Ten minutes after our victory in the finals, Cerion and I were ushered to a small podium that had been erected in the arena. Arcellus' and Karon’s team joined us as we stood before the Royal booth, awaiting the king’s announcement, before the rest of the top sixteen teams gathered in the arena.

Arcellus didn’t seem as incensed as I had expected. He looked grim, to be sure, but calm. Much calmer than he had been at the end of our match, at least. The fact that he was following us to the podium must have meant that he had secured third place, while Karon’s team came in second.

Many of us were still in bandages, Arcellus’ servant being covered by them entirely. While the dedicated healers of the capital were nothing to scoff at, they could only heal serious wounds so quickly.

Thankfully, Cerion seemed to be healing just fine from the wounds he had accrued during the doubles tournament. As for me, did you even have to ask? My armor was wrecked, to be sure, but the rest of me was pristine.

Honestly, the whole idea of armor was starting to bug me. What was even the point when I healed so quickly anyway? At least it was cheap, by tier 2 standards.

My thoughts were interrupted by the appearance of his majesty the king. The giant that resembled a lion if you squinted, pushed the drapes of his booth out of the way to reveal himself, his cloak floating in the wind.

As he appeared, the arena became dead silent. The king was a renowned figure, a tier 6 classer that had been ruling the kingdom for longer than most of its citizens had been alive. For them, he was a myth, a legend. As a result, they showed him the proper respect.

When he spoke, all heard him, even though he didn’t speak that loudly.

“Ah. Youth. With every iteration of this little tourney, I am reminded of this word’s significance. It represents growth. Change. Out with the old, in with the new. It’s easy to forget that all is temporary, when you live for a long time. Young warriors, you have once again proven that the future belongs to the younger generations! Your strength, courage and valor have shown all those present and all those watching from a distance what it means to rise above the average! What it means to supersede the expected! What the path to greatness looks like!”

He lifted a hand, allowing the audience to make noise again. In response to his speech, they cheered, cried and shouted. While most here would never rise above expectations like we had, never be able to call themselves great, they were still caught in the narrative that the king had spun. While his speech might have placed a lot of focus on the few that rise above, and ignored those that remain below, I couldn’t fault him for it. This was a world where personal power ruled. Entire empires rose and fell purely based on the strength of one or several people. What the kingdom needed wasn’t a thousand tier 5’s. It needed just a few more tier 6s.

He lowered his hand again, quieting the crowd.

“In third place, team A9. Peter Arcellus and Sir Aleph, step forward.”

They did so, and gave a deep bow.

“In this category, you have shown immense power, and your team managed to secure third place. Be careful not to forget about your cohesion as a team, however. As a reward for your placement, you will each receive a weapon created by one of the royal smiths, as well as a reward of 12000 gold pieces, to be split amongst the two of you. I hope to see you in the single tournament as well. Especially, you, young Arcellus. Now step onto the podium.”

Arcellus and his knight approached the raised platform and stepped onto it. The announcer appeared from the sidelines with two bronze medals, which he put on their necks with elegant motions.

The crowd cheered them on and gave an applause for their performance, though it was a little subdued. Maybe his fiery display that had nearly torched the arena had scared them off.

The knight gave a deep bow to the audience, but Arcellus clearly couldn’t be bothered. He just stared off into space with a listless look, as if none of this mattered to him anymore.

The king lowered his hand again, asking for silence.

“In second place, team A2. Karon and X, step forward.”

“Your prowess, tactics and versatility allowed you to make it far in this tournament. Don’t forget, however, that a team is made up of two people. That means that both of you need to be capable of making decisions on the fly, rather than relying on predetermined decisions. No plan survives first contact with the enemy.. As your reward, you will each receive a trinket, handmade by the royal smiths, as well as 25000 gold pieces, to be split amongst you. Now take the number two placement on the podium.”

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Again, the crowd cheered as they stepped onto the podium.

“Now, time for the most impressive team to join this doubles tournament. Team A3, Cerion Rass and Arthur, step forward.”

“Your team has shown outstanding performances on all fronts. You are both very talented classers, who came in first undisputedly. I have to warn you both, however, not to rely on each other’s company overly much in the future. You are both very powerful for your tier, and journeying together can be very gratifying. However, no person reaches their full potential without struggle. Sometimes, facing challenges by oneself is the only way to progress.”

“For your victory, you will each receive the opportunity to loan one item from the third level of the imperial vault, which you may use for 100 years. Fret not, in the case of your death, it will be returned to the vault automatically.” he said, with a grin full of teeth.

“On top of that, you will receive 50000 gold pieces, to be split amongst the two of you. Now join the other competitors on the podium, and take your rightful place in the center.” he finished.

He didn’t have to tell us twice. I had to hold myself back from sprinting onto the raised platform, telling all who would listen that I had won. That I was powerful. As I noticed this inclination, I quickly pushed it back down, knowing it to be my affinity-fueled pride.

