Cyril Sarnath
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Chapter 193
🕑 Added 2023-11-10 17:31:08 +0000 UTCWithout Keynes’s [Purify] and away from their house, cleaning was an ordeal Kora wasn’t going to bother with. Her wounds had closed up already, leaving an itching echo. She also replaced her clothes after her guardian had returned to her the dimensional bag and the ring. She couldn’t do anything about the dirt, dried blood or sweat.
The waiting area had been raised nearby for contenders, their guardians and the Grand Druid who waited for the fights to conclude. Kora and the guardian took a spot on the far right. Just a row shy from the Grand Druid.
“Your placement matters,” the guardian explained.
That got Kora’s attention.
“How so?”she asked with a mix of relief and concern. As the first one to finish the challenge, she was guaranteed the highest outcome of whatever they were going to award her, but the concern was linked to Keynes. She didn’t know what kind of a monster he’d chosen for his fight as they weren’t allowed to communicate during their preparation period, but knowing Keynes, he might have overdone it.
“Apart from the reward for the difficulty and penalty for training, the Father will award finishing order. It wasn’t announced before the fights to not distract you.”
“Distract me?”
“A fight possesses a natural flow,” the Grand Druid said, not looking at them. “Introduction of additional conditions would impact the flow, skewing it toward an unwanted outcome. Given the difficulty of the challenge, the outcome in most cases would be fatal to the contenders, thus depreciating the overall competitiveness.”
“I see.” So direct feedback from the Grand Druid seemed to be part of the reward as well, she silently concluded. It naturally made her wonder if there was a way to get more out of her circumstance. Her thoughts were interrupted by the arena’s door; her heart skipped a beat expecting to find Keynes there.
Instead it was the man, his name was… Torvac?
Indeed, her spiritual companion confirmed.
Torvac barely stood on his feet. His left arm hung uselessly, his clothes were torn and soaked in blood.
“What a shame,” the Grand Druid muttered, shaking his head. He had Kora at a disadvantage.
“What happened?” she asked, watching as another guardian approached Torvac and handed him the potion with blue liquid.
“He surrendered,” the guardian replied.
Kora’s eyes widened. That meant Torvac would be awarded zero points for this challenge. But while she felt sorry for the man, he ultimately was their competitor. His misfortune was her fortune.
“What happens when someone doesn't surrender?” she asked, unsure where exactly she was going with the question.
“That contender dies,” the guardian said neutrally.
Kora’s hackles rose. She wasn’t aware they could die here. The way they had framed the rules of the Inner Sanctuary made her believe this was a peaceful place. With an exception of the Dark Forest. Oh, crap. We might have stepped into a trap. It wasn’t anything certain but the possibility existed and felt likely to her.
“So I could have died there,” she said and because it wasn’t a question neither the Grand Druid nor the guardian responded to it. “Keynes… he is…”
“Stubborn?” the guardian finished.
“I was going to say irresponsible when it comes to fighting monsters,” she said, worried. After a few seconds she added quietly. “He’s really bent on winning the whole competition. He might refuse to surrender if it meant losing the chance to get first.”
“And you should avoid chasing his dreams,” the Grand Druid chimed in. “His path isn’t yours.”
Kora frowned.
“I don’t think I agree,” she said, feeling uneasy about disagreeing with the Grand Druid. “I believe our goals align and so our paths.”
“His path is his own. He isn’t like any of you here or even in the whole of the Father’s dominion. Keynes Kid is a force of change.”
“I won’t leave him,” Kora said with heat in her voice.
“And you shouldn’t. Someone like him needs someone like you more than anything.”
“Then what do you mean by avoiding chasing his dreams?”
“Only by staying true to yourself will you be able to remain by his side…”
A vision flashed in Kora’s mind. It wasn’t visualisation but rather sensations and feelings of the future. No, not the future but a possibility of the future. She realised she was being granted a powerful insight.
Keynes needed her and she needed him. She could sense a connection forming between them in the future but true to the Grand Druid’s words, she had to find her way. Who was she?
Who am I?
“A girl who stands at the sideline making others stronger.”
“Yes.”
“No.”
“Who then am I?”
She felt a distant understanding of her question. It remained out of her reach but asking the question was the first step toward learning the answer and she was going to learn it.
She blinked as if yanked out of a dream.
“This shall help you in finding your true self.” The Grand Druid turned his back to her in time for another contender to leave the arena.
Kora sighed. It wasn’t Keynes. The Grand Druid’s congratulated him for finishing second but that was it. Something was off but with the ascender and his guardian taking a seat nearby, she didn’t want to inquire the Grand Druid about it.
