“Woah, you went really insane on that idiot.” Hecate chirped from her seat as Iris sat at the table.

“I wouldn’t have cared if it were not for the fact he challenged me to a duel,” Iris replied. She wondered what would happen next.

“Duel, you take that stuff real seriously?”

“You don’t?” Iris asked in horror, If she had eyes, they would be as wide as a comic character.

“Ooh, you seriously were saying all that stuff; I thought it was just a way to make Reed pay. What is that creed thing anyway?”

Iris turned to Felix, hoping he at least might have an idea. She could not believe Ilona had not taught something so fundamental to Hecate.

“I-I know that duels are serious, but nothing more.”

Iris sighed; she was the one who lived in the labyrinth between ancient magic beasts and wandering ghosts. She was the weird one.

“I’ll explain. It seems our understanding of magic is different.” Iris began, “I am from the greater Labyrinth, the sixth of the greater Labyrinth, to be precise.” As she had expected, Felix was almost off his seat, with a gaping mouth that could fit her fist. Hecate, on the other hand, was madly excited; Iris could see the stars in them.

“I fought very many enemies, and most of them were more than just beasts or lone monsters; they had entire armies raised, armies big enough that it would’ve taken me a life to reach the true rulers of Labyrinth. Yet, as long as I challenged them to a duel till death, they would accept it, fight with honor, and die with dignity. Never once did a single monster try to call upon his army to save himself or run away.”

“That… so amazing!”

“The last lord I fought before leaving Labyrinth, I questioned him—why do that? I am no one; why accept a duel when I can never kill your armies?” Iris felt nostalgic, even though it had not been a month since that battle.

“He answered, ‘We are all mages blessed by Mother of Mana. To battle, conquer, and advance is our creed. To accept every duel, to show benevolence, and to die with honor is our creed. When You, who is blessed by the same Mother of Mana as myself, places her life on the line to advance, how am I worthy of denying it? How am I worthy of Mother’s blessing if I do not honor your conviction? And if I die by your hand, you who are willing to die to advance, shall I be embraced by Mother at last, my tired soul can find peace. A sinner like me can only die with dignity if it is in a duel with someone who is equal to me, with someone who is blessed by Mother. Only in a duel till death is our life, even you, who is no one, is equal to me.”

“In a duel, the one who dies is embraced by Mother of Mana, and the one who wins is favored by Mother of Mana. We are blessed, and duel makes every blessed, even a beast, equal.” Iris finished reciting the words that had not stopped echoing in her mind from the day she had heard them. Laydell, when he spoke those words, felt so far away from her, so more profound and solved than her. She felt envious, foolish, and helpless, yet was enthralled by his words.

Felix was in deep contemplation after coming down from the initial shock. Iris could imagine him giving serious thought to those words.

Hecate, however, looked at her with those big eyes that had enough fire to burn a kingdom, like she saw some sort of legendary artifact that she had always wanted. She slid her chair to her side, almost climbing on her, and took Iris’s hand in hers. “You… you’re so cool." She had tears in her eyes. “I’ve always wanted a cool big sister, and you’re the one I needed.”

Hecate pulled her into a tight hug before she could process what was happening. “And you don’t get to say no." Hecate was dangling her like a rag doll. Iris, afraid of the result if she said no, nodded. “Yipee!”

Finally, she let go of Iris. “I cannot help but wonder, What do you see? I noticed you look around when talking, but Hey! You don’t have eyes, so can you see all around or just what is in front of you?”

Iris tried to make sense of this abrupt change of topic, and it did not, but at least the question was something she could answer.

“I can see just as much as you do, just as you do. I use magic to replicate 100% normal human eyesight.” Iris did not know the truth; at least, she was told that’s what she did.

“Waaa…. Why?! If I had the power, then I would see like a bird, from the top, or maybe... In red, like everything is on fire!” Hecate choked out a laugh and tilted her seat. Iris conjured her strings and stopped her from falling.

“I never thought of that... Not everyone is a genius like you, Hella." Hearing Iris’s words, Hecate puffed out her chest.

“Finally, my genius is being appreciated. Learn from Iris, Felix.”

…

“Excuse me, Miss Iris, on behalf of the World Economic Journal, we’d like to invite you to a private interview that will be published in the next issue of Mage’s Insight.”

“Interview?”

“She will ask you a bunch of nonsense questions like earlier, then twist those words like her hair and print out whatever will get them the most drama; I suggest staying away.”

Iris nodded and turned to Felix; she wanted a reliable opinion. “I agree with Hecate.”

“I’ll pass,” Iris again tried to sound like a mature level 6 mage; the only thing she received was three people laughing at her rather than two.

“If you ever change of mind, this is my address. Write me a letter, and I’ll be there in a blink." And the journalist left.

A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

“Time to leave for Collesium is approaching,” Felix reminded Hecate, who saw a cute little animal outside the window. Iris did not know how in the dark and wanted to catch it.

“Right, and Master will be there too…” Hecate settled down, “Where is Lady Diantha?"

“She would approach us; until then, stay here.”

“Shouldn’t we leave then? She would be leaving separately,” Iris added. They had come separately, so she assumed going there would be the same.

“Naah, we will go with Lady Diantha in her carriage.”

“I see,”

Soon, Lambert left, followed by 12 people who, according to Felix, were the team that would represent Lambert. Followed by Laurent and her 12 people.

Only they were left waiting. After another five minutes, Diantha approached them.

“Sorry for the wait; I needed to remind the journalist that Lady Ilona would be hearing of events that transpire tonight, lest they fall into Insepctor’s pocket and create another mess that I’ve no energy to spare for. Shall we go?”

….

