Once again the whole class is together, but this time not in the dining room, but in the Main Hall. There are benches on either side of the walls, and behind a teacher's table covered with green cloth is the board with their names. Ghosts hover under the ceiling, but Sir Pulsok seems to have decided to ignore today's event - neither he nor Agyg can be seen anywhere.
They hadn't really had a chance to rest after the holiday, and on the second day of the new year they were herded into the classroom, where the goblin bluntly announced: two days for preparation, and then the beginning of the tournament for the title of the best young wizard of the school. When asked what exactly to prepare for, he did not answer, only noted snidely: in real magical duels, no one informs the opponent what kind of spell is going to hit him. The only thing he reassured them with was that no one was going to demand any knowledge or skill that didn't match their level.
Not many pupils liked what they heard - the classes weren't supposed to start until tenth day of the new year, and now instead of a pleasant pastime, they'll have to sit down at the books and meditate. But how to argue with the bosses! Even the promised bonuses in the form of points for the winners did not warm their souls. And, quite naturally, many wondered why there was such a hurry. Rugud added fuel to the fire by saying that for everyone who had studied here before them tournaments rarely had started in their first year of study. And it's only been two months! And that only strengthened Tim's suspicions. Due to the tournament they had to give up going to the dungeon, even though the kobold had prepared a new neutralizing potion - they would have to make up a very good reason for not attending such an important event. After weighing the pros and cons, they decided to be reasonable - after all, a few days would not solve anything.
Another problem was raised by Selkise, and first of all to Tim. It is unlikely that they will be allowed to choose their own opponents - either they will draw lots, or someone from the 'management staff' will choose the pairs of duelists. So, there is a non-zero probability that friends will meet in a duel, and they will have to choose - to give in or to offend the friend, who may want to win too. Tim shared his doubts with his friends, but they just shrugged their shoulders in response - there was no problem, it didn't matter who won, it wouldn't affect our friendship. It's good, if so, Tim thought to himself, deciding to act according to the situation. And if he'll going to lose to anyone, then only to Selkise - but in a way that she wouldn't guess, otherwise she might take offense at the giveaway game. Girls are so complicated!
After waiting for the students to be seated and the noise to die down a bit, Master Aerg took the floor.
"I hope you are all properly prepared. Since this is your first tournament, the tasks will not be difficult. Especially for those who have worked on themselves at least a little bit. The rules are simple: in order to win, you must win two out of three rounds. Be warned at once: attempts to use an innate gift, verbally or otherwise insult your opponent, or use enchanted objects are punishable by immediate disqualification. Is that clear?"
A disorderly "Yes!" murmured through the hall, some just nodding their heads in agreement.
"Then I'll turn the floor over to my colleague, who will explain in detail what tests await you, and exactly how the contest will proceed."
Master Iskitt, who was seated in the center of the table, waved his wand, and a transparent ball shimmering with all the colors of the rainbow appeared before him, like a huge soap bubble. Fireflies swarmed inside it, but from his seat Tim could not see whether they were living creatures or just magical lights. And then the teacher summoned a miniature winged creature, also called an elf in Earth folklore, but in reality it was a member of the flivaxen community. The flixies, as the true elves call them, come from the planet Fuivt, where the treants, the sentient trees, also reside. Gillmir once told about this, mentioning the portals that link their world with Gallaeri - the 'butterflies' come to visit the elves through them. The flixies are very curious, and often get themselves into trouble, but you can't get bored with them. They are cheerful and carefree, ready to fly back and forth and chirp nonstop for hours. From the description, their planet is a garden of Eden, where it's hard to stay bored or sad.
"The lights are really your names, and now Fluppy will randomly choose the two who are to fight each other," the Master explained, and the 'butterfly', flying close to the ball, drew out two fireflies, which immediately became words.
Dem'O'Sut and Ruum-Fib.
The letters, which composed the names, lit up for only a second or two, then faded and extinguished. But it didn't matter - everyone has had time to see who was unlucky enough to be the first. There was a sigh of relief through the Hall - what luck that we started with others! The drow, rising from her seat, smiled coquettishly toward the peirot, who shot a sneering look in return. They both headed toward a pedestal in the middle of the Hall, on which a small iron ball rested.
-In the first round the task of each of you is to attract telekinetically the ball with your wand. Whoever has it as a result wins."
Most of the pupils grabbed their grimoires - few of them knew the formula for attracting things by heart.
