The arena master glared at the crowd, forcing several into submission as they tried to escape her ire. Of course, that same glare was wielded against me once I approached.

She eyed my wristband and grunted before crossing her arms. "At least you're braver than these fools."

"Thanks?" I cleared my throat. "I was told to come see you about the rules?"

Her eyes went blank and I recognized the reading of a system screen.

"Mordred. Tier one, elemental spear. Smart enough to choose a weapon to keep people away. Range of your attacks?"

I drew eyes but thankfully most of the crowd kept to themselves, whispering in hushed tones. A few openly stared, and more than half activated various skills, their mana flaring in my senses.

Smart enough to pay attention to details of other fighters. Can't blame them. Still...

"Before I answer, are you able to screen our conversation?"

A ghost of a smile cracked the arena master's lips. From her back a curtain of gold-tinged mana enveloped us, creating a safe space in the middle.

An elf in the corner who had activated one of his skills clicked his teeth in annoyance and slipped behind a larger man.

"Out with it," the arena master demanded.

"Varying ranges. I prefer mid-range but I can attack from afar if needed. It's the same for close range as well. Though I use my spear in that case."

Her eyes narrowed. "Elemental. What kind?"

And that was the dangerous question. To my right, Sereza shifted, subtly pressing her foot against mine.

"Well?" she pressed.

Thankfully, I already had an answer ready.

"If I just said multiple types?"

"Not good enough. List them. If you're using them in my arena, then I'll need to know. If not, leave."

Fine, lady.

"Fire, water, wind, lightning, nature. I also use non standards, blood and crystal."

For a beat, she silently stared. Her eyes slowly narrowed until they became nearly-closed slits.

"If you're lying to me..."

"I'm not," I interrupted. "I meant what I said."

"Bah!" she grumbled. "And here I thought you were one of the smart ones."

"Is there a problem?"

"Yeah, a fool decided spreading himself thin with crappy affinities is good enough to compete. Don't go crying when you're face down in the pit."

The change-up was unexpected. There was hostility in her voice and anger that bubbled off my own. But she was wrong, and I didn't feel like correcting her.

"You fighting with the mask?"

"Yes."

She snorted and pointed to the wall behind her. On a metal placard, a long list of rules were listed. The biggest one being the line at the top.

"Rule one. The most important rule in this arena. Intentional killing of your opponent will get you banned and arrested. You may shed blood, but this is not the place to settle life feuds. Am. I. Clear?"

"Yes," I nodded.

"Rule two. When your name is called, your bracelet will glow. You have till the third buzz to arrive here. If you fail to show you will be banned from the arena for a period of six months. No exceptions. I don't care what rich daddy or mommy is packing your pockets. And if for whatever reason you get the idea to bring them to the arena to argue on your behalf, I'll split their skull and spank you bloody."

A whistle almost left my lips but the glare she continued giving me kept me silent.

So far, the rules were pretty standard. Peacocks were going to be peacocks but at least they got put into place like the rest. However, whether what she said held up under a real scenario remained to be seen.

"Rule three! If a winner has been declared or a stop of the fight is called, continuing to attack your opponent will end in me beating you silly and banning you permanently from the arena. Exceptions will be made for rage skills on a case-by-case basis."

She paused, but I shook my head.

"I'm hot-headed but no rage skills."

"Hmm. Rule four. Permanent damage or ever-lasting skills are banned. Curse skills are allowed if and only if they can be canceled once the battle has finished. Rule five, barrier-style enchanted gear is only allowed in the all-in matches. This tournament is not an all-in match. If you are found guilty of using said gear, you'll be banned for six months and have your gear confiscated by the arena."

She eyed my mask but I shrugged.

Stolen story; please report.

"And lastly, rule six. My word is law. Do not argue. I'm not employed by any noble house, I am employed by the kingdom. No attempts of blackmail, bickering, or begging will see me change my mind. Especially not a thousand pleasure maids. Am I clear?!"

That's oddly specific.

"Yes, ma'am."

"Now go. Matches start in the next half hour. The dawn brats will be making their announcement."

As she finished speaking, her skill retracted and the sounds of whispering increased. Sereza tugged my sleeve and she led the way to a set of stairs.

Before I reached the steps, a knock pushed against my skin, the rush of mana solidifying and dissipating as it stretched into the crowd.

I spun and found a mountain of an individual staring directly at me. Their face was covered, but they grinned revealing red skin underneath a brown robe.

"Mordred?" Sereza asked.

I briefly turned her way. "Someone just-"

But as I turned back the individual was gone. In their place, a scrawny elven woman laughed at a joke.

That was weird.

"Never mind, let's get to the booth first."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, let's go."

She looked at me suspiciously but continued leading the way. The colosseum was massive, and we ended up crossing three flights of stairs and four hallways before we exited the building and onto the inner arena.

This time, I did whistle. From seat to seat, the arena was packed and continued to grow as people pushed through the crowd. The noise hit like a wall, and vendors shouted from where they stood, passing down food and drinks using a plethora of skills.

They varied from floating discs to glowing hands. Some like the sandwich man I saw below us would lob the sandwiches into the air, much to the crowd's excitement. As it arc'd the people below ooed and the sandwich dropped directly into the receiver's lap, slowing at the end as if cushioned by an invisible cloud.

This repeated a few times with the crowd showing the same level of enthusiasm as the first toss.

Before I could call out to the man, Sereza tugged my sleeve and pointed to a booth near the top. Teddy waved from beyond the door.

