The Stonehearted Knight

"Welcome everyone!"

A beautiful girl stood on a makeshift podium and shouted. She seemed excited to be here.

"I am Alisha Deuce, part of the gambling den. All the people participating in the first round have gathered already."

Hex stood with his team, ready to enter as soon as the girl finished her last moment instructions.

"The first round is decided by the points, so please check your list. The betting counter is already open. And….ow yeah, there are different checkpoints inside. Please tally your points at these locations. They are under surveillance so don't worry about being treated unfairly."

She looked at the sundial placed on the podium.

"You have ten minutes to prepare and then the first round starts!"

Hex looked up the list he had received from the organizers. All the items worth a certain number of points had been listed.

'Demon crystals are worth 10 points, Fiends at 100 for Squires. Items such as black grapes are worth even 200 points. Bonus points are rewarded for finding the bodies of the fallen.'

By giving the list a quick overview he knew the gist of the things he needed.

He looked at the other factions participating. Everyone was at the foot of the first mountain. They would enter through the mountain pass.

The others seemed already prepared and ready to go. No one was mingling or cursing.

Clannad looked over to him with a smirk on his face. His team had almost ten people, whilst the baron's faction had seven.

The silver haired boy from the Silver Serpents wore shining silver armor. It looked nice but Hex couldn't imagine wearing such a thing for three days.

The twins from the Viscount's castle were whispering and giggling with each other. Hex noticed they didn't mingle with others.

Althea was perhaps the only one still giving instructions and pep talks. Her tight clothes once again emphasized her curves.

Hex didn't let the tranquility fool him. He knew things would change inside the mountain range.

Once inside the range, it was every team and every person for themselves.

"What do you guys think? Should we fight individually or as a team?" Hestia gathered everyone around her and asked.

It was a valid question. The points were awarded to individuals and working as a team could lead to people not making the cut.

The Knights didn't seem to care, but the Squires looked at each other. After all, everyone wanted to progress to the second round.

Hex had thought about it and proposed something else. "Why not do both? We work as a team with larger or stronger targets but keep the kills to ourselves. We will try to spread out, but remain close to each other."

"I am game. This way we won't fight each other and can even team up," Vitor was the first to agree. Seeing him agree made the other Squires stop hesitating. They agreed to the plan.

Hesta seemed relieved at the solution. She nodded at Hex. They both had been through hell the last time. It was why Hex came up with something that could help with keeping their team alive.

The ten minutes passed quickly. Alisha took the stage again. She smiled radiantly at the participants and the gradually growing crowd of spectators.

She pointed at the large banners hanging at the side of the podium.

"These large banners will display the names of the participants and their rank as they submit their items at the checkpoints. Although people can try to submit everything at once on the third day, I think we will have a pretty good estimate by looking at the rankings."

Hex looked at the banners. They were huge, but he was more impressed by the way the checkpoints could relay the information from inside the mountains onto these things.

Alisha stood beside a large gong and signaled the large man in front of her. He picked a mallet and raised it in the air.

"The tournament starts…NOW!"

DING!

"Young master Clannad will win!"

"Bah…Lady Althea is unbeatable."

The teams started to enter the mountain under loud cheers from the crowd. As the home team, Clannad's group received the most support. No one really paid any attention to the baron's team.

Clannad's team was filled with children from the council member's family and were known in the town. The baron's team was barely known. In fact, Hex was the most famous member of the team. His luck to be chosen by the baron overshadowed even an old champion like Adgar.

Hex looked at the towering mountains at the sides of the path.

'No matter what happens this time, I am bringing my team back, alive.' He caressed the soft hide of his goat and whispered, "even you coming back."

Be-eh.

They stepped into the mountain.

…

"Won't more people dying not expose us, Lord Ronan?" Elron asked softly as he looked at the departing participants.

"We are not killing them. If some die, good. But we need more high level meat. The deity is growing up fast. That poor girl's body won't be able to keep up for long." Ronan said with a smile on his lips.

"So, this time we are gathering blood essence and soul fragments?" Elron tried to understand what his lord was trying to do, but no one knew the whole plan except Ronan.

The Dawnbringers, as their organization was called, didn't place all their eggs in one basket. They were cunning and treacherous. Sometimes members wouldn't understand the whole picture, even after the job was done.

Ronan knew that Elron and the others around him were curious. He turned to look at the four people behind him.

"I know you guys want to learn more but remember, the Dawnbringers are nothing but the servants of our Lord."

The four bowed in unison. Ronan went to Elron first.

"Elron, just focus on your potions. Let the beasts remain in a berserk state."

Elron bowed in response. Ronan turned to the man standing beside Elron. He was a petite man with snake-like eyes.

"Avery, make sure the girl remains hidden."

After accepting Avery's bow, he turned towards the elderly man.

"Conrad, keep misleading the baron. He is the only one I can't deal with."

The head of Grindeston's council bowed. But when Ronan turned towards the last person, a dangerous glint appeared in his eyes.

Ronan didn't notice it. He turned towards the blond haired girl.

"You have perhaps the most important task. You have to keep the infant alive. Without its terrifying strength we won't be able to destroy Grindeston. Do you understand, Lira?"