"And don't get too close," Master Ven'A'Sash added, setting a barrier around the pedestal, hard to tell which one, but Dem'O'Sut, who was inside it, immediately jumped out and tried not to cross the scarlet line again.
The signal to begin was the thud of the gong that came as if from nowhere - no teacher was trying to use magic at that moment. The drow started first, but her efforts were in vain. With a grin, Ruum-Fib raised his wand, and the ball jumped off the pedestal and rolled straight into his opponent's feet.
"A noble but pointless gesture in real fights," commented Mez'A'Shib, who was sitting next to Tim. The teachers apparently thought the same way, so they did not award the victory in the first round to anyone.
The next was the test of knowledge of the Elements. Two bundles of dry straw took the place of the ball, and it was necessary to set one of them on fire before the opponent. Or put out someone else's fire with water.
Who could match a peirot in stoking a fire? Sensing that, Dem'O'Sut chose the second option, but the few paltry drops that escaped her wand could not extinguish Ruum-Fib's flame.
In the third round they once again had to deal with Mind magic, this time in the form of twenty perfectly identical pyramids arranged in four rows on a pedestal.
"Only one of them is real, the others are illusory," Master Iskitt explained. "You will have to determine which one it is without touching it with your hand; you can only point with your wand. Try using True Sight. Or dispel the illusion with an appropriate spell - that counts as well."
It's hard to tell if the drow was trying to use the True Sight formula or just poke her wand at random, but the result was unimpressive - the pyramid she'd chosen disappeared into thin air, revealing itself to be untrue. Ruum-Fib didn't fare much better.
"Too weak," Master Aerg commented with a frown. "In the old days, those who demonstrated such 'academic excellence' were simply kicked out of the school."
If my theory was correct, Tim thought, it was unlikely that any of them would be expelled. More likely, the teachers will limit themselves to a public reprimand, like 'It's not good to be lazy, you have to study'.
"I think we should show mercy," Master Nimikel suddenly spoke up for the pupils. "They had too little time to prepare."
Master Saag-Kof nodded in agreement and Master Aerg, after grumbling that in two months at least something could be learned, did not contradict them. Master Ven'A'Sash didn't say a word, and the overall result was a victory for the peirot.
Taeron and Shugiz were next. The elf, with a contemptuous pucker of his lower lip, motioned for the orc to begin, and the latter managed to get the ball in the air (though it fell to the floor almost immediately). And even set fire to the straw - albeit later than his opponent. Once again, illusions failed for both, to which Master Aerg responded with another round of venomous remarks.
The duel between Xitati and Shiimaa was boring, and Tim got the impression that neither of them were even trying to fight, only made it look like it was. And that's understandable, because if you don't want to fight, but you're forced to, one can't expect any impressive results. Xitati's final victory should rather be called a forced one.
Much more spectacular was the duel between Parial and Nhel'Yu'Min. The elves, exchanging unfriendly glances, stood against the barrier and tried for a full minute to pull the stubborn orb toward them. At last Parial did so, and in an instant she was bent in half, nearly falling down.
Tim could realize from the reaction in the Hall what had happened. Nhel'Yu'Min had applied her innate gift of Pain to her opponent. Naturally, such a blatant violation of the rules did not go unpunished - the drow was teleported straight to the punishment cell, deprived of ten points and assigned thirty hours of community service at the same time.
Za-Zu was the first to correctly determine which pyramid was the true one. Unfortunately, in the remaining rounds she lost to Kunfor.
Another pair of duelists included Naar-Tam, and Tim sincerely wished him victory. Feeling the friendly support, the peirot easily beat Meikli, who, by all accounts, had no intention of winning.
But in Fingor's duel with Iwiel both contestants were determined to win, no one was going to concede. The first two rounds ended in a draw - the magic potentials of the participants were almost equal. And only the third round revealed the winner - Iwiel managed to make the illusions blurry, after which it was no problem to find the true pyramid among the imaginary ones.
When the same thing is repeated several times in a row, interest is slowly lost. So Tim watched the duel between Gan'I'Tar and Jaamite half-eyed, distracted by his conversation with the friends. He hadn't even noticed which one of them had won. It looked it was the drow, but he wouldn't bet his head on it.
Ivliar and Drega were next - Tim, of course, was rooting for the lycos, as was most of the class. Alas, the anzimar girl was stronger, and all that was left was a disappointed sigh.
