Reprieve

Following the outburst of Baam's power, the best way to describe the atmosphere in the arena was 'stunned silence'. Even Endorsi, a Princess of Jahad, and Khun, a descendent of one of the Ten Great Families could hardly believe what they had just witnessed. It wasn't until Laure very openly asked, "Where the hell is the Test Administrator?" that everyone else seemed to return to their senses.

As if in response to the man's question, Lero-Ro appeared out of thin air, an unhappy expression on his face as he replied, "My apologies, Regulars. I, too, was caught off guard by this unexpected turn of events..."

While explaining the situation, Lero-Ro surveyed the state of the arena, suppressing a sigh when he glanced at the two corpses with their skulls bashed in. Though killing other Regulars wasn't against the rules, it was still heavily frowned upon in most situations. This was especially true when the test was a bonus game, meaning there were no real consequences for failing to emerge victoriously.

Resisting the urge to shake his head, Lero-Ro shifted his attention to where Baam was being held by Rachel for a brief moment before quickly looking towards where Anak was collapsed. The latter was bleeding rather severely due to the hole running through the center of her chest and exiting out beneath her right shoulder. Despite this, she had managed to crawl towards the rubble of the throne, passing out while hugging the Green April and Black March.

Noticing Lero-Ro's gaze, Khun was the one to break this silence, his expression severe as he said, "This incident can't go unanswered..." as he walked over to where Anak had collapsed, a glistening knife in hand.

Khun wasn't just going to let the girls steal his friend's weapon, especially after she went out of her way to interrupt the game, but, before he could seek revenge, a figure appeared to block his path just as Lero-Ro was about to intervene. At the same time, two more figures appeared next to Baam and Rachel, one pulling out a staff to treat their injuries while the other released a uniquely peaceful yet suffocating aura.

Though he was surprised by the sudden appearance of Gandr, Phae, and Vahn, Lero-Ro quickly recovered his senses as he plainly advised, "Please do not make this situation more complicated. I will allow you to treat their injuries, but any further action will result in a point reduction."

Shifting his attention to the Test Administrator, Vahn's expression remained largely unchanged as he calmly stated, "I will take possession of those two weapons and mediate this matter. Are there any objections?"

In response to Vahn's inquiry, Endorsi, still holding her gut, was the one to answer, "As a Princess of Jahad, those weapons should be entrusted to me. The Thirteen Month Series isn't something that is supposed to fall into the hands of others."

Turning to face the slightly hunched over Princess, Vahn's expression immediately became stern as he plainly stated, "No. I will not allow others to take advantage of this incident. When everything is settled, I will return those weapons to their rightful owners."

Feeling the pressure on her body begin to increase, Endorsi clenched her teeth in frustration, her ghostly eyes seeming to glow with increasing intensity. Fortunately, before she could do something she was bound to regret, Lero-Ro calmly stated, "Very well. Though it is unorthodox, I can tell that you hold no malicious intent towards either of the parties involved in this incident. However, if you have not reached an agreement by the end of the Position Test, I will require that both weapons be returned to their original owners."

Nodding his head in affirmation, Vahn turned toward Phae and ordered, "Retrieve the two weapons and treat the girl's injuries..." before looking towards Gandr and adding, "Gather those who cannot move on their own. Phae will treat them after she is finished dealing with our little friend there..."

With his orders issued, Vahn moved at a slow and steady gait towards his waiting room, stopping after a few steps to observe Khun and advise, "Those who forget themselves and allow hatred to blind them are fated to experienced misfortune..."

Hearing Vahn's words, Khun shifted his gaze away from Anak, his expression becoming intense as he asked, "Did you know this was going to happen?"

Rather than respond to the heated youth's words, Vahn just continued along his path in silence, his aura slowly receding until even his presence seemed to disappear. This left Khun feeling even more resentful, but, knowing there was little he could do against the three monsters, he forced himself to calm down before going to Baam's side...

---

With both the Crown and the throne being destroyed, the Crown Game ultimately ended without a winner. This left quite a number of people dissatisfied but there wasn't really anything they could do to repeal the decision. In the end, they simply accepted the points handed out as compensation before retiring to their assigned rooms.

Though Phae had treated most of the wounded, even restoring the eye of the masked woman, the Test Admins had given all the Regulars three days to recuperate. After that, they would be sorted into one of five classes based on the Positions the Admins thought best suited each person. From that moment onward, they would spend thirty days learning both the ins and outs of their assigned Position and how it covered the various strengths and weaknesses of others.

When everything was said and done, only those who had qualified to move up the Tower would be given the right to move on to the 3rd Floor. Everyone else would be forced to retire to the Middle Tower, denied the opportunity to retake the test. To further increase the pressure placed on each of the Regulars, there were a limited number of slots for each Position, so, even if you were just a little weaker than someone who had passed, you could only blame your 'bad luck' for not being chosen.

---

Unconcerned about whether or not he would pass the Position Exam, Vahn was silently meditating within his room when a gentle *pitta pon*, the sound of the doorbell being rung. He already knew who was standing outside, so, without having to check the display showing the exterior corridor, he picked up the nearby remote, unlocking the door with a simple button press.

Like something out of a sci-fi movie, the sound of pressure being released could be heard as the door quickly slid into the wall with a mechanical hiss. On the opposite side, Gandr could be seen with a cheeky grin on his face, while, behind him, a rather frustrated looking girl with brown hair and green skin could be seen clenching her dress.

While everyone else had received monetary compensation following the failure of the Crown Game, Anak, alone, had been penalized quite severely. She had been fined 5000 points, effectively placing her into a point deficit due to Regulars only being allotted 1000 points upon receiving their Pocket.

