Julio Timal’s point of view:

  “What is that young man? That trial wasn’t designed to be nearly cleared. He could have beaten it with enough time…” The emperor beside me is resting his elbow on the sofa, his face supported by his fist, wearing a very peculiar smile. “I’d heard quite a few interesting stories about him. He even managed to eliminate a newborn anomaly, but this is on another level.”

  Susan at my side has a proud expression. My teacher is smiling from ear to ear. She looks happier than when I gave her that bottle of wine made from the blood of a grade 6 monster. Knowing her addiction to good wine, it’s very rare to see her smile even more in a situation like this.

  “I told you, Your Majesty. You won’t regret focusing on him for a few moments.” I was the one who suggested setting up multiple screens to watch the most promising competitors, and of course I chose to put Maki on one of them.

  I turn toward the screens. Maki looks stunned when he hears the monster speak. His face is pure poetry. I can’t hold back my laughter. At least I’m not the only one laughing—Susan bursts out laughing too.

  I understand Maki’s confusion and the emperor’s surprise. That harpy monster is a very atypical case. It’s something very special. It’s like a “copy” of a true grade 6 monster, one of the strongest near the empire’s territory.

  Her territory is completely forbidden to obsidian ranks. If you want to pass through, you first have to show respect to the harpy queen. She’s a grade 6 monster capable of destroying entire territories unless there are two obsidian ranks to contain her or a limit breaker at that same rank.

  She was a complete headache for the empire when she was discovered. Some diamond ranks died trying to subjugate her, and one obsidian rank was mortally wounded. His cube and physical injuries were so severe he stayed bedridden for months until finally recovering with the help of two powerful life-affinity obsidian ranks.

  In the end, they decided to make a small pact to keep her territory peaceful. It wasn’t worth annihilating her if she wasn’t hostile toward humans. If the empire wanted to, they could mobilize enough force to kill her, but they wouldn’t walk away without losses. It’s better to avoid unnecessary deaths if the monster isn’t threatening the empire.

  There are several cases like this monster. Most dominate small territories far from big cities or towns. Some are even inside the empire, kingdoms, or guilds. Since they’re in places where they don’t affect anyone and aren’t actively hostile, there isn’t much of a problem. Still, whenever an obsidian rank passes through, they at least have to make their intentions clear.

  If someone of lower rank passes by, they don’t even pay attention, and humans would never notice them. This kind of “ability” unlocks when a monster reaches grade 6 or obsidian rank. I only noticed the difference during my last promotion. There’s a world of difference between those ranks.

  I can clearly remember some cases where an obsidian-rank human passed through monster territories without giving a damn. One of them intercepted him, and a battle broke out that could level mountains or tear apart the land. The human ended up dying simply for being stubborn and not stopping for a few minutes.

  From that perspective, I understand it. I wouldn’t feel comfortable if a grade 6 monster passed through my territory either. I’d go on maximum alert and mobilize the heralds to contain it if it tried anything strange.

  Maki managed to face a copy of such a terrifying monster head-on. It’s worthy of admiration. As the emperor mentioned, that harpy was never meant to be pushed that far. No other limit breaker in this tournament could do something similar.

  The definition of limit breaker has been changing over the years. Nowadays, it refers to people capable of facing groups of monsters or opponents one rank above them. Before, being able to fight one or two already made you a limit breaker.

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  This generation is filled with talent. Many geniuses and prodigies have been born and given the chance to shine. A few decades ago, it was far more common to die as a teenager. Safety and average life expectancy have increased thanks to the new heads of the territories.

  I look at the person beside me. He’s one of the main reasons for this great change. Not only is he strong, he’s intelligent and kind-hearted—the role model for any noble house leader.

  “Maki Vichag… maybe he’d be a good option for Zuly.” His words freeze me. I almost choke on the piece of cake in my mouth.

  Susan is just as stunned. She nearly drops her wine glass when the emperor makes such an unexpected and explosive comment.

