Chapter 62: Quarter-Finals (I)

  The following morning, Thomas and Claire arrived at Damon’s private villa once more. This time, there were two additional people who had been called as well. They were Nolan and Lilith.

  After entering the spacious entertainment area, the two physical cultivators looked around in wide-eyed amazement. Thomas and Claire, on the other hand, took a seat at the table without so much as a second glance. Not only had they been here before, but they were also the children of highly affluent and powerful figures from the Assembly. Nolan and Lilith, on the other hand, had no special backing and had been of common birth.

  “This place is nice! How’d you land a sweet house like this, Damon?” Lilith asked loudly as she kicked at a small display cabinet near the entrance. The collision resounded with a loud bang that vibrated through the floorboards, yet the cabinet remained intact. Whistling, she continued, “Damn, this must be made of at least first-tier materials! All the furniture they give in our dorms breaks at the slightest touch. I’ve broken my bed and desk so many times, they had to replace them with granite. Impressive!”

  Nolan, who had entered while chewing on some jerky, quietly took the piece out of his mouth and put it away into his storage pouch. He stared down at the delicate and regal carpet he stood atop with a stern face, as though he was afraid of dropping crumbs and soiling it.

  “I was rewarded this residence because…” As Damon began explaining, he exchanged glances with Claire, upon which she blushed and looked down at the table with shame and embarrassment. “Because I was injured while helping out during the recent disaster.”

  Lilith stopped inspecting the furniture and turned to Damon, her eyes shining with interest. “Whoa, you took part in that? Sadly, I was outside the Academy when it struck, or else I would’ve taken care of a bunch of them myself! So, how many Initiates did you beat up? Or wait… To receive this villa… Was it a Disciple?”

  Even Thomas and Claire shot glances at Damon when they heard her words. In fact, Damon had not properly explained what he had done during the disaster. Claire knew he had been injured due to it, but had forgotten to get the details afterward.

  Damon looked at Lilith with slightly narrowed eyes. This girl… Even though she usually just acts like a brutal force of nature, she’s actually quite perceptive.

  “Yes, I did fight a Disciple for a bit. However, Senior Alan arrived soon after and took care of it.”

  The other four apprentices just stared at him without a change in their expression. It seemed like none of them believed his words, especially after he had displayed the Shardburst technique the previous day.

  Thomas clapped, bringing everyone’s attention to him. “Alright, let’s get on with our meeting. We aren’t here to chat and relax. We need to take the upcoming fights seriously after yesterday’s events. Especially Nolan and Lilith. You guys are up against Erik and Nox in the quarter-finals.”

  With a smile, Damon nodded at Thomas’s words. He had matured considerably since the start of the tournament. He was now acting more like a leader.

  “Take it seriously? I never play around when I’m in combat. Don’t worry, I’ll crush Nox during our duel. You fragile Arcon don’t have to be worried about him.” Lilith waved away the issue as though it were nothing. From her side, Nolan just nodded in silent agreement.

  “Fragile Arcon? You’re just a tough brute who can only use your body to smash things! We called you guys here since we were looking out for you, and you respond with that?” Claire slammed her palm onto the table as she yelled at Lilith. The next moment, her face crumpled, and tears dripped down her cheeks. Clutching her red, swollen palm with her other hand, she gently blew at it. Thanks to her physique, even her gentle blows caused a gust of wind that pushed away everything in front of her, albeit only slightly.

  Lilith, who was seated opposite her, did not budge from the rushing air. Even as the furniture around her was pushed back, she remained seated in the same location like an immovable mountain. She smirked at Claire and said, “I’m a dual cultivator, so I can smash things without using my body too.”

  Nolan withdrew a pouch of salted nuts and carefully consumed them over the open bag as he watched the two ladies arguing. Thomas leaned back in his chair and stared at the ceiling with blatant annoyance, yet did not seem intent on breaking apart the fight. Damon looked at the other two guys and then back at the girls who were glaring at each other. Having made up his mind, he opened his mouth.

  “Stop fighting, you two. The situation is more serious than you guys think. I’ve come across some information recently that needs to remain just between us. Can you guys keep a secret? If not, I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”

  He immediately became the focus of the other four. They looked at him expectantly, as though they had been waiting for this all along. This caused Damon to hesitate. Why are they all looking at me like that? Did someone see me meet with Arthur?

  Seeing that Damon had frozen, Thomas spoke up. “Damon, you were the one who asked me last night to invite Nolan and Lilith over as well. Obviously, we know something must be up for you to call everyone together.”

