank. They deserve to get knocked down a few pegs.”

Layil didn’t appear bothered at all by Tera’s outburst. Instead, he announced Xujen’s opponent.

“Aversis! You’re up.”

The temperature dropped. A flurry of snow swept through the room, swirling in place across from Xujen in the ring. The miniature blizzard faded, and in its place stood a youth that looked to be roughly the same age as Layil. Was Blood Moon a guild full of kids? It seemed wrong that the notorious assassins were children. Curt hoped his opponent wasn’t going to a kid — if he was going to fight at all.

Aversis’ skin was pure white, and his hair was silvery, with hints of blue. His face looked completely devoid of expression or color, save for two, light blue eyes. He stared blankly at Xujen, and Curt wondered if the boy was even seeing Xujen. There was no hint of the anticipation of battle in those eyes.

“My name is Xujen, from Point Blank,” Xujen said, unperturbed by his foe’s impassive stare.

“Aversis… from Blood Moon,” the boy replied in an inflectionless voice.

“Ice versus ice,” Bauph commented. “Well, we both saw Xujen freeze over an ice dragon, so I think it’s safe to say he’ll win this.”

Curt nodded, but he still couldn’t shake the foreboding feeling in his chest.

Layil raised an arm lazily, held it there for a moment, and then dropped it.

Xujen charged forward, drawing his sword. The swing was lightning fast, shattering an image of Aversis. Spinning around, Xujen struck behind him. The real Aversis put up a hand, blocking the attack with a wall of ice. Shrieking Vapor glowed, and Aversis’ ice wall began to crack.

Aversis conjured a blade of ice over his free hand. He launched it forward, aiming clearly for Xujen’s neck. A hole opened up in the ice wall to allow the blade through. Xujen twisted out of the way, forced to let up in his attack.

The ice wall went down, and the two stared each other down.

“He was aiming to kill Xujen,” Bauph muttered. Curt nodded back. If Xujen hadn’t dodged it...

Xujen charged again, as if his life wasn’t in danger moments before. This time, Aversis didn’t bother to put up a decoy. The boy materialized an enormous boulder of ice above him, and sent it crashing down toward Xujen. Xujen sliced the boulder in two, and the halves fell around him harmlessly.

But it bought Aversis enough time. Finished with his incantation, he raised his arms. Xujen leapt away, an icicle appearing where he just was. He was on the run. Icicles impaled spots he was in moments ago, and they didn’t seem to be letting up. Maneuvering around the pillars of ice, Xujen tried to make it to Aversis.

Aversis once again blocked the sword with a wall of ice. But his concentration on the spell was broken. Icicles no longer hunted down Xujen. Shrieking Vapor began to glow again. Blue ice began to form around the ice wall, threatening to envelop the boy. Curt could see the strain in Xujen’s face as Shrieking Vapor pulsed with energy.

“Using ice against Aversis, hm? Bad idea,” Layil commented.

Aversis’ face was just as undisturbed as it was when the match began. He made a small gesture with the hand that held out the ice wall. And just like that, all the ice from Shrieking Vapor turned against Xujen. Xujen’s face was frozen in shock as the man was encased in a block of ice.

“Aversis’ victory,” Layil announced. “I’m sure none of you object to that.”

Everyone in Point Blank was silent. As far as Curt could tell, Xujen didn’t even make Aversis work for the victory. The boy unhurriedly left the ring, not looking the least bit tired.

“Now, now, Aversis. Where are your manners?” Layil said.

Aversis paused. Without bothering to turn around, he snapped his fingers and the ice encasing Xujen broke. Xujen fell to his knees. Curt had never seen Xujen look so defeated before; then again, Curt had never seen Xujen lose so badly.

“I... lost?”

Xujen’s voice was filled with disbelief. Curt watched as the man clenched his teeth, and bracing himself against his sword, stood back up shakily.

“Yes, now get out of the ring. I’m eager to see the next match.” Layil made shooing motions with his hands. Bauph glared at Layil while he entered the ring to help Xujen out.

“Hm,” Layil pondered. “Which one of you should fight next, I wonder?”

He appraised each of them with as much regard as someone choosing meat from a butcher. Curt watched as his eyes landed on Tera.

“Tera, was it? You fought in the duel against Ancient World, didn’t you? I’ve also heard you have quite the reputation in Sahnju. Let’s see if you’re as good as they say.”

“Bring it.” Tera stepped into the ring.

“And your opponent shall be... how about you, Tiana?”

From out of the shadows a cloaked figure entered the ring. Curt wondered how many other Blood Moon members were hiding in the dark. The figure tossed the cloak off. Tiana was a tall woman, with long, blond hair tied up into a neat ponytail, and a regal face. The way she carried herself made Curt think she might’ve been nobility once.

Her green eyes stared down at Tera, who looked at her right back, unblinking. Tiana wielded an ornate long sword that didn’t look suited for combat. For a member of a guild known for carrying out assassinations, she stood out. Her golden hair shone even in the dim light, and she had an air around her that demanded attention.

“Tera, from Point Blank,” Tera said, readying her stance.

“Tiana, from Blood Moon,” replied her opponent. Her voice was clear and bright, and carried across the room like a command issued by a ruler. “I hope you live up to your title as ‘the strongest disciple’.”

Layil signaled for the fight to begin.

Curt figured with Tera’s ability to melt into the shadows, she’d have an advantage in the poorly lit room compared to the sunlit dueling ring in the plaza. And sure enough, Tera wove in and out of the shadows cast by flickering candle light.

