I released Limit Break and dismissed everything else as I walked toward the dais. The crowd, deafening at the start of the fight, had fallen into an eerie silence.

  Jason stepped forward and handed me a badge, then passed another to Jase.

  “Well done, both of you. You’ve demonstrated the combat power required to participate in the merit exchange. I look forward to seeing you around the guildhall.”

  Jase was on his feet now, staring at me like I’d grown a second head. I turned away, not wanting to engage.

  “Wait, Twenty-Tw… Riven, I mean. Please wait.”

  I glanced over my shoulder to see him looking awkward, almost uncertain.

  “Come on,” I said. “Let’s get out of the arena and walk. Jason’s probably ready to resume normal proceedings, and standing here in the middle of the arena isn’t the best idea.”

  Jason smiled and gave me a courteous nod of acknowledgment, which I returned.

  I walked out of the arena, the badge still warm in my hand, and felt the weight of the crowd’s silence fade behind me. Jase fell into step at my side, trailing me up toward the stands.

  Balt was waiting there, grinning like he’d already won something. He bumped my fist and gave Jase a knowing smile. “I’m guessing you thought that would go differently, didn’t you, kid?” Before Jase could answer, I glanced around, scanning the stands for Jox. I half-expected to see him gearing up for his duel, but the man was nowhere in sight.

  Lawson slid a bucket of popcorn into my hands with a smirk.

  “Guy left as soon as you used that movement talent,” he said.

  I shrugged, taking a kernel between my fingers. “Probably for the best, anyway.”

  Turning to Balt, I raised a brow. “So, when’s your turn?”

  He held up a card, the number scrawled across it in bold ink.

  “I don’t know,” he admitted. “But they gave me this. When they call A-73, I’m in.”

  “How did you get so strong?” he asked, almost dumbfounded. “That last move of yours cut straight through Shade’s Embrace. I’ve fought through four floors, bosses, monsters, and people, none of whom have ever beaten that technique.”

  I met his gaze evenly. “Since we’ll be facing each other again in the tournament, you don’t really expect me to answer that, do you?”

  Jase looked dejected, the cocky young man suddenly replaced by a sulking teenager. Not wanting to leave him completely disheartened, though after the way he’d acted he probably deserved to feel that way, I said, “Hey, let’s try on these badges real quick.”

  He smiled and pulled his out of his Anchor, and I did the same. The badge was metallic, with a gem set in its center. As soon as I placed it on my chestplate, a glowing 0 appeared without me needing to adjust anything.

  “Neat,” I muttered.

  Jase grinned at his own badge, then glanced at mine. “Your class limit breaker is broken, you know that, right? I thought it was just some bullshit system name, but your boosting talent is crazy. And that weapon, how do you wield something burning that hot without killing yourself?”

  I smirked. “Hey, that body-switch technique of yours was pretty sweet too. You almost had me the first time. On that last switch, I was so paranoid you’d be in the other position that I launched a sphere just in case.”

  That brought a grin back to his face.

  I turned my attention to the arena as three new guild cadres replaced Jason. To my surprise, instead of one set of combatants, three pairs were called, and the arena split into separate battlefields.

  “I guess some matches need less room than others,” Balt said, echoing my own thoughts.

  I settled in to watch. One of the fighters was Chu, facing an older man in full plate armor wielding a massive axe. The match began in a flurry of movement. The axe wielder was powerful, each strike shaking the ground, but Chu was faster. His green energy hammered against the plate, leaving dents with every blow.

  Within a minute, the armored man’s swings slowed, his stamina drained. Chu finished him with a kick to the helmet, dropping him flat. The cadre declared Chu the winner, and the next matches followed much the same way.

  Balt and I met Chu as he was exiting, his grin stretching ear to ear.

  “Congratulations, that was a great fight,” I said.

  “Thank you. I saw your match as well. Your last attack was unbelievable. It was like it devoured the darkness,” Chu replied.

  Jase had tagged along, and Chu gave him a small, embarrassed bow.

  This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  “No disrespect meant, young master, but the move he used to defeat you was truly something.”

  A sigh slipped from Jase’s lips, the only response he gave. Then he straightened.

  “Hey, I have an idea. After Balt fights, let’s meet back at your sister’s inn to celebrate. First round on Balt of course.”

  I clapped Balt on the shoulder, his look of joy souring into something like he’d just bitten a lemon. I couldn’t help laughing.

  “Me too?” Jase asked.

  “Of course, you too,” I said. “The more the merrier, as the saying goes.”

  Jase looked like he wanted to say more, but in the end he just nodded and smiled.

  Over the loudspeakers, the number A-73 boomed out.

  “That’s me,” Balt said.

  I patted him on the back. “Go show them what you can do.”

  Balt straightened, summoned his staff, and walked toward the arena, his expression all business now.

  “What is he, level thirty-eight?” Jase asked, with actual concern in his voice. “Does he have any crazy power-ups like you do?”

  I shook my head. “No. But you’re making the same mistake you made with me. There is more to people that just their level. Balt’s proven himself more than capable. Let’s head up to the stands and watch; you’ll see.”

  Jase and Chu didn’t look too confident. I gestured to the stands. “Come on, you two, watch my guy go to work.” When we got up there, Lawson and Dally were talking and smiling, and I let them be. I knew how it was when you had not seen a companion for a long time.

