"Gotta say, that was a whole lot easier than I thought it would be...I mean, what's wrong with these people? They have literal Magic at their fingertips but they make such poor use of it, while being overly dependent on iy," I sighed as I flopped onto the bed in my room at the inn.
"I mean, these are all just applicants who want to become Adventurers. I appraised everyone in the waiting room, and most of the participants are nothing special. I'd bet that the higher ranked Adventurers and the best Knights are strong and powerful enough to easily take you down, shithead," Responded Arkiela, as she flew over and landed on my forehead.
"I mean, that is the assumption I'm sticking with, to make sure I don't get complacent or underestimate anyone I'm up against, but somehow, you saying it really pisses me off, bitch," I frowned as I swatted her away.
"Hey! Come on, I helped you out today, you wouldn't have known everything that your opponents were capable of if it wasn't for me!" She huffed indignantly.
"Yeah, honestly...you lost your usefulness after the first match. I've seen what all the other remaining contestants are capable of, so, for the most part, I know what to expect now," I shrugged indifferently.
"Tch, you stupid fucking shithead."
"Up yours, bitch."
It was past 8:30 PM now, today's leg of the tournament ended a little over half an hour ago. It took over ten hours to get through the first two rounds, but with the number of competitors having dropped down to sixteen now, the remaining rounds and matches should finish up in a lot less time tomorrow than it took today.
The third round will have eight matches, then it's on to the quarter finals, followed by the semi finals, until there's only two competitors left standing to face each other in the final.
So, what that means is that I've got a total of four more matches to get through, and I'm gonna need to win them all.
While those who don't win the tournament do still have a chance of getting selected by the Guild, it was pretty clear that I'm far from the most popular contestant, both among the crowd and with the members of the Guild.
So I need to win the competition in order to guarantee a spot for myself in the Guild, because otherwise, I'm pretty sure my chances of getting in will be slim at best. And I'd rather not leave my fate in someone else's hands, I'd much rather ensure the outcome I want myself.
Anyway, once the tournament wrapped up for the day, I headed straight back to my room at the inn, buying some food on the way back to have some dinner before going to sleep and resting up for tomorrow.
It's strange, I hardly exerted any stamina at all today, but I still feel kinda worn out.
Maybe it's because it's been a long time since I've competed in any context with a large audience present, I certainly never did so after I became a mercenary. Today was the first time I've had a real audience since my days as a gymnast in my previous life, before my parents sold me off.
On another note, before I left the stadium, the tournament organizers handed out two vials of Healing Potion to all the remaining competitors.
I'm guessing it's because they don't want any injuries that were sustained today to end up hampering the competition tomorrow, it may be an entrance exam, but since they've got a pretty sizeable, paying audience in attendance, they can't afford for it to not be competitive and entertaining.
I didn't really need the Potions since I didn't sustain a single injury today, plus I already bought some before the tournament, but of course, I'm not gonna turn down something that's free.
Getting free shit is always greats...well, except when it's people handing out flyers or pamphlets and stuff, that's really annoying.
I once killed a guy who was being super pushy and forced a 'save the planet' type flyer into my hands...I was in a bad mood that day, and that just made it worse, he didn't take no for an answer when I politely refused, and then began insulting me by saying stuff like 'you don't care about our mother Earth!? It's because of people like you that our planet is dying', or something along those lines.
So, I tracked him down later and sniped him in his home. That was probably my most petty instance of murder...but I regret nothing, I'd definitely do it again.
"By the way, was it really a good idea to show off your weapons like you did, shithead? You used that acid bomb and you even unveiled one of your handguns," Pointed out Arkiela, as she flew over my face and met my gaze.
"It's fine. It's not like I could've hidden it forever anyway, though I suppose I'll admit that I played it a bit flashier than I'd intended. Kinda let my impulses get the better of me since my opponents pissed me off, especially that pretty boy with the fan club," I replied sheepishly.
"Yeah, that tracks."
"Don't suppose you can use your Magic to weaken those impulses? I mean, you're capable of strengthening human impulses, so the other way around should be possible too, right?" I inquired as the thought occurred to me.
"No, it's way easier to strengthen impulses than to weaken them. And since you're aware that I'm capable of manipulating impulses, it'll be less effective against you. I mean, even during your previous life, when I was in the Divine Realm and possessed a whole lot more power than I do now, you resisted several of my attempts to manipulate your impulses, and relatively easily at that. Fucked up as you are, you've got a strong will, and that makes it hard to mess with your mind," She sighed wistfully.
I see, that explains why she was able to manipulate me and stoke my rage when I was locked up by the traffickers my parents sold me off to, my mind would undoubtedly have been in an emotionally unstable state back then.
"Hm...well, that's definitely a good thing, I don't want a bitch like you getting in my head ever again."
"Yeah, well, it's not a good thing for me, things would be a lot easier if I could just manipulate you into acting how I want you to. Anyway, the rest of the tournament tomorrow is probably gonna be a lot more difficult for you. I don't think you should've used a gun today," She remarked with a grimace.
