The rest of us returned to our rented room to recuperate. Healina practically squeezed the air out of every single one of us -- except Belle, whom she was more delicate with. Once our Sea Elf healer had finished ravishing us with affection we sat together in a heap on a couch and she sighed in relief.

“I was nervous when they separated you all.” she remarked.

“S-same,” Ariana smiled back. “Belle and I managed to do that run-and-gun thing without dying, though, and then we somehow saved Maryn and Anhe from a group of players and some random monster.”

“That was an epic save.” our healer nodded. “Though not as dramatic as watching Lana get hurled into the fray, only to be beaten to the punch by the one who hurled her!” she said with a big grin.

“That nearly took years off my life.” I grimaced.

“I can hear Lizzy cackling now,” Anhe smiled.

“Oh she'll howl. I saved it just for her.” Heali nodded.

“Pfffft!” Belle snickered.

“That dress not changing size with you is a serious design flaw, by the way.” the Sea Elf girl remarked, gently patting Belle on the head.

“Right?!” the other girl squeaked back. “I mean I guess I knew it would happen, since it always does... do you think anyone saw anything?”

“Lana and Lysandra kept you covered in that regard.” the other girl said.

“Phew!”

“Speaking of losing clothes, we never tried that big bath we have in our room.” Maryn remarked casually.

“Oh you're right!” Ariana said, getting up and pulling me off the couch with her.

“Huh?” I said as she did.

“Let's go set it up!” she grinned at me, pulling me along.

Right. I'm gonna skip a bit. After our impromptu but very relaxing (and shenanigan-filled) bath, we put on some nice casual wear and went out into the city to find a restaurant or tavern to celebrate our successful entry. We ran into Jannie and her guildies again, along with Wildeye, Tyman, and some of theirs, and decided to head for one of the larger restaurants in the Market District, where we found Angelfire and her guildies as well. A few more familiar faces turned up, making it one huge post-prelim celebration.

Lizzy actually turned up a couple minutes after midnight; her shift had ended around eleven-thirty and she had nearly been caught speeding on the way home, but now she was somehow completely re-energized and ready to party with us.

“I knew you'd make it!” she declared, gently thumping Ariana and me on the back.

“By the skin of our teeth,” I said with a laugh.

“Ooh...! Tell me more,” the Nordian halberdier said as she took one of the ale-mugs from a tray that was offered to us. I took one as well, but Ari already had a glass of something.

We talked at length about the highlights of the event, during which Lysandra showed up to add her own anecdotes and perspective on it. Lizzy seemed most interested in the part where we set up traps in that random desert bunker, or whatever it had been. As Healina expected, when she was shown my grand entrance in rejoining the others with Lysandra she cackled appreciatively. The werewolf girl grinned over at us.

“She's fun to mess with, isn't she?” Lizzy beamed over at her, wrapping an arm around me as I affected a wry smile.

“True. And she also comes through when needed, just like the rest of you.” the other girl agreed.

“Aw, shucks, you'll have to lose the bet so I can prove myself to you on that count.” the blonde girl quipped.

“Even if I win it I'll get to see it.” the darker-haired girl smirked back.

“Sure! But I know who's gonna be standing at the top when this thing is over!” Lizzy said confidently, gently shaking me.

“Hrrmm...!” Ari pouted.

“If you say so!” Lysandra returned, raising her mug.

At that moment we heard a series of wild howls, but it was a howling of human voices. The Mountain Tigers were having their own toast of victory on the other side of the restaurant.

“A Tiger! A Tiger!” Wildeye and his friends cheered.

“Angelfire!” someone from the Flamehearts guild cried out, and the rest of them began chanting her name as well. Apparently, she had been the only one of her guild's group to survive the labyrinth.

“As expected of her,” Jannie grinned as they continued chanting her name in response to the Tigers' chant. Tyman then came over to us, a big grin on his face.

“Yo, Lans, you see those brackets yet?” he called over to me, pulling up a panel.

“Hmm?” I asked him, and he turned it to face me. He highlighted his name and mine. We were going to be each other's second fight, if we made it past our initial opponents.

“Sunday or Monday, sister! Sunday or Monday.” he grinned fiercely at me.

“You're on!” I grinned back, and we clanked our mugs together, taking a huge swig in toast.

