"Billy…Billy, what do I do? Are you going to leave me?"
Billy walked up to him and said in a very low voice dripping in mockery and disgust,"Haven't I always told you, you are weak! And I hate weak people so can you do me a favor and scr*w off back to our world?"
The guy couldn't believe his ears as he stood and watched helplessly as Billy and the rest of what he could now call his former team walked away with the fairies.
Steve began to feel bored after the first hundred people, nothing seemed to have caught his interest since the first two people.
The girl with the gas mask had qualified after scoring within the three hundred mark with a sword but it wasn't same for her friend who was disqualified after scoring one hundred and twenty six.
The huge guy with blonde hair that covered his eyes scored within the three hundred to four hundred mark with an sword.
"…and for our two hundred and forty fifth contestant!!, Prince Vittorio Ranieri Maria Alberto from the Blagroe continent with his sword, heaven's longsword!!…"
It was then that the blonde haired guy from the impressive group walked forward to the platform.
'Oh….so he's a prince, that explains the regal impression' Steve thought,
He scored four hundred and thirty two
His teammates who were called after him in order all qualified as they scored within the three hundred mark.
Steve noticed that the beautiful lady among them was a Heracles.
Steve stretched his hands and looked around as the umpire called out the four hundredth person, they were about a hundred people left now, he knew that he would probably be the last person because he registered for the contest few days before it started.
"…..and for our four hundred and fiftieth contestant, Anna Templeton from the Whitemore continent with her katana, Anna…."
Steve's brows shot up as he heard the name, it was the beautiful blue eyed lady whom he made eye contact with before the prelims started.
'Templeton?, Could she be related to grand master Tristan?….and her sword..why would she name it after herself?' Steve looked at Tristan but his face didn't show any sign of emotion whatsoever.
'….maybe they're not related after all…'
She walked up to the platform and instead of taking a stance, she pointed her sword to the disc.
'Huh?…. what's she doing?'
She gently touched the disc with her Mana enhanced sword and the board began to measure it.
'What the….how is that possible?' Steve went wide eyed as the Mana count ended at four hundred and forty five.
She turned and elegantly walked out with the fairy.
'Wow…. she's the first female level four swordswoman that I've ever seen….and I'll have to admit, she's ... impressive'
The number of swordsmen reduced and reduced till Steve was the only person left there.
"….And that is it for the last contestant of the da…..oh wait, there's one more contestant!!, And for the last contestant of the day, the five hundredth applicant, Steven Heracles from the Gray continent with his sword, Red's fury!!!!"
'Fuu….I can't believe he almost forgot me'
Steve thought as he searched the faces of the officials floating above to find any hint of surprise on the mention of his sword's name but he was disappointed as he didn't find any. It was either that they didn't know his sword or Joaquin had already told them about it.
Steve had not been at ease since the beginning of the contest because of his low Mana level but after carefully watching the other swordsmen as they took their tests, he was able to come up with a theory about the workings of the disc and the board.
Grand master Williams had said that the disc was to basically measure the amount of Mana your body can output but Steve wondered whether it was only the Mana output or the combined output of your physical strength and your Mana.
After watching the contestants for some time, he realized that some people who gave off roughly the same mana aura had different scores depending on the individual strengths and energy used to hit the disc.
But this was only a theory, he was still unsure about it. Steve took a deep breath as he walked to the platform to test out his theory. Now that he was close to the disc, it looked much bigger and tougher to him.
He unsheathed his sword and held it in front of him and it's red blade glistened in the moonlight of the Infernal realm, it was then that a look of curiosity adorned Williams' face.
Steve took a stance and lifted his Mana engulfed sword, then he struck the disc.
The numbers on the board rose rapidly and finally stopped at three hundred and eight, one of the lowest qualifying scores. It was then that Steve realized that he had been holding his breath since the board started counting, he barely made it.
"….Wow!!, that was a close call!!, Contestant number five hundred qualifies to participate in the contest…"
'Whew, I barely made it. At least I've qualified now'
He thought as he walked out with the fairy.
"That kid's mana level isn't up to level three, isn't it" Williams asked Joaquin and Tristan as he looked at Steve's retreating figure.
"He enhanced his arm as well as his sword thereby amplifying his attack output…..smart idea" Joaquin replied casually
"…But that is a difficult thing to do for Mana swordsmen, concentrating your Mana on an object and your body…"
Tristan chipped in,
".. Don't forget, he is a child of the Heracles bloodline too, Williams can relate…"
Joaquin said as he began to float away from them
"That's right, the talented bloodline of subpar swordsmen….but none of the Heracles today were up to level four, honestly I do not envision any of them winning this contest"
Tristan sneered and floated away too
'You may be right about my bloodline been subpar but there's something about that kid I can't place yet, he was the only level two swordsman to pass the prelims….I look forward to some fascinating content from you' Williams ignored Tristan's deriding comment as he pondered deeply while still staring at Steve's receding figure in the distance.
...
Steve was fascinated as he observed the surroundings of the Infernal realm, it was truly an alternate dimension to Earth because it had plants that were similar but not the same with those on Earth.
"So…Ms fairy?"
Steve called to the puppy sized winged creature that was escorting him to his dorm.
"My name is Isabella"
"Ok, Isabella, can I ask you a question?"
"Yes, as long as it's not related to the content of the tests because we fairies do not know anything about it"
"Oh no no, it's not about that. I was wondering…."
Steve trailed off as he looked around as Isabella turned to look at him too.
"What?"
Isabella's voice was tiny and minute, it reminded him of Belinda, Lord Forger's fairy.
"If this is a realm for fiends, how come there aren't any fiends around?"
"Oh, that. We are in a region of the Infernal realm called the contestants arena, fiends can not enter this area because our mages have set up a magic shield around this general area. It is where the contestants stay so as to avoid conflicts or incidents between the contestants and the fiends"
"Ohh…right"
Steve said and kept quiet to organize his thoughts.
'A lot of swordsmen were disqualified today…and I'm fully aware that I am the only level two swordsman left so that means I'll have to work very hard in order to survive here…apart from those five contestants who were up to level four, the rest were level three but in all, everyone still has a higher Mana potential than me…I can't afford to cut some slack here. For Grandpa Matt and the world's sake, I'll try to win this contest…'
They finally arrived at the boys dormitory, a large rectangular one floored building that had rooms that could contain more than two hundred people, it was painted in white and the surroundings were well decorated with flowers and plants.
It seemed that they had somehow managed to install electricity supply because there were electric bulbs that illuminated the hallways.
It seemed that they had somehow managed to install electricity supply because there were electric bulbs that illuminated the hallways.
The fairy led him to a room that had the numbers "100" written on the door, it was the last room on the hallway. Steve thanked the fairy and walked into the room.
Before she left she told him that they would be communicated on the time of the next test, so for the meantime they should rest and train.
The fairy left and he closed the door when he suddenly heard a deep voice...