  Zuly is the daughter of one of the emperor’s cousins. Sadly, her father died stopping a grade 6 monster when she was a baby, and her mother fell ill with an incurable disease shortly after. Emperor Sadim took her in as his own daughter. She isn’t truly a princess, but she’s treated as one.

  She’s the same age as his son, who’s participating in the tournament. They grew up like siblings and trained together since they share the same affinity. Zuly showed genius-level talent since childhood. She’s a limit breaker as well. She isn’t participating in the tournament because she doesn’t like attending school—she prefers training at home.

  “Your Majesty… what did you just say?” Susan asks cautiously, confused. She isn’t afraid of him, but she deeply respects his strength and leadership.

  “Maki would be a good match for my girl. She’d really enjoy fighting him.” Susan and I look at each other when we hear his answer. We both let out a silent sigh of relief.

  The emperor turns to us with a mischievous smile. “You don’t think I’d serve my precious daughter to him on a silver platter, right? That would be a problem. Jucam would go crazy, and I don’t want to deal with more problems than I already have.” When he finishes, I understand. He expected that reaction and set a trap for us.

  I can’t completely rule out something like that happening. Maki is a magnet for women and trouble… Zuly is very similar in that sense. She’s a beauty worthy of royalty, just like Brendu.

  “Maki also likes fighting strong people. Maybe someday they’ll have a chance to train together.” I make a casual comment, hoping that by then Zuly will already be engaged to someone and there won’t be any chance of seeing them together.

  “Charles just defeated a monster and earned his second medal of honor.” Susan quickly changes the topic. We all focus on one of the screens in front of us. The prince is skilled too. The royal affinity is very troublesome to deal with. Being able to control your own blood or your opponent’s as a weapon is extremely hard to counter.

  Blood affinity, a distinctive trait of the imperial family.

  Casual comments come and go as we focus on the most interesting fights, especially the limit breakers. “Areci already got three medals of honor. She’s not playing around.” She was the first to obtain them. That girl is determined and strong-willed. She would never disappoint her mother or her school.

  “My girl always gives her all, not like a certain idiot playing around.” At first Susan’s gaze is full of pride and love for her daughter, then she looks at another screen. I follow her gaze. She’s talking about Maki. That idiot is playing with a small monster that doesn’t even reach his knees.

  The monster looks like a cotton ball. Its specialty is speed and agility. It’s common to hunt it because its soft, durable fur can be used to make the highest quality clothing. Meanwhile, Maki is trying to catch it by clapping his hands together. He’s lucky to have such sturdy defenses. This fluffy monster usually exhausts its prey with a paralyzing liquid, and it doesn’t affect Maki at all.

  “It’s time for me to go. I have an important meeting soon.” The emperor checks his watch and stands up. He came to visit our box to spend some time with us. Sadim has always held great affection for me and deep respect for Susan. He sees us as some kind of distant family.

  “I hope we can meet again soon. There’s a lot to talk about.” Susan stands to say goodbye.

  “If you need me for anything, just let me know.” I stand as well and give him a firm handshake.

  “I promise I’ll make time in my schedule to share another glass of wine with you.” The emperor replies to Susan with a broad smile.

  “Don’t be surprised if I send for you sooner than you think. Your help would be useful.” Sadim gives me a wink before turning around and leaving.

  “I’m a bit scared about the Zuly topic… did you see his eyes? Even if it was a joke, he looked pretty serious. Brendu won’t take it well if something happens.” Susan takes a big sip of wine. She looks very worried.

  “It’s not just her; Arisa, Marga, and Sol might go a little crazy if someone else joins that group.” The three girls already had it complicated when they found out about the princess. Another one would drive them insane.

  “Zuly is a strange case. She’s similar to Areci in that sense… she’ll probably end up seeing Maki as an younger brother.” Susan is right. Let’s hope that’s the case and we don’t end up with some kind of conflict with the neighboring kingdom because of Maki.