“Hmm? But who's your first fight?” Lysandra wondered.

“I got some wizard or something that scraped by in the prelims and just barely held on in that last prank,” Tyman remarked.

“Nice. And you, Lana?” the werewolf-girl asked me. I looked back at the panel that Tyman still had up. I nearly choked when I saw the name written on that first bracket.

Lana -- Ariana.

“W-wha... whoa...” Tyman remarked in surprise when he saw it. “Yo... that's wack...”

“Tough luck, kiddos,” Lizzy said sympathetically.

I felt my hand lose its grip on the mug, and it went tumbling to the floor. I slid off the bar-stool numbly, mechanically walking towards the door. I think Ariana tried to call my name, but somebody must have kept her from coming after me all at once. There were probably other people trying to get my attention so that I would snap out of this sudden funk, but I couldn't hear them. I reached the door, my chest heaving with silent and stifled sobs, then opened it and rushed out into the streets. A scream wanted to leave my mouth, but it got choked back by a flood of tears instead.

***

I don't know how I ended up where I did. All I know is that, somehow, though I was nearly blinded by my tears, I knocked on a vaguely familiar door, and was let inside. Down the two flights of stairs I rushed, locking myself in a private room, and then giving vent to the hurt that had built up inside.

Not Ari... not Ari.. not her... it's not fair, it's not! It's not fair!

I'm not exactly sure how much time passed. I know that at the end of my (arguably reasonable) tantrum, I was too tired to even move. I caught sight of myself in a mirror; you're a complete wreck, I thought at once, still sniffling. A new but lesser wave of tears streamed down my face, and then I heard a knock.

You can unlock a door one of two ways here. You can get up and do it manually, or you can use a voice command to let the person knocking inside. I was too stressed and shaken to do the former.

“Come in.” I said in a voice of resignation. The door opened. Lysandra came in, locking the door behind her again as she came over and sat next to me. I felt her hand on my back, moving gently up and down. I felt another wave of sobs ripple up and burst out. She sat there the entire time, waiting until they had finished, and then I leaned on to her.

“I'm sorry.” she whispered in a voice far softer than she usually used. “I didn't expect that at all. We can call off the bet if you want. I didn't want to make you fight your precious partner.” she told me sincerely.

“What did Ari say?” I asked her in a ragged voice.

“She hasn't said anything. She's back at the tavern, being consoled by the others. She's just as hurt as you are that they set the match that way. But what can you do about it? Petition? They'll laugh at you. Quit? You worked so hard to get here, even for each other's sake it seems silly to throw this all away. It's still just a game. Deep down, I'm sure you both realize that, and are secretly or even subconsciously eager to try your skills against each other.” Lysandra told me.

“Is it just a game?” I wondered. “There are places where it's so far beyond a game; sure, it's basically a game, but for some of us it's all too real. Not everyone can separate themselves from it enough to think about it logically.”

“And here I thought you were brighter than the average bear,” Lysandra quipped in a gentle voice, softly ruffling my hair. “You really are completely devoted to it, huh? I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad one. But... right now, it's okay. It's okay to be upset about this. Just remember it's not the end of the world, and that something like this would have happened eventually in one of these tournaments.”

“I guess...” I sniffled. She let a moment of silence pass, calmly stroking my hair.

“So, how's this gonna go?” the older girl then said.

“I think... I think I need to talk with Ari.”

“That's the least you should do.” Lysandra said, patting my head. “And what about our wager?”

“… Let me decide after talking with her.” I replied after a moment, and she patted my back.

“Sure. But first, let's clean you up a bit, huh?” she returned, helping me to my feet.

She then led me out of the room, where I received another bath (though I was almost sure Ari hadn't or wasn't getting this kind of treatment), and then we set out to make our way back through the winding streets of Harmonia City to the tavern in the market district. As I looked around, I wasn't exactly sure how or why my hurried feet had let me to the underground sauna and baths.

“I was kind of surprised you wandered back here, but not completely.” my companion said as we left the building in question. “Hmm... it was a good thing, though. You were a serious mess.” she continued, and my face scrunched up at the words.

“Sorry...” I mumbled. She smiled, and before thirty minutes had passed we were back at the tavern.

