"BEGIN!" The attendant announced.

All six reacted at the same time. Two steps forth; each with visibly stronger physiques and wielding a tower shield, as well as a different weapon. They'll be Pikey and Axey. One runs to the side, she shall be Stabby. The last three stayed protected behind their tanks, all three holding a staff of differing design and ornaments; uhh~, they shall be Red, Blue and Green, like the color on their staffs. But not to be mistaken for the protagonist of a monster catching, old adventure game.

My eyes had mostly been on the tanks and it did not occur to me that there would be women… stabby was quick to approach me from the side while Pikey and Axey steadily march in for a frontal assault. Not comfortable with inflicting violence upon the opposite gender, I gently kick Stabby who is coming in for a sneaky stab, just strong enough to send her off stage. Oh the novel looks on their faces; both my opponents and their leaders.

Three spells are shot at my torso from behind both tanks; a Water Bullet, a Fire Bolt, and a ball of thorn—this spell I do not recognize. Now, why they shoot at the only armored section of my body eludes me. But I allow all three spells to hit, causing them to fade uselessly on my armor's mana barrier. Blink. One of the spellcasters; Green, is sent flying off the stage. And with that the stage is set. First of all, I repositioned myself to be in between both spellcasters, giving each of their main hands a finger flick.

As expected, they dropped their staff due to receiving a newly broken arm. During the moment when they react in pain; one with a yell and the other a grunt. I Blinked to Pikey, to the blindspot hidden by his own exaggerated shield; metal reinforced but mostly made of wood, easily enough destroyed with a kick. I made sure to miss the shield arm. Then it's Axey's turn.

He was prepared, which only meant he lost his axe instead… "If you're no longer using an axe, are you still Axey. I ask him." The instant before I blink away to my initial starting position.

"Remember, Zen! No deaths!!" Henry reminded me. Rather perfectly timed to subtly intimidate them.

"Wait! Who's Axey? Were you referring to me?" That made me chuckle.

"Not anymore." I decided to Taunt him further. "Now you're Shieldy."

He looks at his shield, then at his shieldless friend. "I assume he is Speary? Pikey?"

"Pikey is right."

"And them? Firey? Watery?" He points at the spell casters with his chin.

"Well, I figured they were Red and Blue." I say, entertaining his questions. "It is obvious now, but I had not guessed their preferred elements before they shot me… on the only armored part of my body." I added with a chuckle.

Shieldy silently eyes me with a suspicious squint before asking, "what level did you say you are again?"

"Never mentioned it," I tell him. "But if it helps, it had just turned 26 last night."

Another squint. "Like during a last spurt since you're just about there before you ended your day or..?"

He left the question hanging. "Nah, I was grinding for exp the whole night."

"And you had enough sleep?" Smart this one. He seems to be catching on to the fact that I need much less sleep than normal, which translate to higher Constitution… ah, he probably invested heavily in that exact same attribute.

"Yes." I grin widely.

"We surrender!" he said to the attendant, then turned to yell at the leaders sitting on the distant seats. "We are way too much below his level of power. See," he points at the two women in his team standing outside of the stage, then at the broken objects. "He was obviously toying with us… and I expect Sol to compensate us for our broken gears?"

"Why are we giving up?" I hear red, the fire mage said to Shieldy, the team leader as they walk off the stage. Though any further conversation were drowned out due to our distance growing increasingly farther and the ambient noise of training. There was a pause at the partly unexpected development, I was expecting them to be careful after finding out about my greater strength, not bail out entirely and so decisively.

"Uh, so what now?" I look to Henry for answers, noticing a wild grinning Billy.

"Now we negotiate!" The grinning multi-billionaire entrepreneur said excitedly! But, as it turned out, we did not… The unconvinced leaders sent some VICOS texts then did some stalling and soon, I find myself once again standing on the combat stage, before another one of their team. This one with much younger members; another mix of six people. A bunch of confident guys, with only one timid woman, the sister of their team leader. She is very predictably the team's healer.

Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

"Ready to be brought down?" Their leader taunts, "don't worry. I'll make sure to spare you with an inch of your pitiful life?"

The only response I return for those kind words is a grin. Trying to use my own words back at me?

—

"BEGIN!" The same attendant announced again.

The leader guy that is geared in standard but simpler knight-like attire: an inner chainmail, outer chest plate, pauldrons, vambraces gauntlets, as well as a kilt that only shows parts of his greaves and sabatons. The longsword he brandishes as he rushes at me has a very obvious gem embeded on to its guard. The blades of his sword bursts into flame right as he swings it at me.

