"The only way to win against the Holy Knights is to deflate their chakras one at a time," Stephen's voice was low and serious, "or devise a strategy to keep them from outnumbering your team. Eliminating them one by one is the only way to get a tie, or a lose/lose."
"But that's far too risky," Clydelle countered, her arms crossed over her chest.
"Leave it to me," Sari volunteered proudly, her voice ringing with confidence.
Clydelle's eyes narrowed. "No, you're not going to do anything reckless again." Her tone was sharp, a reprimand of deep concern. Clydelle knew her cousin too well; Sari's desire to win at any cost, her willingness to risk her life, was both her greatest strength and her most dangerous weakness. Now, with Sari's determination to prove herself worthy of becoming one of Zeraschia's nine warriors, Clydelle knew Sari would be even more reckless than before.
"You can't stop me—" Sari began, but Stephen cut her off.
"Your cousin is right, Sari," he said, his voice firm but not unkind. "You can't just put yourself in danger. Even I've noticed your reckless actions. You're not fit for that role."
Sari's hands clenched into fists, her blood boiling. "This is our team, Stephen, and you're not in the right position to oppose my decision."
"I'm just concerned because they're on a different level and you're—" he tried to explain, but Sari interrupted him again, her voice tight with fury.
"No, neither of you is concerned about me," she spat, "you just don't believe I can do it because I'm a mortal!"
"No, we didn't say anything about that. It's not like that—" Stephen insisted, his voice laced with frustration. He had seen the Holy Knights in action and knew the immense dangers they posed, dangers a mortal could never fully comprehend.
"Hey!" Athena's voice cut through the rising tension, her expression calm and composed. She stepped forward, her hands on her hips. "I have a suggestion. If Sari takes the role of the knight, you have no choice but to trust her with her strategy." She turned to Sari, a small, knowing smile on her face. "I knew you could think of a way to win this, Sari."
Athena's words seemed to calm the storm raging inside Sari. A small smile appeared on her face as Athena wrapped her in a quick hug and affectionately rubbed her head. "Thanks," Sari mumbled, the word barely audible but filled with a new sense of quiet resolve.
—
As the minutes passed by, the Holy Knight, once formidable, was pushed to his limit. With a final, desperate burst of energy, he managed to send Frank and Tyler back to their safe zone. Seeing his opponents falter, a sound of pure awe escaped Arthur's lips—a laugh that was as ragged as his breath. He had never felt this exhausted, this exhilarated. The sheer, unyielding effort it had taken to drain the energy of someone he considered far below his own level was both humbling and thrilling. He reached for Clydelle's crown, a victory within his grasp, when the sharp, piercing sound of the game's final horn pierced the air.
With the game over, their true reason for their plan became clear. Arthur's team had been unable to push for a powerful win. The Holy Knights possessed an undeniable trump card: the powerful Laplace Art, a force so potent that any attempt to breach their base would have been a fatal mistake.
And so, with both sides at a standstill, the outcome was declared: [Neither Team Holy Knights nor Team Naomi was successful in stealing the crowns!]
—
Following the announcement of their victory, the teams came together, exchanging congratulations and acknowledging the fierce competition. Amidst the friendly chatter, Arthur turned to Sari, a glint of curiosity in his eye. "By the way," he began, "what's your full name?"
Sari's smile was genuine as she replied, "Saori Claude Moon. And you?"
Arthur's eyes widened almost imperceptibly, and he cleared his throat. "Arthur Wrighte," he said, gesturing to the person standing beside him. "And this is Ryuujin Wrighte, my twin brother."
A gasp of genuine shock escaped Sari's lips. She knew they were brothers—the resemblance was undeniable—but twins? The idea was baffling. While their faces were similar, their auras and qualities were so distinctly different that the thought had never crossed her mind.
As they stood there, absorbing the finale of the first level, the voice of the Game Administrator boomed over the speakers, "Congratulations to everyone on a hard-fought victory! What truly impressed us were the unique strategies you all brought to the table. Your prizes will be automatically transferred to your devices shortly."
Then, Ms. Samantha's cheerful voice cut in, her tone brimming with excitement. "And for your incredible hard work, there's an extra reward! You've all earned four days of well-deserved rest, followed by a three-day camping trip on Mount Artinicus!"
With that final announcement, the first round of the tournament officially came to an end, leaving the teams to celebrate their win and anticipate the adventures that lay ahead.
Mount Artinucus? I think I saw it on Lola Naomi's map and read it in her diary...
—
[Saori's point of view]
We only earned 200 badge points since neither team had managed to seize the crown. Despite it, we thanked Marco for his advice throughout the match. He was especially delighted that I had a plan to take down the Holy Knights one by one, but that was before I'd met Arthur. After the match, my team confronted me about how meeting Arthur had thrown my entire strategy out the window.
"We can't let you fight alone again, Sari," Marco chastised, his tone laced with concern.
"You always put yourself in risky situations," Stephen added, his arms crossed.
I hugged Athena closer, expecting her to take my side. "I'm sure Athena is fine with my decisions." She was the one who said we were alike, after all.
"Yeah…" she mumbled, a hint of shame in her voice as the others stared her down.
"See?" I exclaimed, thinking I had her support, but she cut me off.
"But what you did was a little too much. We're just worried that if you do it again in the next battle, you might not survive."
"But I made it," I retorted defensively.
"You're still not strong enough, Sari."
My face fell, and I looked away. "I'm not weak…"
"We know that," Stephen said softly, his voice full of understanding. "But you're up against much stronger individuals now, which I'm sure you're aware of because you just experienced it yourself."
I looked at him, realizing he had a point. "Yeah, I'm sorry." The weight of their concern settled over me, a silent admission that I had been reckless and that they cared more about my safety than about winning.
—
Four days of rest passed in an instant, and we were summoned to the arena. The moment the last person arrived, a familiar tingle rippled through the air, and we were whisked away by the cold grasp of teleportation. We landed with a thud in front of what was said to be the legendary Namu village, the gateway to Mount Artinicus. The towering peak loomed in the distance, the summit disappearing into the clouds. A collective groan swept through the crowd as everyone took in the mountain's daunting scale.
"This is the perfect time and place to increase our stamina!" Athena exclaimed, full of energy, the rest of us couldn't seem to muster as she stretched and bounced in place.
"It looks less like a hike and more like a walk into eternity," Frank whined, collapsing onto the ground.
Tyler plopped down next to him, equally dejected. "Seriously, and that's not even counting the mountain's height we have to climb in the next few days."
"Get up, you two!" Ate Clydelle hissed, her patience wearing thin.
Samantha then huddled the entire group, her voice bright and full of cheer. "Good morning, youngsters! Mr. Yabo, Mr. King, and I will be facilitating this recreational camping trip! There will be two checkpoints where you can rest. The first is with Mr. Yabo, and the next is in the middle of the mountain with Mr. King."
She paused, a wide smile spreading across her face. "But before we start, I have to merge three teams for some recreational games! Each party must keep a distance of 5 meters so everyone can hike in an orderly manner."
Looking at the party, it was clear they were teamed up based on who got along best. We ended up with the Valkyries and Lunas in our group, and of course, the anticipation was more exhausting than the walking itself.
The groups were called out:
Group 1 - Holy Knights, Pacifiers, and Astrals
Group 2 - Sol, Crystals, and Ancient Sisters
Group 3 - Sacred Nuns, Sparrows, and Sirens
Group 4 - Odin's Valkyries, Luna, and Naomi
Group 5 - Liners, Last Supper, and Bishops
And the rest were five more groups...