The ascender’s name was Edward and he was the one who had been giving Keynes suspicious looks. Keynes believed Edward had recognised him, so he must have been part of a high ranking group to know Keynes.
“So we’re getting additional points for placement?” Edward asked, clearly following up on the conversation with his guardian.
“You do,” the Grand Druid answered. “Details will be revealed when all contenders finish their fights.”
The third man, excluding Torvac who had taken seat on the other side of the seating area, was Evren. He looked quite good, with only minor bruises and a couple of wounds. The Grand Druid’s congratulations were a notch warmer than Edward’s.
When Theodore and his snake came fourth, Kora started to worry about Keynes. She really wanted to ask the guardian what Level of a monster Keynes had chosen for his challenge but other ascenders were in the earshot; too close for her comfort and so she remained silent.
Kora almost cursed when Zephyr finished fifth. The man was their hardest competitor and judging by the Grand Druid’s words, he must have defeated quite a monster.
The emergence of the sixth person was almost missed. Syman had either a strange Talent or skill that made it hard to focus on him.
Shit. Only 3 people are left in the competition, Keynes, Sophia and Esme. She was getting really scared for Keynes. He absolutely overshot and took on too strong a monster.
Esme came 7th and then Sophia appeared 8th barely a few seconds later. Both of them looked half-dead and required immediate healing. Their guardian didn’t bother with elixirs as the Grand Druid used a healing skill on them, patching them up.
Esme only shook her head when she saw Torvac sitting alone and proceeded to take the seat shown to her by her guardian. Sophia was more perceptive and she asked, “Don’t tell me there is some kind of placement…”
“There is,” the Grand Druid confirmed. “And there are points granted for it.”
He ignored her rant, watching the arena door with an intense gaze. Kora didn’t notice her tension until her guardian placed his hand on her shoulder.
“He’ll be fine,” the guardian assured her. But with each ticking minute, a pit in Kora’s stomach grew larger, especially, knowing that it was possible to die in this challenge.
She literally jumped to her feet when the door of the arena finally opened and Keynes walked out. Then her heart was caught in her throat as she saw his state. His clothes and skin were shredded and cut all over his body. He limped, while his right arm was hanging lifelessly.
Keynes was leaving a trail of blood in his wake.
Kora shot toward him, the guardian followed her.
“He needs healing!” she said but Keynes shook his head.
“Don’t,”he said. “It’s nothing.”
“Keynes, you’ll—”
“I will not,” he interrupted her, smiling smugly. “I’m cleaning all my wounds with [Purify] as we speak so there is no risk of infection. My Vitality will take care of my wounds. I’ll be fine.”
His words stunned her and then she noticed that everyone else also remained silent. Everyone’s eyes were on the Grand Druid, awaiting his decision. Would he heal Keynes against his wishes? Kora really hoped so.
“Keynes Kid is right. His Vitality is high enough to heal his body on its own, leaving no scars,” The Grand Druid said then lowered his voice. “Congratulations, your feat is noted by the Father.”
Feat? What the hell did he do? Kora asked herself.
They all turned toward the seating area. Kora caught Zephyr’s intrigued stare. The old man seemed to take interest in them. Sophia nodded, giving her approval, but Kora wasn’t sure what she approved of.
She led Keynes to the seat next to Sophia. Keynes slowly lowered himself and though he didn’t complain, Kora winced seeing the wounds from close range. Some cuts were deep enough to reveal bones!
“You should take the elixir. It will heal you in minutes,” she argued.
“No need, Kora. Really, I will be fine,” he replied, enigmatically. He clearly didn’t want to talk with all other ascenders in the earshot. She understood and didn’t press him.
Taking the seat between him and Sophia, she saw the Grand Druid take the centre in front of them.
“Once again, congratulations, contenders. The second challenge wasn’t easy and tested you in a very different way from the first one. Some of you exceeded our expectations and the Father is very pleased with your performance. But enough idle talk. Let’s speak about the scores.”
Tension among the contenders jumped up suddenly as everyone was curious how others fared and how many points they were going to be rewarded for their placement.
“I messed up, didn’t I?” Keynes murmured when he realised that their placement would be taken into account. “But hell, it was worth it.”
Kora glared at him but she wasn’t one to get mad easily so her frown made him smile. On the other hand, she sensed Sophia's attention on them and as Kora looked back at her, she found Zephyr watching them as well.
The old man’s becoming creepy.