I allow it to hit my shoulder armor, causing a muffled clank of metal hitting another metal but with a thin layer of soft material. Not a scratch can be seen on my armor's surface, the fire too, dissolved ineffectually. A look of disbelief bloomed on Mr. Confident's face, he proceeded to spout nonsense; something about being the best team, and all the resources he had consumed, and how a magic knight build like him is the de facto most powerful choice there is. I gave him a minute before I gently begin pummeling him until his own sister will not recognize him, ignoring any incoming attack that is probably a lot of attempts done by his party to save him from me. Furthermore, his sister's helping heals only made it worse for him. Not that she notices, nor did I give him the chance to inform her.

I had to hold back a lot! And found it was easier to simply slap him to cause dreadful looking damage to the surface of his skin than throw a punch which would cause stronger impacts and could break bones. Once I was done with him, which I decided to be when he stopped putting up any kind of struggle even with the heals gifted by his timid sister. And then, I simply sent the other guys out of bounds with a single hit each, interspaced between Blinks. Lastly, I look at the girl and ask, "are you gonna get off the stage yourself or should I?"—I swear she also Blinked with how fast she ran off the stage, up the benches and right into the bosom of an elderly lady… Crying!

"Uh, did I go too far?" I ask my friends beside the stage, beginning to notice that I am currently standing before a groaning, visibly injured guy... I Unsoil myself with haste. Spammed Lesser Heal on him and actually Blinked off stage. "Don't worry, he's fine~."

"He better be!" The elderly granny said, a girl trying not so effectively to hide behind her, being taller and all… the other 6 Russian leaders are not far behind. "That's my grandchild you just trashed."

"What makes you think we will agree to your invitations? When all this" he gestures to the grandchild over there, better but still on the ground. "is what you do to your allies!"

Henry stepped forth and was about to answer when I cut him off from where I am standing, these guys are kinda annoying.. "You're mistaken. What allies? Relations between us are currently neutral at best. Note that we are the one petitioning to change that into something closer to a positive relation. He, on the other hand, was my enemy the moment our fight began. An enemy you choose to present before me." I let my words sink in. "Now you have another choice—"

Shape Stone… the wall of their training grounds on all sides, which is maybe 50 to 70 meters away from where we stand, melts down. Revealing several hundred combatants each immobilized within a coffin of stone that had just grown out of the ground; their own walls are now protecting their opponents… five of which are instantly geared in full body armor. "—choose wisely."

In for a penny, in for a pound. During the silence, as an extra show of force, I released a Beam Torrent I had ready. Forming the Early Mastery barrel on my left hand. Aiming at one of their wooden target dummies. I shot five salvos; first, 29 beams of fire which caused one to burn into ashes. The next got wind-pierced full of holes, then earthen beams smashed one other dummy into pieces. Another one is charred and burning from the passage of lightning, and the last turned into a porcupine of icicles. This all happened within the span of less than a minute.

"Show off!" Kirana whispered at me from nearby. I shot her a grin in response.

Of course any further discussions fall away thereafter. They were planning to intimidate—maybe ambush us, and we returned in kind. As we are promptly requested to leave, and very eagerly escorted out. Billy used the chance to extend an olive branch, "hey! As an apology allow us to provide one of your team with the spell that creates our armor. Please have them meet us when they're ready," he spoke in the direction of their seven leaders. "Oh, and we might have started off on the wrong foot, so our invitation still stands."

"We shall convene and inform you of our decision, tomorrow." Crying girl's grandmother said very seriously, "please expect someone to visit your abode in the morn."

—

"That could have gone better." Roy said the moment his unarmored butt touches his favorite seat of one day.

"Could've gone worse too," Billy added. "I dare think they were half a step away from attacking us, so what Zen did is; while not the best, is also not the worst course of action."

"If it were me, I wouldn't have done it the way he did." Henry said, then looked at me. "Maybe be less violent next time. Don't beat someone up so badly, we did mention it to affect their minds, but you didn't have to pull through. And you could have simply sealed all entrances rather than the movements of several hundred people. For example…"

"Beating up that kid was fine, he was too confident for his own good." Billy argued, "what if instead of Zen here, he antagonized a dragon… though I agree that you went too far. So a dragon might be the better option" He added, pointing a finger at me in jest.

"Sorry guys, him using my own words against me just rubbed me the wrong way." I scratch my head. Seeing some grins and several disapproving shakes of the head.

"As for how to handle the hidden soldiers," Billy continued. "I would have given subtle clues to tell them that I have figured out their plan, and at the same time, give them subtle hints as to how bad of an idea that is."

"Ah, too complicated!" Roy complained then made a joke, making us laugh at how bad it was… we chatted until they needed to rest and I am once again left to my own device.

5 Attribute Points to spend. Then I can get back to designing a spell that will silently cause the demise of my foes. "Muahahaha!"

Kirana: Stop it with the creepy laugh!

Billy: Trying to sleep here nutcase!