  Balt stepped into the arena, staff in hand, his posture calm but coiled with intent. Across from him, a level seventy-five man strode forward, robes shimmering with blue frost. The air itself seemed to drop ten degrees as the man raised his hands, ice crystals forming in the space between them.

  Lawson only watched the challenger for a moment before turning away, expression unreadable.

  “Balt’s got this; I’ll catch up with you two in the morning,” he said, already walking off. The fight had not even started yet, but Lawson acted as if the fight was already over.

  The cadre’s signal rang out, and the duel began, and when I looked over, Lawson and Dally were gone. I shrugged and turned back to the fight.

  The ice mage wasted no time, hurling shards of frozen spears that whistled through the air. Balt swept his staff in a wide arc, force magic rippling outward like invisible shockwaves. The projectiles shattered mid-flight, spraying harmless frost across the arena floor.

  The mage snarled and slammed his palms down. A wall of jagged ice erupted from the ground, racing toward Balt like a frozen tide. Balt planted his staff, sending a pulse of force that cracked the wall apart, shards exploding outward in a glittering storm.

  The crowd roared.

  The ice mage shifted tactics, weaving a spear of pure frost, its tip gleaming with lethal intent. He thrust it forward, the weapon streaking toward Balt’s chest. Balt twisted narrowly, avoiding the strike, the spear grazing past him with a hiss of cold.

  In that instant, Balt vanished.

  A blink-step carried him behind the mage, silent and precise. Before the man could turn, Balt drove a force jolt into the back of his head. The impact echoed like thunder, and the mage crumpled to the ground, unconscious before he hit the stone.

  The arena fell silent for a heartbeat, then erupted in cheers.

  The cadre stepped forward, handing Balt a badge. The ice mage, limp and defeated, was carried off by attendants, no badge granted.

  Balt raised his staff in quiet acknowledgment, then tucked the badge away, his expression unreadable.

  I leaned back in my seat, grinning. “Told you,” I said to Jase and Chu. “Never judge a fighter by their level.”

  Balt was still catching his breath when we met him at the edge of the arena. I clapped him on the shoulder, grinning.

  “You kicked that frosty asshole’s butt,” I said.

  He managed a tired grin.

  Chu bowed quickly. “I’ll tell my family the good news and get things ready at the Hungry Dragon. Meet you there!” He sprinted off, still buzzing with pride.

  Balt and I exchanged a look.

  “Come on,” I stated. “Let’s check the guild counter for housing before we head over.”

  With Balt’s win and our badges in hand, the path ahead felt clearer than ever, one more step toward completing this tutorial and finding Alice.

  Marcilla

  Marcilla stood on guard duty, spear in hand, wondering how her promotion to the Faction elite hit squad had somehow led her back to glorified babysitting. Fate had a way of turning ambition into irony.

  She kept watch over the target’s sister in one of Castle Lukehaven’s endless corridors. The Shattered Blades spared no expense on their faction bases, and this fortress was no exception. Mage-lights glowed along the walls in place of lanterns, tapestries draped over stone, and beneath her boots stretched rugs of red and gold so ornate she suspected a single one cost more than her monthly stipend. Still, she wasn’t about to complain; every Blackthorn operative deserved an easy assignment now and then.

  Captain Sager even rotated her shifts, giving her time to slip away at night and enjoy the tavern’s rare drinks and hearty meals. Floor One was a revelation compared to the tutorial floor: bustling social halls, skilled weaponsmiths, and monsters worth fighting, complete with instanced slots reserved for Blackthorn as part of their faction compensation package.

  The tutorial floor had been little more than a skeleton crew from each faction, and Marcilla had spent weeks scouring it for the target. She still didn’t know why the girl mattered so much. Captain Sager had given her only a description and the words Faction Business. That was all the explanation she was going to get, and she knew better than to pry too deeply.

  A baby’s cry broke the silence from the room she had been assigned to guard. It was the middle of the night, and like clockwork, the child was awake again, wailing for its mother’s milk. She felt for the woman. She’d not been allowed out of the room except for that one tour with the young master, and even then, they marched her right back in.

  The members of Blackthorn had a running wager that she was a relative of the faction head. The smart money, her own money, was on her being the mistress to the young master, but with no visits from the man, no one could confirm, but she was sure they would find out eventually who she was. At least she had made no demands on her to this point. She felt lucky of that at least.

  Alice

  Alice woke to Liz’s cry and pushed herself upright to tend to her. The days had begun to blur together, weeks, perhaps, since she’d been moved here. Fatigue clung to her like a second skin as she rocked her child, trying to soothe the wails that pierced the night.

  She felt utterly in the dark. If not for Liz, she might have lost her mind already. Caring for her baby was the only anchor keeping her sane.

  And yet, beneath the exhaustion and fear, Alice clung to one belief: Riven would find her. That big dummy was out there fighting, scheming, doing whatever it took to tear them free from this nightmare. She was certain of it.

  And when she finally escaped, she swore she would never be this helpless again.

  She would grow stronger, learn what she needed, and ensure no one could ever cage her or Liz again.

  This stone room would not be their prison any longer.

  “Guard! Come in here, I need to speak with you. Now.”

  From outside, she heard only one word muttered under breath: “Well, shit.”