“…challenged in the Final Trial…”

  “…already?”

  “…just the first day…”

  “…how do you challenge…”

  “…go, absorb the memory crystal first…”

  “…just give me a gist…”

  “…alright… so, the Final Trial…”

  “…challenge… council… review… notice…”

  “…but the challenge has already come… so the review…”

  “…that is why we are so curious…”

  “…must have offended…”

  “…keep quiet… do not drag us…”

  “…still, to be challenged by so many…”

  “…how many?”

  “…three hundred…”

  “…old news… five hundred now…”

  “…did they accept?”

  “…why else would they come?”

  “…when is the Trial…”

  “…in a week…”

  “…but this is just the first day…”

  “…up to thousands…”

  “…nothing to do with us…”

  “…watch the show…”

  “Ignore them,” Alnea said to his teammates, as they walked out of the Blood Hall. “They are just using us to familiarise themselves with the new atmosphere of the city. Do not let their words affect your Heart.”

  “…Do not worry,” Aren said. “We are not so fragile.”

  “That’s good,” Alnea said, nodding at Aren, before glancing at the rest of his teammates. “Still, you should not try to put up a brave front either. If you feel nervous, then talk with us. Any of us. There is no need to brave everything by yourself. Especially you two, Aren and Fran. You should use what you bought today to sort out your emotions.”

  “No need,” Fran said, glancing at Aren. “We have decided to save it for now, and use it in the Trial. That way, we can maximise its effects.”

  “But your Hearts—

  “Like Aren said, we are not so fragile.”

  “…As you wish. But do not be too stubborn about it.”

  “…We know.”

  “Good. Then, let’s go back and discuss our plans,” Alnea said, showing a confident smile on his face, as they walked on the streets. Within his Heart, however, he could not help recalling the conversation he had with the receptionist of the three Halls before leaving the Blood Hall.

  “Have you been challenged already?” Nubia had said, going into a daze for a moment, before quickly recovering, and looking at him and his teammates with a worried look on her face. “I was wondering why so many people were registering for the Final Trial on the very first day. Unfortunately, as a… worker of the city, I cannot help you. And even if I had not been restricted, with the new rules in place, there is nothing I could have done that could help you now…”

  “We did not come here seeking help, Wanderer Nubia,” Alnea had said in return. “We have to prepare for the Final Trial next, and might not have the time to come to you in the future. So, we just want to use this chance to thank you for all the help you provided us with. If it was not for your guidance, we might not have done as well as we did in the Trials. Thank you, once again, Wanderer Nubia.”

  “There is no need for this. I just did my duty. And it is not as if you are the only ones I talked about the essence of the Trials with. The fact that you can benefit from what I said shows that you were already walking on the right path, and would have understood the truth sooner or later anyway. My words just made you understand it in advance.”

  “That is already enough. Your words saved us a lot of time and effort, and gave us a better fighting chance in the Final Trial.”

  “…Hearing you say that makes me feel a little relived. Still, I am sorry that I cannot help you with anything else…” Nubia had said, with guilt seething from her voice. Daes, on the other hand, weird as she was, seemed to have become a little too excited after hearing the news of their Final Trial.

  “What did you say? Four hundred Wanderers? And the number of challengers may reach up to thousands by the time your Trial begins?” Daes had said, with a strange light shining in her eyes. “As expected of you… No, I cannot just stay here. I must make some preparations. Excuse me, Alnea. I have somewhere I need to be. But worry not. We will continue our talk later when we meet again in the inner city.

  “Huh? You are asking how am I so confident that you will make it to the inner city? That is because I believe in you. No matter how many enemies you face, as long as you go with your Heart, I am sure that you will be just fine. I cannot say the same about the flies around you though. I have heard that the Final World is really dangerous for flies. Anyways, see you in the inner city, Alnea.”

  This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

  …No one had asked her anything. At best, Alnea had just given her a brief thanks. And even that was just out of courtesy. Yet, it looked like just that simple show of gratitude from his part was enough to get Wanderer Daes excited. Though it was probably because of the news of the Final Trial. Still, seeing her reaction, for a moment, Alnea had wondered if he should have just listened to Cecilia, and skipped over her. But only for a moment.

  Regardless of what and how others behaved, he had to behave according to his Heart. On that part, he actually agreed with Wanderer Daes. As long as he followed his Heart, and kept his Heart and conscience Clear, everything would be fine. Even if he met some dangers on his ways, he would overcome it. As he had been doing for the past couple of years. Because he was Alnea Oathkeeper.

  “I told you to lie low, and not be too conspicuous,” Wanderer Tia had said, shaking her head. “Now see the trouble you have gotten yourself in.”

  “We could not help it either,” Alnea had said, scratching his head, while using his Aspects to hide his embarrassment. It was not just once or twice that Wanderer Tia’s kind gestures and timely reminders had helped him avoid troubles. Had he done as she said, then he surely would not have had to face so much trouble in the Final Trial. The problem was—

  “By the time you told us to keep a low profile, it was already too late for us. We had already been targeted by the Lotus clan and other Orthodoxies. Coupled with our performance in the Trial, all they needed to do was just to fan our rumours…”

  “…I know that. It was because I heard those rumours that I asked you to be careful, but… Maybe this is also Fate…”

  “…Anyways, we are here to thank you for all the help you have given us, Wanderer Tia.”