"Oh, it's fine. First off, it's crucial that I win this tournament, and the last thing I want is to end up getting eliminated from the competition because I was being too cautious. And second...I've still got plenty more trump cards up my sleeve, anyone who thinks they've seen all that I can do will be in for a rude Awakening. And third...don't tell me what to do, I didn't ask for your opinion, bitch."
"Dick."
"Cunt."
"Shithead."
"Twat."
"What are you, British?"
"Tch...okay, that one actually felt insulting."
...
...
"Those strange weapons you use won't be enough to beat me! I won't make the mistake of underestimating you, that's why you'll lose...you won't be progressing any further in the tournament!" Declared my opponent, pointing at me with a confident smirk.
"Ugh, here we go again. Why does everyone feel the need to insult me before a match?" I muttered to myself irritably.
Yeah, I'm definitely killing this guy too.
It was the next day, the 3rd of December, 1029, and I was back at the arena for round three, my opponent and I facing each other in the arena as we waited for the ref to start counting down.
I watched this guy fight yesterday during the first two rounds, and he's pretty damn fast. He possesses Wind Magic, and fires off gusts of wind from his feet to boost his speed drastically. I can't possibly hope to match his speed, so I'll need to end this fight quickly.
Still, while he does have impressive speed, that's all he's got, it's his only real weapon.
Yesterday, during some of the matches, a few stray attack Spells flew into the audience, no one was killed but some of the spectators did sustain some pretty bad injuries.
So, for today, they've called in a Barrier Magic user to form a large barrier around the arena, for the purpose of keeping the audience safe from any stray attacks.
I can use that to my advantage.
I won't use a gun in this match, at least if I can afford to avoid doing so...given my opponent's speed, there's a good chance that I'll end up wasting bullets trying to hit him, so I'll try something different instead, and save opting to use any of my guns as a last resort.
"The first match of round three will begin in...Five! Four!"
"Brace yourself, because this isn't going to be pretty for you!" Smirked my opponent, crouching slightly as the ref counted down.
Bring it, I'll wipe that smirk right off your face.
"Two! ONE!!!"
The instant the countdown ended, my opponent blasted himself straight forward in my direction, powerful bursts of wind exploding out from the bottom of his feet.
He closed in on me in the blink of an eye, his right fist swirling with wind as he drove it straight towards my chest. I quickly sidestepped and spun my body across to evade his strike, a slight look of surprise appearing in his eyes as the side of his fist lightly grazed my clothes.
He may be fast, but the trajectory of his movements are easy to predict, and I made an effort to keep track of the timing of the speed of his attacks while watching his first two matches yesterday.
Granted, my timing in reacting to his opening move was a bit slow, but no matter...I'll adjust.
As his fist shot past my chest, I quickly backed away and flung a throwing knife at him, which he swiftly deflected by firing out a blast of wind, knocking the knife away.
He then shot towards me again as the knife hit the floor of the arena with a clatter and skidded away, I quickly and deliberately fell back as he began to close in, his eyes lighting up as he presumably assumed that I lost my balance and fell over.
I used my palms to break my fall before firmly planting them against the floor of the arena and launching my feet up as he closed in me, my feet slamming onto his stomach with immense force and eliciting a sharp, wheezing gasp of pain as I literally knocked the wind out of him, using his immense speed against him.
Before I could attack again, he fired out intense jets of wind from his feet, shooting himself straight up into the air and out of my reach while clutching the middle of his torso with a pained expression, before shooting himself across to the left and letting himself plummet, landing a fair distance away from me as he broke his fall with a burst of wind beneath him as he closed in on the floor of the arena.
Wind Magic users can't fly, but he's using it well to get some distance away from me...I'm slower than he is, so chasing after him would be pointless, he can just blast himself away to a different spot across the arena and wear me out.
His instincts and reaction time aren't half bad either, he was quick to act and get away from me when I countered his attempted attack against me just now. I might've underestimated him a bit, he's more skilled than I'd initially estimated...
"O-okay, I'll admit, you're not bad. Fine, then...I'll just take you out from a distance!" He declared, before chanting emphatically as he raised his arms in my direction, "[Wind Cutter], followed by [Wind Blast]!"
I quickly ducked to avoid the slashing wave of wind shooting towards me, before a powerful force struck me and made me stumble back several paces, just barely keeping my balance before my eyes widened in alarm as he fired out another Wind Spell at me.
I swiftly leapt away, tucking and rolling as I landed, opening my Item Box and taking out an object before springing off to the side as he targeted me with another Wind Spell.
"Tch, quit scurrying around like a rat, damn it!" He snapped, as I dodged another attack, before he let out a growl and exclaimed, "Alright, that's it, I'll wipe you out! Try and dodge this! [Wind Dragon]!"
A massive amount of wind swirled and gathered around him, taking the shape of a large dragon as I began to struggle to breathe, streaks of dust flying all around the arena.
Okay, yeah...ain't no way in hell I'm dodging that. And I probably can't use the item I just took out either, it won't reach him.
Damn it, this is gonna be rough.
I grimaced and braced myself as he took aim and fired the Spell at me, the attack barreling towards me with alarming speed and force. I briefly and quickly glanced down as I spotted a crack in the floor of the arena below me, wracking my brain to come up with a solution.
