Cenn found himself in a desperate situation. After the blows he received, every step felt like a piercing pain in his groin. And there was no way to just run away from the attack. He looked at Krinnel, who was standing 7 feet away from him, out of spear range and feeling perfectly safe. Apparently thinking that Cenn had no qi or strength left to attack.
A sinister smile reappeared on Krinnel's face.
[Like that time with Aydor.] A thought flashed through Cenn's mind.
As if already tasting victory Krinnel took a step back and lowered his saber.
Cenn realized what would happen next. All he had to do was to be proactive and attack back.
"Claw!" Shouted Krinnel.
Sigil of the Tiger spell.
Claws - Using qi energy, the caster creates a rupture in the space in front of him. The rupture delivers a stabbing blow and causes the target to bleed out.
"Wind!" Shouted Cenn at the same moment. And the spear flew out of his hand with incredible speed.
Sigil of the Wind enchantment.
Empowers throwing weapons and projectiles with the power of wind, which increases their speed, range, and damage.
Cenn saw his opponent's face distorted with shock. Seeing the spear flying straight at him, Krinnel tried to dodge and at the same time instinctively covered himself with his saber. But the effects of the Ant Sigil were still working on him, increasing his strength while decreasing his agility, making his movements noticeably slower.
Clang. The saber struck the tip of the spear, in an attempt to steer it away. But it was too late. The spear was already a couple of inches from Krinnel's shoulder. And finally hit. Layer by layer, the spear tip tore through leather armor, then clothing, skin, and muscle. It shattered his collarbone and continued onward, repeating its destructive path in reverse order. Until finally it tore out of his back.
"AARGH!" Krinnel cried out in pain, and fell on his side, grabbing the huge spear sticking out of him.
The entire arena exploded with a scream. No one had expected the fight to end this way, emotions were running high
"What have you done?" The judge jumped up from his seat and looked angrily at Cenn. "The fight is over, someone helps him. Now!"
"I had no choice, Venerable Judge. If I had..." Cenn tried to justify himself.
"Shut up! I'm not blind, much less deaf." The old man collapsed into his chair and closed his eyes.
At this time, a multitude of people ran out into the arena. Krinnel's father, members of the Kinov family, and a couple of doctors they had hired.
"Your honor, this is unacceptable! You must punish this rascal!" Zivor Kinov, the head of the family, shouted in a tantrum, pointing his finger at Cenn.
"What nonsense are you talking, you old rat! If Cenn hadn't attacked, that scumbag would have mutilated him just like he did to Aydor. Do you want to talk about punishment? Then first I demand that Krinnel be punished for what he did in the last fight!" Hog, who had also descended into the arena, stepped in for Cenn.
The judge finally opened his eyes. He was glad that this tournament was over and he wouldn't have to stick around the arena anymore. There was only one sensitive issue left to be resolved.
"Enough! Following the bishop's instructions, the participants should not be too violent during the fights and endanger the opponent's life. Right now, Cenn Bael has acted unnecessarily cruel, and he should be punished for it."
After saying this, the judge fell silent and looked threateningly towards Cenn.
"But at the same time, Krinnel Faro acted just as viciously in the last fight and fairness should be punished more severely." The judge paused this time looking menacingly at Zivor Kinov. "But looking at the way things turned out I have decided that I will not punish anyone. Let us consider Cenn avenged Aydor's injuries and that will be the end of it. And if any of you dares to avenge what happened, I will personally hang the bastard in the square in front of the Temple!"
The judge rose from his chair and quickly disappeared into a hidden corridor. But his words caused a commotion in the crowd of onlookers. The Temple rarely interfered in the affairs of honored families, and even in such a rude manner. So what had happened would be a cause for gossip and conversation for the whole town for a long time to come.
Amidst the hustle and bustle that engulfed the arena, no one noticed the humble figure appear at the tribune where the judge sat.
"Silence."
The voice couldn't make it through the noise of the crowd.
"Quieeeet!"
An unfamiliar male voice now shouted. When people fixed their gazes on the source of the voice, they immediately recognized him as the Iron Fist Sect's representative, Parive-san.
"I just wanted to say that this is the end of the tournament. And Cenn Bael, as the winner, will join our sect. The head of the Bael family should arrive at the Temple in one hour, we have a few things to discuss before going to the sect."
