Dr. Scale paced around frantically throughout the general hall. He burst through each and every door he saw, apologizing to those inside before continuing down. The stress was beginning to eat away at him as his search for Snowl and Ozo turned up blanks.
Then, he turned a corner toward a dead end where two guards stood with their backs against the wall. The men instantly let out ‘eeps’ as sweat trickled down their faces. The Guild Master scowled. “What are you two doing here!?” he asked. “Aren’t you currently on duty?”
“G-Guild Master!” one of them stammered while flailing their arms. “The Head of the Association told us we could take a break!”
“Ozo said that?” the doctor frowned. Even if that were the case, it didn’t matter to him. “Where is he?”
“H-He left with some women earlier. I believe he was saying something about a reservation at Unity Hotel…”
Unity? Dr. Scale hissed to himself.
Of all places, it just had to be Unity, a company notorious for intoxicating high-ranking officials at their hotels. Once there, they permitted members of the elite to indulge in various pleasures, albeit with a cost. The company takes inappropriate photos of their patrons for blackmail. This sinister strategy ensured additional profits and a constant influx of clientele.
“Just great,” he seethed. “When did he leave?”
“Not long ago. I believe the tournament round of sixteen had just begun when he left, so around fifteen minutes.”
“Then he hasn’t reached the hotel yet,” Dr. Scale sighed with relief. “Get in touch with my invigilators and send a squad to intercept them. Once they find him, tell them to send him home.”
“Right!” the guards said in unison. They then took off down the hall quickly.
Now then, Dr. Scale thought to himself. Where on earth is Snowl.
Gasps and cries of joy left the crowd as the round of sixteen raged on. Damon stood with arms crossed in the stadium, shaking his head at the acts of the onlookers. “Ridiculous,” he sighed. “They come out here in droves to watch people fight to near death. What kind of twisted entertainment is this?”
As he finished those last words, he shifted his body slightly to dodge an incoming downward swing from his opponent. The attacker then tripped on their own two feet and fell to the ground. Damon then directed his gaze toward them. “Aren’t you embarrassed?” he asked. “You and your boyfriend haven’t managed to do much despite it being two-versus-one.”
“Shut up!” she yelled while quickly getting back onto her feet.
She lunged at the imposing man with effort, holding her sword in the air again. The large man simply sighed while extending his palm and slamming it directly into her torso. She wheezed and coughed as her body fell to the ground.
Then, her boyfriend came charging from behind. Damon took one step to dodge his flailing swing before giving him a light push on the back. The boy then went tumbling down to the ground. “Geez,” the large man sighed. “Your girl is putting up a better fight than you.”
Enraged, the boyfriend swiftly got back up and leapt in again. He swung ferociously and with no direction, making it easy for Damon to shift his body out of the way. Finally, his arms grew heavy, and his feet became weak. He was now barely able to lift his shaking sword as he gasped for air.
“Done already?” asked Damon with crossed arms.
The crowd then erupted into a frenzy as a sword swung inches away from his torso, finally forcing him to move from his spot. He skidded to a stop on the pavement with a ferocious frown plastered on his face.
“Don’t underestimate us!” yelled the girl while holding her boyfriend up.
“You’re right,” responded Damon, who ran wildly toward them.
The duo braced for impact as the distance was closed in mere seconds. Damon caught them off, jumping into the air and landing directly behind them. The boy quickly spun on his heel to meet his foe while his girlfriend began circling around the perimeter.
He adjusted his grip on the sword, determined to prove his worth as he swung with more precision and accuracy. The onslaught was enough to force Damon on the defensive when he initially thought he had the advantage. Then, the girlfriend drove in with pace, lunging her sword toward Damon's chest to an outcry of cheers.
The large man instantly lost his footing as he sucked in his stomach to dodge the attack. Unfortunately, that wasn’t enough, as the boyfriend prepared a downward swing. At this point, Damon no longer had any leverage to adjust his body and couldn’t possibly dodge.
“Muscle Enhancement,” he muttered.
The blades connected with flesh yet didn’t budge any further. The impact then broke, with Damon jumping backwards and the duo regrouping. Shocked by what had happened, the boyfriend dropped his sword. “Rebecca,” he began. “This is ridiculous. He used his divine art and ended the advantage we had instantly. What’s the point of continuing this when he has such an insane cheat?”
“Because we have to,” she answered. “Don’t tell me you’re just going to ignore all the insults he sent our way? Pick up your sword, Thomas.”
On the other hand, Damon was frustrated. He didn’t want to use his Divine Art this early in the competition, yet those two forced his hand. If only that person would help, he frowned.
His eyes darted toward the small cloaked person who wore a white mask – the same person Dr. Scale was interrogating earlier. They currently sat crisscrossed on the arena floor in the very corner, ‘staring’ at the ground.
Damon was under the impression that this person was strong, which is why he chose them for the tournament. Unfortunately, however, that hasn’t proven to be the case. In the first round, they were knocked out instantly by a wind incantation, and here, in the second, they’ve done nothing but sit in the corner. As a result, Damon has had to exert more energy that could have been saved for later stages.
Screw this, he huffed. All my tricks will be exposed at this rate.
Dr. Scale’s mouth dropped open as he clutched his bald head with two shaking arms. Words could not describe the bewilderment he was currently feeling. To start, he found himself in the basement storage of the Coliseum—a grungy place filled with cobwebs, old equipment, and loose floorboards. It was the last place on his ‘checklist’ for possible places Snowl could be, with the keyword being ‘last.’ He hadn’t fathomed or truly considered that Snowl would, in fact, be hiding in here… like that.