Cerion and I stepped up, and bowed deeply, first to the king, then to the audience, who gave us the loudest applause yet.

I grinned. It seemed that they had all but forgotten about the threat I posed. For now, at least.

I took that happy thought all the way home, to my bed in the guild, where I fell asleep the moment my head struck the pillow. Today had been a good day.

~scene transition~

Suddenly, I woke from my dreams with a start. Something heavy had landed on my stomach, and was pinning me down. My eyes shot open and I went for my sword that I kept at my bedside. I was halfway done swinging it, when I noticed just who had ‘attacked’.

“Michael, what are you doing? Don’t wake me like that! I could have damn near killed you!” I asked him, as he bounced up and down excitedly.

“Don’t be a spoilsport, Arthur! You won! You won the tournament!” he replied with wide eyes and a bright smile.

I sighed and lifted him off of myself, lifting my body to a sitting position.

“We won one of the nine possible categories, yes. One of the two we’re signed up for, actually. You can’t just call that ‘winning the tournament’.” I said, rubbing my eyes.

“So… you lost…” he asked sadly.

I looked at him incredulously. This guy had gotten into a royal school?

“No, you idiot! We won, obviously.”

Instead of replying, he ran into the living room, singing something along the lines of ‘Arthur won the entire tournament, Arthur says he won the entire tournament…’

“Damn brat. That was his intent all along? Damn.” I sighed to myself, before preparing myself for another day. The singles tournament would start the next day, which meant that I had to be in shape for another round of fighting.

As I entered the living room, Doran entered as well, carrying some fresh bread in a basket and setting it down on the table.

When he noticed me, he greeted me.

“Ah, Arthur. I went to visit my father this morning and thought to bring some fresh breakfast while I was at it. He was impressed by your performance yesterday, especially when he saw some of the swordsmanship that I tend to use. I told him about me being your mentor, you see.”

I smiled and grabbed a honey-filled bun, munching down on it. It sure was convenient, having some inroad into the church. Especially when, you know, you were the antithesis to the church in almost every way. Wait a minute… had Andross set me up with Doran as a mentor to mollify the church? That old man had been planning this from the start! Devious old bugger… Well, since it benefitted me, I wasn’t about to complain.

I turned my attention from the sweet taste of my honey bun to Doran.

“So… how’s that coming along? You and your father, I mean.”

He smiled slightly, before letting out a small sigh.

“Typical of you to ask such a tactless question. I suppose I’ve come to expect this of you. My relationship with my father has been… recovering. When first we talked a few days ago, it was like I had never left. Now, it’s a little more awkward, though. Sometimes we don’t find anything to talk about and fall silent. That wouldn’t be so bad, if it wasn’t for the guilty look on my father’s face in those moments.” Doran said quietly.

Realizing my mistake, I paused.

“...Sorry.” I said.

“Oh, think nothing of it. I don’t blame you. Anyway, I think I should go wake Cerion, before he sleeps through the next category of the tournament.” he said with a light smile, before getting up.

A short breakfast later, I decided to visit the old codger’s underground shack. Rashid, the guild head, always seemed to welcome my company anyway. Much to my own displeasure, I didn’t exactly dislike his, either. Something about that old man’s energy was infectious.

~scene transition~

“Ah, Arthur, my boy! Good show I say, good show! Fantastic job yesterday, you really showed those mercs whose boss!” he said, shadowboxing around his couch as he did so.

“Can I keep this sword, then?” I asked halfheartedly, pointing at the tier 4 sword he had loaned me for the tournament.

“But of course! As long as you win the next one as well! Or get into the finale, at least. There are some strong competitors, after all, hohoho!” he said with glee, rubbing his bony hands together.

My eyebrows lifted in surprise.

“Really? Even after yesterday’s showing you don’t know who will win the next category?”

That was surprising, especially since I had even used my trump cards in those final few fights. I had even used my mana intrusion, which the guild head, as a tier 6, wouldn’t have missed.

“Right, right! That monk boy and the church girl are both pretty tough, with their own fun rules to follow! Your build definitely holds an inherent advantage over more basic, inert ones, but don’t think your competitors will play by the rules either! You saw what Arcellus was capable of last time! Now imagine another three or four people with similar strength, that haven’t completed yet. Less than half of the seeded participants participated in the doubles tournament, after all.” He said warningly, waving a finger in the air. He started to spin it around when he noticed I was following his movement, so I quickly snapped out of it.

“Anyway, on to more important matters…” he said dangerously, in a half whisper. His face twisted into one of glee just as quickly as the opposite had happened, however.

“Want to see my rock collection?” he asked with a child’s innocence.

“Maybe later…” I replied; before running away. I wasn’t a coward. Some things were just too scary to deal with twice. No one man should have all that power… or all those petrified animal turds, in this case.