| Xyrus and A little fun (1)|

I got into the carriage that the elf representatives were taking followed by Merl who just lifted his personal bag, while the king and queen were escorted into a separate carriage.

"Well look who it is! If it isn't the human brats! Did the royal family finally kick you guys out of the Kingdom?" An elf boy dressed in a very decorated purple robe smirked.

"Uh…I'm sorry but do I know you?" I felt like I knew who this elf was, but I couldn't quite place my finger on where we had met. Meanwhile, Sylvie was growling, pointing her horns in his direction.

"I'm the noble you mercilessly attacked while defying the customs of the duel!" He bolted up angrily, pointing an accusing finger at me.

It suddenly clicked. "You're the bug I sent tumbling!" I yelled out in realization, a bit louder than I had meant to. I heard Merlin laughing loudly behind me.

"Y-you dare…!?" His face turned bright pink as his ears twitched profusely in anger while a few elves behind desperately tried to cover their snickering.

"Aha sorry, sorry! I didn't mean to say that. I never did learn your name though," I chuckled, extending a hand to him.

Face still red, trying to preserve as much of the little dignity he had left, he rejected my handshake and declared in a pompous tone, "My name is Feyrith Ivsaar III, descendent of the noble Ivsaar family! You may have won while we were both children, but were we to duel again, I would win easily."

A young elf girl that looked a few years older than Feyrith piped in, saying, "You can just call him Feyfey like we do."

"D-don't tell him that!" Face turning an even darker shade of red, Feyfey turned his head away from me and took a seat.

I sat down next to Feyfey and gave him a sympathetic pat on his shoulders that were slumped in defeat.

As we our carriage went into the teleportation gate we were greeted by the now familiar sensation of being in the middle of a fast-forwarding film.

"We have arrived in Xyrus!" The driver announced.

Taking a quick peek out, I noticed we were surrounded by a parade of people all politely clapping at our entrance. This tournament was supposed to be one of the biggest turning points throughout the continent. It wasn't just gathering all of the gifted youths together, but also building a future where they could also learn under one roof. It was exciting venture that the leaders of the continent were taking, but also a scary one that would also, in no doubt, be filled with dispute and hostility.

The driver pulled the carriage close to a small gap between two buildings after passing through the crowd and signaled to me in the back that this would be the best time to leave without being noticed.

I say bye to Feyfey and the rest of the representatives and wish them luck. Feyfey merely whipped his head away but also made a slight waving gesture.

While Merl bid farewell in an elegant and noble-like way before we jumped off the carriage with Sylvie still on my head, we made our way through the alleyway as I tried remembering the home my parents were staying in.

"Art, keep this with you. I'll come find you later." Merl gave me a...half leaf?

"What's this?" I asked, genuinely curious.

"Half leaf?" He answered without hesitation.

"..."

"Okay okay, it's a...path finder of sort?" He said, not knowing how to explain.

"Okay. Where are you going?" I asked.

"Just looking around. This is a floating city afterall!!" He stated excitedly.

"Sure. See you then" I left him without the need to worry he's not a person to break his promise.

***

Just as I saw Art turned into another corner, out of my sight, my smile grew wider and wider.

"Shall I check this tournament out?" I muttered before reinforcing body and dashed towards the direction with hundreds of people gathering.

Before long I found myself at the only available tournament registration booth in front of the tournament grounds. I could feel the energy and excitement emanating from the throngs of people gathering around the entrance.

It's my first time seeing this many people gathering. Well, this tournament will be a very important event for the future because both the dwarves and elves are sending 30 youths as representatives for both the tournament and as a preliminary student to the human academy...Is what Gramps said but it's exciting nonetheless. Even if it's just a tournament to select students to enroll in this Xyrus Academy or something.

I walked up to the registration booth and said in a friendly manner.

"Good day sir. I would like to register."

"Hmm? Yeah. For normal applicants right? What's your name?" The tired looking in the booth asked.

"...Loki" I used a name that suddenly popped into my brain.

"Loki...No surname right?" He asked as he wrote down my name in the paper.

"Yeah. No surname" I answered.

'Tess's father and mother will be there so I should be careful not to get exposed.' I thought.

"Weapon?" He asked.

"That will be...a wand please" I thought and answered. I didn't want to use my main weapon which is a spear as it's risky of reveling my identity.

"A conjurer, I see. Aaand you're registered. Go and wait in line for Group 1. A staff will get you a wand once you show them this paper. Good luck" He gave me a paper and wished me luck.

