Red rectangles stacked up as the harpsisword’s blade vibrated within the guardian. The first few, after the critical hit, were minor, inflicting next to no damage. With each second, though, the amount doubled. The metalin’s massive body shook. All spikes melted off, as the armor pieces made a desperate attempt to fill in any open cracks. The entire guardian suddenly compressed, shrinking by a quarter.

Splitting into several instances, Dallion spun and twisted so as not to fall or be caught by any of the changing armor elements. All that mattered was that he did not let go of the harpsisword.

Shield! Dallion summoned it again, this time on his back. Cocoon me!

A sphere formed around Dallion just in time to prevent the guardian from plucking him off. Loud thuds sounded as the metalin’s hands struck the metal.

Good, Dallion thought. Harp had managed to disrupt the magic maintaining the metalin stable, or so Dallion hoped. As long as it didn't try anything unexpected, Dallion had every chance of defeating it.

Without warning, a surge of energy went through the harpsisword like an electric current, sending him flying off the guardian. The shield completed the sphere, providing a protective shell for Dallion. Moments later, the sphere hit the ground, rolled a dozen feet, then settled.

There was momentary pain, the discomfort lasted much longer. Waiting for it to fade away was no option.

Shield, Dallion thought.

The shield contracted, returning to its normal state. Immediately, Dallion jumped to his feet. There were no new rectangles around him, which would have been good ,if his health wasn’t so low already.

Taking a deep breath, Dallion recited the names of the seven Moons, then rushed at the metalin. At this point the metalin had completely welded every opening, effectively transforming itself into a statue. However, the harpsisword was still sticking out of its neck.

“I can’t hurt it anymore,” Celia appeared next to Dallion. “There’s nothing to aim at.”

“What about its eyes?”

“There are no eyes. It’s one solid chunk of metal now.”

Combining his music and forging skills, Dallion took a closer look. The entire surface was almost monotonous. Now and again, there were a few hairline cracks where the armor parts connected—far too small for anything to enter. Even the Nox Dagger would have trouble dealing any damage. Dallion could, of course, attempt to carve his way in—which he attempted in a few instances, with no results. Even in its present state, the metalin was perfectly capable of piercing anything that for too close. The only thing it didn’t seem to be able to do was take out the harpsisword; the single time Dallion saw it attempt to grab the hilt caused a spark to flash between the two, along with a massive health reduction.

“A truly magnificent weapon,” Lady Marigold said. Initially, Dallion thought that she was merely amused by the situation, but there was something more to it. Several grains of envy and fear appeared near her head before fading away. “However, the fight isn’t over.”

Typical Marigold, Nil grumbled. You probably made her night. She’ll be going on and on about this for days.

Then let’s not deny her the spectacle.

You’re planning something, aren’t you? The old echo paused for a moment, as Dallion’s thought echoed throughout his realm. Hmm. Not the worst idea. Regardless, it won’t work.

You never know before you try.

“Celia, I’ll need a hand,” Dallion said. Technically, they were still opponents, but both were aware that while the metalin was left standing, none of them was going to be considered the winner of this round.

“I don’t see what I can do that you haven’t done already,” the semi-fury replied. “Your weapon is already dealing enough damage. Why don’t we wait it out?”

“Let’s not.”

There was no point saying it out loud, but Dallion knew that the effect of the harpsisword wasn’t enough. The attack had confused the guardian into losing close to eighty percent of its life. Although that, though, Dallion’s advantage would be over. The shapeshifting quality of the metal not only had welded shut all the guardian’s weak spots, but it was also preventing Harp from vibrating. Already, the damage dealt was starting to diminish. When the damage was completely negated, both Dallion and Celia would lose. The trick was to do something before that, before the entity could come up with a new attack pattern.

“I need you to get me close,” Dallion said. “Left side.”

“That’s difficult.”

“I’ve seen plenty of furies. I know you can do it. Just one time. I want you to bring me close, then move away. I’ll take care of the rest. If all goes well, we’ll continue our fight. If not… you’ll have one less opponent.”

Aren’t you being too generous? Gleam asked from Dallion’s realm.

Maybe. But that’s the only offer she’d consider.

“When do you want it?” Celia asked.

Dallion summoned his Nox Dagger.

“Now.”

No sooner had he said it that he felt his stomach turn. The speed was greater than he had experienced before. It was only thanks to his high body level that he kept himself from vomiting. The metal guardian was in front of him, just as Dallion had asked.

Lux, cover the handle of the dagger, but don’t attract too much attention, Dallion ordered as he looked around for suitable attack points.

It wasn’t difficult to find—a small line at what was supposed to be the shoulder blade equivalent. Splitting into instances, Dallion struck the spot. The tip of the blade edged through. While still incapable of damaging indestructible armor, the blade managed to wiggle between the parts, as only a crack would.

Lux, speed it in! Dallion thought.

The dagger sunk to the hilt as if it were cutting butter. A new red rectangle emerged, but that wasn’t what Dallion was aiming for. Without wasting time, he summoned the most unlikely of his linked items—the ringchord.

