“Forming alliances?” Miri asked.

  “That’s right,” Idris said. “Preferably up to groups of five, each with a different main affinity. Now, I assume you two already knew about the general structure of the Pentacle Trials.”

  “Yes, we do indeed,” Anne said. “There will be a total of five trials: Scavenger Hunt, Solo Battle, Dungeon Raid, Team Battle, and Pentacle Royale.”

  “Correct,” Idris confirmed with a nod. “Notice how, throughout all five of the trials, there is a mixture of both solo and team elements. And, within the trials that place a heavy focus on teams, it is almost always segmented into teams of five. If you’re used to running solo, you may be able to get past the first and second trial with no problem. However, for the third and fourth trial, teamwork is pretty much a requirement.

  “In my last Pentacle Trial, I’ve seen plenty of incredibly skilled adventurers who breezed through the first and second trial but got absolutely demolished by the third and fourth trial simply because they couldn’t work together—too many egos clashing with one another, all wanting to lead and no one wanting to follow.

  “This means that, in order to maximize your chances of winning, you’ll need to scout out the other contestants in order to form a team of up to five people, all of which are not only good adventurers in their own right but are also capable of working well with each other.”

  “Yeah, but you said that we’ll also need a team where each member has a different main affinity,” Miri pointed out. “I’m assuming that it’s for versatility’s sake.”

  “That is part of it,” Idris said. “Another part is that, in the second trial, contestants with the same main affinities are going to be randomly paired up with each other in a one-on-one battle. Let’s say that you have a highly specialized team, one where all five members have the same main affinity.

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  “By the time the second trial comes around, there’s going to be a much higher chance that any two of those members are going to be forced to face off in a one-on-one battle. This will ultimately leave one winning and one losing, thus decreasing the number of members available for the next trial. However, with a team of five where all have different main affinities, there’s a much lesser chance of any two members being paired off with each other in the second trial.”

  “Hmm, interesting,” Miri said. “So you’re saying that it’s best to form an alliance as soon as possible, even before the Pentacle Trials start.”

  “That would be the most optimal strategy if you can manage to do so,” Idris said. “However, it’s not as easy as it sounds. Whoever you’re asking to join you in this Pentacle Trial alliance must fit several criteria: they must be highly skilled, they must be trustworthy, and they must have a main affinity that could fill in your gaps. Plus, once you’ve gathered all the members, they all need to be satisfied working with each other.

  “If the team you’ve collected lacks even one of these crucial elements, you might as well be better off going solo and hope that you’ll get lucky with whatever team you’re going to get. Not to mention that the more people you recruit, the more people you’ll end up splitting the prize money with.”

  “Oh, we’re not all that worried about getting the prize money,” Miri said. “Our main purpose in joining the Trials is to simply get some notoriety so we can dispel all the rumors that've been going around. Even so, recruiting the right people to form a team before the trial starts still seems like a lot of work.”

  “Indeed it is,” Idris said. “That is why, unless you’re a trialrunner, going into a Pentacle Trial with a pre-planned team is almost impossible. Trialrunning groups typically have years of specialized training and strategic planning, meaning that their skills and teamwork are among the best of the best.

  “As for non-trialrunning contestants, most of them are hesitant to join up with random strangers unless those strangers are able to prove themselves in the first or second trial. That is why it is often crucial for you to perform exceptionally well in the first and second trial in order to appear more appealing as a team member candidate for other highly-skilled contestants.”

  “Hmm, I see,” Miri considered as she rubbed her chin. “Well, now that we’ve established how important it is to form a pre-planned team, how about you form a team with us?”