“What are you doing?” he asked, trying to calm his heightened emotions.
Snowl, who currently found himself wedged between two cardboard boxes with a fox plushie in his hand, simply stared blankly. Then, he readjusted his body to face the other way, ignoring the Guild Masters question.
“WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?” Dr. Scale yelled this time. “GET OUT! YOU HAVE TO STAND GUARD AT THE EVENT!”
“Sleeping,” replied the head knight.
“No,” the Guild Master Challenged while recollecting himself. “You and I are already late, so we must leave at once. You can come back here afterwards if you so please.”
“Five minutes.”
“NO! WE ARE NOT NEGOTIATING!”
Then, the door to the storage area squeaked open. Fumie Star walked in clutching a staff, slowly approaching the two with a tremble in her step. “G-Guild Master,” she quickly spoke. “Is everything alright? I heard you yelling…”
“My blood pressure is just going through the roof,” he responded while shaking his head. “Why don’t you ask your fellow second in command to get out so we can go now.”
“A-Alright!” she huffed, pumping her clenched hands out. She walked over toward Snowl, crouching in front of him. “Uhm, Mister?” she asked. “W-Why won’t you come out?”
“Comfy.”
…
As if expecting more, Fumie waited patiently, but nothing else was said. “O-Oh, I see!” she laughed awkwardly. “S-Should I try then?”
She found an opening between two boxes beside him and squeezed her way through. What greeted her was a fierce-looking spider that was currently cooking up a cobweb. Her face paled as she quickly tried to pull herself out. “G-Guild Master! There are bugs! Please help me!”
Dr. Scale clenched his eyes shut and raised his head. “I cannot help you,” he sighed. “Consider this punishment for entertaining his tomfoolery.”
…
It took another ten minutes to sort out the peculiar situation. Dr. Scale ended up agreeing to have the boxes moved to Snowl's room under the condition that he leave now. As for the fox plushie, well, it was coming with them. The head knight was clutching it firmly as they left the room.
As they walked down the hall and toward the elevator, two invigilators appeared before the Guild Master. They kneeled to the ground, with one raising his head. “My lord!” he began. “We are here to report that ‘white mask’ is still inactive. They and Damon are currently engaged in the last fight of the round of sixteen.”
“I see,” the doctor nodded. “Continue monitoring them with invigilators on standby to attack at any moment. And what about the rest of the contestants? Do any of them look potentially useful?”
“Yes, my lord!” the invigilator continued. “Rurah and Ned Sommers have lived up to expectations. Their teamwork, skills, and strengths will be an asset going forward. There is also Jonah from the Harp family, who has paired up with a member of the Assassinations Guild. The two have been able to advance without using Incantations or Divine Arts.”
“Anyone else?” the doctor inquired. All those mentioned were people he knew would perform.
“Yes, there is this one boy named Hitto. He has a partner but has practically done all the work himself over the last two rounds. I believe we should keep an eye on him.”
“Very well,” Dr. Scale smiled. “Let’s head up.”
Damon once again parried away Rebecca’s blade with a strained arm. Then, he instantly adjusted his body to avoid a strike from Thomas. He used the few-second grace period to breathe in heavily, purposely not exhaling as he closed his eyes.
At this point, Rebecca once again turned and was coming back in for another swing. Her opponent was still, which alarmed her, but she pressed on regardless. From the opposite side, Thomas was also engaging as well. It was a complete repeat of their earlier advantage, but this time, they were determined to see a different outcome.
“Water incantation 15!” the girl yelled within inches of Damon.
Her blade was engulfed by a blue stream of liquid as it extended outward. Just as it was about to land, Damon shot open a single eye and caught the sword with his bare hand. Rebecca tried her best to maintain her incantation, but it instantly dissipated as she lost control of her blade.
Thomas then came in screaming while swinging his sword aimlessly once more. Damon clenched his muscles and heaved Rebecca off the ground. He then used the momentum to swing her directly into her boyfriend. The two slammed onto the ground, with Thomas struggling to get Rebecca off of him.
Damon then crouched down in front of him with an intimidating gaze. “Give up,” he commanded. “Give up now, and I won’t give you a career-ending injury.”
Sweat trickled down the boy’s forehead as his face went pale. “WE GIVE UP!” he yelled as the crowd cheered wildly.
…
At the exact same time, the remaining contestants sat at the bleachers watching the conclusion of the fight. The most visually displeased was Rurah, who had a massive frown on his face. The giant then crossed his arms.
“He’s a complete monster,” he sighed. “Far too dangerous.”
“Really?” replied Hitto. “I think he just enjoys fighting.”
“You can’t be serious,” chuckled Ned. “Though I’m not surprised. Our first encounter with you reminds me of him. Bloodthirsty fighters.”
“Bloodthirsty!?” Hitto frowned while imitating Rurah’s crossed arms. “You guys were the ones who broke my axe for no reason!”
“And I already apologized,” Rurah sighed again. “Don’t worry, I’ll buy you a better one after the tournament.”
“Wait one moment!” Ned jumped while pointing a finger at Hitto. “Why is Rurah apologizing!? You should be apologizing for almost killing me!”
“WHAT!?” Yelled Hitto and Nally at the exact same time.
