Osric was even more interested, now that be had seen Jayson in person.
The only thing left was to actually meet him.
'He has a lot to work on, but honestly so do I, I might be ahead of him now, but with his mana seed, he will probably surpass me soon.'
'He just needs proper training and experience.'
Osric was about to stand up, to walk towards the pit, but then noticed something unusual.
A group of men.
They looked like gangsters.
'Who are they?'
He noticed that they were closely observing Jayson as well.
'This isn't good. They look very interested and clearly they are important around here.'
'But, I don't think they actually belong to the organization that controls the arena, or else they would be armed.'
Osric decided to stay put for now.
'I'll just watch Jayson from afar. No need for unnecessary trouble.'
Now that he had to step away a little from his first target, he chose to focus on his others.
He kept watching the fights from different brackets throughout the night.
'As I thought, the regular fighters that I had in mind aren't fit as adventurers, but I'll keep them in mind.'
The regular fights were coming to an end and the elite were about to start.
Osric was also reminded of something as he was watching.
He looked around the arena.
"Go for the knockout!"
"What are you doing man!"
"Hey! I bet my whole fortune on you!"
'Betting.'
'How did I overlook such an obvious way to make more money?'
Fighters could bet on themselves, in fact, most of them did.
But Osric hadn't thought about it until now.
'I need some extra money anyway, since I haven't been on a mission in a while.'
The moment that the referee called for the elite fighters, Osric stepped up.
Unfortunately, his main target wasn't in sight.
'Alice isn't here. Well, I can't blame her after her loss yesterday.'
Osric was slightly disappointed that he couldn't immediately start getting closer to her for his plans, but he also had a couple other targets and wanted to make more money tonight.
Him and nine other elites stepped up this time.
Among them was one of his targets.
But Osric had no immediate plans for him or any others, other than Alice and Jayson right now.
'With people like them, I need to prove myself further. And they are more likely to join as mercenaries than adventurers.'
The referee stood in the middle of the pit and spoke.
"Everyone quiet down please!"
"I will now choose the first fighter to step up. He will then proceed to choose one of the remaining fighters that have stood up and are standing by."
"Of course, the chosen fighters are allowed to refuse, but we all know that's unlikely in here."
The crowd cheered.
"Hell yeah!"
"No cowards are allowed here!"
"Haha, that's right!"
The referee then proceeded to choose someone.
It wasn't Osric this time.
Usually, the one considered the weakest was chosen first, and this proved that Osric was no longer considered that, as the newcomer.
He had proved himself last night.
"The one stepping out first is a man with a total record of 37 wins and 14 losses in the arena." The referee pronounced.
"It's a man that has fought hard into the elite bracket!"
"His name is— Robert, The Anvil!"
The crowd went wild again.
"Let's goo!"
"This guy always brings a show."
"He's the toughest guy in here!"
Many people enjoyed his fights, because they were usually long and fierce.
But most experienced spectators didn't bet on him, because he was not very skilled among the elite and lost against most of them.
Most of his wins were from before he entered the elite ranks.
'Robert. His nickname is The Anvil. It's very fitting, but he won't be in the elite bracket for much longer.'
'He's over 40 years old and full of injuries that have never fully healed. That toughness will fade away sooner or later.'
Robert looked around.
He had to make a choice.
Of the 9 fighters standing by, he had already fought two of them and lost to both.
Most were ranked a lot higher than him.
Only three were similar in ranking right now.
One of the two he fought before, Osric and one other guy.
He first looked at Osric. He was still low ranking since he was new, but Robert wasn't stupid.
'After what I saw yesterday, I know I can't beat him.'
Robert ignored Osric and did the same with the one he hadn't fought before.
He pointed at the one he lost to before.
'He didn't dominate me like the other one, I can beat him if we fight again.'
Robert was confident.
Osric sighed.
'I guess that's his best option, but he still won't win.'
'His opponent is someone that takes rest days, unlike Robert.'
'I kind of feel bad for him. If his body was in better condition, he would've been one of my targets as well, based on his personal information.'
Osric watched closely as the fight started.
It went about as he expected.
It went on for a while and it was rather close.
'In the end, Robert couldn't beat his opponent's stamina and technique.'
With the fight coming to an end with Robert's loss, both fighters left the pit.
Osric regretted not betting on the fight.
'Probably for the best. Fights are unpredictable, but my own fights will be easier to control for me.'
The referee stood in the middle of the pit again and called out.
"Alright everyone, let's calm down. I will now choose the next fighter to step up."
He pointed at the man that Robert considered, but hadn't fought against before.
Him and Osric were the lowest ranked fighters left among the 8 in total.
But Osric had no losses yet and was a rising star in the arena.
The big question now was—
Would the man choose Osric or someone else?