Kyrion arrived at the non-public practice stadium. While there, he removed his weights and sighed. “This has to be a trap. I’m not in the mood for these games.”

Tiffany entered the stadium with a sad look. “It probably was. I’m sorry about Gamodren.”

“Do you know what changed?” Kyrion asked.

“No. Why are you here?” Tiffany looked just as sad.

“I have a fight with Amadeus. You?”

“A special training session for the top five students at the Academy.”

“Uh huh.” Kyrion took a seat on the stone surface.

“So what’s your plan?”

“First I’ll get knocked around a bit and then I’ll surrender. Not in a mood for fighting and would like it if my outsides matched what I feel in my gut.”

“Are you doing alright Kyrion?”

“Nope. Well maybe. I’m really here to try and recruit Amadues. Since I’m currently the captain of the team representing Drisil in the tournament. Would you like to join my team Tiffany?”

“Maybe, do you intend to involve me in the stuff after the tournament?”

“If you want. I was going to go along but I won’t say no to help.”

“Then sure, I could use the experience.” Tiffany popped her knuckles above her head.

“Great.”

“Oi! What are you two doing here?” Brion asked before thinking. “Hey, Kyrion, are you here for healing duty after the training?”

“I really don’t care. Amadeus challenged me again and I don’t feel like saying no.” Kyrion shrugged.

“I don’t really get it but ok. I’d love to fight Amadues head on.” Brion held out a thumbs up before he proudly walked onto the stadium.

Ander arrived soon after. His expression was stoic as he pieced things together. “This must be for the tournament.”

“What tournament?” Brion asked.

“The one against all the schools on the continent.” Ander answered.

“Oh. Oh, right, that’s coming up, isn’t it.” Then, finally, Kyrion seemed to remember something.

“It’s in a few months. This is a bit late. I assume Kyrion is here for healing duty.”

“I wonder if the number two is going to make it.” Ander muttered.

Amadeus entered while inside their golden armor. Behind them was a hooded figure covered head to toe in black cloth. It seemed as though they were quietly humming as they moved.

Tiffany squirmed instinctively and backed up as they entered the room.

After those two, Max entered the place with a confused look and not a single bruise. Next to Max was Bastion, who seemed to brighten up as he saw Kyrion. Then, finally, the headmaster himself entered the arena, his expression stoic.

Amadeus also seemed surprised to see that Max was here for some reason.

“Something smells off.”

“Because it is.” Tiffany stated the obvious.

“All of you are gathered here today because you have shown talent in one way or another and have been selected to be potential members of the team representing Drisil. Your captain here will be Kyrion, if has an objection then they will need to best him in combat. This will be a first come first serve sort of deal. You need seven members, and one alternate.”

Amadeus looked at Kyrion and then at the headmaster.

“You need to best him in combat. Today he can’t refuse, and you have a week to continue challenging him. Fail two attempts and he’s free to remove you from the team despite your talent.” Caeden stepped away.

“I’ve been waiting for this day for five years.”

Kyrion’s green eyes darkened in a way that didn’t involve using the other mind in his head. He was expressionless, as though all emotion had been thrown away. His movement seemed precise as he walked to a section of the stadium and carved a circle into the concrete floor by dragging his foot across the surface.

“If we do this then we use my rules. You have two minutes to get me out of the circle to win. If you can’t then it’s a loss on your end. I won’t use any mana and that includes regeneration. For the first minute and a half I will only counter. That should even up the playing field a bit.”

“What’s with that? I’m strong! I don’t need that handicap.”

“Because I’m angry and will need to adjust my strength to keep from accidentally killing you,” Kyrion said in a cold monotone with a bored expression on his face.

Tiffany looked at the pendant. He was angry, but the gem seemed to be stuck between Kyrion and the other being inside of him. As though they were one. “This isn’t right.”

“No, this is as close as you’re going to get to seeing who and what Kyrion is.” Headmaster Caeden stated from her side.

“A titan bound in the body of a human.” Bastion stated.