Under normal circumstances, Anak would have had her qualifications as a Regular revoked, but, due to the Crown Game's status as a 'bonus test', she was fortunate to escape that fate. Unfortunately, it was very difficult to earn points early on, so, while everyone else was able to purchase supplies and eat their fill in the cafeteria, Anak was effectively forced to starve. She couldn't even afford a simple apple, and, if not for the charity of her former teammates and Phae helping to mend her dress, she would already be looking like a homeless vagabond...

Reinforcing his image as a mischief-making with a hunger for battle, Gandr snickered mischievously before performing a half-bow and saying, "Good morning, Master. I brought someone who wanted to say something to you. Is that okay?"

With a gesture of his hand, Vahn gave Gandr leniency to raise his head before shifting his gaze to Anak. This caused her to grind her teeth audibly, but, after several seconds of tense silence, she ultimately lowered her head and loudly exclaimed, "I'm sorry! Please return my Green April!"

Though her manners were greatly lacking, Vahn surprised Anak quite a bit by calmly replying, "Very well. Just remember, if I catch you misusing it in the future, I will confiscate it once again."

Following that simple statement, Vahn used his Telekinesis to retrieve the green hook resting near the corner of the room, returning it to the befuddled 'young' girl. Vahn, or, more specifically Phae, had heard that Anak was even older than Endorsi. Despite this, she had the appearance of a young girl around 10-12 years old, albeit one with a height of 154cm and a startling weight of 140kg...

Not sure how to respond after receiving her weapon so easily, Anak just stared blankly at the Green April until Gandr lightly nudged her arm and said, "I told you, right? You just have to be sincere and His Imperial Majesty won't mind lending you a hand. Now, isn't there something else you wanted to say?"

Though she was momentarily confused by Gandr's words, Anak realized what he was implying after the boy inclined his head towards Vahn with a 'say it' expression on his face. This caused her to feel slightly indignant, but, having recovered the Green April, she managed to restrain her anger as she bowed a second time and begrudgingly grumbled, "Thank you..."

Further exacerbating her frustration, Anak could hear Gandr snickering at her side, but, fortunately, she didn't have to keep her head lowered too long as Vahn simply replied, "It was a small matter. I just hope you learned something from all this. Now, run along. If you need anything else, you may inquire from my vassals."

Hearing Vahn's perpetually calm tone, Anak wasn't quite sure how she should respond to the man's words. She got the impression he was trying to look out for her, but, after everything she had done, it didn't make sense for him to do so. Stranger still was the fact that she got the same feeling from the woman named Phae, and, to a lesser extent, the annoying Vanargandr to her left...

Before she could mull over the incongruencies she was experiencing in her mind, Anak was brought back to awareness by Gandr saying, "Hey, we shouldn't loiter around here for too long. Master is a kind man, but we shouldn't impose upon him unless it's necessary. Come on, let's get something to eat in the cafeteria. I don't really need points so I'll treat you this time around. You can always pay me back in the future so don't even think about refusing...!"

Though he was originally going to pull the girl along by her hand, Gandr felt that would be going a little too far. He didn't want Anak to imprint upon him, so, after finishing with his words, he alighted from the room and gestured for her to follow. This left the girl feeling even more disconcerted, but, after a moment's hesitation, she quickly chased after him with the Green April in her hands...

Seeing the duo depart, Vahn pressed the button on his remote, locking the door and restoring the serene atmosphere that had been disrupted by their arrival. Now that they were gone, he closed his eyes once again, a golden hue coloring his surroundings as nine watery marbles, glistening with the same golden hue, began to orbit gracefully around his body...

----

Despite the childishness of the act, Gandr ended up turning the short journey to the cafeteria into a foot race. This was silently assented to by Anak, who, despite her small size, crammed a tremendous amount of power into a teenie-tiny package. This made her body so dense that she was harder than steel without any kind of physical reinforcement. Because of this, her bare feet left noticeable prints in the metallic corridor as she chased after him, her expression darkening as she failed to even get close, much less surpass, the cheeky Vanargandr...

Without any suspense, Gandr reached the cafeteria before Anak, snickering with his hands behind his head as he remarked, "What took you so long?"

With a visible tick mark appearing on her head, Anak looked like she was about to ignite the Green April, but, before she could make up her mind, Gandr turned his head away as if he had just noticed something. His fluffy ears began to twitch slightly, and, though the 'attack' had come from his blind spot, he was able to easily evade the grasp of a fashionable woman wearing a golden pleated dress, a light brown vest, black tights, and golden high-heels...

Though she wasn't that surprised by Gandr's ability to evade her 'attack', Endorsi adopted a slightly pouty look as she complained, "You're not supposed to dodge..." before shifting her gaze to Anak and asking, "By the way, why are you with this imposter...?"

Hearing the way Endorsi had referred to her, Anak immediately released a hate-filled aura from her body, the atmosphere, quite literally, becoming tense from the increase in pressure. Despite this, Endorsi showed absolutely no signs of discomfort, even placing her hand on her hip as she plainly remarked, "Oh? Does the truth offend you...faker?"

The moment she heard Endorsi call her another name, Anak became a green blur as she threw a full-powered punch towards the smiling Princess. Before the hit could connect, however, the two badges on Endorsi's vest enlarged in an instant, blocking the punch and mitigating all the force behind it in an instant. This earned a slightly intrigued look from Gandr, but, with more pressing matters to attend, he quickly stepped between the two Princesses, catching Anak's follow-up attack with his bare hand while glaring at Endorsi...

(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'The Emperor speaketh','Manners are important','Endorsi is just jealous that Anak is getting all the attention (UwU)~!')

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