Point of view: Charles:

  Susan’s speech, coming from an eminence like her, was better than expected. The jokes and small games woven into so much rhetoric kept the atmosphere vibrant and exciting. Knowing how to maintain intrigue about the battles while delivering different kinds of messages in between isn’t easy—only a true orator can do it. Most of the audience would have grown bored if someone else had tried.

  “Prince.” I hear someone call me from behind. I turn to see the daughter of one of the Empire’s counts calling out to me. Her long, wavy black hair moves with the wind, and those brown eyes with hints of green still show the same firmness and sharpness—she hasn’t changed at all over the past few years.

  “What is it, Martha?” I reply to my childhood friend.

  “What do you think about the three types of events before the individual competition? Do you think we’ll have any problems?” She looks very excited—she’s always loved these kinds of new experiences where you have to give it your all.

  “We shouldn’t have any problems in the first event.” I look around us. Even though there are many schools and all of them are strong, there’s no reason to feel discouraged—we’re one of the strongest.

  The first event consists of defending a small fake village as a team. Each of us will be teleported to a dungeon created exclusively for the tournament. The village looks quite real; even the people can communicate to a certain extent, though they’re not intelligent enough to be mistaken for real individuals.

  Keeping every inhabitant alive grants points, keeping the area in optimal condition adds points, and the time it takes to eliminate all the monsters also provides a certain number of points. Other smaller, hidden factors will also add to the final score. No matter what, a total of ten schools will be eliminated in the first stage.

  The highest contributor from each of the ten eliminated schools will advance to the next round. That rule surprises me a bit for the first tournament—they’re rewarding individual power in a team-based event. I don’t even need to look at the schools to understand why: many talented individuals aren’t well supported by their teams. It’s a way to keep the tournament exciting.

  My group and I have a strong chance of placing among the top five with a high score. It will all depend on who decides to reveal more of their hidden cards during the first event. I look at Areci’s group—that red-haired boy is a rather inconvenient variable for us. Most likely, they’ll take first place.

  “In the second event, we’ll have an advantage if we slip into the top five, since we’ll start ahead.” I trust everyone here—it’s a solo event, but there will be ways to deal with it. We’ll talk about it in more detail when we return.” All my companions smile shyly.

  The second event will take place in an open field. Starting locations are random, but the top five schools from the first event will appear in richer, more advantageous areas. Each participant must collect three Medals of Honor, usually found in chests or dropped by leader monsters when they’re killed.

  This event won’t have a time limit at the start. Once a certain number of participants obtain the required Medals of Honor, a six-hour timer will activate to conclude the event.

  One of the biggest unknowns is the possibility of “killing” other participants. It’s a fast way to obtain Medals of Honor within the event—you don’t die in real life, you’re simply expelled from the dungeon. At least the dungeon is configured so that other acquired resources don’t drop—only the Medals of Honor do.

  The Empire, together with the three largest kingdoms and many other powers, invests enormous resources every year to create an event of this scale. The rewards are extremely lucrative—that’s why every school works so hard each year to qualify for this tournament. If you have the necessary strength and luck, you could obtain an exquisite reward.

  This second event is where the most variables can appear. Since everyone spawns in different locations, we could become targets for many schools and be eliminated before even collecting the Medals of Honor. The final six hours will be the most difficult—everyone will be forced to move toward the center of the dungeon to advance to the next round, where there’s a safe zone free from theft or killing.

  Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  The problem lies in the surrounding areas. Many individuals or groups will wait to ambush other participants and steal their medals. We need to think of a way to regroup before heading to the safe zone—moving as a group is the only safe way. It doesn’t matter if I’m a prince or the child of an Obsidian-rank individual; there’s an unspoken rule about not holding grudges after the tournament.

  “The third event will be fun,” my friend says happily—she loves fighting monsters.

  “Yes, it truly will be,” I agree. I’m not a fan of killing people. I can do it without issue, and I feel no remorse if the person deserves it, but it’s better to kill a monster.

