Chapter 4 Part 1

As Christopher gawks at his wrist, admiring the magical item he has acquired, Relov asks Haider where his twin sister is.

"As the deadline is almost here, Heather went ahead to collect the plant needed for the client." Haider says.

"Smart choice, it would have been cutting it close otherwise." Relov praises the twins' decision.

"Since we're all here, why don't we go meet with her at the Summit? I bet it has an amazing view." Christopher suggests.

Relov nods and the three Head up to the summit. As Heather came into view, we see her on her knees.

(Narrator) Sorry to interrupt but I only just fused back together, since Christopher and Relov were teleported back there, I was left on my own. It took me a while to fly through the mountain.

"Is everything ok Heather?" Haider asks. Heather lifts her head, looks at the group and shakes her head.

"Were we too late?" Christopher runs over and looks over his sister's shoulder.

"Not exactly." Heather lifts up the petal left on the floor.

"Ah, someone got here before us!" Haider screams at the top of his lungs and it echoes all the way down the mountain.

"I say it was about an hour before I got here. Whoever plucked it is long gone." Heather says, her expertise in plants guiding her to when the stem was severed.

(Narrator) Hmmm...

"We failed." Relov looks to be upset before smiling brightly. "Oh well, no biggie!"

"Wait what? Seriously!" Christopher yells.

"I never thought you three could make it here anyway. I do have a few criticisms though." Relov says.

"I have a bad feeling all of a sudden." Haider mutters.

"First is Heather. You blindly trusting a Dungeon Master was a fatal mistake. For all you could have known, that person could have made you his plaything, or worse their concubine, even part of their harem!" Relov scolds, Heather places her arms and head to the ground as an apology. "Lift your head! You're gonna catch a cold." Relov sighs.

"By the Mother. What does he have to say to us?" Haider whispers to Christopher.

"Haider! You are always way too over-confident and headstrong. You just jump into things without thinking! I already scolded you for looking over the edge, but while you were climbing the ice wall, you paused. Putting your brother and sister at serious risk of hypothermia and possible death! Just because you aren't affected by the cold, doesn't mean they aren't either!" Relov's words cut deep into Haider and he verbally apologises for his mistakes.

"Sister...Protect me." Christopher says in a whispered squeak.

"Christopher...You need to learn to function without your siblings there to keep you mentally stable. I understand how hard that request is for you, but if it leaves you a danger to everyone around you, you're just a burden. I don't mind protecting you from yourself for now, but this is a top priority for you." Relov Kneels in front of him as ruffles his hair.

"I will try my best sir." Christopher lets out little sniffles.

(Narrator) I'm surprised by how fatherly this...nope, i gotta hold back. I've been simping too much. That Zoey really has had an influence on me.

Now back at the guild, Relov informs Silus about the failure of the quest and the details of that failure.

"I see, well now that is unfortunate. Why not take a break and take on a new quest a little later, hmm? I'll permit three days." Silus suggests.

"Thank you sir." Relov says. He gets into the old man's ear and whispers. "These kids might not have great experience, but they sure are unique."

"In what way?" Master thavil asks curiously.

"They are surprisingly adaptable, no less from extreme training from their youth. Also, that Haider is the most interesting. He has complete cold resistance. I haven't met another ice mage like that."

"Hmm. maybe the gods have something glorious planned for those three." Silus theorises.

"That's not all. Heather has three affinities. Christopher also has iron level experience in Spatial Magic. It's remarkable how much power they have."

(Narrator) How many times are we gonna need to hear people talk about their power! It's starting to get on my nerves.

Meanwhile, Christopher and Haider stuff their faces full of cooked meats and rice. Heather is next to them with some sort of manners and at least taking her time with her meal.

"They're good kids, Relov. Make sure they do something fun while they are here." Silus commands the young Dragon Newt. Relov bows with respect and heads off into a crowd of the guild members.

The day after, we see our trio with Relov walking down the main street next to the small river that separates the town into two. Bridges made of beautiful white polished granite cross this river every fifty yards or so.