  “If you truly want to thank me, then clear the Final Trial.”

  “But the Trial—

  “If it is you, then I sure that you can do it.”

  “…We will try our best.”

  “May Goddess Ilea be with you, Alnea. May she be with all the Star Seekers.”

  Goddess Ilea… He really did need her. And maybe Goddess Faein too. After all, the Curse of his Fate never came alone. It always came riding the winds of Death. Alnea did not know what he was going to face this time, but he was sure that it would never be something as simple as facing a bunch of Wanderers from Orthodoxies.

  Of course, he was not underestimating the Orthodoxies. Sometimes, Orthodoxies could be even more difficult to deal with than Heterodoxies. Especially the ones like the Lotus clan, which preferred using tricks and conspiracies to take their enemies down, rather than fighting them head on. So, the moment they got back to their mansion, the Star Seekers gathered around in their main hall once again, and resumed their meeting from where they had left.

  “Since everyone now knows what we can expect in the Final Trial, let us get back to discussing how we are going to deal with those situations,” Alnea said, roaming his eyes over his teammates. “Does anyone have any suggestions?”

  “The Final Trial… is a bit more complicated than I thought it would be…”

  “A bit more? There were hundreds of different kinds of terrains mentioned in the memory crystal, and this is just the information recorded ten years ago. There may have been changes within the Final World’s environment due it being forcefully dragged back to the Lost City, and then creating sub entrances…”

  “Do not forget all the different kinds of Trials that have been proposed…”

  “Right, how could I forget that… I did not even know that there could be so many variations to something as simple as going through check points. Just how did those people come up with so many ideas?”

  “Whatever the case, I think we should begin our plans by preparing what we would need in the Trials.”

  “…If we are going in that direction, then I think that the most important thing is preparing some food and other daily necessities…”

  “We can gather those things from the Final World itself. Rather than wasting our storage space on food, it would be better to prepare some emergency aids. Like the potions that Vestia carries.”

  “…If you are eyeing my potions, then you should forget about it. My potions have long been exhausted in the past half year. And they cannot be restocked within the Lost City.”

  “Then what should we do?”

  “Restock with the materials that are available in the city, of course.”

  “But they are not as effective as your potions…”

  “…Then you go get some from the Erwein Forest. I will even write you a letter of recommendation.”

  “…Forget it. Let us just stick with the materials that are available to us.”

  “What’s next?”

  “I think—

  “Stop,” Alnea said, pinching his forehead to calm his headache, while glancing at his teammates. “I asked for your suggestions, not to let you bicker like aunts in markets. If anyone has anything to say, they can raise their hands first… Yuri, do you have anything to add?”

  “Just raising our hands to speak is not enough,” Yuri said, lowering her hand. “The suggestions earlier were too chaotic. If we want our meeting to be productive, then we need to be more organised.”

  “And how should we do that. Vestia?”

  “If we want to be organised, then I think I may have an idea.”

  “And that is?”

  “I have gone through the information about the Final World, and noticed that all of its different terrains can be divided into five general categories. Mountains and valleys, river basins, lakes, forests, and grasslands. Similarly, all of the different types of Trials can be divided into six general categories. Finding checkpoints, searching for items, invading territories, defending territories, achievement missions, and special missions.

  “Accordingly, all of these different kinds of Trial missions and the different kinds of terrains put together form only thirty unique situations. As long as we can plan for these thirty situations, then it will be akin to planning for any possible situation. Or at least that is what I think. I can be wrong.”

  “It is alright, Vestia. Everyone can be wrong. That is why we are having a discussion. Now, does anyone have any other opinions on what Vestia said? No? Perhaps it is because you have not digested all the information from the memory crystal yet. We do not have much time to waste though…

  “How about this, we can all go through the information in our head in our free time, and then make up for any mistakes that Vestia may have made later. Is that alright with everyone? Good, then let us continue. Vestia, since you gave the plan, which combination do you think we should start with?”

  “It does not really matter what we start with. We will have to go through them all anyway.”

  “Just pick one.”

  “…Then how about beginning with mountains and valleys? As for the type of Trials… I will let Cecilia pick it for me.”

  “I do not need your charity, vixen,” Cecilia said, but did not have as much dissatisfaction in her voice as she used to. She even had a slight smile on her face. Was she finally opening up to Vestia? No, she had opened up to her long ago. She just never used to show it… Should he tease her a little? No, Alnea said to himself, subduing the dangerous thoughts in his Heart. The time was not right.

  “Just pick one, Lia,” Alnea said, giving Cecilia and excuse to do what she wished. “The sooner we make our plans, the better it would be.”

  “…Then, let us go in order with finding checkpoints…”