It was still lively, and Lysandra gently shoved me through the crowds to where Ari and the others were. She then picked me up and sat me in the empty chair next to my partner, and then nodded her head to the other girls, who got up and went with her to mingle in the crowds, leaving the two of us to ourselves. I could see Ariana had been crying as well. The first thing we did was to wrap each other in a warm hug, holding each other tightly as yet another wave of tears fell from our eyes.

“I'm not gonna be hurt. It's just a match, after all,” she eventually said to me.

“I guess... but it really stings,” I told her.

“That means a lot.” she replied. I squeezed her for a moment, and then we let go, taking each other's hands and looking the other in the eyes. She smiled at me. “I'm not confident I can hold you off for long though!” she said with a faint giggle.

“Th-that's my line,” I said at once. “We never sparred against each other, but we were always watching each other. We know each other's weaknesses, and now...”

“Now we have to exploit them instead of helping the other disguise them,” she nodded.

“Y-yeah...” I softly groaned, but she only pulled my face close and kissed me. I kissed her back, and then we locked eyes again.

“I promise to do it as painlessly as possible if I get an opening; and you'd better promise me the same.” she told me.

“I don't know how painless I can make it, but I'll try.” I replied to her, and she grinned.

“You'll find a way.”

“I-I'll make it up to you somehow...”

“I know you will. But you don't have to punish yourself.”

“I love you.”

“I love you more.”

“I love you most.” I quipped back.

“And I'll always love you more than that.” she smiled. We kissed again, and then she gave me a mischievous look. “So what did Sandra do?” she asked me.

“San--? Oh, Lysandra,” I quickly figured out. “Just the big sister kind of thing... complete with the part where she made me wash up...” I recalled, and Ari giggled again.

“And what about the wager?” she asked me.

“Hrrmm...” I sighed, thinking about it again.

“I'm still kind of mad about it... but I also want you to go through with it.” she told me. “That's really contradictory, huh?” she laughed.

“M-maybe,” I replied with a soft shrug, grinning back. “I guess... I guess I don't have any real problem going through with it... just...” I then said, and she nodded back.

“I totally get it. It shook me up a little, too,” Ari said.

“Yeah,” I returned.

“Well, what's the verdict, boss?” Lizzy said as she rejoined us with another mug in her hand. “We all good?”

“Ari and I are good.” I replied with a faint grin, and she beamed at us happily.

“Good!”

“And our wager?” Lysandra said as she reappeared, leaning against one of the wooden columns nearby.

“I'm still up for it if you are,” I said to her.

“Of course,” she replied to me. “Though... I think certain conditions can be dropped. Don't think too hard about which ones I mean.” she then told me. It took a second, but I understood her meaning.

“F-fair enough.” I returned.

“Oh, but just to poke you with a stick a little more...” she said, bringing up the match panel. Her second match was against someone I knew very well, someone who had stood shoulder to shoulder with me several weeks ago in-game, and who would likely continue to be a loyal friend as long as we played the game.

Lysandra -- Wildeye.

“Good luck.” I said to her in a tone meant to dissuade her from confidence, but she only smirked.

“If I back down from or lose against a fake-werebeast like him, I'll change my race.” she gently quipped, and stalked off into the crowds once more.

After a while, the party finally died down, and when those of us who were in the tournament had raised our glasses and mugs in one last toast for the night we all headed off to our separate--well, mostly separate accommodations. The seven of us who were now sharing a room then plomped down in that same room, thoroughly worn out from either the event or the after party, or both.

“Welp, I'll see you tomorrow afternoon. Looks like all of the important matches start around eight, so I won't have to watch recordings again this time!” Lizzy said.

“We'll see you tomorrow, then!” Ariana said as the blonde girl logged out.

One by one, the others also logged out, until it was just me and Ariana left. We shared a silent hug, holding on to each other for several long minutes. Even if I could have thought of something to say, it was definitely one of those moments where it would be wrong to say anything. When the moment ended, she smiled at me again, and I smiled back. The two of us then logged out together, returning to the real world for the night.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

Saturday morning was spent doing some things around the house for most of the day. A couple of times I had a video-chat with Rachel, and we talked together while doing things around our respective residences. The afternoon passed slowly; I actually sat outside for a while, watching the leaves in the backyard trickle down on autumn's breeze from their former perches. It was calming, somehow.