"So where you taking us?" Heather asks Relov, bouncing as she walks.

"The dragon festival is tonight, it takes place inside the coliseum." Relov says.

"The coliseum? What happens at the dragon festival?" Christopher asks.

"Fights, what else would you do at a coliseum? People all across the country come here to take part. Mainly because the royal family will be there." Relov explains.

"Awesome. Can we apply?" Haider asks enthusiastically.

"To fight?...I dont see why not. But theres no way your winning." Relov says.

"We dont care. It's just gonna be fun right? No killing?" Christopher asks.

"That's true. As long as you dont hold back I'll let you apply. No one else there will be either." Relov sternly says.

"Ok, but why are people going to be taking it so seriously?" Heather asks.

"The prize money I guess. Or maybe a good challenge. There are many reasons why someone might want to participate." Relov explains.

"What's the prize?" Heather and Haider ask in unison.

"Hmm. If I recall from last year it was 10 platinum." Relov says casually.

Christopher's jaw drops as he hears the prize. "That's like, all of our money put together."

(Narrator) Just to clarify one platinum is 100 gold. So the prize for winning the festival is 1,000 gold. Which. Is an unbelievable amount of money. That can feed an entire peasant family for over a thousand years.

"We're entering this festival and winning." Heather produces a blood red aura around her as she says this. Her eyes glowing the same colour as if a demon possessed her.

"It's gonna be great to watch you fight! I want to see what you're capable of afterall." Relov says. "Let's get you signed up for it, we should still have time to enter you!"

They rush over to the massive coliseum. Now, how in the fuck am I supposed to describe this thing? It's a stone made circular structure with a large open field in the centre and stadium seating angled upward able to seat thousands of spectators. The royal family organises these events for their entertainment, preparing the prize money for the winning participant. The Royal family are seated far above the other spectators in lavishly decorated booths, ya know, the rich be riching.

There's a little booth with several staff on duty, allowing spectators in for an obvious fee. On the other side of the entrance, there is another booth for event sign ups. Our group rushes over while Relov buy's a spectator seat.

Heather practically slams against the booth, her chest distracting the male service worker for a moment. "Hello sir! My brothers and I would like to enter the festival!"

"Hmm? Oh right, here is the sign up form, all we need is your name, race and magic attribute. At the bottom is an acknowledgement that this is a very serious one on one battle tournament and risk to life is a real possibility. We will then ask you to place a hand on a magic measuring system to evaluate if you have the minimum required power." the man said.

The trio quickly scribble down their details and accept the terms, all three pass the power evaluation with zero trouble and head into the waiting area filled with people fighting in this festival.

"There has to be at least forty people here." Christopher says.

As they sit down next to a large brawly Orc a projection appears on the wall. This is what it has to say. "Due to the abundance of applicants to this year's tournament, if you don't see your name on one of the brackets, you unfortunately didn't make the cut." The projection shows the bracket system of the event with Christopher in the 1st match against someone named Jaenshan. Heather is in the 5th against Heje. Haider is in the 9th match against Heldon.

"Guys look. There are people we know in here." Heather whispers.

Looking at the board intensely Christopher yells out. "DAD!? You're in this thing?"

Haider spots another recognisable name. "Llamiryl? What the fuck is she doing here?"

Llamiryl walks up to the three and says. "I'm so happy to see you again!" she tilts her head slightly, shyly holding her staff in both hands.

While Haider greets her back, Christopher and Heather have a quieted talk. "I've got something to tell you here. I've felt off about her since we first met her, there is something strange i can't explain. You're in the same bracket as her so please, be cautious." Christopher says.

"What do you mean?" Heather asks, concerned.

"I don't know. I got the feeling that we saw her before we met. I don't know where, or why, but something evil about her makes me want to vomit. The taste of that mist from that kidnapper keeps coming back." Christopher says.

"Duly noted. I'll be careful." Heather says.