The tournament begins with an opening ceremony. The opening ceremony consisted of three things: first, the entrance of the Three Great Houses and their representatives. Second, an oath was taken by all of the people of Gracia to move forward and make Gracia even more prosperous. This oath was taken in front of the Gaint statue of First Lancaster that stood at the other side of the entrance to the coliseum and was as tall as the coliseum itself. The statue had the same distinct feeling that Lancaster’s Crest gave off.

Lancaster's Crest was a silhouette of a woman clasping her hand, which held a circular object, and there were six blue-colored orbs floating behind her.]

Finally, an opening performance by the Legion Commander of Lancaster. It was omitted this year as the commander stayed at Lancaster Estate to protect the city. Diantha had predicted a highly likely chance for a coup, both by inner rebellion and, of course, by Inspector’s instigators.

So after the oath, the first battle will begin. On the day of the opening ceremony, only three battles take place; each head of the house gets to have their representative fight one of the other two.

The tournament was divided into sixteen groups, each consisting of twelve contestants. Mainly highlighted fights between the high houses are scheduled for the nights as the main attraction; other less notable contestants would be shoved down to the daytime.

Each contestant would fight eleven battles, and the one with the highest score would qualify for the quarterfinals. Group battles would conclude at the end of the third day. After that, there would be a day of respite, then a semifinal, then another break, and finally the finals and battle for second and third place. The final day always had the highest number of viewers and a lot of drama, which kept the whole city fed on entertainment for weeks.

....

The first to make an entrance was Laurent. And 12 behind her had the highest level and combat experience; of the 12 was Rian Reed, head of the Reed family and current commander in Laurent Estate. He was also the elder brother of Brian Reed; he was who you guessed.

The entrance was simply a display of power. To whom? Not the general public, it would not bear any fruit. Then? There were few candidates. First, Empiror's eyes and ears. Second, the Mercenary Federation, and last but not least, the Great Powers, who found this event mildly entertaining. The great powers were many, but Roundtable Rivals were one of the notable ones.

Laurent walked straight, proud, and enticingly. The crowd stood to show respect. 12 behind formed a line behind Lady Laurent, their eyes gazing straight ahead, their chests puffy, and their shoulders straight. Their hands were clasped in front, and they wore a sombre expression. The mana emanating from them was enough to make the audience shiver.

Lady Laurent stopped in front of the Great Statue, She barely bent to a bow; her form showed this, too, she was unwilling. "May Mother bless us all, and may we make this city even more proud and rid it of every vermin that sullies it." Her voice reverberated through the coliseum; everyone heard it clearly, and they knew by vermin she meant only one person and their estate. Diantha Lancaster.

She continued to the stairs and took the seat to the side that represented Laurents. There was a room built atop the Coliseum with a glass front for a clear view of the fighting stage beneath.

There were two other rooms of the same type, based on the color of each house. Regular contestants sat below. Facilities for them were not bad; after all, they were all high-level mages.

A single elimination round was hosted to clear out all low levels in the beginning. Then a battle royal to choose out more noticeable ones, and finally preliminary fights between enough contestants that would, after a single round of elimination, leave the desired number of contestants to fill all sixteen groups.

The second to come was Lord Lambert. He wore a solemn expression along with his representative. Forming a similar line to Laurent and his presence. Although he had yet to show animosity against Lancaster, people somehow believed he was against them. He had not once made a point to deny those claims. Others believed he cared little about such drama.

“May Mother bless us all; may the light that shines upon our precious home never waver,” and he left.

Diantha stood at the entrance; she would be next to make the walk down the path and greet the statue.

“Should we also appear like them?” Hella asked. She was not told to do anything beforehand, and she was not going to do anything that would make her look like a fool.

“There’s no need. They require their representative’s presence to show their power, for they lack it themselves. Your lady doesn’t. So just walk with me, like you have always had.”

“Yup!” Hecate declared enthusiastically.

“As you say, my lady,” Felix added, he’s been quiet and tense for the most part. He was a Level 3 and most likely to be eliminated. Even if he was the youngest level three in the tournament, And the fourth-youngest contestant.

“Let’s go.” Diantha stepped on the first step of the stairs. The sound of the clink coming from her sandal meeting the solid floor overwhelmed every sound in the Coliseum. Iris again felt the same shivering sensation; it was a power beyond just mana, something far more profound and deeper.

KTOK

Only the first step was magical; the following were just, well, steps. But the silence made them audible to everyone’s ears. Everyone in the Coliseum stood at the same time.

Iris and others followed behind Diantha. She tried to keep her shoulders tight and puffy, but felt more embarrassed than anything. Hecate’s smile told her that she was enjoying it and that Felix was in his zone, being Knight and all.

Diantha’s presence was something that made people keep silent in reverence; not even twelve mighty representatives were able to make the crowd awe this much.

She stopped in front of the statue. She clasped her hand and made a bow, one that felt like it was done with great respect.

“We are children of Great Ruler Gracia Lancaster, and we are family... Let no one ever break the bonds we, the children of Gracia, share. May the years lessen the yearning cloud that threatens to usurp the peace we hold.”

“I’m a daughter of this kingdom, the last of Lancaster. I was born with the duty to watch over this kingdom and its people and make it prosperous. I have done that, even if it was with the blood of my own family. I am the Ruler of Gracia, and to make this kingdom and its people's lives more prosperous, no price is too great. Be it the Three Houses, the Lancaster Family, or myself, I am willing to sacrifice all of it for the sake of Gracia. No deed done for Gracia is a crime, and I am not bound to answer anyone but the people of Gracia.” Diantha paused for a second. She straightened and fixed her dress. “Place your hands on your heart and take the oath that every child of Gracia must take.”

Diantha placed her hand on her heart, and Hella and Felix followed suit. Iris, though uncertain, followed. Everyone followed after another moment.