I got called in for an early dinner about an hour later, and after this I headed upstairs to my room, deciding to log in early. The room was empty when I got there. Of course it is, I said to myself. Lizzy-Ellie was still at work, and Heali-Andrea and Ari-Rachel were dealing with the former's second cousins until their parents came to pick them up. Maryn was probably doing one of the many assignments she had to do, and Anhe wouldn't be on until at least fifteen minutes before eight.

I wonder what time Sky Belle or Lysandra will get on, I wondered. In response to my inaudible query, a small figure materialized a mere three seconds later, and the blue pixie girl appeared.

“Oh, Lana!” she said excitedly, fluttering over to hover near my face.

“Hey, Belle!” I replied.

“Into anything yet?” the blue-haired girl asked me.

“Not yet, I just got on,” I told her.

“Same... well, you knew that!” she grinned. “Don't hurry into college if you're not prepared for it... but anyway. Wanna go shopping? I think I need to find some sort of tunic or something for emergencies...” she said with a faint blush.

“Oh, s-sure! Can't have you losing your clothes all the time... that would end up being a tired gag,” I nodded back, and she giggled.

“True! Okay, let's go to the Market District then!” Belle said, and off we went. It was fairly early in Panarena, but fortunately, even though most of the game's NPCs functioned on a typical day-and-night schedule, a lot of the shops were always open.

“Still,” I remarked as we exited the inn and made our way through the streets, “It's kinda hard to believe you've gotten this far without making some sort of contingency for that,” I said with a bashful grin. She cutely chuckled back, settling in on my shoulder.

“Wellll, I usually do it where no one sees me, or in a bathhouse or such,” she replied, “But since I'm going to be joining you girls I figured I should at least do that much!”

“It must've been a chore leveling so high on just racial skills,” I then said.

“A bit; but things like pixies and werebeasts have an easier time with it than a Gael or a Wood Elf.”

“They are more conducive to it,” I agreed.

“Very!” Belle nodded.

“Is it pure pixie skills, or do you have some of the regular magic ones?”

“Pure pixie so far. I've been looking at some of the magic skill trees since I started playing, but I don't feel like any of them are right for my style.”

“That's what it comes down to in the end,” I nodded. “Especially in this world.”

“Oh def!” she replied. “I remember my grandma talking about all of the pre-VR virtual chat spaces and worlds that came out earlier in this century; she used to be one of the hippest, on-top-of-it users in every one of them. But this world has totally gone beyond them!”

“Right?” I said as we walked through a busy side-street similar to the one where the Panda-man was working his food stand.

None of those places Belle had referred to were actual games, per se; they were pretty much as she had described them, being elaborate social networks that weren't always used as social networks but more as a sub-reality for its users to explore a hidden self, masking their identities instead of showing people who they were. They never really went away, by the way. I heard somewhere that there were now companies seeking to retro-fit and redesign those old worlds so they would be compatible with devices like the Dream Machine. Good luck, I thought to myself with a bemused grin. Even I know that coding and programming and such that was over fifty to sixty years old would be hard to revamp at this stage, even if it was still going fairly strong.

We passed through the gates to the Market District a couple minutes later, and then Belle gently nudged me. I looked over at her. She had an expression of concern on her face.

“Are you gonna be okay tonight?” she softly asked. A weak smile crossed my face.

“We both agreed to go through with it,” I said.

“That's not what I asked, silly.” Belle gently scolded me. I let the question hang for a brief moment, turning towards one of the streets that I remembered having a few clothing vendors, and then let out a sigh.

“I don't know...” I replied honestly. She softly patted my cheek. “But better something like this than actually ending up in a fight, I guess,” I then said.

“Ooh, good answer!” the pixie girl clapped. “Just be sure not to use any overkill moves, then!” she said, and I had to crack a smile.

“I-I'll try,” I returned. “Oh, what about this one?” I said, pointing to a small clothes shop on our left.

“Hmm? Ah! That looks good, let's try it!” she replied. And so we entered our first shop.

In the end we visited nearly ten shops in all, revisiting three of them that had what Belle was looking for. They were all fairly simple dress-tunics, mostly blue in color but when I made a comment that one of the pink ones might suit her pretty well (it really did, by the way) she went for that one, too. And of course she got a few for her normal pixie self as well. We then went to eat at a cafe, watching everyone go by from a corner of the plaza we were occupying.