  The third event will be a purely individual battle. Each participant will take a turn and face the same monster. The monster changes every year, but it’s the same for all participants in that year’s tournament. It’s always one rank above us—a grade 4 monster. One of the weakest possible, but still a grade 4.

  Points are calculated based on how long you survive, how much damage you deal, and many other criteria. The score you obtain will be added to the scores from the other two events, giving you a total. Each participant will receive a ranking based on their final points.

  There are two more events, but the next one is special. It won’t grant points and won’t have any relevance to the final event, which is tied to the first three. That doesn’t mean this event lacks value—it’s just as valuable as the sum of the other four events.

  It will be a battle involving all schools. Every participating school will be teleported into the same dungeon. There will be no time limit—this event exists solely to determine which school is the last one standing. Everyone must seek out, fight, and eliminate the others. The rewards will be both collective and individual.

  Just thinking about that event gives me a slight headache. We could be eliminated quickly if we encounter several schools at once. There’s no time limit, but the terrain gradually shrinks as the seconds pass, stopping only when it becomes small enough to force us into battle.

  I’ll need to think and plan with my teammates later—we can’t afford to disgrace the Empire by losing.

  The final event of the tournament is an individual one. Depending on your points, you’ll have better chances of reaching later stages. The higher your ranking, the better your opportunities in the final event. It’s a single-elimination tournament—if you lose, you’re out.

  “Let’s head back quickly—we need to plan our next steps.” All my schoolmates nod.

  We aren’t the only ones moving as soon as Susan finishes her speech. We’ve been invited to enjoy the attractions around the gigantic coliseum, but I doubt anyone will take that offer. Everyone will return to plan for tomorrow—the first day of the event. It’s also a good time to relax and clear your mind for what’s coming.

  There’s only one school that doesn’t seem to care about the tournament at all. They’re certain they’ve already won, regardless of the variables or possible situations. “Where does that confidence come from? Areci is very strong, but she’s not the only limit breaker, and even if the others are strong, there are ways to defeat them,” I murmur to myself.

  “It must be because of Maki—that boy is a monster.” Martha’s voice reaches me as she stands beside me, looking at Skyblue School’s group. “I heard he lost to Areci in the inauguration tournament. When I saw the replay, it left a bad taste in my mouth—under different conditions, he would have won. Now that I see him in person, I can tell. He’s strong, very strong.”

  “Is he stronger than me?” I ask Martha. I’ve lost to Areci before, but I’ve also beaten her.

  “Yes. That’s what my eyes tell me—though you already know that overall strength isn’t everything,” Martha answers without hesitation. She’s always been direct with me, and with everyone in general. Her eyes are very perceptive; they see more than ordinary eyes—it’s a trait of her family.

  I don’t reply to my friend. We simply keep walking like everyone else. Maki is known among people of power—everyone knows he’s a highly talented limit breaker, but no one truly knows his ceiling. He hasn’t fought much in front of the public eye. He won a novice tournament many years ago, and another tournament without much relevance on a grand scale.

  His last public display was the confrontation Martha mentioned—that was over six months ago. Monsters like him or me can experience enormous growth in that amount of time. At least I have privileged information provided by my family: Maki was the main contributor in the defense of his family’s territory.

  He killed hundreds of grade 4 monsters, managed to withstand several minutes against a Diamond-rank opponent, and most importantly—Maki killed a newly born anomaly. Martha must be right. Overall, he’s stronger than me, but that doesn’t make him an absolute winner. There are many variables in a fight.

  My dark red eyes look up at the sky. As I lower my gaze, my dark blond hair falls over my eyes, and with a gentle motion of my hand, I brush it aside. I’m glad I came—not only will I be able to demonstrate the Empire’s superiority, but the next thought warms my cheeks a little. I’m happy to see Areci healthy, still as perfect and beautiful as ever.