"We'll have to push some people out of the way but if we tell the attendant we're heading for a booth, they'll help clear the way."

"Nah. This is fun. Where's your spirit?"

"My spirit? You mean my soul?"

"No. I mean your spirit! Look at this? This grand arena, the smells of food and the shouting? I bet you guys sell foam fingers."

"Famous arena combatants have their own merchandise vendors. For official team matches we have flags. Why would you want a foamy finger?"

"Remind me later. I'll have Galarion show you what I mean. But fine, let's go... After I get a sandwich."

"Don't you have a crate inside Chomperz?"

"Not the point!" I raised my hand and shouted. "Seven over here!"

"What fillings?!" the vendor shouted back.

"Surprise me!"

He grinned and rifled through his box. One by one the sandwiches flew and landed directly into my arms. The crowd cheered for every one and when the seventh landed it came with a small tray attached.

I had seen its effect earlier, so I dropped seven silver and grinned. The tray took off, spinning into the air as it returned to the vendor's box. He looked down and counted the coins.

Before I could turn away, he jumped and held out his hand. "Woah! Let me grab your change!"

"No need! Enjoy the matches," I said while saluting with one of the hefty subs.

By the time we slipped into the horde, more people were demanding their own flying sandwich delivery. It took some shoving and more than a few liberal uses of our tails as bludgeoning devices till we entered the upper layer.

The crowd of people was thinner here, more than likely due to the booths containing the VIPs and their bodyguards standing outside the doorways.

An arena attendant bee-lined toward us, a fake smile plastered on his face.

"May I be of assistance, sir, mam?" he asked.

I pointed to Teddy, who stood outside our booth. "We're good."

His face paled and he backed away while bowing low.

After shoving one of the subs into Teddy's hand, he shut the door behind us. Enchantments activated and created a lattice over the door.

"Who wants a sandwich?"

Everyone raised their hands, so I tossed them randomly. The last one, I prodded Sereza's cheek before she begrudgingly accepted the offering.

Arturous roared and I summoned a glazed ham and shoved it into his maw.

"There, now we're all settled."

"How was Myol in the flesh?" Isaac asked between bites.

I plopped onto the couch and kicked my feet up on the cloud chair. "Who?"

"Arena master. The Sunlight Berserker? I heard she and Brelten battled once, the arena had to be remade."

"No nonsense and serious. She seemed to like me up to the point of me listing my attack types."

"You mean what elements you use?" Celenae cut in.

"Yep."

"How many did you list?"

Sereza sat on another couch and pointed her sub like a dagger. "Everything but shadow and astral. Of course she thought you were foolish."

I shrugged and bit down. The thing was packed with meats and colorful veggies. They were okay, a little spicy, but the sauce was the magnum opus. The creamy bolognese melted on my tongue, and I closed my eyes. That lasted long enough for Teddy to tap my shoulder.

"What?"

"Most idiots who have that many elemental types are ones who filled their slots with skills with low affinity. The rarer cases with skills having multiple affinities is restricted to usually three to four at most. Her reaction is understandable."

"Sure, but my affinities are all one-hundred percent. I'll make her spit blood or something along those lines. Prove to her I'm not an idiot or well, less of an idiot then she thinks."

"Earth has some weird sayings," Igas mumbled.

"This coming from the man who kept repeating 'stuck your foot in it?'"

He tore a chunk from his sandwich and turned away.

"So what do you plan on doing?" Teddy said while shaking his head. "I know you want to fight, but exposing the amount of familiars you have will draw a lot of attention. Especially from the nobles."

I shrugged. "Simple. I'll just do this."

My mana threaded itself into Verdant Familiar and I directed the energy into my hood. I leaned forward to accommodate the individual forming behind my head and smiled.

"Cyrus?" Sereza asked.

"Yes?"

"Do what? You said it in a way like you were going to show us something and then randomly smiled."

I tsked and wagged my sandwich. "Listen, if you're accompanying me on any adventures, you're going to have to work on your mana sense."

"Hey! I'm decent, I'll have you know. And not everyone has super senses."

"Áine pop out and say hello," I directed.

My familiar complied and patted my hair down and shoved her head outside my hood. She gave everyone a quick wave before slipping back into the comfortable roost she settled for herself.

"Was she always there? Were you expecting trouble?"

"Nope," I said, shaking my head. "I just summoned her."

Like the sun rising from behind pitch-black storm clouds, the lights went on, and I heard the mental ding inside her head.

"Ooooooh. Damn, that's useful."

"Exactly. And any familiars outside of Zharia, I'll fuse with before they form. I'm sure it'll get some suspicious looks but it shouldn't be hard to play it off. What they don't know can't hurt them after all."

"Smart. Deception is preferred. But don't be afraid to lose. You will be able to attend the auction no matter the outcome," Eodyne lectured.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm eager, not stupid. Anyway look there, isn't that Isaac's dad?"

"What?!" Isaac exclaimed

He stood up and pressed against the glass, tendrils sprouting from his back. "He's early. He's never early."

"Calm," Teddy soothed. "Sit down. It looks like we'll find out in a second."

The rogue gnashed his teeth and reluctantly tore himself away from the glass. As he sat, a golden platform pushed Isaac's father into the sky. He stopped about thirty meters above the ground and tapped his earring that glowed with silver gemstones.

"Good afternoon, wonderful citizens of Solunaria. Is everyone excited to see the fights of today?"