She launched multiple attacks coming from different directions within seconds, never letting up the assault. But Tiana blocked each and every one of them with ease. The blonde didn’t even budge from her spot, or even bother to look in the direction of the attacks.

Tiana even had the gall to yawn. “Is that it?”

Tera backed off, returning to her original spot. She wasn’t exactly panting, but Curt could tell the assault was draining. Tera wasn’t holding back. Meanwhile, Tiana looked like she might’ve been driving off an annoying fly.

“Oh? Is it my turn?” Tiana raised her sword. Tera flinched. Tiana smiled at the reaction. “So you do know I’m stronger than you. Well? Still want to fight?”

Tiana took a step forward and Tera stepped back. Tiana continued to advance until Tera’s foot hit the edge of the ring. Tera glanced down, realizing if she continued to retreat, she’d forfeit the match. And it looked like she was considering it. Curt could see it in Tera’s expression.

Tera clenched her teeth. She let out a cry as she propelled herself toward Tiana, fist raised. Tiana wore a soft smile as she deftly deflected the blow. Tera wasn’t finished yet though. She followed up with a kick. Then another. Not bothering with the shadow tricks anymore, Tera straight up tried to land blow after blow. But Tiana stopped them all.

Drawing back, Tera began to focus all her energy into her right leg. Even at a distance, Curt could feel a strong pull toward Tera. Everything seemed to be getting sucked in, with Tera at the center. The candles’ flames bent toward her, and he could see Tiana’s hair whip in the air, like it was blown by a strong wind.

For once, Tiana’s bored expression was gone. Replacing it was a look of surprise. “Now that’s quite interesting. Maybe there’s something to you after all. But.” Tiana teleported in front of Tera. “You have to work on the execution.”

She jabbed the hilt of her sword into Tera’s stomach. Tera flung backwards, sailing straight out of the ring. Bauph maneuvered himself to catch Tera, and he landed flat on his back, holding Tera.

“A ring out, hm? Victory goes to Tiana then,” Layil declared.

Was this the strength of a guild said to actually be S-rank? The way they fought was virtually inhuman. If Tera and Xujen lost, what hope did the rest of them have? At best, Mahku might be able to take one win from them. But Curt sorely doubted him and the other two gunslingers would be able to take one from them.

Surprisingly, Blood Moon’s next fighter showed themselves first. A huge man stood into the ring. His muscles were as large and well-defined as Bauph’s, if not more so. The guy looked like he could rip Curt in half if he wanted to. Given how fierce his face looked, he looked like wanted to. Bandages covered his fists, and he appeared unarmed. He wore a necklace with a carved totem dangling from it.

“I’d like to fight next,” the man said. He cracked his knuckles.

“Very well,” Layil conceded. He looked over at Point Blank, assessing each of them. Curt felt his palms sweat as Layil’s eyes passed over him.

“How about you?” Layil was staring directly at Jesse. “I’m curious about how you fight with those weapons. You seem promising enough.”

“Wait,” Curt interjected.

He couldn’t let Jesse fight that guy. He’d get torn apart. Aversis and Tiana looked apathetic when they were fighting, but the fighter this time looked impatient. His eyes weren’t ones of a professional getting dragged into their guild leader’s whims — his eyes were from a guy who enjoyed fighting. Or more specifically, crushing his opponent. Hell, he wasn’t even sure if Jesse even knew how to fight with magic down here. Though, it wasn’t like he was an expert either.

“I’ll go instead,” Curt offered.

Layil shook his head. “You heard my terms, didn’t you? I get to decide the match ups. Besides—“ Layil narrowed his eyes at Curt. “—you wouldn’t put up a fight anyways. Not with that broken mana center of your’s.”

How did he know? While it wasn’t necessarily a secret, no one besides his own guild members would know that. The duel he fought in was public, but his guns had exploded. Nothing should’ve given it away.

Jesse glanced at Curt, with an expression that was a mixture of defiance and apology. “I can handle this, Curt,” he said, trying to sound tough. But Curt could hear the subtle tremor in his voice. “I’ll show you that I deserve to be in the ranks of Point Blank.”

Curt couldn’t believe how much trust and faith Jesse had in Point Blank after watching two of its strongest members get their asses kicked just minutes ago. But he also had no choice but to have faith in Jesse in the next fight.

“Remember if things get rough, you can just tap out,” Curt said. “In fact, the moment things look bad, do it. Bauph can mend broken bones, at best.”

Jesse nodded, but the spark in his eyes told Curt that he wasn’t likely to surrender easily. Curt felt helpless as he watched the youngster about to enter the ring.

This might be my last chance to apologize, Curt realized. Not that he wanted to dig Jesse’s grave before the fact. But it didn’t help to be prepared. No regrets, and all that. “By the way, Jesse,” he called out. “Sorry about yelling at you that night.”

Jesse flashed him a brief smile, easily accepting the apology. Or perhaps the young man had already forgiven him long ago. Curt resolved to step in if things looked bad, even if it meant a loss. It’s not like they were going to win the duel overall anyways.

Mahku seemed to sense Curt’s anxiety as he placed a hand on the Duster’s shoulders. “I trained him on how to fight in Sanora,” Mahku assured. “And he is quite good. The question is if he’s good enough.”

“Damang, from Blood Moon,” the man said. He placed a hand over his totem.

“Jesse, from Point Blank,” Jesse replied.

Layil raised his arm. Jesse gripped his revolvers, eyes trained on the foe in front of him. Layil dropped his arm, and the battle began.