“If I get higher levels, I'll be able to extend the time I can be human-size. I just never thought of raising the skill's level until recently,” she told me.

“How long could it go at max level?” I wondered.

“Hmm...” Belle mused, bringing up her skills panel. “Rank Nine, the final rank of that skill, would put me at twenty-four hours. But it'll cost soo many points to get there...” she said with a groan.

“Which is why you focused on combat and debuff skills,” I then smiled.

“True!” she grinned.

“Are there many other pixie players in the game? I know there's a lot of werebeasts, for sure,” I then asked her.

“Good question,” the other girl returned, a look of curiosity on her own face. “I don't know, to be honest; there's at least one pixies only guild, and I've seen a couple of musical groups floating around--teehee!--but I'm not sure about actual numbers,” she told me.

“A pixie troubadour band sounds adorable!” I remarked.

“Ha-ha! I hate to be partially self-serving, but they really are!” she beamed. “Did the others log in yet?” she then asked. I checked the guild panel.

“Looks like Heali and Ari are on, and Anhe, too. Maryn and Lizzy should be getting on soon, then.” I said.

“You're all pretty close, huh? Besides you and Ari, I mean.”

“I met Ari my first day here; she and the others all go to the same school.”

“Hmm? Not you?”

“Ehh,” I began bemusedly.

“Ah! Sorry, some don't like talking about real life here. Should've thought about that!” she then quickly apologized.

“N-no worries,” I managed to reply. “Oh! There's the others now,” I then noticed.

“Let's head back then!” Belle smiled, and we finished up our brief meal and headed back to the inn.

Once there, we began chatting idly about the upcoming events, generally avoiding the topic of my soon-coming duel with Ariana. Anhe was particularly revved up. Her first opponent was apparently a shape-shifting mage that not even a tank-character similar to Ironsides had managed to beat. During the conversations I suddenly wondered about something.

Waaaaiiit a minute... there's no guarantee that Lysandra and I will fight *any* of our targets... what gives? I realized, then I checked the brackets. Then I noticed that the fights were only pre-booked to the third round. The remaining five fights were blanks.

“Wh-what's this about?” I suddenly wondered out loud, and Ariana turned to look as well. The others joined us, gazing at the panel until they noticed what had caught my eye.

“Huh!” Lizzy remarked. “Ooh, maybe you get to choose your opponent after the third round! Like you can offer a challenge, and that person can accept it or reject it; and if no one you want to fight accepts they'll just throw you in with some random person to keep the event going.”

“Okay. That sounds interesting.” Maryn grinned.

“I-I wonder if Lysandra knew something about this...”

“Hmm? She probably did,” Belle told us. “She never brags about it much, but she was a beta-tester. But more than that, her mom is the one who runs the company that owns Panarena Fantasy Online.”

“Nyah?!”

“Huh?!”

“Whoooaa...!” Lizzy, Ari, and I exclaimed at the same time.

“No nepotism in that family,” Lizzy remarked, “Unlike another we could mention.”

“T-tell me about it... I get the impression the dungeon she won her sword from was a super-hard one...” I added.

“Definitely not a Garth, then.” Maryn nodded.

“Oh right, that creep,” Belle quipped in a flat tone. “I haven't heard of him logging in since all that fuss in the Aldholt several weeks ago. Nobody seems to know what happened to him after.”

“I heard Gallancleeve is still under investigation.” Maryn said.

“He is. They can't decide what to do with him, so he's kind of under suspension.” Belle told us. “But enough about them!”

“Let's pick a random cafe to go to until the games start!” Lizzy then said. “And then we'll have to decide on our consolation-slash-victory celebration venue...”

“True.” Ariana gently sighed. I took her hand, giving it a gentle squeeze as she smiled back at me.

“What about that Dwarven place in the southwest plaza? I think Winnie mentioned it had some good food!” Healina suggested.

“If Winnie mentioned it, it's gotta be good.” Maryn agreed, and Anhe nodded as well.

“Let's go, then!” I said. We got up and headed out of the room, only to find Lysandra in the hall waiting, a smile on her face.

“Room for one more?” she asked us.

“Always!” Ari smiled at her, and the eight of us set out for the morning.

