I looked up from my slouched position and found Cerion staring back at me, equally confused.

After a moment of silence, I spoke up.

“So… did we win?” I asked hesitantly, “That teleportation was pretty rough.”

“I think we won!” Cerion replied excitedly.

“Well, we won the first round. There’s still the next round tomorrow.” I chided him.

“Bah! We won by a landslide today and we’ll win by the same margin tomorrow too.” he replied confidently.

As Cerion and I changed into our civilian clothing, we heard the final announcement being made in the stadium. It was a little garbled, but I could make out most of what was being said.

“And with that, the second round is over! Tomorrow, the sixteen teams that passed will be going head to head, in a hotblooded battle where the youths of our nation will give us everything they’ve got!

Congratulations to today’s victors, team A3! This unlikely duo used their raw power and teamwork and made tactical decisions that allowed them to net more points than other teams. More importantly, they managed to hold on to their points until the round ended! Many teams will be hoping not to face them too early in tomorrow's round, because, thanks to their display of power, they have become the favorites to win the entire tier 2 doubles category!

Get to the betting houses now if you still want to get in on the action!

Now if I may direct you to our exits…”

The voice petered out and I shifted focus back to Cerion, who had put on his noble’s clothing.

“Ready to go, Art?” he asked.

~scene transition~

As I was lounging on the couch of our quarters in the witch hunters’ compound, I heard Doran call for my name.

“What do you think of your competitors? Some of the seeded participants are only participating in the singles tournament, but you have already met three of them. A penny for your thoughts?”

I thought silently, making up my mind before speaking.

“They’re definitely stronger than expected. I didn’t have much time to watch Karon and his buddy X fight, but I could tell they were experienced. Especially that X guy. Just his invisibility alone makes him dangerous, but it’s his speed that’s truly terrifying. People were getting cut left and right every second in that last battle. As for Karon, he seemed a little naive. His power is certainly versatile, but it doesn’t have the explosive strength necessary to fight Cerion and me on even ground.”

“An astute observation. Even from the arena, I could tell X’s speed could prove to be an issue tomorrow. He seems to act as Karon’s servant, though. A lack of personal decision-making could be his undoing in a life and death battle. As for Karon, I would not be so quick to count him out. He might be holding some things back for the finals. What did you think of your new rival, the Arcellus boy?”

I groaned. I didn’t really want to talk about him. Before I could reply, Cerion’s voice sounded out from the kitchen.

“Well, they’re both battle-maniacs, if anything.” he said teasingly.

“Oh shut it, Cerion. Doran was asking me.” I replied. “He’s not entirely wrong, though. That guy doesn’t really seem to care about the consequences of anything he does.”

“Hmm. Who does that remind me of…” I once again heard Cerion intervene.

“Quiet. Anyway, fighting him was frustrating. Tedious, even. For the life of me, I just couldn’t overwhelm him. I still think I would win in a one to one scenario, but it would take time and effort. He’s smart enough to proverbially ‘flip the board’ if he senses he’s been put on the back foot, too. Oh well. I’m confident in beating him if I use my mana intrusion technique, at least.”

“If he challenges you to a one versus one battle tomorrow, will you accept?” Doran asked stoically.

“Hah! Not a chance. There’s an entire other category for that. If he didn’t bring a strong teammate, he can forget about getting a fair fight. This is the doubles category. It’s not my fault he insisted on participating as a loner. Besides, he liked being challenged. I doubt he’ll refuse to fight against both Cerion and me at once, if it comes to it. Too prideful by half, I think.”

~scene transition~

“So this is the cathedral, huh?” I remarked.

Cerion, Doran and I were stood in front of a massive monolith of the capital, a landmark so famous believers came from afar to look upon its magnificence at least once.

Well, that’s how Doran had described it, anyway. I, myself, wasn’t quite so… enthusiastic, if you get my meaning.

Still, I had to admit it was an impressive building. The usual, detailed architecture you could find everywhere in the city was scaled up to a thousand, and multiplied by another few hundred points. It seemed to be made out of a strange white stone that had some kind of golden tint. Yet, when I took a closer look, it just turned out to be pure white. I looked away for a second, and bam! Gold.

Was that supposed to be a statement about humility or something? At this point, I wasn’t sure anymore. The church had its own weird rules at times.

Our party of three had decided to pay the building a visit, early in the evening, after we had sampled some of the local cuisine, as Cerion put it. We weren’t tired enough to warrant heading to bed too early yet, after all.

“So… did you want to head inside or…?” Cerion asked Doran.

He stilled for a moment, before turning to look at us.

“I… should mention that the people here won’t necessarily… expect my arrival… I haven’t been here for a long time…”

“What is your story, if I’m allowed to ask that? If you’d rather not confront your past, we can just leave, anyway. Don’t force yourself.” I commented brusquely.

Doran sighed.

“I am the only son of a rather influential member of the church. I felt that if I stayed in the church, many things would simply be handed to me when I was undeserving, simply because of my status. That’s why I placed myself under self-imposed exile, if you will, and joined the witch hunters’ guild, an affiliate organization of the church, instead. I never regretted my decision.”

Cerion and I listened attentively. His story made sense. I had thought it weird for a paladin, especially one so young and accomplished, to be part of the guild, rather than the church. At the time, I had believed Dorant to be an excommunicated member of the clergy, given a second chance and allowed to join the guild. Such stories weren’t uncommon. Most of the guild’s healers had gone through such a thing, after all.