...
Cenn had been standing motionless against the wall since Krinnel had fallen to the ground. When he used the third sigil, he had to use up all the qi in his body. A painful feeling of emptiness and weakness gripped his body, and he could barely stand on his feet. Hearing that the fight was over, he decided to recover some qi and started meditating using qi-gathering techniques. So he missed almost everything that happened in the last couple of minutes in the arena.
After recovering some energy, Cenn felt that his body was strong enough and decided to interrupt his meditation. Opening his eyes he saw Hog in front of him and a huge crowd of people standing behind the fat man's back.
"Damn, I thought you were going to be here all day," said Hog with a beaming smile. "Can you walk?"
"Give me a couple of minutes, my groin is still aching from the pain," mumbled Cenn embarrassedly.
"Ahahhh, it's no big deal." Without warning, Hog stepped towards Cenn and tossed him up with ease. Gently settling him onto his shoulder he turned to the crowd and shouted. "Hail to the victor!"
The crowd thundered in response.
"Hail to the victor!"
If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.
"Hooray!!!"
So, with Cenn on his shoulder, the fat man headed towards the exit of the arena, accompanied by a couple hundred people.
Many people who were not familiar with Cenn came up and shook his hand, congratulating him on his victory. But even more, people congratulated him on becoming a disciple of the sect.
…
Mizra Orist sat in the inner courtyard of Dr. Renol's house, absorbed in his thoughts.
Aydor's fate had kept the old man in his thoughts.
Once again his thoughts turned to the curse of the Orist family, and the image of his father appeared in Mizra's mind.
When Mizra was a child, his father had told him that he was more talented than his peers and that he could break the curse and become the first member of the Orist family to reach the third rank.
But Mizra was never able to live up to his father's hopes. As soon as he formed the second seal, his cultivation progress completely stopped.
The curse once again dashed the hopes of the Orist family, making them the object of ridicule of other honored families in Heartglen.
Among Mizra's children and grandchildren, no one possessed a talent for cultivation. For many, reaching even the second rank was an impossible task.
But that was the case until Aydor was born. From the moment Mizra first held him in his arms, he knew that a great future awaited the boy. And he would be the one to break the curse.
That was the story until today.
Lowering head into his palms the old man cried.
The people around did not dare to disturb him and only silently sympathized with his grief.
Suddenly, the door to the courtyard opened and one of the Orist family's servants ran in.
"He won! He won!" Shouted the servant joyfully as he ran inside.
"Cenn won? Tell me how it was!" Mizra jumped up from his seat.
The servant who had been watching the fight from the beginning quickly recounted what had happened to everyone present, answering Mizra's endless questions along the way.
When the retelling of the fight was over he moved on to what happened afterward.
"Anyway, the sect representative said that an hour after the fight, the head of the Bael family should report to the temple, for a meeting with him. He wanted to discuss something before being sent to the sect."
"I see, I'll go notify Velin." The old man took a quick step toward the doctor's office, toward Velin. Without warning, he opened the door and stepped inside.
Velin was sitting in a chair next to a sleeping Aydor.
"Did you hear that?" Asked the old man.
"Yes, I heard. I think he and Hog will come here soon and tell me all about it." Replied Velin.
"Mr. Parive wants to see you at the temple an hour after the battle is over."
Velin nodded calmly in response.
Mizra looked at Aydor once more and headed for the exit. Already at the threshold of the room he stopped and turned around and said to Velin.
"You know I would like to apologize to Cenn. He's leaving tonight and no one knows when we'll see him again. Let's have a farewell dinner for the family and invite Mr. Parive there. You can stay with Aydor. I'll make the arrangements and convince Parive to come to your house. That's where you two will talk."
Velin looked at the old man in surprise "Good idea, Cenn does deserve a celebratory dinner in his honor. But are you willing to do that, after everything that happened today?" He asked.
"Yes, I can. It'll take my mind off heavy thoughts. Don't worry about me. I'll have a wagon brought here. So you can take Aydor home."
Mizra stepped out and closed the door behind him. Stopping for a moment, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
"Rant, follow me." Calming down Mizra headed for the exit and called out to his son.
