The Unsolvable Problem

"Glitches?!" Kai feigned ignorance, his heart pounding with anticipation.

It was too hard to control his emotions when one of the most important things in Kai's life was being discussed. That too, by none other than Arlen.

Kai had thought it was an exclusive privilege given to some Worthy Contestants. Now it seemed there were other ways to get it, too. Ways that were more common than having the Worth Stat with an abnormally high value.

"What are Glitches?" Kai asked, showing a fake curiosity.

"Just think of them as a direct ticket to the 5th Set," Arlen said. "Top organizations below the 12th floor select Contestants through the Tournament. You can call it a mass selection tournament too. Only the winner will be eligible to have the Glitch, and that Contestant has and will always go to the Empire. Imagine, bloody… imagine the endless source of Items, data, and…"

Arlen took a deep breath as if holding himself back to say more. This was an ancient trick, trying to agitate the listener. Kai wasn't a new player in this game, but he would benefit if he were to play along. So he did.

"And," Kai said, squinting his eyes. "Tell me, Arlen."

"Blessings!" Arlen said, a greedy gleam appearing in his eyes. "Blessings from… from the Temples. Don't take them as an ordinary slap at the back, or an old street priest's hoax. No. These are the real deal."

Kai pressed his mouth into a thin line. "Why are you telling me all this, then?" he asked. "What is it for you in it?"

Arlen chuckled. "Nothing," he said, but his eyes said something else. "You won't even get to take part in it, so why would I trouble myself in plotting against you? Now take out one of the sabers you had used last night."

"Why?"

"Well, I need to show those three fools waiting for you I have killed you," Arlen said, standing up. "There's one more thing I am adding to our little deal. You will go to the next battle under the Thunder Faction's banner. I will arrange a room for you. Now, get up! I won't leave you alone with Shae here."

Kai stood up. He took out the poison-less saber and handed it over to Arlen. The Baron examined it, raising his eyebrows at its sharpness.

"You will get your Mission Credits, the wand, and the data shortly," Arlen said, almost walking away. "Just pay the man 2 vials of the venom in advance during the transaction."

'Damn!' Kai cursed. 'He is too shrewd to have an upper hand over him.'

*

*

Room No. 242, Thunder Faction

Three days passed since Kai and Arlen's last meeting.

Kai was seated in the room, working on his Elementary Abilities. There was a smile on his face, refusing to vanish no matter how much he tried.

The reason? Wealth and the wooden stick lying on his bed. Kai had spent the last three days going through the data on Random Worlds, learning as much as he could about them. It wouldn't have mattered much before, but now he had a particular goal. The Title, Novice Collector. And, indeed. After going through them, Kai felt he could get the Title in a single mission if he tried hard enough.

The wand was a disappointment, though. It had only one requirement, Elementary Magical Aptitude. It also had an MP output limit. But even this disappointment couldn't hold him back from smiling while looking at it. It was as if a child had gotten his favorite toy, but he was too small to play with it.

'The child would eventually grow,' Kai thought. 'Magic isn't that far away from me.'

Kai's concerns lay not about getting this Elementary Ability, but about the upcoming tournament and its rewards. It had pained him much, thinking of how he wouldn't be able to take part in the tournament.

Unlike what Arlen had thought, Kai wasn't worried about not emptying his 20 Points quota. He had already got 10 Attribute Points, courtesy of the two hidden missions. Only 10 remained, which Kai believed he could get on the next two missions. To ascend to the 2nd Set, Kai would need to reach the 3rd floor, and then he must also attempt a floor-ascending mission.

So, he wasn't worried about not qualifying, but qualifying within time. From what Arlen had said, the Mission Time Limit didn't depend on the Mission's grade. But often, it did. Kai had gone through the statistics available, which revealed that over 90% of the time, the time limit would keep on increasing.

An enormous probability, given the vast number of Contestants.

'If I take my last mission as a measure,' Kai thought, 'then my next mission time limit will be around a month.'

Even if he would get 5-6 Attribute Points in that mission, the floor-ascending mission could vary anywhere between 3 to 4 months. Not enough time to gather all the points. Not at all.

Kai was in a conundrum. No matter how much he thought about it, no solution came to him. And he needed to join the tournament. Not to get another Glitch. That was impossible, Kai could tell from the answer he had got about Glitch. It was the manifestation of one's Individuality. And everyone had only one Individuality.

No. The thing that made Kai's heart palpitate was the idea that had come through an instinct. If a Contestant already possessing a Glitch were to win the tournament, can the Glitch be upgraded then?

'I must take part in the tournament,' Kai reflected. 'I must.'

The question persisted, though. How?

When Kai couldn't find an answer, he had only one method left to go about it, ultimately.

"Petyr," Kai called to the being within him. "Come out."

*

*

Trumpets bellowed.

Thunder roared along with the gurgles of the heavy downpour, trying to bury the war cries.

They all failed.

Thunder Faction's banner flapped in the storm like the clangs of a hundred swords. Under the banner, there was a blue-armored Contestant, holding a two-handed greatsword. His white cloak, imprinted with the image of a blue thunderbolt, flapped high and mighty.

This Contestant was Kai Stormborn.

After returning his saber, Arlen refused him to fight without armor and using his sabers. Kai didn't mind it. Sure, it would not help him in increasing his twin-saber style's Proficiency, but he would manage. It was a permanent Ability, not from the blood essence.

The ground beneath Kai's feet quaked as he saw troops after troops lining in front of him far away. Behind him, there were 50 magicians. For the first time, a warrior was leading the magicians of Thunder Faction. But the Baron himself had vouched for him, so none doubted Kai's capabilities.

The notification appeared then.

[

Initiating Battle Sequence…

Floor: 2 (1st Set)

Kill Count: (0/50)

Sub-Kill Count: (0/10)

Battle Number: 1

]

"CHARGE!"

*******

AN: Kai will return to the White Room tomorrow. As you already know the next mission is a joint mission between Harry Potter, GOT, and Pokemon. Would you like to guess what is it? Hint: Daenerys Targaryen

The winner would get to name a Contestant.

If you have any suggestion regarding the novel, writing, plot, or anything, please don't hold it back and let me know in comments or on discord. I will be glad to see them. Thank you!