But when Heen-Lun and Eliavin came to the barrier, Tim got a little respite, since he hadn't decided who he liked better. And he used it to refresh his memory of the necessary formulas, simultaneously trying to find spells that did not contradict the tasks of the tournament, and at the same time were unconventional - maybe the 'panel of judges' would appreciate originality. His grimoire was already more than a quarter full, not only with formulas and their explanations, but also with simple sketches - not changing his earthly habit, Tim thoughtfully scribbled on the pages with his stylus even on Jelshakh. What if he has an artistic talent? He could try to paint a portrait of someone... even Selkise! But if it will be bad, she might see it as a caricature, and be offended for sure. On the other hand, then there's no reason in showing it to her. In any case, it's worth a try, although the portrait painting is rightly considered the most difficult, landscape and still-life ones are easier. But if he could do it, Selkise would respect him. And she wouldn't call him a silly boy for sure.
He was distracted from his thoughts by the applause as the elves greeted their countryman for his hard-fought victory. And another pair, Kakh'I'Geg and Chilajt, were called into the ring. As the drow approached her opponent, she said something to her - what exactly, Tim couldn't make out, but judging by the gorgon's reaction, something very hurtful. But if Kakh'I'Geg expected Chilajt to paralyze her with glare and thus would earn a disqualification, she miscalculated - the gorgon learned to control herself. And Chilajt won the first round, even without using her innate gift. And then, after a draw in the second, also the third one, which guaranteed her an unqualified victory. Someone clapped their hands; Tim joined in. And even though it wasn't as impressive as the ovation that Eliavin had received, Chilajt was happy and smiling from the bottom of her heart.
Germeht's duel with Gmuruk caused even more excitement in the Hall, and it was a very short one. The anzimar muttered a spell through his teeth that lifted the ball into the air, but it immediately fell down and rolled straight toward the orc. Not expecting to encounter any resistance, Germeht angrily tossed his wand at his adversary, hitting him in the shoulder. Gmuruk was not left in debt: picking up the enemy's wand, he simply broke it in half, because it was wooden. In short, they both ended up in the punishment cells.
The next two fights were less interesting, with no one hurting or taunting anyone. Alkitmi easily beat Ashshaat, and Yumial - Ri-Bo. The tilfing again looked lost and seemed to have trouble in understanding what was wanted of him. This time Tim didn't hesitate to ask if he was all right, but the answer was evasive, saying that he had hardly slept at all last night, preparing for the tournament. Tim, of course, didn't believe in it, but didn't ask more - more than half of the class has already participated in the tournament, they would soon call him.
Ahead of him, however, there were four more: Yantau in a hard-fought battle defeated Zur'U'Fes, and it was a matter of honor for Rumara to defeat Hindag. The orc girl had prepared well - she had always shown persistence in mastering new knowledge and skills. Tim was even a little jealous of such determination: had he been so eager to learn, he would have been top of his class on Earth.
And then it was his turn. Tim's excitement made him a little sweaty, and he had to grip the wand tightly so that it wouldn't slip out of his hand. However, few people would have remained calm on his place if they had known whom the impartial lot in the form of a magical elemental (the elves had time to found out that Fluppy was not a true fluxie, but a copying it elemental) chose as an opponent for him - Shin'Ye'Het herself!
- Just don't you dare to win! - Mez'A'Shib whispered.
The look of the 'princess' really didn't bode well, saying: you'd get in a lot of trouble if you tried to fight in full strength. But Tim was not frightened; or rather, an instinctive prick of fear was followed by a stubborn determination that he would not give up without a fight. And the ball, which at first darted toward the drow, stopped halfway and came back. The fire, lit by Shin'Ye'Het, was easily extinguished by the flood of water spewed by Tim's wand (the second bundle of straw was soaked as well, so when the drow tried to set it on fire, it didn't work). Armed with True Sight, Shin'Ye'Het had no trouble guessing the right pyramid, which was immediately mixed in with her copies. Tim, in turn, used a workaround - he applied telekinesis again, moving the original out of the pedestal. After all, moving magic doesn't work on illusions.
"It's very interesting," Master Iskitt commented. "The results of the three rounds give us..."
"Draw!" Master Saag-Kof finished with enthusiasm. "In that case a fourth round is due!"
The hall became so quiet that it seemed you could hear the fluttering of the flixie's wings - though, as an elemental, it flew entirely silently. Shin'Ye'Het could probably burn through a wall with her gaze, so Tim took care not to make eye contact with her.
"And here's a suitable assignment for you!" the teacher of Elemental Magic continued cheerfully. "Do you see this moth? Now it'll fly over you back and forth, and you have to catch it!"