“A titan?” Tiffany looked down at Bastion, whose odd eyes seemed even more creepy.

“A form of deity that predates the gods we know. Said to stand as tall as mountains and could consume villages worth of food. But no that’s not what he means. Bastion can sense what’s hidden and he’s currently feeling the storm that is Kyrion’s core running rampant through his body.”

Amadeus growled as they took their stance, two golden daggers getting drawn from a sheath on their hip. “I’ll put an end to your smug attitude.”

The others had left the stadium as a field covered the two fighters.

“As you are both practitioners, the rules here have changed a bit. Win either by knockout, ring out, or surrender. By now, you should have a handle on what you can take and dish out. So no moves that would force evacuation to survive.” Caeden ordered, keeping a close eye on Kyrion just in case.

“I am anything but smug.” Kyrion said in a flat tone.

“Huh. I’ll have to be careful then.” Caeden sighed.

“Are you showing favoritism, teacher?” Bastion asked Caeden.

“Please, I don’t want a student dying on my watch. Especially with Kyion in the current head space he’s in at the moment. Rage is a dangerous weapon when directed indiscriminately. Not quite sure if I should even let it happen.”

“Rage? He was so happy this morning.”

“Are you ready? Fight!” Caeden decided to start the fight.

A dagger aimed at Kyrion’s face was snatched out of the air and then used to deflect a blade going for his back, his legs not moving from their positions.

The crowd looked on in silence. Quite a few didn’t even see the dagger get thrown. Had they not seen the blur that was Kyrion’s left hand.

Kyrion didn’t move as the gauntleted right fist connected with his jaw. An explosion that left a crater in the stadium around them hardly left a scratch on the boy who took it head-on, not even bothering to evade it.

Another punch to Kyrion’s face came and went as he spun, his opponent’s attack passing through empty space and leading them forward. Then, finally, a foot stuck out to trip them, causing them to fly toward the arena’s edge with their own momentum.

Amadeus landed on their feet and circled around carefully, plotting their next move.

“One minute!” The headmaster called.

“What? Already?” Amadeus charged forward again, aiming to strike from multiple angles at high speed.

Kyrion made minor adjustments, moving his head out of the way of a punch as his left arm deflected a punch to his gut.

A sweep of Kyrion’s leg ended in him grabbing hold and throwing his opponent away.

“One minute thirty!”

Amadeus came again and attacked with an explosive fist strong enough to destroy a wall.

Kyrion’s hand grabbed hold of Amadeus’ wrist and squeezed. Crushing the metal and damaging the person inside.

“Ahh!” blood flowed through the wound, and it was pretty evident that the limb was shattered. The explosion ceased to exist as the mana for the attack was wasted.

A jab to Kyrion’s throat missed as the boy leaned to the side.

“You broke my wrist!” Amadeus yelled as they moved behind Kyrion. A series of attacks from different angles found their mark but still little to no damage had been done when the dust settled.

“Ten!”

Kyrion twisted his body to dodge an attack aimed at his head and exhaled as an open-palm strike passed through the golden armor without leaving any sign of entry. The blow left no mark on the gold armor, while it sent a shock through various internal organs and cracked a few ribs.

“Great. Now I can surrender.” Kyrion walked off the stage.

“You… can’t…” Amadeus wheezed.

“Oh? Here I thought you wanted to win no matter what? Isn’t that why you challenged me the way you did?” Kyrion’s expression seemed a bit stoic as they stopped moving and turned around.

“Victory to Kyrion!”

“I-I can’t….” Amadeus lost consciousness.

“Should I heal them or?” Kyrion waved a hand around thematically. His expression returned to the cheery light one he usually wore. Although no one who knew Kyrion would assume he was actually happy.

“That would be convenient. What’s your play? Fixing what you broke?”

“I’m a noncombatant. My job is not to fight, just do the healing. My emotions seemed to get the best of me.” Water pooled onto Kyrion’s hands as he sent the liquid into their body through their skin. Kyrion closed his eyes and let his healing mana do the repairing.

