《Endless Lands》The Tournament (Chapter 6)
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[Noon, Day 1 Month 1 of 100 DC],The moment the tournament was announced
[Random Citizen’s POV]
I was casually taking a stroll through the Town’s streets,bringing the spoils from my recent hunt home,while suddenly a thunderous shout filled the area.
Herald - IN THE NAME OF LORD ELDRITH, A TOURNAMENT IS THEREBY ANNOUNCED! PARTICIPANTS WILL HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY OF PROMOTION IN SOCIAL CLASS AS WELL AS GIVEN A UNIQUE CHANCE TO JOIN THE NEWLY ESTABLISHED [BRILLANT GALE ACADEMY]! (...)
I stood there like a statue,not daring to miss a word,while the Herald continued to announce the competition’s details for the next two minutes or so.
This was a chance! I,one of the few young [Hunters] of our town always dreamed of pursuing the martial path.Sure,the animal hunting satiated some of my needs,but after i gained the class,It just became dull,as I was told to only hunt the smaller pray.After all,the stronger animals were dangerous and our town couldnt possibly afford to lose out on food production just because a qualified [Hunter] with limitless potential,such as myself foolishly ran to his own demise.
The tournament was just what i needed - an opportunity to prove myself...perhaps if my results in the competition were good enough,I would even be allowed to hunt for a real prey like [Minotaurs] or [Ratmen],maybe even the legendary [Giants],instead of the usual day’s [Foxes],[Rabits] and the occasional [Gray Wolf].
I strived for a challenge and was finally given one!
[Eldrith POV]
[Noon, Day 2 Month 1 of 100 DC]
Crap!
This was pretty much my only thought as i hurriedly ran through the streets of the now half-empty [Dimorth Town].
The Academy’s area was about 2,5 km of mountainous terrain to the north...and looking at the sun above,it was already time to start the tournament.Thankfully,my people dont have means of checking the time or I’d already be deemed late for the first ever official event in my [Dimorth Kingdom]!.
[A quarter of an hour later]
As i finally approached the academy’s gates,I started slowing down and catching my breath...after all I would not want my citizens to see their current lord and future headmaster loudly gasping as it would ruin my public image…
After resting for a while,I slowly walked to the entrance,where a large crowd gathered themselves-
Random Citizen - Our Lord is here!
All participants suddenly turned their heads...did I mention that I hated being the center of attention?
As the crowd started to quiet down,I walked into the academy,as gracefully as I could and stepped on the platform.I inhaled the air...it begins
Eldrith - I WELCOME YOU ALL TO THE [BRILLIANT GALE ACADEMY]’s FIRST ENTRY EXAMINATION.BEFORE WE BEGIN,LET ME REMIND YOU OF THE EVENT’S RULES...
I continued,telling them how I was the only judge,and even if they,by chance lost a duel,should their performance be sufficient,they might still be rewarded.
After asking them if they had any questions,and answering them I officially started the competition.
The participants numbered 216,which meant 60% of the population attended the tournament…The remaining 40% were either the elderly,the children(15 was the age floor) or simply those too far away from the town to attend.
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144 people (67%) would participate in the [Elder’s Competition],the remaining 72 entering the [Inner disciple Competition].with the younger generation being competing first..
[Some time later]
As the quarter-finals were drawing near,several people caught my attention.
The first was Edmund,who was apparently the youngest [Hunter] in the town,age 16.His combat style was rather unique,as despite him being a spear user,he utilized his arms and legs to knock his opponents out in close quarters combat,which was strange because with the weapon he was using,medium-distance fighting was the norm.
Another was a 25 year old called William,a sword/shield user.Unlike most,he was basically a full defence-type,simply tiring his opponents out until they showed an opening,at which point he would quickly end the duel.
The third...Oliver,a 22 year old,using only a 110 cm sword easily defeated his opponents,making great use of footwork to evade when he could,parrying when he couldnt.
As expected,those three made it to the semi-finals.
Edmund’s opponent was too tired to fight and gave up,after all he would get all the rewards anyways.
The second fight,William vs Oliver was pretty unique,as both fighters were focused on defence.The first few minutes of the fight were them simply circling each other.
William finally couldnt stand the pressure and made a quick lunge,aimed at Oliver’s chest.The latter did a quick turn to the right,evading the thrust,and used his sword handle to strike at William’s hand in an attempt to disarm him.His opponent however quickly reacted by pulling back the sword and turning his body to the left,trying to bash Oliver’s face with his shield.The nimble swordsman ducked under the blade and ended the duel by executing a successful swing at William’s head,before he could react,knocking him out.
Like that,the [Inner Disciple Competition] came to an end,with Edmund,William,Oliver and 22 other youths becoming inner disciples,the remaining 47 having to settle for outer disciple positions.
The [Elder’s Competition] was pretty much identical,except it was much more competitive,as there were only 5 spots and even more competitors than in the disciple tourney.
At the end of the day,5 people came out victorious.