“I will start from the last place,” the Grand Druid interrupted her thoughts. “Torvac was forced to surrender which left him with 0 points.”
No one commented but pity in spiritual auras was unmistakable. With 0 points twice in the row Torvac was unlikely to place anywhere near top. It looked like the competition was over for him. Everyone, but Keynes who appeared suspiciously quiet, shifted their focus to the Grand Druid in anticipation. Who would be the unfortunate 8th?
“Theodore,” the Grand Druid announced.
“That’s impossible,” Theodore protested. His bond hissed dangerously, causing other ascenders to stiffen.
“Your score for the second challenge is 680 points,” the Grand druid continued, ignoring his protests. “You defeated an equivalent of a Level 6 monster, which awarded you 600 points, received 200 points for finishing 4th but your training cost you 120 points.”
“Not additional points for insight or something?”
“Did you have any insight?”
“Well, no…”
The Grand Druid turned away from him.
“Seventh position: Edward with 750 points. You have defeated an equivalent of a Level 5 monster for 500 points and received 400 points for being second and were deducted 150 points for training.”
Edward looked thoughtful. He clearly wasn’t happy with his score. But choosing to fight only a Level 5 monster with an extensive amount of training beforehand put him in this predicament. It also revealed to Kora that he was a man averse to risk.
Esme took 6th position with 775 points. She was not happy but didn’t protest out loud. Nonetheless, Kora noted that Esme had defeated an equivalent of a Level 8 monster. This meant she was quite strong.
Fifth came Evren and fourth Syman, the former with 870 and the latter with 890 points. Both defeated an equivalent of a Level 7 monster with substantial training, which cost them a lot of points.
Kora’s confidence grew now that she knew the scoring. She defeated an equivalent of a Level 9 monster and finished first with no preparation whatsoever.
“Now, the top 3 results, each of them impressive and commendable.”
Sophia openly smiled. She must have pushed herself with this one.
“Third place: Sophia with 915 points—”
And Sophia’s smile was gone. Her head swivelled toward Zephyr.
“How is he better than me?”She snapped, interrupting the Grand Druid.
“You’re not going to win this, child,” Zephyr said, calmly.
“Neither will you,”Keynes said with his eyes still closed, surprising everyone.
“You just got lucky this time around,” Zephyr said, unbothered. “This will not happen again.”
Keynes snorted.
“You won’t remain in the Inner Sanctuary forever, old man.”
“A credible threat.” Zephyr nodded. “I look forward to meeting you outside.”
“Then you’re a fool,” the Grand Druid said coolly, offering Zephyr a hard stare. The old man didn’t argue or even looked rattled.
Kora wanted to punch him for this but she only sighed, resigned.
“Sophia defeated an equivalent of a Level 9 monster but finished 8th which awarded her 25 points. Her training deducted only 10 points. The Father officially commends you. You’ll receive a special reward for your achievement. It will be delivered to your tree house.”
The additional reward mollified Sophia into silence.
“Second place…” The Grand Druid made a pause, glancing between Zephyr, Kora and Keynes. “Zephyr with 920 points. You have defeated an equivalent of a Level 8 monster, finishing 5th, which awarded you 150 points and 30 points deducted for training.”
Keynes burst out laughing, which quickly turned into a coughing fit. He spat blood but his good mood was unwavering.
“Get used to it,” Keynes said, when he calmed down.
“No special reward?” Zephyr asked, keeping his voice level.
“No,” the Grand Druid said, then turned to Keynes and Kora. “Congratulations, your total divided by two is 1200 points.” That got gasps from other contenders.
“Kora finished first, defeating an equivalent of a Level 9 monster, which is an impressive achievement. But that is not all. She did without prior training.”
Other contenders glared at them, wide-eyed, their auras leaking conflicting emotions.
“Keynes pushed himself a step further, defeating an equivalent of a Level 10 monster. The highest Level offered by the challenge. He also didn’t have any prior training. You will also receive a special reward befitting your achievements.”
Zephyr no longer looked calm. There was fury in his eyes. Keynes just turned Zephyr into a full blown enemy. Kora was going to have a conversation with him. The last thing they needed were enemies.
“Now, let me announce the third challenge. It’s called the Precious and will have to grow the most precious plant. The Father will personally judge your results. Good luck.”
***
Total score:
1. Zephyr - 2720
2. Edward - 1852
3. Kora and Keynes - 1827
4. Sophia - 1545
5. Evren - 1336
6. Esme - 1036
7. Theodore - 968
8. Syman - 922
9. Torvac - 0