“Huh. She must have a pretty big chip on her shoulder.” Kyrion whispered quietly enough for only the headmaster to hear.

“What do you mean?” Caeden said in a monotone.

Kyrion stood up and looked around, and shrugged. “People need to realize I don’t play fair when playing a game I don’t care to play. Rules are for those who care. My rules didn’t leave me at a disadvantage. When your opponent is faster than you, stand your ground and fight them from a secure position. Moving while fighting your pupil only causes more problems.”

“Kyrion, how do you feel about the second round?”

“I’m open for another go, just know that fighting me directly will always be a bad idea. Especially with a power like that it’s so wasteful.”

“What!” Amadeus woke up with a start.

“Good morning sleeping beauty. How was your nap.” Kyrion stood up and got some distance after his taunt.

Amadeus got to their feet and ran to the other side of the arena.

The headmaster stepped into the center of the ring and projected his voice.

“So we have the previously undefeated Amadeus and our unranked Kyrion. If you go to my left then you will be on team Amadeus. If you go to the right then you will be on team Kyrion.”

“So are we doing teams of three? Or four?” Kyrion asked.

“Teams of four. You’ll need to find someone to be your alternate. Good luck.” The headmaster vanished.

Kyrion scowled.

“So, who will join me?” Amadeus asked aloud.

The number two, whose name Kyrion never learned, was the first to approach Amadeus. The second was Brion. Who smirked as he looked toward Kyrion.

“Sorry Kyrion. It isn’t that I don’t trust you. Its just that you broke your promise to make it to my birthday party.”

Tiffany walked over to Amadeus’ side, her arms crossed as she looked Kyrion in the eye.

“Even his girlfriend knows he’s use….” Amadeus started.

A rapier of light appeared at the throat of the golden-armored Amadeus. It vanished soon after but not before a small trickle of blood seemed to leak from where the well-controlled attack struck.

“I could care less who wins. But this makes four. Do not insult my friend. Especially since you already lost once.” Tiffany said coldly.

Amadeus took a mental note. The attack was too quick for Amadeus to dodge at the moment.

Ander sighed. “Does this make me Co Captain?”

“Vice leader. Bastion?” Kyrion looked over to the odd-eyed boy, who seemed to be gone. He had seriously considered bringing the little kid along. Primarily for shock and awe. A second healer could be convenient.

“Max?” Kyrion looked at the boy who stood there with a stony expression.

“I can’t join you.” Max crossed his arms.

“Why? Are you scared you’re too weak?” Ander asked.

“No, I just have a date tomorrow. It’s the weekend, I have a life.” Max lied through his teeth.

“Max, I get that Amadeus seems to have some power over you but this is your chance to fight back. If you need help getting out of your commitments you could always join Cecil’s harem. It stops the weird letters from coming. Although some girls seem to like asking detailed questions about what it is we do.”.

“I’m not interested in that debauchery. I really have other things to do.” Max continued to lie, not about the debauchery. He literally had nothing else to do.

Kyrion squinted, throwing an arm around Max. “Listen. I get that you may have some unimportant things to attend to. But we are bros doing something important for the school. Also I need you on my team for other reasons. I need your help training monsters. It has come to my attention that I left my worker bucks with the refugees and I get the feeling that they are living happy lives near Norn. And have recently acquired an army of goblins.”

“So you want me to help train some monsters while we’re out.”

“Yup. We could use the assistance.”

“Still a no. Aside from a few monsters I don’t think tamers can participate in these things.”

“Why don’t you at least try.”

Ander floated upwards and put his hand on Max’s shoulder. “Listen, you’re coming with us. End of story. Now we just need one more…” Kyrion slipped a little as Max squirmed.

“Why me? I’m nowhere near as strong as anyone here.” Max protested.

“Simple everyone else I was hoping would be on my team jumped ship. Not that I could blame them.”

“So I’m your last choice.” Max seemed to simmer down.

