I knelt down, resting my bow in the sand beside him.

  "When you started channeling Flame Hydra, I knew I couldn’t dodge it. Quick Step was gone. Leap Attack too. So I fired a preemptive Silk Shot before you finished your cast, aimed wide, behind you."

  I took a breather, then continued.

  "I triggered Woe’s Last Grasp right before the Hydra landed. It made me ethereal for a split second, enough to avoid the first burst of direct impact," I shared the skill details with him.

  "I didn't know you had something like this," he gasped.

  "It's the final drop from the Woe raid," I explained.

  He frowned. "But Flame Hydra deals multiple hits. The first one alone-"

  "Yeah," I cut into his sentence. "The first hit dealt damage over half of my max HP in one hit, which broke the invulnerability instantly. The rest of the DoT almost killed me, I dropped to 4% HP in seconds," I sighed. "Still, I had enough time."

  Cyrus exhaled, nodding slowly as realization dawned. "And you used that to yank yourself out with Silk Shot."

  "Exactly. I got pulled out of the fire just before it almost killed me. Came out, charged Piercing Shot and prayed it finishes you."

  "It didn't."

  "No," I laughed. "And I knew I couldn't hit you twice with an arrow; I anticipated Gust, so I pulled out a dagger to finish you off. The Gust timing was perfect."

  "It wasn't perfect if you read it like that."

  It was in fact, perfect. The only reason I could correctly anticipate it was because I knew Cyrus would perform it perfectly. If I had fought against anyone else, I wouldn't have been so sure.

  The crowd’s roar drowned out everything else, reacting to the analysis of the casters. Somewhere up on the scaffold, I could faintly hear Shieldbreaker shouting over the mana infused microphone, his voice cracking from excitement. Virtune was already trying to analyze frame data like the scholar he was. Thorax was swearing like a sailor.

  And as the adrenaline caught up to me in steady waves, all I could do was stand there, chest heaving.

  I sheathed the dagger, slung the bow over my shoulder, and looked up at the sky.

  "Oakenlight, you just witnessed a duel that’ll be talked about for months," Virtune said.

  "And after this, who is going to bet against the Black Ranger?" Thorax said, after handing over a bunch of gold to someone else. Clearly, he had learned his lesson.

  Two Association staff members wearing the same strained, “please don't start a riot” expression stepped into my path soon after our duel had ended. They ushered me away before the noise even finished cresting.

  "Orion," One of them said, polite but firm. "Per semifinal fairness rules, you cannot watch the second match."

  I blinked, still trying to convince my lungs to work like normal as the exhaustion caught up to me. "I'm not... going anywhere near it."

  "We know," the other replied, already guiding me by the shoulder. "But it's still the rules."

  The rope line, the crowd, the scaffold; everything blurred into a smear of motion and sound as they escorted me along the far edge of the beach, away from where Athos and Seraphina were about to clash. I caught one last glimpse of the second ring being smoothed out; flags planted, sand raked clean.

  I exhaled and leaned my shoulder against the nearest post. During the week there were countless moments I had forgotten I was inside a game, and the aching of my body was certainly not supporting that thesis either. It's been a while since I was this physically exhausted.

  Stone found me first.

  He came up from the shoreline, heavy steps crushing the glassy sand patches like brittle ice. He took one look at my armor with all of it's charred edges, cracks and one shoulder plate half-melted. It will take a while for the visual damage to disappear.

  He let out a low whistle.

  "I'm going to be honest with you," he started. "There were very few points in this match where I would have bet on you."

  "Hey!" I feigned offense, then smiled. "I know, right? It felt like fighting against a dragon."

  "Looked like that, too," he confirmed. "That was the most insane thing I have seen since launch."

  Behind him, the rest of Carpa assembled slowly after noticing us.

  The others have already been freshened up, no sign of the battles they fought just half an hour ago.

  "I can't imagine anything topping this one," Sylph said while taking a seat next to me.

  "So how is Seraphina?" I asked the ranger.

  "She’s really fucking fast, that’s how," Sylph admitted. "I had very little chance from the beginning. Didn’t help that I had no clue what Swashbucklers do, to be fair."

  That reminded me of the fact that I was also pretty clueless on the topic.