The 'moth' took off from its seat and began to circle randomly over their heads. A dodgy one, however, it is like catching a butterfly on the fly; you need super-speed to do that. Unfortunately, the same thought had crossed the drow's mind a second earlier. She caught Fluppy in her fist and gave him such a tight squeeze that if it had been a real flixie, he would not only have lost his wings, but he wouldn't have been alive. The creature didn't like the treatment: it seeped through her fingers, staining them poisonous green, and, assuming the form of a butterfly again, flew back. Despite this, Shin'Ye'Het was proclaimed the victor, and Tim returned to his seat, defeated but not broken. Nevertheless, his friends congratulated him as if he had won.
"Now be careful," Mez'A'Shib was as usual on guard.
"But why, didn't I lose?"
"You shouldn't have resist at all, by our standards. And if you did, you deserve to be punished."
Tim replied with an indefinite sniff - we'd wait and see. And then he turned his attention to the fight between Elsingor and Tiis-Mir. As if to show that she wouldn't be a burden to the team, the peirot girl tried her best. And she beat the elf with flying colors.
Mez'A'Shib's own fighting spirit was not so good. As soon as he was invited to a duel with Gillmir, the drow stepped closer to the teacher's table and said:
-I'm sorry, Masters, I'm not feeling very well today and I'm unlikely to be able to fight decently. That's why I'm ready to admit my defeat in advance.
No one expected such a turn of events, including Tim, although Mez'A'Shib had declared the day before that he did not want to prepare for the tournament. There was silence in the Hall again, and even the teachers did not react immediately.
"Tournament rules don't prohibit it, do they?" after a moment's hesitation, Master Saag-Kof asked his colleagues.
"They don't," Master Aerg affirmed. He glanced sternly at the drow, who was meekly awaiting the decision of the 'panel of judges,' and added:
"It is a pity. Wizards are seldom made of those who refuse to fight willingly. But have it your own way, and if you are ill, go to the infirmary!"
And with a wave of his wand, he sent the 'sufferer' to the medical aid station. He must have guessed that the drow was in no way ill, or he would have cured him himself, Tim thought. Gillmir was proclaimed the winner, which he wasn't too happy about - he'd set himself up for a serious fight. A technical victory is what they call it in sports, when the opponent simply doesn't show up for the start of the game.
Patpako, who was called out afterwards, managed to forget to take his wand with him, which he reported to the audience; the amused laughter of his classmates was his response. The teachers, wondering how he had managed not to get lost on the way to the tournament, allowed him to borrow the wand, and Xitati lent him hers. Alas, the wand was capricious in the wrong hands, producing air currents instead of sparks, and creating illusions instead of dispersing them, which soon resulted in pyramids all over the pedestal. Mikpir, of course, was the winner.
While pondering how strange magic can become if he borrowed a wand from one of his friends, Tim missed most of the Namitil and Miinash's duel. Namitil eventually won, though not without difficulty.
Zhu-Fi, trying to beat Gook-Luk, decided to cheat a little - her bundle of straw was ignited by illusory flames, almost indistinguishable from the real one - except that the straw did not turn black and charred, turning into ash. For trying to cheat Zhu-Fi was first scolded, then disqualified, as an example to the others.
It was finally Selkise's turn to prove herself, and Tim mentally wished her luck. But neither yusme, nor her rival Virda, were too enthusiastic, giving only the appearance of a hard-fought battle. Anzimar girl was the victor; if he were Selkise, Tim might have tried to dispute the verdict, but the yusme only smiled cryptically in response.
The duel between Sitmis and Eliavel also was not without its curiosities. Eliavin, hiding behind his classmates, secretly tried to help his sister whispering spells at the same time as her, but was unmasked by Master Ven'A'Sash and magically carried to the exit of the Hall, where he got a good telekinetic kick in the ass. Eliavel said angrily that she could win without anyone else's help - and tried to prove it.
Urgrot and Faelinn were the last to come to the barrier. By this time everyone was a little tired, so the elf's tortured victory over the orc was greeted with a sigh of relief. Twenty-five fights in a row is too much. At the very end, Master Aerg spoke again, summing up the results.
"I'll put it this way: not really bad, but mediocre. You could have learned more in two months. Nevertheless, the first round is over, and today's winners, with five points each, advance to the second round in four days. I highly recommend that you prepare better. And that's it for today, you can leave."
It was only now that Tim realized why some of his classmates were so eager to lose - those who had won would once again have to sit down at their textbooks and meditate intensely. But perhaps there were other reasons...