***

“Oh, yeah, I guess she does run the thing.” Lysandra shrugged as we made our way through the streets. I had asked about her mother, but she didn't seem too enthusiastic about the connection. “So I got the device and the game for free, but that's about as nepo as it gets. It was really just a half-arsed apology on her part for forgetting my birthday the tenth year in a row.”

“S-sorry about reminding you...” I quickly said.

“Don't worry about it.” she replied, patting my head. I frowned slightly, but nodded.

When we got to the cafe in question, we found it a rustic, homely place with lively music and delicious smells wafting from the kitchen. The building was a masterful blend of stone and woodwork, with slate-tiles on the roof. Hunting trophies could be seen upon the walls, and magnificently crafted light fixtures studded with precious gems illuminated the place radiantly. A hearth with a roaring fire sat in the middle, the fire open on all four sides to give the place its warmth; kettles and cooking pots could be seen upon it, their contents kept warm by the blaze.

“This place just made me so very hungry.” Anhe remarked as we set foot inside. “Maybe we should come back here tonight for our after-battle party.”

“I agree.” I said with a nod.

“Seconded.” Ari said.

“Thirded. I don't care if it's not a word.” Lizzy quipped.

“Definite agree.” Lysandra said, and the other girls also nodded.

We sat down at a table and ordered two grand breakfast platters, which are ten times better than they sound. You want bacon? It had bacon. You want eggs? There were eggs. Toast? Lots of it. Complete with butter pans. Pancakes? You betcha. Coffee? Tea? It was there, and they came with a sugar pot and some delicious creamer in a tall ceramic kettle. They even had Belgian waffles, though in-game they were called Kingsmark waffles, which I wasn't gonna complain about. All in all, I had probably never wished for this place to be real so hard as I did that very moment.

“Gawd, this is so much better than even Bob's Market,” Lizzy said through mouthfuls.

“Right??” Heali and I both agreed.

“Ooh, high praise. And hard agree.” Lysandra grinned. Belle, trying out one of her new outfits in human form, was all but absorbed by the meal before us.

“This is so Western, but also so good!” Anhe said delightedly.

“Definitely!” Maryn smiled. Ariana was as quietly content as Belle, devouring the slices of toast with zeal as she leaned on me.

“Duuude. We could be here for hours and miss the whole dang tournament. It's almost seven in game time now.” Lizzy remarked.

“Hard choice!” Belle smirked.

Hard or not, we eventually got through that wonderfully robust meal, promising ourselves to return later that day to enjoy their evening meal specials, whatever they were. There were now twenty in-game minutes until the tournament began. We stood idly at a plaza for a few moments, and then Anhe went around to give us some quick hugs before she headed off to ready herself for the fight ahead. Belle did the same, resuming her pixie form, and Maryn followed suite as well. Healina and Lizzy popped off back to our room, leaving Ariana, myself, and Lysandra still in the plaza.

The three of us looked around at each other, and then I locked eyes with Ariana for a few moments. Lysandra looked at us with an almost sad look, biting her lip. She then walked over to us, and wrapped us both up in a hug, holding us close. No one said anything for at least a minute.

“Good luck, both of you. I mean it.” the older girl then said, releasing us and heading off into the streets. Ariana and I smiled as she melted into the crowds, then took each other's hands to walk idly through the streets until the battles began.

Those last several minutes felt like hours. Maybe time really was slowing down in this world as the two of us walked hand in hand through Harmonia City. One or two familiar faces caught sight of us, only to smile and settle for a salute or a wave, Wildeye and Angelfire in particular. Tyman walked by us at one point, gently flicking me as he did in real life. I couldn't help but smile, as did Ariana. Jannie and Winnie came across us at another plaza, both of them wrapping us up in hugs and wishing us well in the tournament.

As we continued on our walkabout, I saw a couple other familiar figures. General Mad Dog, who saw me and let out a subtle grin, nodding towards me as I nodded back. Rayna, the deadliest assassin character in Harmonia, who winked as we crossed paths. And Ironsides, who simply walked by, clad head to foot in his special armor. Ariana then squeezed my hand, and turned me to face her.

“Lana... I... I want to go make some quiet preparations... is that okay?” she asked me.

“O-of course it is; if you need to, I don't mind,” I told her. She then placed her hands on my cheeks, kissing me sweetly, and then hurried off. I watched her with a mix of joy and sorrow, and then resumed ambling along without any clear direction.