  The confusion in Damon’s eyes disappeared. Ah, right. I called for this meeting, so they’ve been waiting for me to take charge. It’s not that they suspected me of colluding with the enemy.

  “I’m going to take your silence as an agreement. Where do I begin… I’ll tell you about how I got the information first.” Damon paused and clasped his hands tightly on top of the table and said, “I was born and raised in the Mugthorne Kingdom. Claire already knows this, but before I joined the Academy, I applied to join the Arcane Tower of Argent Flame.”

  He had expected the gazes of the others to turn frosty on revealing his past. However, they looked at him with the same eyes as before, though Lilith’s were starting to glaze over from boredom already. Assured that they had no suspicions, he continued.

  “So, I actually know some people from Argent Flame. I met with one of them last night, and they told me that they had received the order to maim or kill anyone from our Academies if possible. Yesterday’s death was not an accident. They have been aiming for that since the first day.”

  Damon withdrew a waterskin and wet his throat. While he was doing so, Claire’s face brightened considerably as a sudden spark of relief flashed in her eyes. “Therefore, Thomas and Claire are right. We need to take this seriously, so we don’t get caught off guard. Also, … I think that we should retaliate in kind. If and when I come across them, I plan on maiming or killing them if I can. What do you guys think?”

  When he finished talking, he glanced around to see everyone’s reactions. Nolan had stopped eating his nuts and finally had a serious expression. Thomas crossed his arms and closed his eyes in thought. Claire grimaced as though she was about to fight Nox right away. Lilith’s eyes had regained their light and were now glowing with intensity as she stared at Damon.

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  “I agree. During my duel with Nox, I’ll pummel him into the ground! Although you need to help me against any backlash from the Lunarsol Tower. Deal?” Lilith grinned and stuck her hand out.

  Before Damon could reach out and shake it, Claire slapped it away. “Just focus on surviving first, instead of acting strong.”

  Thomas opened his eyes and announced, “My grandfather told me that the lethal technique used by Nox at the end of his duel was a single-use ability. Apparently, he needs a long time to create that shadow dagger that killed Jackson, so we don’t need to worry about that. However, I’m sure a guy like Nox has other tricks up his sleeve.”

  Nolan nodded his head in agreement as he ate a handful of nuts.

  “Let’s not fight among ourselves and watch out for the Tower’s malice. The absolute best case scenario is if you two are able to defeat Erik and Nox during the next round, but don’t overdo it and get injured. Got it?” Damon finished off the meeting after gaining everyone’s approval and agreement.

  Six days later, Damon walked under the tall archways leading into the arena of the Verdant Sigil Colosseum. Right behind him, the four other participants followed along. Unlike the contestants from the Towers who remained in their full groups even after being eliminated, only the five from the Academies participating in this round entered the arena.

  They settled down beside the platform and waited for the audience to fill the stands. The atmosphere was drastically different from the previous rounds. Even the spectators streaming into the stands were subdued and shuffled along without much noise.

  In the arena, Claire and Lilith shot daggers at Nox with their eyes, and Nolan watched Erik as he bit down on his jerky. Thomas sat cross-legged with his eyes closed, preparing for his duel with Damon. Damon glanced at the opposite side, where the participants from Argent Flame usually came in through. Today, however, nobody stood in their spot. All of the contestants from Argent Flame had been eliminated with Alexander’s defeat.

  “Welcome back, ladies and gentlemen, to the Crucible Convergence! Today, we have the quarter-finals! Several huge matches are coming up, and there is at least one participant from our Academies in each duel! First off, we have our first seed, Claire, against the second seed of Violet Mist, …” Wesley tried to lighten the sombre atmosphere by being lively, yet was interrupted by Alan.

  “The new main Adjudicator has been decided. Alongside the four from before, Adept Tidus will be personally overseeing the duels as well. Please welcome him with your warmest greetings.”

  Above the platform, an old man wearing elegant white robes lined with gold and violet patterns floated down from the sky. With neatly combed hair flowing down his back, tied together at the very bottom, and a long, sagacious beard. With a gentle smile, he waved at the audience.

  The low-spirited crowds began cheering softly, steadily growing louder until the sound echoed through the Colosseum. The arrival of a mighty Adept to look after the duels allowed them to regain their energy and rid them of their worries of a fatality occurring.

  Down below, Damon looked up, dumbstruck, with his mouth hanging open. Claire was already waiting atop the stage and did not notice his expression. Thomas stirred as he opened his eyes, finished with his short meditation, and saw Damon’s face.

