"Caleb defeated me," Freya said.

  Theodore had to stop and process that for a moment. He was busy navigating the Hunting Grounds, trying to close in on one of the ash beasts that might have the string inside so he could show it to Freya, but the words were enough to derail his train of thought.

  Freya lost?

  "How? When?"

  "Last match was with him ," she said, kicking at a loose rock. "He had some skill. A repelling field, of sorts. I do not know what it was but it was nasty. It disrupted my constructs faster than I could reform them. I was too slow to adapt. So nothing reached him."

  That was... interesting.

  What kind of skill could that be?

  "Why did you not tell me about this match?" Theodore frowned. "I wanted to watch!"

  She gave him a dry stare. "Well, pardon me for thinking it was just another match, not worth your time. The ones before have been boring and uneventful, and who would've thought I'd face the only Rank 5 in the entire fucking tournament?"

  "Not me," Theodore admitted. "Oh well."

  Theodore knew the guy was the top contender in the tournament, the one everyone was hyping up as the inevitable winner, but he hadn't actually expected him to be better than Freya. After all, the higher in power he grew, the more he realized: Rank didn't matter much.

  At least for these early Ranks.

  He was genuinely curious now.

  "I wanted him to go all out. But he didn't. I have to say, it's quite annoying," she grumbled. "Now I have to watch you from the sidelines." She wasn't as bummed out about losing as she was about Caleb not going all out. "Hey, at least we both walked out with injuries."

  "Worry not, fair maiden! Fear not! I shall smite thine enemies and restore thy honor with heroic valor and unparalleled grace! Probably."

  She snorted out a laugh. "You're a dork, Theo."

  ***

  "So this is what you wanted to show me?" Freya squinted at the golden string Theodore was holding out. He held it up to her with a lot of hope.

  "Yes," Theodore said. "Please tell me you know something about it."

  He was really banking on her having some obscure knowledge. He was waiting for her to say something profound.

  "Nope, don't got a clue what this is."

  He decided, there and then, that he was done for the night. There was no point continuing. Life was meaningless. He let the strand disperse into the wind and stared up at the sky.

  "Really?" Theodore said, looking at her. "Really?"

  "No. Really. I have no idea what this thing is." She shrugged.

  ***

  He was watching the duels in the arena. He was eating snacks. He was doing nothing at all. And yet, it was fun. He was enjoying himself. And his good mood only went up when he entered the arena and saw who his opponent was.

  "Well, well, well, we meet again, Theodore." Damon of Zenonis said.

  "Oh, it's you."

  "Is that any way to greet a friend?" Damon said, chuckling.

  "Friend? What? When did that happen?"

  "Such a tease. I'm glad we got paired up, though. I was worried we wouldn't get to fight before the finals."

  Theodore gave him a dry stare.

  Did this guy not learn his lesson?

  "Would you look at that, the referee is waving," he said, ignoring him. "Match is about to start. I should get in position."

  He walked over to the starting position.

  Damon did as well. "I saw your first match. I was surprised. You are stronger than I realized."

  What.

  Theodore looked at him, confused. "Did you... not look at recordings of the first or second event?"

  "Hmph. What is there to see? Just some nobodies battling? Or the news agencies here trying to hype everything to oblivion or generate controversy? It is a waste of time, honestly. Especially when no one is my match other than you I suppose."

  "...Right." Theodore nodded. "Are you well?"

  The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

  "Pardon?"

  "Are you..." Theodore tried to think of a polite way to say it. "Are you mentally alright?"

  Damon blinked. "What?"

  "Because I can recommend some good doctors if you're having issues with your head."

  Damon stared at him. Theodore stared back.

  "YOU—!"

  "Begin!" The referee shouted, cutting off whatever insult Damon was about to spit out.

  Damon snarled. "I will enjoy this," he growled. "Did you really think your pathetic tricks could stand against a true noble's power? It's always the same with scum like you—a few cheap gimmicks, a fluke of luck, and suddenly you think you belong here." He spat on the ground between them. "Your very existence is an insult to bloodlines that have cultivated power for centuries. You're like a rat that's found its way into a banquet hall—disgusting, out of place, and about to be exterminated. And when I'm done with you, I'll make sure everyone remembers that you're nothing more than what you used to be. An annoying prick."

  Theodore was surprised. That came out of nowhere. He... didn't really remember bullying this guy back in his pre-memory awakening days... or maybe he had?

  "Uh... If I ever bullied you or something, I apologize." Theodore said.

  Damon stared at him, his face contorting into sheer incredulity. Then, he threw his head back and laughed. "Apologize? You think I want your apology?" Damon wiped a tear from his eye, sneering. "Oh, this is rich. You think I'm angry because of some childhood slight? Do not flatter yourself. I don't care about the past. I care that you are currently breathing the same air as me in a tournament meant for the elite.

