Chapter 24

The party took their time and rested the next few days… except Polka, who pretty much trained under Lord Aruran. Things were not so different. However, before the day the tournament started, they had a tasting of the bottled alcohol that the monk had made two weeks ago. A bittersweet drink that burned a little, but after it settled in their stomachs, they somehow got a fiery energized feeling from it. Then, the issue of portability came up. How were they going to bring it around? A glass bottle was too fragile. A tankard would spill it easily. A normal-sized keg or barrel would be too big. Then, Robel had an idea.

"You know, I suggested this to the artisan's guild one time," he stated as he dug around behind the bar, "I wanted to get a smaller, portable cask made of wood or iron and maybe sell those to travelers and the like so they only need to ask for a refill at any bar. I got a few samples back but I have yet to get any travelers to buy one. So, the project has been left hanging. Ah, there we are!"

He placed the creation on the bar for everyone to see. It was a small cask made of hardwood with an adjustable leather strap attached around the middle.

"...So I can use this?" asked the fennec fox girl.

"Why, yes! For the low price of a hundred silver," offered the bartender.

The monk shrugged and paid him; she had the funds after all. She then filled it with her beer; she poured in half the jug of the spirits before the small cask became full.

"Right… I wonder if I can use this in the tournament tomorrow," she mused as she shortened the strap and slung it to her belt.

"Well… other than the 'no killing' rule, I don't think there is," mused the bartender, "There might be a 'no destructive spells' one too but I'm not sure."

"Ah, sounds good," she replied with a grin.

The next day, the party headed to the area set aside for the competition. There wasn't a place set aside for an arena, so they just cordoned off a four-way junction and set up a raised wooden platform that filled the street. The event pretty much attracted a lot of attention and the citizens of the city filled all four sides of the street. The area around the stage was emptied and set aside for the competitors, which included Polka. Meanwhile, her friends were nearest to the front and had a good view of the future action. Okayu was seen taking charge of the place, tasking the guards with keeping the citizens away from the stage and keeping the peace in general. Soon, a loud horn sounded and the crowd fell silent. Lord Aruran stepped to the platform and started giving a speech.

"Citizens and fighters! We are gathered here today for the annual Dragon Slayers Tournament!" he said loudly as he gestured to everyone around him, "I shall keep this short. We come together to honor the bravery and skill of those who saved our beloved city. It is thanks to them that we still have a city to rebuild! We have come far and made this city even better! I hope you enjoy the spectacle of what is to come. Contestants! Bring your best and do not hold back, for your opponents will not. Just try not to wreck the stage too much, like last year's fight. Thank you and let the tournament begin!"

A loud cheer erupted as the crowd applauded and the tournament got underway. That day was scheduled to have eight fights, meaning sixteen contestants had signed up for this competition. And from the party's point of view, half of them were strong-looking but hadn't gotten into a fight with monsters or in an actual life and death situation. Probably guards or really strong commoners at most. Those were defeated easily, except one. A tall half-orc and ridiculously muscular. He brawled with his hands and seemed to have a good knowledge of choking holds.

Some of them seemed to be nobles as they were dressed flamboyantly and had proper speech. One of them stood out; a half-elf. He had piercing golden eyes and bright blonde hair. He had a lean but muscular build and he seemed to favor fighting with his fists. He oozed confidence but something felt really off about him. Before and after his fight, he seemed to love basking in the crowd's cheers.

Then there were the outliers. Adventurers like Polka and bounty hunters. There were three, including herself. Other than her, the other guild representative was Oga. He was a tall, dark-skinned man with a long, large horn coming out of his head. He sounded real serious too and talked little, probably psyching himself up for his fight. The other was a dog girl in simple clothes. A yellow, cloth vest of sorts with a white undershirt. She was the only bounty hunter that joined the tournament. She won with ease and waved to the crowd before she left the stage. The fennec fox girl had an equally easy time as she only had to grapple her opponent and punch him in the head to knock him out.

By the time the last fight was done, it had become nighttime and the party converged onto Robel's. There, they met Oga and a few of his friends.

"Yo!" he greeted with a toothy smile, "You're one of our newer members, right?"