  “Damon, what’s up?”

  After rubbing his eyes, Damon looked at the refined, old gentleman hovering above the platform again. He pointed at him with a trembling finger. “That grandpa up there… Senior Alan just introduced him as Senior Tidus… But that cannot be… How is THAT Senior Tidus?”

  Thomas looked up at Tidus, squinting as he blocked the glaring sun directly assaulting his eyes. “Yep, that’s Senior Tidus, all right. What’s the matter?”

  Damon finally lowered his gaze, meeting Thomas’s confused expression. “Senior Tidus… Is an unkempt old man who wears gray rags… Not that sophisticated Adept up there.”

  Tilting his head, Thomas wondered if Damon had fallen ill. “No, Senior Tidus has always dressed like that. He carries himself with such polished grace that just his smile causes the female masters to swoon. He’s also renowned as the most powerful Adept in the Assembly, his strength almost rivaling an average early stage Warden.”

  Immediately, Damon breathed in a sharp intake of air. That shabby old coot is actually such a renowned and respected figure? Then why is he just a scruffy, opportunistic scammer in front of me?

  On the stage, Tidus landed in front of Claire and her opponent with poise. He gave a deep, long look at both of them and said, “The rules have not changed. You may use any means necessary to destroy the five barriers created by the protective artifact of your opponent. However, I warn you not to take it too far. Otherwise, I’ll have to intervene and… It won’t end well for anyone who tries. Now go back to your sides and prepare for my signal.”

  Claire’s opponent, a girl with short, purple hair, glared at her before turning around as she harrumphed. She walked back to her spot with brisk steps and withdrew a round crystal orb the size of her head, which floated in front of her. It flashed with violet light as arcs of lightning crackled within the transparent artifact.

  Leaving behind an awkward smile for Tidus, Claire returned to her side and then shrugged at her opponent’s behavior. She assumed it was because she was ordered by the Tower to fight with ferocity, having no idea that her rage was actually caused by the commentators dismissing her time and time again.

  The audience grew silent as Tidus pointed his arm to the sky. A tense atmosphere settled on the two contestants on the platform as they prepared to unleash their attacks the moment he gave his signal. After a brief moment, a bright purple light shot out of his finger, reaching the clouds above in the blink of an eye and exploding into colorful sparks.

  “Begin!” He announced as he took off into the air.

  Claire sprinted at her opponent as the wind rapidly gathered around her. As she did so, she even pointed her right index finger, the air spiraling into a wind drill.

  The purple-haired girl raised her arms, her open palms surrounding the crystal orb. Her eyes glowed with violet light as lightning crackled between her fingers, before striking the orb. One lightning strike. Two strikes. Three. The spectacular lightning steadily streamed out of her hands, flowing into the floating artifact. Every bolt of lightning was absorbed by the crystal, and it began flashing faster.

  A few wind drills flew ahead of Claire in an arc, yet just as they reached the girl from Violet Mist, bolts of lightning shot out of the crystal orb and struck them, causing them to dissipate. Claire narrowed her eyes and jumped into the air while spinning so quickly her body became a blur. The air around her accumulated even more quickly, forming a powerful tempest in a few seconds. She was enveloped by the gales and soon disappeared behind the wall of wind.

  The girl from Violet Mist stopped channeling her lightning spell into her artifact, her lips spreading into a victorious grin.

  “Here, have a taste of this!”

  The crystal orb had stopped flashing and now just radiated a blinding violet light. Upon her words, a thick pillar of lightning shot toward the small tornado forming in the sky. It passed through the chaotic tempest without resistance and exploded into countless arcs of lightning in every direction, blasting apart the gathered winds.

  The purple-haired girl had been looking up, expecting to see Claire inundated by lightning strikes and being burnt black, yet froze upon realizing that she was not there at all. Feeling danger from behind, she immediately jumped to the right. Barely a moment later, a wind blade cut through her previous location. Before she could heave a sigh of relief, she sensed danger from every direction. With quivering eyes, she looked around and saw that the platform had been encircled by wind.

  When… Did she set that up?

  That was her last thought before blades of wind shot out from every direction and sliced into her at the same time. However, even before the bracers on her arm could activate, her vision flashed, and a tall, inspiring figure stood in front of her. With a single wave of his hand, a ring of purple light expanded outward. The wind blades vanished without a sound upon touching the light.

  “Match over. I declare Claire Dumont as the victor from bracket one!” Tidus announced, his clear, magnetic voice resounding through the Colosseum.