  "I am a scion of House Zenonis! My mana capacity has doubled since the last we met!" Damon pointed a manicured finger at Theodore. "And you think a 'sorry' will stop me from incinerating you? Please. Just stand there and try to look dignified when I turn you into ash. It will make for a better painting later."

  Theodore blinked. "Okay. Never mind. I take it back. You're insufferable. Wow, dude, chill."

  "Too late! Witness the majesty of the Zenonis Flame!"

  Damon threw his arms wide.

  Theodore waited. He shifted his weight to his left foot. Then his right. He looked at the referee, who shrugged.

  Finally, Damon screamed, "[Grand Fireball of the Southern Sun]!"

  A swirling sphere of orange fire erupted from nothing above Damon. It was huge and it roared through the air, no doubt looking absolutely terrifying to the audience.

  Theodore [Blinked] away when it neared him.

  The fireball sailed past him and exploded harmlessly against the barrier on the far side of the arena.

  "..." Theodore looked at the scorch mark, then back at Damon. "You... you didn't lock on?"

  "I don't need to aim when I have power! Shut up and stop moving! [Serpent of the Blue Abyss]!"

  This one was a water-based spell and it was a giant majestic water snake that looked like it was made of sparkling glass. It was beautiful as much as it was flamboyant.

  It was also slower than a crippled turtle.

  Well, to Theodore, anyway.

  "You have a lot of mana, Damon."

  "I know! I am a genius of my family!" Damon panted, preparing another spell.

  "But you are absolute trash at using it."

  No way was he real. Did people like him actually exist? Then again this was kind of a noble society, so maybe?

  Damon froze. "Excuse me?"

  "You prioritize visual flair... and you shout your attacks before you launch them," Theodore listed them off on his fingers. "And you have zero combat awareness. You've never been in a real fight, have you? Allow me the honor of defeating you with a simple novice skill. And I will speak it aloud so you can prepare counter measures.

  "[Mana Bolt]."

  Theodore had admittedly been relying on this skill a lot more than he'd thought he would back in the Hunting Grounds. It was a simple skill, and he'd leveled it quite a bit as well in the Hunting Grounds, and now he sent it hurtling toward Damon.

  It hit Damon's hastily erected defensive barrier and shattered it like glass. It continued without losing a fraction of its momentum, slamming into Damon's chest.

  There was a wet thwack, and Damon was lifted off his feet. He hit the arena barrier with a sickening crunch, hissed into light, and vanished.

  "Winner: Theodore!" the referee shouted.

  That was disappointing. Theodore hoped the next fight would be exciting.

  ***

  Unfortunately, that was not the case.

  His upcoming pairings turned out to be disappointing. There probably wasn't going to be much of a challenge for him in this event other than Jason, Garrett, and Caleb. Perhaps Peter and Victoria as well. Maybe Sven and Eddie if they managed to survive that long. Theodore didn't care enough to find out if they were even in the bracket anymore. He'd rather just be pleasantly surprised.

  Regardless, he was so bored he was on a mission.

  In the Hunting Grounds, he was going to find a Rank 5 beast.

  Before, he avoided the high-ranking beasts and played it safe, picking off the stragglers, the weaklings, grinding his way up slowly. Now though he found a Rank 5 beast. A true one, not a tournament prop, and he threw himself at it.

  It went poorly.

  There was no strategy. No clever tricks. He just wanted to hit something very hard. The stag hit back harder. It just swiped a claw the size of a carriage and obliterated him after a few minutes of him trying to survive.

  He was a puddle. Slime on the forest floor.

  The beast sniffed the goo, lost interest, and lumbered away. Theodore lay there slowly knitting himself back together. The slime retracted, solidified, grew bones, grew flesh. He reformed. He sat up, checking to make sure he had all his fingers.

  He had won against that Rank 5 in the tournament, but he realized now that had been a farce as he'd expected. That thing had been on its deathbed before it even fused, and when he'd hit it the others had trickled away at its health for a while.

  The organizers clearly set this up to drive more profit but it was a lie. Not literally a lie as that'd been a Rank 5 creature even if limited to oblivion, but it was a lie in all the ways it actually mattered.

  He sighed.

  "Damn that was dumb even for you," Freya said, and he looked at her sitting watching the show with an amused look on her face. He had not even noticed she was there.

  "Yeah, I should've tested the waters first."

  "Why do this anyway?"

  "The third event has been... boring," Theodore admitted. "I have not had a good fight yet. Nothing is a challenge."

  "Well let's hope the next one is good then." She said cheerfully.

  Theodore smiled.

  And thankfully, the next fight turned out to be good. And it was with one of the people he knew could give him an actual challenge.

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