Chapter 13 – Tournament Round Four

"And now, a word from one of our sponsors, the Seven Paths Church."

"Following the Seven Paths of Magic, we strive to promote peace, prosperity, and the religion of aura. The Seven Authorities of the Seven Paths guide us to a higher understanding of nature, morality, and existence itself." A monk adorned in seven path's attire calmly explained.

"Here at the Seven Paths Church, we follow the pursuit of aura. We worship the Seven Authorities above the Deities because each unique path gives a different perspective on how to live life.

Seven Authorities, beings above the deities, represent the seven paths:

The Natural Path, represented by the Eternal Trinity.

The Scientific Path, represented by Cipher the Great.

The Spirit Path, represented by the First Deathless, the Ruler of Hell.

The Shade Path, represented by the Demon Lord Xana.

The Summoner Path, represented by the Authority of Insanity.

The Runic Path, represented by the Eternal Deathless, and

The Authority Path, represented by the Queen of Heaven.

They all provide separate yet equal perspectives on aural ascension and morality. Because of our patronage to the expedition, we have been graced with five spots with the Great Dungeon Party as guests and consultants. Follow the paths, conquer Hell, and join the Seven Paths Church today."

***

"I'm extremely excited for this first match Jasper, Orc Lord Rubeus versus a front runner, ex-King Job!"

"You've got that right Ruby. Let's go to the live feed; they're entering the stadium now."

Ex-King Job got a lot of hype, but Orc Lord Rubeus silently secured his place in the final roster. Both were top existences in Ryko, and they faced each other eye to eye.

"We meet again Lord Rubeus. Maybe this time, we can stop another tragedy from occurring."

"I sure hope so," Rubeus grunted out before attacking.

In terms of physical strength, Rubeus was stronger due to his biology, but Job had an obvious advantage in terms of aura. As long as Job wasn't hit, the match would be overwhelmingly in his favor. Job's aura was at a mid-King level while Rubeus had a low-King level aura. The difference wasn't too much to overcome if Job made a mistake, but it was still clear to the spectators who should realistically win.

When ex-King Augustus forcefully entered the arena during the previous round, everyone witnessed the true power of a high-ranking King firsthand. Comparatively, the two in front of them were not as impressive, but their auras were still tough for normal people to stand. Each swing of their swords sent a suffocating blast of residual energy into the stands. It was impressive, but it was also clear that the two on stage were casually dueling; if they were to go all out, the integrity of the arena could be at stake. Huffing heavily, both duelists staggered.

"It looks like it's your win Job. I can't fight much longer. I will be relying on you in the dungeon; together we will do better this time around." With that said, Rubeus raised his hand and announced his surrender.

"Winner! Ex-King Job!"

***

Next up, Clico faced Vice-Headmaster Love. Clico had recovered somewhat, but he still couldn't fight at his max. The odds were not in his favor.

"Love, love, love!" Love activated her skill but looked distraught. "It's not working… hmm, young man, you must be in love, correct?"

"Yes ma'am." Clico responded cordially.

"My skill can't work on someone in true love," said Love while shrugging. "You look familiar, were you perhaps a previous student."

"Yes, ma'am. I was in the same class and party as the Demon." Gasps could be heard from the audience, but Love was enlightened.

"Ahh, I understand now. So, this is what became of you…" Love pondered. "Even without my main skill, this will be a tough matchup, and both of us will be in poor condition for the next round. Consider yourself lucky, young man. I surrender." Love raised her hand.

"Oh, come on! What kind of plot armor is that?" Omira booed. Clico was given two rounds in a row on a silver platter!

"Winner! Wandering Sage Clico!"

***

A Wandering Sage, an unaffiliated mage registered with the Wizard's Association, usually were apart of independent organizations or parties. Although Clico's party was well known among veterans, normal people weren't and talked about Clico's situation in the crowd.

"Can you believe that guy was in a party with Lavilin?"

"What if he's secretly working for him?"

Clico ignored the whispers around him and watched the next round: Omira versus Samson.

Shade versus Shade, Omira charged at Samson recklessly.

"Let's see who's stronger!" She laughed hysterically.

Similarly, to the first match, Samson was clearly stronger, but he couldn't afford to make any mistakes. Waves of Shade aura smashed against each other, sending chills down the spines of the spectators. Because of the sinister nature Shade aura gave off, little children in the audience were scared and started to cry at Omira's violent, red eyes, glowing with bloodlust.

"Friend, slow down. I want to know, why are you challenging Hell?" Samson tried to calm down the ravenous Omira.

"Simple. I was sent here by a Sector Administrator to stop the Shade War!" Omira nonchalantly disclosed. Almost everyone, including Clico, Aventi, Stern, and the rest of their party was flabbergasted. Nobody had ever heard something outlandish like this before.

"What?" Samson asked, stunned. He assumed this wild Shade in front of him was just another freed Shade wanting revenge.

"Yeah, apparently, some of the Sector leaders didn't like the large Dungeon Break, so they sent me here to protect people." Omira explained while attacking.

"Hold on! Stop!" Samson burst an extraordinary level of aura out, pushing Omira away.

"Are you saying there is internal strife among the Administrators?" Samson tried to process the magnitude of Omira's information.