"Yeah!" replied Polka, mirroring his smile, "You did great today!"

"Heh, naturally. It wouldn't be good to lose on the first day, after all," he stated good-naturedly. Then, he said, "Come! Join our table! There's plenty of space."

"Sure, why not?" said Nene as the party accepted the invitation.

Introductions went around quickly. They already knew Rosalyn but were surprised that she liked playing cards with them, even if she always had abysmal luck with them.

"Ha! I keep telling her that playing dice was more her forte," teased Yogiri. She was part of Oga's party, their main rogue as well as a master dice player. Her hair was mostly dyed red and wore black leathers.

"Che, you know she's a stubborn one," snarked Shien with a smirk, "Still, I really can't believe her non-existent luck." He was a former gang boss who fell into hard times in Gekko. He didn't tell them why he joined the guild, but only that he was looking for someone… and they were not to butt their noses into his business. His words, not theirs. A jackal boy with black hair, with two white-highlighted bangs framing his ever-smirking face.

"Shut up! We are here to celebrate Oga's win, not my luck!" retorted the librarian with a pout.

"That being said," said the large man as he pointed to Polka, "You did good today, kid. I hope we meet in the finals. I want to see how much you can give."

"Yosh! Sure!" exclaimed the monk, all fired up.

"All I'm asking for," he said before downing his tankard of ale in one gulp. Slamming down the tankard, he let out a sound of satisfaction. "Roberu! Another!" he yelled over the din.

"Coming right up!"

The next day had less fights, four to be precise. Polka had another easy fight with some nobleman. He seemed to be trained as a wizard, so probably someone from the school. He had a good idea to paralyze her with a spell. Unfortunately, she was able to break out of it the moment he tried to drag her to the edge of the platform to throw her off. He ended up kissing the ground instead.

The dog girl also breezed through her fight. She was quite fast, approaching her opponent and kicking her in the face, knocking the noblewoman out instantly. The half-elf nobleman also passed, but strangely enough, his opponent didn't show up. So, he got a pass. Then, it was Oga's turn. He stood opposite the more muscular half-orc. The appointed referee stood by the side and slowly counted down for the fight to start.

"Fighters ready! 3… 2… 1… Fight!"

They charged at each other and met in the middle of the platform. Both grabbed at each other in a grapple, each trying to gain the advantage over each other. Oga then slipped behind the half-orc while pinning his arm behind his back. He then tried grabbing the neck but the half-orc grabbed his wrist, pushed it away, and elbowed his neck twice. He grunted in pain and released his hold, giving the half-orc the chance to clock him in the side of the head. The half-orc then ran and gave him a clothesline across the throat, slamming him on the wooden floor.

"Ha, ha! I am strongest!" he roared as he paraded around as Oga rolled over and tried getting to his feet, while the crowd started chanting 'Fein'Gaz' over and over.

With a roar, Oga clashed with the half-orc again in a contest of grappling. This time, he got one up on him, suddenly going around and getting the half-orc in a chokehold. However, the half-orc was able to slip out of it and swung his fists. The first swing, Oga ducked under but the second clocked him under his jaw. Thankfully, he didn't have a glass jaw, but he staggered back in surprise. This let Fein'Gaz grab him and toss him into the air. Jumping up and grabbing him, he slammed the mazoku onto the wooden platform as both of them crashed down.

The half-orc was the first one to his feet and started stomping on the mazoku. The pain clearing up his dazed situation, Oga grabbed the leg and rolled over, dragging the half-orc down again. He then tried maintaining his hold on the leg but was pushed away. The grappling contest continued as they tried to gain the advantage over each other while landing a few punches here and there but to no avail. However, Fein'Gaz was able to maneuver himself around to lift the mazoku up in the air and fall over backward. Oga slammed into the wooden platform headfirst and he lay there... unmoving and unconscious.

"Ha, ha! I am strongest!" he roared as he paraded once again, the crowd erupting with cheers and chanting his name again and again.

Meanwhile, the party and consequently the other guild members in the crowd were shocked that a senior guild member was defeated.