Originally, he had linked the musical instrument to be able to practice a bit before bed. So far, he’d only had a few sessions—Gen had shown a far greater interest than him. In this case, the metal cords of the ringchord were going to help him short circuit an artificially constructed guardian. Looping one side of the cord round the blade of the Nox dagger—just beneath the hilt—Dallion then used his acrobatic skills to jump up and toss the other side of the ringchord round the harpsisword.

A flash of magic followed, passing between both weapons like an electric arc.

Dozens of red rectangles stacked in the air at incredible speed, each dealing a minor strike. Before Dallion could even read what was written on them, they had vanished, along with the metalin.

TRAINING SPHERE level has increased!

The TRAINING SPHERE has been improved to CAST IRON.

Naturally, there were no skill increases—all of Dallion’s combat skills had reached their cap. However, he was granted something else instead.

INANIMATE VICTORY

(+2 Body)

Defeating artificial guardians never is easy. A lot of brawn is needed, though in future it’s better to use some brain to avoid such fights altogether.

Again with the sarcasm? Dallion grumbled.

He was almost convinced that one of the Moons was adding a personal touch to the achievement text.

There was no time to waste, however—while Dallion had dealt with the greatest obstacle, the fight still hadn’t concluded. Still in the air, Dallion summoned his harpsichord and played a chord. The ground beneath liquified. Twisting mid-air, Dallion glanced about in search of his opponent. Unfortunately, she was far closer than he had expected.

“Sorry,” Celia whispered, her face inches from his, as her knife dealt the final blow depriving Dallion from what health he had remaining. The next thing he knew, he was back in the arena room.

What the? Dallion thought, pulling his hand back. The transition had been far too fast and unexpected. It took him a few seconds to get used to his surroundings, and several more to the fact that he had lost.

“Who won?” Gola asked.

Dallion didn’t respond immediately. His mind still insisted that he had won since he had defeated the metalin. After a while, he had to accept reality.

“She did,” Dallion replied, trying not to sound too bitter.

“It was close,” the semi-fury replied. “Too close.”

“Yeah,” Dallion laughed.

I had her! he shouted mentally. I had her. She was defenseless before the guardian showed up. And even then, I defeated it.

Victories are not victories before the fact, dear boy. Still, you did well. Two achievements and a lot of valuable lessons are nothing to scoff at. The important thing is not to forget those lessons. As I said before, once the tournament officially starts, you’ll be facing a far more experienced opponent. If you can’t handle a fury and a metalin, better give up and save yourself the humiliation.

As annoyed as Dallion was, he knew the echo to be right. Looking at things objectively, he had achieved quite a lot during this fight—more than he had hoped for. Defeat tasted bitter, especially since it was in his grasp. However, this was the fastest way to get stronger. In a way, it was similar to leveling up, only without the stat increases.

“I’ll be sure to get ready for round two,” Celia said with a smile as her children swarmed her.

Dallion nodded with a polite smile, then in an empty corner of the room to spend the half hour of rest required before he could start his next fight.

When Dallion had arrived at the arena, he hadn’t expected there would be anyone who would give him such a hard time. In his head, he thought he’d defeat them easily and was already imagining his find against Mord. The experience had quietly taught him a lesson in humility. Two people out of half a dozen had proved to be tough challengers; one of them had even snatched the victory. In retrospect Dallion felt as if he’d completed a flawless run on a single player game, only to be creamed in multiplayer.

Nil, are there inner guild tournaments? Dallion asked.

Lots, the old echo replied. The basement is actually used for training. And training isn’t just fighting guardians. People go there to have friendly fights all the time.

Remind me to start going there more often.

The rest of the day passed in the expected fashion. All remaining applicants appeared, each fighting against everyone else. By evening, all the fights had ended. Dallion had lost a single fight, and Celia none. Gola was a close third with only three losses in total.

No one was surprised when the free tournament participants were announced. In some cases, the difference in skill level was obvious, although one had to admit that everyone who had made it this far was quite capable.

The briefest of ceremonies was held—a semi-awake member of the tournament committee rushed in, made the announcement, then rushed out, but not before telling all the participants that they had to leave the arena so the final preparations could take place. Celia, Dallion, and Gola were given official tournament rings and told to check on the echoes inside daily.

There were no further explanations, no feast, and definitely no further information. Even the official participant’s list remained a mystery to Dallion. According to Gola, the fastest way to get it was to go to the nearest city guard fort and ask for it there. The city guard always had the list because they needed to make sure to keep an eye on the participants. The prospect of one of them missing was outright terrifying to all the organizers involved. At the end of the day, no one wanted to embarrass the countess at her own festival.

I think you should go have a bite somewhere, dear boy, Nil said. Food and water alone aren’t enough to sustain you after a whole day of realm fighting.

Already ahead of you, Dallion said. I’ll have Aspan cook me up something, and after that I’ll go tear leveling.