Group 1...Group 1...There it is.

There's about 30 people in Group 1, they all are above 11 years old and below 15 years old.

Everyone of them is shaking in their boots.

Did I get in the right place?

I got myself at the back of the line before rummaging through my bag and brought out a black half face mask that covered the upper part of my face. There's two hole for my eyes to see through.

With this, it's enough to conceal my identity.

As I stood in line waiting for the battle tournament to begin, I couldn't help but sense nervousness from the other ki- I mean 'fighters'.

This may be my first time competing in a tournament but instead of feeling nervous...I felt excited.

The first round was a battle royale of each row. With the rules being simple: The last 5 standing fighters. This is an elimination part of the tournament where the weakest will be eliminated.

We were directed towards a waiting room by a staff.

The fighters' waiting room was a spacious and comfortable area, designed to make the competitors feel relaxed and at ease before their upcoming battles. The room was brightly lit, with large windows that let in plenty of natural light, creating a warm and inviting atmosphere.

The walls of the waiting room were adorned with beautiful tapestries depicting epic battles between Humans, Elves, and Dwarves. The tapestries were intricately woven with vibrant colors and fine details, showcasing the artistry and skill of the craftsmen who created them.

The room was furnished with plush, comfortable chairs and couches where fighters could sit and relax, with soft cushions. There were also plenty of tables stocked with refreshing drinks, healthy snacks, and fresh fruits, to help the fighters stay hydrated and energized.

The waiting room was also equipped with private changing rooms where fighters could prepare for their battles in peace and quiet. The changing rooms were spacious, with ample mirrors and plenty of hooks for weapons and armor.

Overall, the fighters' waiting room is nice...

I noticed that there's a total of 4 group in this waiting room.

The first group being my group, is full of nervous human fighters.

The second group, however, is full of prideful and calm human fighters.

The third group fighters are all Dwarves.

The fourth group fighters are all elves. Feyrith is even there, sitting comfortably on a couch.

Each group contains 30 fighters, so that's a total of 120 fighters.

I showed the staff the paper I received as soon as I finished observing the room.

After reading through it, the staff gestured me to follow him.

"Follow me."

I followed him and returned to the waiting room shortly after getting a simple wand for myself.

I was a bit disappointed as all the wand in the weapon storage room is old and cheap...But I don't mind. Wand's purpose is just to quicken your spell time and increases one's magic spell.

The fighters from every group sat quietly, some meditating or stretching, others staring intently at the floor as they prepared themselves mentally for the upcoming battles.

The only sounds in the room were the soft rustling of clothing and the occasional clink of weapons as fighters adjusted their gear. The air was thick with the scent of sweat and leather, mixed with the faint aroma of burning incense that was meant to calm the nerves of the fighters.

Along one wall of the waiting room was a table manned by tournament officials, where fighters could sign in and receive instructions on their upcoming battles. A large, ornate clock hung on the opposite wall, ticking away the minutes until each fighter's turn to battle.

I noticed that not a single fighter from my group took a seat yet...which is weird. There's more than enough seat for everyone to sit.

Not minding them, grabbed a bottle of energy drink and took a seat comfortably.

My action somehow caused everyone in the room to stare at me before the once quiet room was filled with whispering from other group...especially from Group 2.

"How can a lowly commoner acts like he's on our level. Tsk, it disgusts me."

"Who does he think he is?"

"I wanted to give him a lesson he'll never forget."

"He better wish he's not going to face the great me."

"You think he'll even pass the first round?"

'Ah...I see. This must be what Art and Gramps talked about...Discrimination. It seemed that Group 1 consists entirely of commoners that registered to participate in this tournament.' I thought as I finished my drink and slammed the bottle down the table.

>BAM!<

The sudden loud noise in the quiet room startled many fighters.

"HAaaa~ I can't wait to beat the shit out of everyone in this tournament and go home" I yawned and intentionally provoked everyone in the room.

The result? I don't even want to talk about it as the room is far from quiet.

As time passed, the room is once again quiet. But now, everyone is giving me a stare filled with nothing but hostility.

'That's more like it' I grinned.

I will later finds out that Group 1 is a commoner group full of extras who wanted to try their luck into getting in the prestigious academy. Group 2 is the selected Human representatives group. The same goes for Group 3 and Group 4, who's the representatives of Dwarves and Elves respectively.

***

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