Once outside the old man made his way towards the group of men standing outside the building, they were all seasoned warriors who had long served the Orist family guarding their caravans and had earned the old man's absolute trust.
"Listen up. Now you rush to our house and collect all the gold in the storage room. Then you quickly carry it to the temple and wait for me, understand?" The old man whispered to Rant.
"What, Father why?" Rant asked puzzled.
"Shut up! Be useful for once and complete an order. Tebrin, Karun make sure he is at the temple in half an hour." The old man turned to the two tall bald men standing beside him. Instructing them to keep an eye on him for his wayward son. The two bulky men nodded silently in response, after which the trio quickly fled in the direction of the Orist family's estate.
"Alright, Megeth, find me some paper and ink. Immediately." This time the old man turned to a lean man with an earring in his ear and dark curly hair. Hearing the order, Megeth frowned and went to find the writing utensils with a slow step.
"You three," he addressed a group of older men, looking no younger than Mizra. "Find where our wagons are parked now, and take charge of them."
"Cyrus, have a wagon at the doctor's office in half an hour, Aydor needs a ride home. But remember no sooner than half an hour." A short guard with a gray mustache and a scar on his nose nodded in response.
"Ayur, you will bring your wagon to the Temple and wait for me." Mizra addressed the second guard.
"As you command master," the other guard replied, receiving the order.
"As for you, Vorik, you ride to our estate. You will find Mistress Venor and give her my orders. Listen carefully and memorize. 'Drop everything, gather some trusted servants, and go with Vorik to the Bael family's estate. Then follow Valtira's instructions.' Do you remember?"
"Yes, master, you may rely on me. I've memorized everything," replied the short guard holding an iron mace.
"Good, after that, you must take all the servants to the Bael family's estate in your wagon. That's it, depart."
"Well, you, Feryl, will accompany me, just in case." Mizra looked at the youngest member of the group, the only one left without orders. He was the son of one of the Orist family clerks and was not particularly strong, intelligent, or reliable. But Mizra had to take him into his service, on account of the boy's father's merit.
At that moment, Megeth returned, holding several sheets of paper a vial of ink, and a quill.
"This is all I've been able to get in this time, Master." He said holding out the writing utensils to Mizra.
"This is enough. So help me."
Immediately following orders Megeth turned around and bent over setting his back up so Mizra could use it as a desk. While Feryl took the vial of ink from his hands and acted as a holder.
After a couple of minutes, Mizra finished writing.
"Take the letter, and give it to Valtira as soon as possible. And no one but her must see it, do you understand?" Saying this Mizra handed the written pieces of paper to Megeth. Not caring to hide the contents, for none of his subordinates could read.
Bowing, Megeth ran towards Bael Manor.
Looking in the wake of the fleeing guard Mizra muttered quietly.
"All that remains is to settle the main issue..."
Looking at the last remaining guard Mizra smiled.
"Come, we still have some shopping to do."
...
A few minutes later, outside Dr. Renol's house.
A noisy crowd filled the whole street. At the head of this crowd was Hog, and on his shoulder sat Cenn. They walked this way from the very arena. And a mass of strangers accompanied them the whole time, celebrating the victory with Cenn. Boy heard some of the escorts bragging about how they had made a lot of money betting on Cenn. "Thank you all for seeing us off. But I think we'll have to part ways here." Hog addressed the crowd.
Cenn waved goodbye to everyone, and the fat man finally lowered him from his shoulder to the ground, after which they entered Renol's house together.
In the courtyard, Cenn was greeted by the servants and guards of the Bael family. Practically everyone who had accompanied him on his way to the city. Some of them even came up to congratulate him, but they kept their voices low, afraid of disturbing Aydor.
Hearing the commotion in the garden, Velin came out of the doctor's study.
"I'm glad you've returned unharmed, Cenn." He walked over to the boy and hugged him. "I'm sorry I doubted you."
"It's all right, Uncle Velin," replied Cenn with a smile.
"I think the wagon will be here soon so we can take Aydor home, but until it's here, tell me how it went."
"Yeah, that's right, time to explain how it was you were able to use three sigils in a fight," Hog smirked wickedly.
"Oh, that's what you mean, Uncle Hog. Heh, you know..."