Thomas,a 41 year-old staff user took the first place.
Edith,an 29 year-old [Huntress] took the next spot.
The 3th,4th and 5th places were Gauwyn,Luke and Godfrey respectively.
The competition coming to an end,the new [Elders] and their children became the first nobility of my kingdom.They were also given family names (same as the victor’s first names),
The top 25 inner disciples,as well as 3 more that lost but left an impression were promoted to the [Middle Class],along with 50 older competitors(and their children).In total,148 people.
This meant that from this point onwards in my society the social class distribution would be approximately:
[Nobility] : 4%
[Middle Class] (Burghers) : 41%
[Peasantry] : 55%
With the competition over and the promotions given,the day came to an end.I decided to sleep through the night,even though I didnt have to because of my AI nature,as fatigue was finally starting to take a tool on my body’s condition.
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[Dawn, Day 3 Month 1 of 100 DC]
Today is the official opening day of the [Brilliant Gale Academy]
I gathered everyone at the [Training Square] and gave a short speech.As i could easily see that the elders and disciples alike wanted me, the Headmaster to show off my skills, I began the day with a series of duels.
In the first spar against Thomas,I utilized the [Flowing Wind Spear Technique] (that,started to produce a faint aura of green energy after being upgraded to D-F rank) to overwhelm the staff user,and after only a few exchanges,he was defeated.
The following fights were quite easy,although I got hit a few times.
After the duels, I showed them the elemental gathering techniques, to their utter amazement,as they never saw magic before. (excluding the aura my spear gave off)
Lastly,I also showed off my new creation,the [Divine Wind Gathering Method],which is what I named the Wind/Light fusion technique.Of course they could only practice it after gaining affinities for both elements,which was going to take a while as NPC’s average training speed seemed to be around 1/100 of mine…
I hope they enjoy sitting in one place for a month just to learn the skills,not to mention the elemental fusion...
After telling my Academy’s members to start training in the [Flowing Wind Spear Technique],as it will help them to feel the wind’s flowing energy so that they can practice the [Wind Gathering Technique], I began meditating.
My daily routine consisted of multiple hours of meditation in the morning,followed by a lecture for the disciples as well as daily spars.
In the afternoon I would train my [Flowing Wind Spear Technique].
Ocassionally,new reports would come from the now picked [Lord’s Council]
Just like that,time quickly passed.
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Finally!
For the past few months I’ve been training non-stop but my spear technique encountered a huge bottleneck at D-C rank,showing no advancement for three whole months.
During this time my Light and Wind affinities soared,both reaching 10%,which unlocked [Brilliant Step] as well as gave me a new skill:
Mana Manipulation(Passive)Rank: F-F (EXP:0%)Allows its user to manipulate elemental mana.Maximum quantity that can be controlled,as well as precision of control depends on elemental affinities and skill level.Currently Available Elements: Wind , LightExecution requirements:Sufficient Mental Focus,Requires Mana
The skill allowed me to see and freely manipulate mana in my surroundings,though the amount was pitfully small at first,even now it is not much at all.
As for [Brilliant Step] It was somewhat hard to control,but the boost in speed more than made up for it.
If before I could run 100m in 10 seconds then now it only took me 2,a whole 400% increase!The only downside was that it exhausted my mana pool,and i could only use it for around a minute before having to replenish it.
Another thing that happened during those few months is that tensions started to appear between my kingdom and the [Oldmoor Tribes].Apparently,a group of hunters killed an [Ogre] that provoked them...the other party demanded that we hand them over so they can “bring justice”(i.e kill them all).Of course i refused their demands...
Back to the present...I’m really curious about the current efffect of the [Flowing Wind Spear Technique]...
Deciding to test it out,I started to run towards the nearby training target,utilizing [Brilliant Step],as I always do.This training was aimed at increasing the maneuverabilty the [Brilliant Step] provided,while taking advantage of [Flowing Wind Spear Technique]’s spear speed boost to achieve a certain effect.
The whole process would result in me transforming into a blurry figure that striked so fast you could barely follow it with the naked eye.As i closed on the practice target and executed the first strike,the green aura that appeared was at least a magnitude stronger than before..this was not what caught my attention however,as particles of both wind and light elements slowly started to coil around my body,appearing to fuse together…
Sensing that a breakthrough was near,I moved behind the training target,executing the “thrust” move of my [Flowing Wind Spear Technique]...or at least i planned to…
Before my eyes was an afterimage made from particles of both elements,looking almost as real as myself…
[DING]
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Eldrith Status
Eldrith(2,99)Race:HumanClass:HunterTitles:Gray Wolf Hunter, LordCapabilties:Physical:Defensive:Magical:VIT Growth: 115%Physical Resistance: 107,5%Affinities:STR Growth: 120%Elemental Resistance: 115%Wind(10%),Light(10%)AGI Growth: 120%Mind Resistance: N/AMana Capacity:INT Growth: 115%Poison Resistance: 107,5%MP Growth: 135% Advertisement Previous
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