As the attack began to close in on me, I swiftly took out another object from my Item Box, something that I'd had custom made for me in my previous life but never actually used because of how impractical it is to bring with me on a job...but thanks to my Item Box Skill, that's no longer a concern!
A special carbon fibre shield, insanely durable and long enough to cover my entire height...I jammed the bottom of the shield into the crack in the floor, wedging it in firmly into the concrete, right as the Wind Spell struck it with a powerful impact.
It collided against my shield with an insane amount of force as I crouched behind it, devastatingly powerful gusts of wind flowing back all around me, as I focused on pressing my weight down on the handle of the shield to keep it wedged into the ground as firmly as possible...if it's pulled out by the force of the attack, I'll be sent flying back and hit the barrier surrounding the arena, which'll count as going out of bounds.
D-damn it, it's hard to breathe with these strong winds blowing all around me, I need to hold out for just a few more seconds!
Come on, just a little bit longer!
The crack that my shield was wedged inside of began to widen, loosening my shield as I gritted my teeth, my entire body tensed up...before relaxing slightly as the immense force pushing against the shield began to fade.
"What!? Impossible!" My opponent exclaimed in disbelief, as his attack faded to reveal that I was still intact and inside the arena, though my shield had bent slightly through the middle.
I need to finish this immediately, I don't know if I can make it through another powerful Spell like that.
I equipped the item I'd taken out earlier, putting it over my face, before quickly taking out a couple more objects from my Item Box, uprooting my shield and tossing it back into one of the Slots as I flung one of the items I'd just taken out, a throwing knife.
"That the best you can do!?" He snapped, firing out a wind blast to deflect my knife, before a confused look appeared on his face as he got a better look at me and blurted out, "What the...? What's on your face?"
Magic users who haven't fully sharpened their Mystic Pressure can struggle to cast a Spell immediately after casting a large, powerful Spell...looks like that's the case with this guy, that last attack he used to deflect my dagger was pretty weak, it was only just strong enough to slightly change the trajectory of my knife, just enough to cause the blade to miss him by a few inches or so.
He's clearly winded, pun intended, and just now, all his focus was on my knife, just like I wanted. Didn't think this thing would distract him too, but I'm certainly not complaining.
"It's a gas mask...and it's what'll keep me alive from that," I responded, pointing above his head.
"Nice try, but I'm not falling for-...," He began, before trialing off in alarm as something dropped down in front of him, his eyes widening in horror as it landed in front of his feet and he began to charge up a Spell, but it was too late.
The object immediately exploded as it hit the arena floor, a dark purple cloud of smoke bursting out as my opponent cried out in fear, unleashing a burst of wind as the smoke engulfed him and he fired out a blast of wind from his right foot to shoot himself away and out of the cloud.
"H-huh? My skin isn't melting..."
He sounds relieved...but he really shouldn't be.
"It's over. I win," I stated, my voice distorted through the gas mask as I turned around and began walking away with a wave.
"What? Hey, where do you think you're goi-...blargh!" He began, before suddenly coughing sharply, blood pouring out of his mouth and splattering onto the ground as he stumbled back shakily.
"See? Like I said, it's over. Just a few more seconds and you'll be dead," I remarked as I glanced back at him.
At the same time that I flung that throwing knife at him, I moved my other hand behind my back and tossed a poison smoke grenade towards him with a high arc.
With his focus on the knife that was right in from of him, his gaze was locked forward, the arc of my toss taking the grenade well above his line of sight until it was too late.
That grenade contains a special type of poison. Once it explodes and is exposed to oxygen, it weakens and fades away in about fifteen seconds. But if anyone inhales even a small amount of it, they're dead.
The poison sharply increases their blood pressure, causing their blood to pump through their bodies with increased speed and intensity, which ruptures their organs and causes them to bleed out of every orifice.
Okay, it's been twenty seconds, should be safe to take off the mask now. I pulled it off my face and put it back into my Item Box, watching as my opponent's skin turned a bluish purple, blood streaming out of his mouth, eyes, nostrils and ears, choked gasps echoing out as his throat got flooded with blood, violently writhing around the ground in agony.
His body then went limp and slumped onto the floor of the arena, a layer of blood slowly spreading out across the concrete around him, painting it a deep red.
Hm...you know, I probably could've used a gun against him, after all. I don't have a lot of these poison smoke grenades, and losing a few bullets might've been preferable to using up one of these grenades on a, how to put this nicely...a forgettable background character.
Oh, well, what's done is done. I didn't handle it perfectly, underestimating that guy was a mistake that I almost paid for...but I still won, I've gotten through the third round.
It's onto the quarter finals now, I just need three more wins and I'll have won the competition...
_____________________________________________
Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Don't forget to vote, and feel free to leave a comment, I appreciate any and all feedback and criticism!
Also, check out my Insta account @aimdaqs for posts relating to this book.
Join the Discord server, I plan to tease upcoming chapters and future story arcs here, and you can also discuss or ask me any questions about the story and characters. Use the invite link to join:
https://discord.gg/sRbx9VbTVP