Since the award ceremony was about to begin, I headed towards the waiting area, where I encountered Emeri and Arcellus, who were in first and third place, respectively. For a moment, I wondered why the passive Monk Gaius hadn’t been awarded third place. I supposed politics could have played a role. Despite his immense power, Arcellus hadn’t managed to obtain victory in any category. As a result, the aristocratic faction lost its momentum. Naturally, they would try to save a part of their reputation by getting another spot on the podium. I doubted that Arcellus himself cared about this, of course.

Another possibility was that Gaius simply wasn’t interested in the renown he would receive if he received the bronze medal. Beneath all of that petty talk of his, the stoic monk seemed to have a good heart. From his rumored deeds around the countryside, it was clear he valued others above himself. A rare trait, considering the world we lived in rewarded self-centered behavior with power.

Giving Emeri a once over, I realized that she hadn’t fully recovered. Some bandages were visible around her waist and arm, covering her left side. Seeing this as the perfect opportunity, I approached her to apologize.

“What I said during our match was simply meant to taunt you. I don’t actually think that the bishop is such a sinister person. Even if he was, I wouldn’t know; I’ve never met him. Therefore, I’d like to apologize for my words. I take back what I said.”

Emeri made eye-contact with me for a moment, before speaking up, embarrassed.

“No, no! It’s me who should apologize! I only realized you were just taunting me when I woke up, even though fa- the Bishop warned me not to fall for provocation. I’m… really sorry for hurting you. I lost my sense of reason and acted irresponsibly by using a skill I gained in the moment.”

Seeing her hastily apologize forced a chuckle out of me. When she stared at me in confusion, I moved to explain my reaction.

“Don’t apologize. I was the one who instigated the conflict out of greed. I wanted to see what you were capable of when pushed beyond your limits. Besides, I used a skill on you that was just as bad. If you’re alright with it, I’d like to call it even.”

She nodded excitedly, happy that I was the one who suggested it.

“Of course! I mean, yes, that’s alright with me…” she added, embarrassed by her outburst.

I nodded, satisfied. I had to admit I felt relieved now that knew she felt no resentment. Emeri was, if anything, fascinating. Someone so powerful remained shy and humble, as if she didn't realize her own position in the kingdom. It felt refreshing to have another friend that didn’t see only my class when looking at me. Besides the friends I entered the capital with, everyone here saw me as a chess piece. Perhaps even my uncle did. Relationships not bound by high expectations were far more valuable to me, at this point.

Emeri and I continued our conversation for a while. She didn’t seem to know how to respond to small talk very well, but when I started talking about our battle, she joined me in analyzing our exchanges, abandoning all of her previous shyness. Evidently, the otherwise quiet girl was a battle maniac, just like me.

Eventually, we were called to the stage at the center of the arena.

One by one, we entered the circular area, where a wooden stage had been created for us to be rewarded. Despite it being made out of wood, the craftsmanship was exquisite and the detailing high-class.

As the three of us stood in front of the Royal booth, the king made his appearance and commenced his speech.

“Another competition finished, a dozen more young heroes making their appearance. This year has perhaps been the most competitive tier 2 tournament I have yet had the honor to witness. Young classers from within and outside of the kingdom competed to prove to others and themselves who deserves to be called the ‘strongest’. Young warriors, I commend you for your valiant efforts to reach the top! Of course, like all things in life, only a few ever reach heights worth praising. Three of these young classers stand before you today to receive their just rewards!” he said, addressing the audience, who cheered for the king’s speech.

Eventually, the king quietened the crowd by lifting his hand.

“Peter Arcellus, step forward.”

Arcellus stepped onto the spot reserved for third place and bowed his head in deference.

“You have shown that the heat of your flames can scorch even the noblest of classes. Your fighting spirit burns bright enough to reach the stars and you have shown us that you, too, will one day ascend to the heavens and become one of those stars. I will give you a piece of advice. There are many stars in the sky. If you want to shine brighter than any other, then throw away your pride in favor of power. As a reward for your placement, I will grant you 15000 gold pieces and a trinket I have personally taken out of the treasury for you.”

As the king spoke, he pulled out a strange necklace. A golden chain appeared and a small golden effigy had been attached to it. The effigy shone with power and heated the area up.

“This trinket holds an inferno-roc, a subspecies of a phoenix. It was previously used by a tier 5 classer that I defeated when I was young. I must warn you, young Arcellus. This is a tier 5 trinket. The inferno-roc inside won’t recognise you as its master until you are powerful enough. Tread carefully.”

Arcellus quietly received the trinket from the king. He was staring at it with wide eyes, unsure of what to say. The king, having noticed his shock, gave him a sealed letter and decided to move on.