“However,” Doran continued. “I haven’t met with my father in a long time. Years, even. I… don’t know how he’ll react if I try to contact him now. He was in agreement with my decision before, but only barely. He probably expected me to return with my tail between my legs.”

Hearing that, I considered my own relationship with my parents. They hadn’t agreed to my journey either. Not in the beginning, anyway. I had practically forced them to agree. With all the fights happening recently, I hadn't even contacted them in a while. I knew that I had a lot to make right with them, a lot that I had to repay them for. A lot I had to forgive myself for, too. Eventually.

I clapped Doran on the back and smiled.

“Family is important. I know the first step is always hard, but you have to make that step. They say ‘distance makes the heart fonder’, but in reality, relationships take time, effort and courage to maintain. Yet, the value they typically hold in our lives is worth all that, I think. Go.” I finished, slowly pushing him forward.

After a moment’s deliberation, he nodded and left.

~scene transition~

“Ladies and gentlemen! Before you stand the brave, talented and skilled teams that made it through the last 2 rounds! Today, they will be testing their mettle against one another to see which team among them has the most skill, power and the best teamwork! Give these 32 contestants a hand, everyone!”

As the announcer finished his sentence, the stadium exploded into cheers. Today, the finals of the first category took place, which meant that the place was packed. Even more so than yesterday, somehow. I spun around, taking in the sight. One hundred thousand people, about to watch me fight. As the group of contestants dispersed, I considered that.

It was a strange thought.

I had been hiding my affinity and skills for what felt like forever. Always careful not to draw too much attention, always making sure to take quests in secluded spots where no one could spectate. That had transitioned to now the entire kingdom watching me. Maybe my parents were watching from the town square back home. Guildmaster Andross was probably with some friends, bragging about his ‘students’ or something. Maybe, the people of Ralston, that had thanked me for defeating the necromancer, were cheering me on. Helios knows, Michael certainly was.

I could swear I heard him shout from the stands at one point.

The noise was deafening. The burden of other people’s expectations was heavy. Without even bothering to head into my mental palace, I closed my eyes and meditated. Everything turned silent, and, for but a moment, I felt weightless.

Next thing I knew, I was being shook at the shoulder. I opened my eyes and found a concerned look on Cerion’s face.

“Oh thank Helios! I thought you would be using that skill of yours again. Come on, it’s our turn.”

I lifted myself from the bench I had been sitting on, my armor rattling as I moved.

“Who are we fighting?” I asked.

“An unseeded team, thankfully. An archer with a purple bow and a warrior wielding the standard sword and shield. We win this, we’re in the top eight teams.”

As I walked into the sunlit arena, I smiled. Purple bow? That sounded a little familiar. So that sensible team that had forfeited before had made it in, huh? Not surprising. They were skilled.

Sure enough, the same lady from before appeared. Seeing my face, she scowled, aware of what kind of battle was awaiting her.

“Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to introduce both teams! On one side, Lady Aria and her partner, Urol! Aria, a member of the army’s third archer regiment, has come to prove her skills to all! Her [Alchemical Hunter] class allows her to coat her arrows with a purple essence that can have various effects, from putting targets to sleep to blowing them right up! Urol is no slouch either! In just a few years, he had shown himself to be an exemplary knight in the service of the kingdom, using his [Landbound Knight] class to overwhelm opponents on his level! He has foregone cavalry for the sake of more power on foot!”

“On the other side of the arena the previous round’s victors enter! Cerion Rass, only son of Duke Rass, will use his [Tidal swordsman] class to devastating effect, as you all saw in the last round! Even if his cyclones and tidal waves are impressive, don’t count out his swordsmanship. Finally, there is his partner, Arthur!”

Upon hearing my name, the cheering got a little quieter, but not by much, thankfully.

“This common-born warrior uses his rare affinity to devastating effect! His [Overloading Death Knight] class allows him to overwhelm his opponent with mana superior in both quantity and quality! Watch out, because once his maelstrom gets going, there’s no getting through that barrier without losing some limbs!”

“Now then, without further ado, let’s get this battle started! 3…2…1…Start!”

~scene transition~

A few minutes later, we were on the cusp of victory.

I batted away an incoming purple arrow with my mana-coated sword, before launching myself halfway across the arena. The archer tried to make some distance, but it was too late. Before she knew it, the tip of my sword was at her throat, dangerously radiating mana.

She looked to the right and saw Cerion standing over the unconscious body of her less talented teammate and sighed.

“We forfeit.”

“And just like that, the battle is over! After just 5 minutes, Lady Aria and her courageous knight Urol have been defeated! They tried their hardest, even in the face of overwhelming odds. Give them a hand everyone!”

Hearing his speech, the crowd cheered loudly, while Cerion and I clapped along. They deserved it for a battle well-fought.

“Let’s not forget the winners of this match, Arthur and Cerion! They skillfully pushed their opponents back, while holding some techniques in reserve no doubt. Applause for the victors!”

This time, the crowd really blew up. I could practically see the people in the stands shiver from excitement, their blood boiling on our behalf. The feeling of people cheering for you, calling your name after victory… It was intoxicating.

“I could get used to this…” I muttered.