  "That makes the two of us," I admitted.

  "Want me to give you some pointers?" He asked.

  I immediately refused. Well, partly.

  "Just tell me what a swashbucklers four basic skills are up to this point. I don’t want to get any unfair advantages."

  Stone whistled.

  "How noble of you."

  It might or might not have been a fair decision, but the truth was I just wanted to test myself. I could look up the basic skills of a class whenever I wanted to, but if Seraphina had hidden tricks up her sleeve, I’d only want to find out about them in battle.

  "Well, their level 1 skill is called Flourish; a swift horizontal cut followed up by a point-blank thrust, both dealing moderate damage," Sylph started. "Its range is limited, but once in position, it’s really hard to dodge."

  "Their movement ability is called Blade Lunge," Stone added. "Shorter than a swordsman’s Blade Rush, but again, fast."

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  "Yeah, for some reason I kept anticipating Blade Rush, got surprised by it’s speed at least twice," Sylph admitted.

  Verdugo and Rafael had joined us in the meantime, and Cyrus and Scale were also on their way to our makeshift canteen.

  "You don’t have to worry about one of their skills, amigo," Verdugo told me. "It was a pain in the ass for me, but Riposte does nothing against rangers."

  "Well, she can use it to parry arrows pretty effectively," Sylph said. "But yeah, the returned damage doesn’t apply at range."

  He pulled out a sandwich from his inventory.

  "What you really should avoid at all costs is Dazzling Strike," he continued, mouth half full. "Short range, but if it hits, you’re probably dead."

  "A one hit kill?" I was surprised. "With a basic skill?"

  "It doesn’t do much damage, but it starts a stun on you that’s further increased by every skill coming after," Sylph said. "I won’t give you information since you are all high and mighty about being morally correct, but trust me, she has a lot of skills."

  It sounded pretty scary. Getting chain-stunned by a fast opponent was always the worst case scenario for all ranged players.

  A sudden roar followed by cheers of hundreds of adventurers broke our discussion. We were pretty far from the area, but the crowd grew to an unimaginable amount. Must be a really good match, I thought.

  At this point Cyrus and Scale had joined up with us once again.

  "So now you’re the last one representing our little village," Scale said, tapping my shoulder. "Props to you, Orion. I thought Cyrus was unbeatable."

  Cyrus rolled his eyes. "Am I that proud and selfish, Scale? Just tell me, I’ll change."

  We laughed.

  "We like you how you are, boss," Scale said. "But you know, maybe it’s a good thing you lost. Keeps you grounded."

  "No shame in losing to someone better," Cyrus admitted.

  "I’m not sure it’s clear-cut like that," I answered. "That match could have gone either way."

  "I appreciate it, Orion, but my kit was perfect against a ranger," Cyrus sighed. "My damage output was also higher. I have no excuses."

  "Now that you know all my skills, I’d probably lose against you more often than not."

  He smiled. "Maybe. You won when it mattered, though."

  The sun was starting to get further and further down towards the horizon. I checked the time; I was still on schedule for the boats to Tidemark, and there was only one more match left.

  Whether I win or lose, at least I can get there in time.

  "Well, let’s drink to the Black Ranger of Carpa, patron of impossible comebacks!" Verdugo shouted suddenly.

  "Please don’t," I groaned in embarrassment.

  Stone rumbled a laugh. "Too late. Cheers, guys!"

  We drank.

  Over at the arena the crowd detonated again, even bigger this time. A drawn-out roar sent chills down my spine. Sylph winced.

  "That sounded significant."

  Verdugo craned his neck like he might see what was happening there if he gained an inch or two.

  "Why aren’t you guys watching?" I asked.

  "We can’t leave you here, amigo," Rafael said. "You’re Carpa’s champion, after all."

  The gesture warmed my heart, but I didn’t want them to miss such an important piece of today’s tournament.

  "Go ahead, don’t worry about me," I said. "It’s one thing to look at VODs, live moments like this is why we’re playing the game in the first place."

  Stone’s smile softened. "He has a point. Besides, the Black Ranger might appreciate a little alone time before his big match."

  He was right, I had to get into the right head-space. I was grateful for their company, but my next match was going to be at least on par with the Cyrus and the Kaelith fights, and I was already exhausted; a little bit of quiet would probably help.

