Meeting the Competition

"You must really fancy her, huh?" Tom said quietly as he and Kamari walked side by side. With his hands in his pockets, Kamari shrugged, still looking forward feeling a bit of embarrassment. "I guess so." he replied. Fancying her was an understatement.

"So much so that you're willing to die for her?" Tom asked, looking over at Kamari who was still looking forward as they walked the cold, metallic halls.

"I guess so. Why?" Kamari then looked at Tom, seeing the English boy looking back at him with solemn eyes and a furrowed brow. "I'm just saying... It's pretty crazy to die for a girl you just met, you know? Like you're Romeo and Juliet or somethin'."

"If it was your name next to mine, I'd do the same thing." Kamari admitted, again feeling embarrassed that such a thing was coming from his mouth. "You guys are all I have here. I don't want to be alone again... I can't."

Tom was silent for a moment as the two continued to walk, realizing he too was being selfish at the moment. "I don't want to either." he admitted.

"Well, I guess I better beat that AI then, right?" Kamari smiled slightly as he said this, still looking at Tom who nodded in response. "Right." Tom repeated as the two finally reached the training room.

As they entered, those already inside glared at them, the first of which was Usagi Oyama from North Tsundora. With her fox-like eyes, she looked Kamari up and down before turning back to face her practice target, her long black hair flowing behind her. "She's not very friendly." Tom added as the two walked past her and began walking past the many empty lanes of the practice range.

As they began approaching their respective lanes, a voice stopped both boys in their tracks. "Aye! Tommy boy!" said that voice and the owner of said voice wrapped his arms around both Kamari and Tom's necks.

Both Tom and Kamari looked at each other with their eyebrows furrowed before the American, Jason Hernandez, introduced himself to Kamari. "Name's Jason. You're that Dark Chronicle kid, huh? You should let me see it. What kind of spells do you have? I heard you have like twelve thousand Health Points. Is that true?"

'This guy's a talker...' Kamari thought to himself as the American beamed at him with a bright smile.

"Can't give away my secrets. Sorry." Kamari told him, using his hand to remove Jason's arm from around his shoulder.

"Ah, come on, man!" Jason grumbled disappointedly as Tom too removed himself from his grasp. Tom and Kamari continued walking toward their practice lanes before once again being stopped by someone, this time a woman that towered over the both of them, despite Kamari being rather tall himself.

This young woman had the physique of a Greek god, her muscles showing even through her black tracksuit that fit tightly on her but loosely on everyone else. She had short blonde hair and an animalistic grin on her face. "Kamari Yelekal." the Russian growled his name, towering over him with her arms crossed.

Tom looked up at her with wide eyes, feeling even smaller now that she was before him. The girl looked at him briefly before looking back at Kamari. "I am Viktoriya Vlaskova of Great Russia. You are the boy with the Dark Chronicle, yes?"

Kamari nodded his head, moving his Chronicle forward with his hand to show it to her. "Yeah. That's me." he told her. Viktoriya scoffed, still smiling like a shark stalking her prey as she glared down at Kamari. "So you have decided to get off of your lazy ass and participate?" her smile then turned into a look of disgust. "You're pathetic. You don't belong here."

Kamari's chest felt as if he'd just gotten shot by a twelve-gauge shotgun, her words cutting deep. 'The hell is her problem?' he thought to himself. He wanted to just ignore her, but she was blocking his path. Kamari started to step around her, but she quickly sidestepped to block him from leaving. "Running away again? To think the Dark Chronicle wasted itself on you."

By this point, Kamari was getting fed up. With his eyebrows furrowed, twitching ever so slightly, Kamari spoke with a tone unheard by anyone thus far. "The fuck is your problem?" he asked her, standing up to her as if she weren't towering over him.

Tom looked back and forth between the two of them, though his gaze eventually stopped on Kamari. For the first time, he witnessed Kamari's expression change from having those dull, blank eyes to having somewhat of a fire within him. It wasn't just his face, but his voice changed as well. Kamari often sounded bored or disinterested, but this time, he sounded frustrated. 'He really is taking this seriously now...' Tom thought to himself. 'That must be it.'

"I hate scum like you getting special treatment. That is my problem. The only reason anyone cares about you is because of your special book." Viktoriya told him. "All eyes should be on me, Viktoriya Vlaskova, Great Russia's greatest achievement. I will prove that we are the greatest nation in the world, and I will not let that be taken away by some Eswarian. Where even is Eswaria? No one cares."

'What the hell is her deal?' Kamari's inner voice muttered in frustration. 'Why am I even letting her rile me up? Why do I care?' Kamari closed his eyes and exhaled, calming himself. "Is that all?" he asked. "You're right. I'm not special. I'll stay out of your way, I guess."

Viktoriya scoffed before clearing the path and going about her business. Kamari side-eyed her before continuing forward, arriving at his training lane. Even further down, he could see a few more participants, including Jin Ishiwatari and Zheng Changpu, though they acted as if he didn't exist.

"What was that about?" Kamari asked Tom, assuming he'd have an answer since Tom practically lived in the training facility. "I haven't a clue, mate. She hasn't said a word to me until you showed up. Scary lass, she is."

"More like insecure." Kamari added as he activated his lane, bringing up the holographic display. "She almost made me lose my cool."

"Speaking of that... I didn't know you were short-tempered." Tom quipped, getting a bored gaze from Kamari. "I wouldn't say short-tempered. More like... I don't like elitists. People like her piss me off."

"Guess you'll have to beat her then, huh?" Tom had a smile on his face as he spoke, though Kamari wasn't quite understanding why. "What are you talking about?" Kamari asked.

"Well." Tom spoke, pausing briefly. "Next round, if things go as planned, she'll be your opponent. People know about you and Seon. Remember, she said all eyes have been on you, which means all eyes have been on Seon too when she's with you. I'm sure everyone knows you're gunning for that bracket swap to protect her. Meaning, she knows you're her soon-to-be enemy."

"I see." Kamari told him, lacking any sort of fear or worry in his voice.

"That's it? 'I see'?" Tom was confused as to why Kamari wasn't afraid of his opponent, though that wasn't even the most shocking part.

Kamari's eyes...

They were blank, but not in the same way as they were before. They weren't dead, they were more alive than ever. They were like black holes, consuming Tom's soul. It was as if he couldn't see anything else but what was important. Sure, he was looking at Tom, but he was looking right through him.

"I guess I'll have to beat her then. I only planned on getting far enough to protect Seon, but now I have other plans. I want to beat her, simply out of spite." Kamari's words were continuing to surprise Tom. 'Where is this coming from?' Tom thought, staring at Kamari, imagining a black aura shrouding his body.

Meanwhile, the Game Master and the Game Mistress watched Kamari through a screen in front of them, both having smiles hidden beneath their masks. "I had my doubts, but that's definitely what the Lore spoke of. The one with Dark Nature." the Game Master uttered, his eyes locked onto Kamari through the screen.

"I told you, my love. It is said that the one with Dark Nature has a certain tenebrosity within them." the Game Mistress's smile could be heard in her voice, but not seen under her mask. "Yes. A tenebrosity darker than the likes of anything we've ever seen." the Game Master added. "Like a monster trapped inside him, or at least, that's how the prophecy words it."

"I believe they used the word devil, but it's all the same." the Game Mistress told him. The Game Master laughed. "Monster. Devil. Whatever it is... I can't wait to see it."