"Who cares! When I get back to the floor I was born on, I'll just kill anyone who tried to boss me around. I hate it when administrators or people boss me around!" Omira was fired up and attacked again even more ferociously. Samson was fed up with the psychotic Shade Omira. This was a big deal; she was probably the only person watching who didn't care!

Not playing around anymore, Samson subdued Omira swiftly. Because of her reckless attacks, she left herself open to counter attacks, and her aggression alone lost her the fight.

"Winner! Dungeon Shade Samson!"

"Damnit!" Omira cursed, oblivious to her behavior.

***

Another strange occurrence began with the fourth round. Individuals unconcerned with winning the tournament started to surrender on mass. Every remaining masked number surrendered now that their spot in the final roster was guaranteed.

"Winner! Pyrite Sage Pan!"

"Winner! Pyrite Sage Zircon!"

"Winner! Pyrite Sage Elle!"

"Winner! Pyrite Wizard Angiuli!"

Wandering Sage Mite's party also surrendered quietly. Adventurer Anaxmai faced Mite with a smile.

"Are you surrendering as well?" Anaxmai grinned for the first time on camera.

"Yes, now that the majority of my party is on the roster, we feel no need to keep going. Good luck Anaxmai." Mite said with a friendly smile, but his eyes were shooting daggers.

"What a great man!" Anaxmai was unnaturally friendly. Mite put his hand up in surrender.

"Winner! Adventurer Anaxmai!"

***

"Next up, Dungeon Shade Ahab versus Guildmaster Abel!"

Taking the stage were two strong candidates for winning the whole tournament. Both mid-rank Kings, Abel took out his trusty spear while Ahab fought like his other two Shade brethren, bare-handed. Abel fought off Ahab at a distance, taking a cautious approach to the dangerous Shade. Ahab on the other hand, fought more recklessly.

"Aha! Finally, a worthy opponent." Ahab resounded. Unlike Omira, his aggressive style was paying off in the even matchup. Ahab was more strategic than Samson and recognized Abel would be timid in the equal matchup. Slowly, Abel was being pushed back because of his controlled approach. Abel debated using a trump card to win the duel, but he hesitated. He didn't want to give away his secret skills. It would be better to lose here. Using a trump card would be too risky.

During his hesitation, Ahab broke through Abel's defenses and knocked him aside.

"Winner! Dungeon Shade Ahab!"

***

An interesting match was between the twins Mo and Do. Another seemingly rigged matchup, the twins faced each other stoically.

"Brother, let me surrender."

"No, brother, let me surrender." They argued back and forth for over five minutes. Suddenly, both put their hands up in surrender at the same time.

"Tie! Let's see what the coinflip says." Jasper announced.

"Wow Jasper, there are so many ties this tournament. I didn't think there would be even one!"

"The results are in: Winner! Wandering Sage Mo!"

***

Ex-King Dregey stood on top of the Werewolf King Haman after a hard-fought match.

"It won't be long now brother. I will win this tournament!"

***

"For the next match, we have Wandering Sage Jing versus Adventurer Cheptah!" A unanimous boo swept the stadium as Jing walked onto the field.

"I'll try my best!" Cheptah waved to the crowd.

Jing considered surrendering. Each unfortunate match he had so far made him look like a villain, and the unfortunate accident against Aquamarine made him feel bad.

"Don't listen to them. Let's have a good match. Please give it your all because I will!" Cheptah came up to shake Jing's hand; Cheptah knew Jing wasn't a bad guy. Taking Cheptah's hand, the crowd watched silently as Jing decided to give it his all too.

Backing away from Jing, Cheptah signaled for the match to begin. Cheptah took out the two-handed shield from his back and deflected Jing's martial arts. Now that the participants were thinning out, the disparity in most battles were becoming larger as the weaker links were eliminated. As a low-ranking Sage, Cheptah didn't stand much of a chance against Jing but tried his best anyways. He wanted a fair match, but from the audience's eyes, Jing appeared to be bullying the adventurer.

"What a bully! That poor adventurer is trying his best but look how mercilessly Jing is attacking." Someone yelled.

Meanwhile, Cheptah was beaten down fast. Sprawled on the ground, Cheptah said, "Thank you for giving it your all. I'm sorry if this makes you look bad, but I appreciate the experience."

Jing nodded silently.

"Winner! Wandering Sage Jing!"

Boos filled the colosseum.

"Not again," sighed Jing, facepalming. Every round, he managed to make himself more villainous by accident.

***

The fourth round of the tournament soon ended.

"Next week, we will go down to the final 16, where eight matches will take place. Every single one of these battles will be earth shaking! Here is the lineup!"

Wandering Sage Jing versus Pyrite Sage Zircon

Adventurer Anaxmai versus ex-King Dregey

Dungeon Shade Samson versus Pyrite Sage Elle

Dungeon Shade Ahab versus Wandering Sage Mo

Ex-King Job versus Pyrite Sage Pan

Pyrite Sage Angiuli versus Wandering Sage Clico

Lizard Princess Delilah versus Adventurer Elijah

Vampire Lord Jonah versus Lizard King Herod

"Truly a must-see event Ruby. Thank you everyone for tuning in, and we will see you all, next time!"