  "Go ahead!" I repeated myself. "Next time we meet, I’ll be holding the grand prize."

  I shook hands with all of them.

  "Whatever happens in that ring, you have already proved yourself," Cyrus said.

  Rafael nodded.

  "You go and keep taking down mountains, dude," Scale added quietly.

  Verdugo lifted his glass once more. "To Carpa!"

  We toasted back before they went off to join the crowd of observers.

  I started pondering about my journey so far. It has not even been a week since I had spawned in Carpa, with barely anything on my avatar, not knowing what Godsrealm held for me.

  Ever since then I had experienced so much in this world. From the constant fighting to the kindness of the people living in the kingdom, from exploration to making new friends, from discovering hidden lore to upgrading myself consistently, it had been a wild wild ride.

  I found myself smiling uncontrollably. This was the best week I have had in years.

  About ten minutes later the noise from the arena had changed. It died down, as if the crowd was anticipating a climax sooner or later.

  It had been a steady storm for most of the match, waves of cheering, sudden silences, the occasional spike that made the wooden scaffolds tremble, however now it settled, the air filled with anticipation.

  It sounded like an ending.

  A few minutes later, the Adventurer’s Association staff who had been policing the “no sightlines” rule jogged to me with new urgency, faces filled with excitement. Even the NPCs couldn’t wait to see the finals.

  "Results are in!" One of them told me.

  I straightened and stopped fidgeting with my bowstring.

  Then Shieldbreaker’s voice boomed across the beach, carried by the wind.

  "OAKENLIGHT! WE HAVE OUR FINALISTS!"

  A pause and a breath held by hundreds.

  "IN A RAZOR CLOSE MATCH… ATHOS WINS!"

  The beach erupted so hard the seagulls scattered in a thousand directions. And just like that, it was official.

  Finals: Orion vs Athos

  I spotted my friends as I was taken towards Arena 1; they were right next to the path the Association cleared for us. I could faintly hear Verdugo and Sylph and they seemed shocked in disbelief.

  "I can’t believe hermosa Seraphina lost," Verdugo shook his head.

  Sylph blinked rapidly. "She was convincingly better than me. Just who is this Athos guy?"

  Scale shrugged. "He’s insanely good, not just hype."

  Cyrus exhaled slowly as I walked past them. I deliberately slowed my steps, wanting to hear what the mage had to say.

  "I’m not surprised, after seeing the fight," he sighed. "Athos’s… serious. Pro level serious."

  With that I was past them, not hearing the rest of the conversation, however that was enough for me.

  From the way Cyrus sounded I deducted he thought Athos could take the fight even to him. That meant I had to expect someone at least on par to the Flame Wizard of Carpa.

  I was humbled. I stood on top of Valhalla for three years, with even the best of the best being a notch below me.

  In Godsrealm, I had found many to be my equals in just one week.

  It made my blood boil with excitement.

  I let the sound of the beach drown out all the noise of the people, the distant chanting of Athos’s name and the voices of the announcers.

  As I turned back towards the crowd, I caught Stone’s eyes and nodded. His eyes looked like he was asking me whether I was ready.

  I was more than that.

  All the exhaustion I felt after the semi-finals was gone. I couldn’t wait to fight the best of the best once again.

  "Ladies and gentlemen! Finals prep begins now! Everyone gather to Arena One. The match will be fully casted by myself, Virtune and Thorax!

  The crowd surged like a tsunami.

  "Alright,” I said to myself. “Let’s give them a final worth remembering.”

  I got to Arena One on one side. Athos had arrived a moment later.

  At the very least, he looked like he had to fight gravity itself. It must not have been an easy match against Seraphina.

  “Estimated time to start the finals is ten minutes!” Virtune’s voice notified everyone. “Participants, catch your breath! Everyone, gather around!”

  I entered the arena and patiently waited for everyone to be ready.

  The Carpa crew had gathered behind me, and to my surprise, they were joined by quite a big following: I had my own fanbase now.

  The ocean flashed beside us, the sun painting it gold, and even the waves crept closer and closer towards the battlefield, as if the whole world wanted to catch a glimpse of what was coming next.