In a Civilized Manner

The tournament was held inside a colossal amphitheatre: the Dialesenn Arena. Used by Nolmes in ceremonies and large-scale events, the arena was built of limestone and brick-faced concrete. Of the forty thousand available seats, however, barely a tenth were filled for the tournament.

Several matches occurred simultaneously, with the arena divided into four quarters on the battleground.

The first batch of competitions kicked off ten minutes ago. Sitting by the waiting area, Edris watched as two buff-looking men in the first quarter fought to push each other beyond the designated boundary.

Since this tournament originated from Adalan's traditional contests, the majority of its competitors were also those who held more interest in physical skill development. There were some sword users and fighters, but none of them seemed to be Awakeneds.

Needless to say, magic users were almost nonexistent amongst the participants. The rarity of Awakeneds being one matter, but even those knowledgeable in mana manipulation decided to enter the tournament with combat skills. In general, mana usage was largely avoided in respect of the tournament's origins and Adalan's conventions.

However, Edris had no plans to pay attention to such traditions.

He was competing to win, so naturally, he had no intention of being friendly or adhering to conservative thinking.

The majority of participants were average citizens with no magical aptitude. Magic was something that could only be expanded upon after determining one’s mana aptitude; this required a high-level mage to perform an inspection using a mana detector device on the individual during their early years. Only then would they have the opportunity to build upon their inherent mana abilities.

However, mages were expensive, and so were mana detectors. Only middle to upper-class people had the money to hire someone from the Education Faction and reserve these aptitude tests.

That said, most citizens were content living their lives as ordinary people. They had no incentives to engage in magic studies, skill development, or anything that may bring unnecessary dangers.

The Zacriya Kingdom had been at peace for centuries and showed no signs of entering war any time soon. People have long grown accustomed to the current peace in the kingdom, so the majority saw things like magic and mana as entertainment or privileges, not necessities. To the average, lower-class citizen, aside from the monetary advantages of being an Awakened, it was no different from other professions such as designers or merchants.

— You've lucked out. Even with your abilities, it appears that you are still stronger than 80% of the participants.

Edris slowly shook his head with a sigh. He had gotten used to the voice's way of speaking, but he couldn't help but wonder why he was considered weak. Sure, Edris wasn't exactly the strongest nor most talented person in the venue, but he thought his competency was at least above par, considering that he had survived in the world alone until now.

Of course, he had not relied only on physical strength for that survival.

"It doesn't matter," Edris said with a smile.

There were no reasons to worry about unnecessary things, since he wouldn't be winning through physical combat.

It was then something caught his attention. In the third quarter, a fight was starting between a sword user and a hooded man. Edris immediately recognized the latter as the boy that had bumped into him earlier.

The boy was young but skilled. Within minutes, the sword user was beaten to a pulp, his unconscious body thrown outside the boundary as the boy secured himself the win.

"It would be great if he gets disqualified sometime before the finals." Rubbing against the side of his arms, Edris stared at the back of the boy's hood uneasily. "He would be a pain to go against."

— ... You're already thinking about the finals.

Ace was about to ask Edris where his confidence came from when he didn't even pass the preliminary round yet, but decided to cherish his voice after seeing the man's signature plotting smile.

***

Edris's turn soon arrived.

Feeling the ground below his feet, Edris stepped into the first quarter and came face to face with a man exploding with muscles. Compared to his opponent's features, Edris looked like a school boy who forgot to have breakfast this morning.

The crowd observed this feeble-looking man, wondered if he had mistaken the Wulin Tournament for an academic competition.

Even Ace couldn't help but wonder how Edris would overcome the difference in physiques.

The match started as the gong in the center of the field let out an ear-piercing vibration.

Taking in the signal, the robust man hurled himself towards Edris, only to find the latter nowhere in sight. The next thing he knew, Edris was suddenly at his back, his gaze sending a warning from behind.

Brisk and spontaneous, Edris's movements made it hard for his opponent to pinpoint his exact location. Noticing his opponent's irritation, Edris suppressed a smile as he slid under the man, causing him to trip over his own leg.

Although Edris had the lower hand when it came to brute strength, he was much more agile. He had further maximized that advantage with the elixirs he obtained from Alan.

Elixirs were mainly used for healing, but if the individual was already healthy, its effects would enhance their body's fundamental aspects, expanding their physical stats.

However, not only were elixirs crazy expensive, the average person required a significant amount to achieve minimal enhancement. No one in their right mind would ever use them recklessly like that, no matter how much money they had.

No one except Edris, of course.

He did not worry about that. After all, he was someone who had acquainted himself with the Zacriya Kingdom's most renowned merchant.

The crowd fell into chatters at the dark-haired man's unexpected nimbleness.

With a pivot of the heel, Edris quickly closed the distance between him and his opponent. Glimpsing toward the sturdy man, he reached to his side and pulled out five glass bottles from his pocket. The former's eyes widened as Edris loosened the bag over his shoulders, revealing its contents to be full of potions.

"What the..." He unknowingly muttered his thoughts out loud at the sight of the expensive items present in bundles.

His reaction was mirrored by the general crowd as they all stared dumbfounded at Edris, who now held the bag in his hand with a smile. Rather than a physical battle, he looked as if he was going to perform magic. The buff man froze on the spot, gaping at the unexpected turn of events and the man standing before him.

Edris didn't pay attention to any of their reactions as he felt the bag of potions in his hands.

His heart was beating with excitement.

There was no need for Ace after all.

If his opponent was troublesome, he had planned on taking advantage of the system's analytical skills to pull through. But thankfully, he didn't have to resort to that.

Edris moved on to the next step of his plan.

With a tranquil expression still on his face, he lifted the entire bag mid-air, smashing it onto the ground.

All of the potions shattered simultaneously. Someone in the crowd gasped out loud.

At that moment, a torrent of fire surrounded both Edris and the man. All eyes in the arena turned towards the battlegrounds of the first quarter, which was now inundated by flames. No one knew what was going on inside the torrent that acted as a red barricade, surrounded by a wheezing wind that was too loud for the inside situation to be heard.

The flames reflected off the audience's eyes as they could only recall the moment when the young man, with a gentle smile and wintry appearance, was buried in a sea of fire.

It was a majestic yet horrifying scene.

Eventually, the torrent of fire started to die off. When its final bits dissolved into the air, fog filled the arena grounds. With eyes pinned to the battleground, all audiences intently awaited the moment when the fog dissipated. Even the competitors in the other quarters had halted their own rounds, their gazes geared towards the mist that saturated the entire first quarter.

Finally, the area cleared, and the aftermath revealed itself. To everyone's surprise, both the dark-haired traveller and the bulky man were unscathed as they faced each other. The former stood calmly, as if the storm of fire never occurred in the first place.

It was at that moment.

The bulky man stepped back.

Dumbfounded, the audience watched as he took one step after another, all the way until he was outside the boundary, indicating his surrender.

The arena fell into a stunned silence. The gong sounded again, interrupting the stillness in the air. Its hollow vibration indicated that the winner had been decided.

The winner was Edris.

This young man looked up upon hearing the announcement, not a single scratch on his smiling face.