“No, now I gotta try and convince Cecil. I need to talk to him twice in one day. He’ll want something.”

“Why not Ceres?”

“She won’t participate in public matches. That’s all I’ll say on the matter.”

“You don’t need another attacker with me on your team. But you do need someone to either act as a defender.”

“Huh. Now I wish Brion didn’t switch sides. Did he not like his gift?” Kyrion muttered.

“It will be fine. It’s more fun this way.” Said the short green-haired vice-captain, who seemed to avoid looking Kyrion directly in the eye.

“You want to fight everyone on that team, alone. Don’t you?” Max suspected.

“Yes.” Ander said unashamedly.

“You do realize whatever the task is, it won’t be a direct fight right?” Max said.

“But there will be fighting right?”

“Possibly, but given our combined talents, utility seems to be something we have in abundance. Flight, healing, ally monsters. We can accomplish anything so long as we use our heads and I don’t mean just for headbutting.”

“To the lab then?”

“Ugg. Do I need to go?” Ander sighed.

“Yup. You’re the main reason we’re going.” Kyrion led the way.

“No.” Cecil had moved on to another project and was now observing a carriage made of metal with very thick rubber wheels. It was also covered in an abundance of enchantments and runes.

Kyrion hadn’t even gotten a chance to ask the question, but Cecil was prompt.

“What type of beast is that?” Max said as he started touching the metal monstrosity.

“It’s an all terrain truck. Given the lack of formal roads this vehicle is capable of finding new ones. It can travel on sand, stone, uneven earth, and more. There is a tread… Nevermind you wouldn’t get it. Anyhow this is part of an experiment. A test of ability, if it works as intended then I’ll be able to make something else sooner rather than later.”

“Why can’t you come?” Kyrion asked.

“Had someone not given me a student in a very volatile developmental stage of growth in need of guidance. Then I’d gladly abandon all my other responsibilities and hop in on this adventure. Oh but that’s not all. I also have a POW that I need to convince to help join my cause which will probably be impossible.”

“Ah. Sorry. Where is she?” Kyrion scratched his head.

“Eden? I gave her an enchanted skill book that will impart literacy on every recorded written language. She’d need to learn how to speak it, but reading was in her abilities. This includes my native languages as well.”

“You can make those?”

“One can make skill books by using a special enchantment and one’s own memories. As my memories can’t be corrupted easily, the information gathered in said books is efficient and effective.”

“Wait. If people can just make….”

“One of these could sell for thousands of gold easily. The price it took me to make this one was five copper two silver and a pint of mana rich blood. You can guess where I got the last component.” Cecil adjusted his glasses.

“So… How much do you need?” Kyrion drew a scalpel and placed it over his palm

“None at the moment. I just can’t teach someone who can’t read Latin, Cuneiform, Classical Hebrew or Yucatec. From there we move onto the language of origin, which is the true language of magic and what the runes you learned from Ms. Nox is a derivative of.”

“Sounds complicated. Listen, I could use some help, you’re a genius among genius and the densest person I know. Do you know anything my friend here could use to spread your brand and make you more popular without you knowing?” Kyrion used his trump card. His ace Cecil’s illogical thought process.

“Hmmm… I do have quite a few untested trinkets. What are your talents?”

“Wind and lightning?” Ander leaned on the truck.

“Does he know about voltage, electromagnetism, and the other stuff we spoke about?”

“I keep my secrets. Mostly, I also don’t feel confident in my ability to teach that to anyone.”

“Hmmm… Follow me. Kyrion, keep an eye on Max. This is going to be a private session.”

“I’ll be sure to let anyone who asks know that you’re in the back room with Ander.” Kyrion put out a thumbs up.

“Do not tell anyone that!” Cecil slammed the door shut.

Max scowled. “I can’t tell if you’re doing that on purpose or by accident.”

“Probably a bit of both. His reactions are funny, though I’m not quite sure why.” Kyrion scratched his chin before looking about.