“The next warrior I would like to reward is Arthur, who managed to secure second place. Step forward. Young man, you have learned to expertly control your dangerous affinity and shown the tenacity necessary to use your unique skill set to its fullest. Before, many might have considered your power as mere luck. Now, however, none can claim that you haven’t taken advantage of your opportunity and pushed yourself beyond your limits repeatedly. Perhaps your most difficult battle is taking place inside of you. A piece of advice; if you were only capable of winning one battle in your entire life, make sure that it is that one.”

“As a reward for your efforts, you will receive 20000 gold pieces and a set of unique bracers.” he said, pulling out two black bracers from his dimensional storage. Their onyx-black coloration did little to hide the luster of the metal. Two grooves ran down the length of their sides, and the gloves ended in a claw-like protrusion at the end of each finger.

“These braces once belonged to a tier 5 [Death Knight], the namesake of your class. Its summoner, a tier 6 necromancer that appeared near the kingdom's borders, was hunted and killed by myself and our country’s bishop, some two hundred years back. Their exact origin and their method of creation are unknown, but I believe this tier 5 equipment will serve you well.”

he finished, handing me the bracers. I grasped them with both hands and nearly toppled over under their weight, which almost seemed ridiculous for their size. I had to lean back to take a good look at them. Their design was uniform, though the metal turned scale-like near the wrist and fingers, to allow for more movement.

Finally, the king gave me a sealed letter as well, which said ‘appraisal’. I thanked the lion-like king in my mind. His thoughtfulness had saved me from spending thousands of gold on a tier 5 appraiser.

“Now, to congratulate the victor of the tournament. Emeri Helios, step forward.”

The king waited as Emeri stepped onto the platform and forced herself to stand up straight in the face of the large crowd.

“Your control over your skills and mana is near unprecedented for your tier, allowing you to outperform most of your opponents through sheer skill and experience. Your final battle, however, proved that you can go above even that. That you are not just skillful, but overwhelmingly powerful as well. After your match, the bishop couldn’t stop singing your praises for days.” the royal joked. He waited for the polite laughter to die out and continued.

“As a reward for your victory, you will be rewarded 35000 gold pieces. Furthermore, you will be granted entry into the royal treasury to pick out two pieces of equipment at or below tier 5.”

“With all of the tier 2 categories over and done with, it is now time to see what our kingdoms tier 3s have been up to these past five years. Please congratulate our victors one final time!”

As the crowd applauded and cheered for us, Arcellus and I only had one thing on our minds. I needed to get home to look at this appraisal, before my curiosity forced me to do something stupid. Hopefully this applause wouldn’t last too long…

-scene transition-

A few hours later, I found myself in the living room of our underground quarters. I was sitting at the table with Cerion and Doran, who had returned from visiting his dad at the church. I sighed, frustrated.

“What the hell are you doing here?!” I said while looking over at the unwelcome intruder that had broken into our quarters without remorse.

“Who? Me?” Rashid asked. The elderly guild head loved to act crazy, but this time he really seemed to be turning senile.

“I’m just here to satisfy my curiosity! Besides, don’t forget I was the one that gave you that sword! Do you think tier 4 weapons are cheap?”

“Considering I’m the only one that can legally use dark-affinity equipment in the whole kingdom, yes, I do.” I replied testily, succeeding to shut the old man up. He continued to grumble in his corner and refused to leave, so I decided to pay him no mind and opened the letter. Once I did so, a blank piece of paper fell out. Nothing was written on it, but once I touched it, a system notification popped up.

[Essence-annihilating Bracers]

Tier 5 bracers.

When killing someone their essence will be annihilated as well, as long as its respective skill is below tier 5.

Dark mana flows into held weapons more easily.

Once a week, empower a single skill by 100% for 30 seconds.

Properties:

-Extreme durability(tier 5)

-Supreme mana conductivity(tier 5)

-Mediocre elemental resistance(tier 3)

I whistled, seeing the bracers' effects. Three effects and three properties, all of them incredibly useful. Clearly, its ability to destroy essences was its party-piece, though I wasn't sure how anyone below tier 5 could survive without a body anyway. Maybe it would be useful against necromancers.

Satisfied with their power, I shared the bracers' appraisal with the other people in the room. All of them were impressed by the piece of equipment, though I was sure Rashid had far better stuff. Still, these bracers would be incredibly useful for the next few tiers.

When I went to sleep later that night, I realised I missed home. I had already made plans to return, and with all loose ends in the capital tied up, I decided that I would head back to Rolla, my hometown, the next morning. After all of the stress of the capital, it was time to take a well-deserved break. Then, when all of my skills had tiered up, I would evolve my class. Good times were ahead.