Then they appeared in front of me.

Out of the shadows they strode, the masked figure in dark clothes with two swords crossed over their back, heading straight for me. It was my second face-to-face (or would it face-to-mask?) with Myanihia Black. They stopped before me as I stopped before them. Their head cocked slightly for a moment, then righted itself.

“Not your battle armor?” they asked me. I looked down, suddenly remembering I was wearing a long-sleeved crimson dress that stopped just below the knees, along with a pair of matching slippers. W-when did I put this on?

“Not yet.” I then said. “It'll be a quick change when the event starts, though.”

“Very confident.” the reply came.

“I guess so,” I shrugged. “So what's the scoop?” I asked, wondering if they would keep talking. For someone who was rumored to never talk at all, I was certainly seeing a lot of them -- comparatively, at least.

“You impressed me. Last night. But now...” Myanihia replied. I understood what they meant at once. They were complimenting me on how I had kept hold of Lysandra, and possibly complimenting Belle as well. And now I had no choice but to fight someone I cared about.

“Yeah.” I returned, my voice croaking a little. Their head tilted again, as if gauging my reaction.

“One favor, if you wish.”

“Huh?”

“An assassin's secret. A guaranteed one-shot strike. Even with those toys.” they told me.

“W-why would you...” I wondered blankly.

“Because you love her. And I... I want to fight you.” Myanihia returned.

Ooh... this got interesting...

“Lysandra wants to fight you also.”

“I know. She's never... let go. Not really.”

“Of the beta guild?”

“You can help her. You can save her. I can't.”

“Why not?”

“I can push her to you,” they shrugged, “But you must be the one to help her.”

“I don't really get it, but okay, I guess,” I shrugged again.

“Good enough. Now, the secret. Do you want it?” they asked me.

I softly gulped. There were literally five minutes left until the matches started. This is a chance to get a secret from someone in the top ten assassins of Harmonia... I thought to myself with excitement. I could feel my heart racing with excitement. They stared at me as impassively as they always seemed to do. I took a breath, and made my reply.

“I'll at least hear it out.”

“Good enough.” the reply came. They came very close to me, and whispered in my ear. “Start Doomstrike, then switch to Crimson Heart-stinger right before the blow lands.”

My eyes widened. I had never tried that before.

Doomstrike is a skill that has a ten-percent chance of wiping out at least fifty-percent of a target's health. Crimson Heart-stinger is a fatal skill that has a ninety-nine percent chance of finishing a target off when they're below half-health.

“There's a brief window. The skills' effects merge. It becomes an instant kill-strike. No matter what the target is. Except a world boss.”

“You tried it on one, I take it?” I asked them.

“Once. In the beta. Their health... their regeneration, it's too redundant.” they told me. I nodded back to them, and then grinned.

“Thanks for the tip... but how do you know I won't try it on you if we meet in the lists?” I then asked, wondering if that might shake them up. They withdrew, and I could see the eyes were glinting with amusement.

“Because... I know how to counter it. And I won't tell you that.” they said, and with that they melted back into the crowds.

“No wonder they're number three,” I had to remark with awe. “Invents a guaranteed kill-shot and they know how to counter it? Dang.” I shook my head, quickly switching my casual outfit for my battle gear.

At that moment, every bell-tower in the city seemed to start ringing out the hour. Not ten seconds later, a grand fanfare started playing. I made my way towards the arena, knowing that my duel with Ariana wouldn't be until the second or third hour. A sigh escaped my lips. Then I happened to look over to my right, where I saw a revised odds sheet for the Aldholt players.

Top Ten:

Lana Windstrider, Silvernight Queens

Ariana, Silvernight Queens

Lysandra, No Guild

Tyman, Mountain Tigers

Angelfire, Flamehearts

Wildeye, Mountain Tigers

Timidator, Shieldwardens

Anhe, Silvernight Queens

MacYnduff, Gears and Wheels

Maryn, Silvernight Queens

“Hrrmm...” I mused. Lysandra must've rushed through the Aldholt and avoided all the drama... but anyway. Another sigh left my lips, and I continued on. “Toys, huh?” I then grinned sardonically, gripping the hilts of my daggers. “Let's see you call them 'toys' when I beat you in the tournament.”