"Ha… I hope I don't fight him later on," muttered Polka after the fights for the day were over and they met up near the stage.

"Ha, ha, don't worry," assured Oga as he sat on the ground, his head and neck all bandaged up, "You'll have to fight that dog girl first. And Fein'Gaz has to fight that noble first."

"Come on, let's leave that for tomorrow. We should go and see the stalls at the main street and see if there's anything interesting there," suggested Nene.

"Ah, that would be good!" agreed Botan, "I wonder about the stalls here too."

"Just make sure to keep a good and on your pouches or they'll be taken from you." warned Shien with a smirk, "Crowded places are havens for pickpockets."

After having done sightseeing around the stalls and getting their dinner from the same place, the party walked back to the guild house. On the way, they noticed the half-orc looking very shifty while ducking into an alleyway. Curious, they took a detour to find out what was going on. They got near the entrance of the alley and peeked around the corner. They were silently surprised when they found him facing the half-elf nobleman.

"So glad you came to see me," the latter said haughtily, "I have an offer for you."

The former grunted and said gruffly, "What do you want?"

"Oh? Straight to the point, I see. Very well," replied the half-elf, "I will give you a hundred gold pieces to forfeit the match."

"Hmm..."

"Hold it!"

Lamy stepped out from behind the building and stated, "You are cheating! Why do you have to do this? Did you pay off today's fight as well?"

"Hmph, what I do is none of your business," the nobleman stated, "If an opponent is not worth the effort, why not send them on their way with compensation? We will not have to waste time and get on with our lives."

"Hey! This isn't fair, you know?" said Polka as she revealed herself as well. Then, the others came out of hiding to back the two up.

"Hah, since when is life ever..."

"You think you are stronger than me?" growled out the half-orc, interrupting and glaring at the noble.

"But of course," he replied with an arrogant smirk, as if it was fact.

The former roared and shouted, "I am strongest! No deal! Get in the ring tomorrow and I'll show you! I'll crush you with my muscles!"

"Oh? You still intend to waste my time?" the latter sneered, "Very well. If you wish to learn defeat, I shall teach it to you tomorrow." With that, he turned around with a flourish and walked away out the other end of the alley.

The half-orc then turned to the party and spotted the monk. He walked up to her and said, "Hmm, good fighter. Hope to fight you in the tournament." He then went his own way out of the alley.

They stood there silently, watching him walk off into the night. "Do we need to tell Lord Aruran?" asked Polka.

"Maybe not? That arrogant noble will probably get beaten down tomorrow," reasoned Botan.

"True..." mused Nene.

"Well, I could always charm him into doing something embarrassing," suggested Aloe.

"Please, no," said Lamy sternly, "Two wrongs do not make a right. You might even make it worse."

"Alright, alright, I won't," the succubus replied, putting her hands up in mock surrender, "I know you don't like me or something."

"No, it is not that," the cleric hit back, "You are what you are, I cannot change a thing about it, so it would be pointless to hate you for that. What I rather prevent is your actions that may bring trouble to all of us. So, I rather if you get a hold of yourself, if not for random strangers, do it for your friends."

"...Sorry," the succubus apologized, looking a little ashamed.

"Don't worry about it," said the lore bard as she gave the fiendish girl a hug to try and comfort her, "If you do, Mama Lamy will remind you."

"Excuse me? When did I become her mother?" asked the half-snow elf incredulously amidst the giggles from the others. Meanwhile, the succubus smiled gratefully and returned the hug.

"Okay, okay, let's go back and get some sleep," said Nene as she calmed the others down, "We have Polka's tournament to watch tomorrow."

"Argh… please don't remind me," groaned the fennec fox girl as they continued on their way.

"I'm sure you can do it," assured the lion girl, "If not mistaken, based on how the matches are done, you're fighting the bounty hunter dog girl next. As long as you make use of what Lord Aruran taught you, you'll be fine. Don't forget your beer too."

"Yeah, have confidence!" quipped Aloe.

The monk walked on silently for a while. When they reached the guild house, she said resolutely, "Thanks, everyone. I should have more confidence in myself. I learned a lot of things and now have something to boost my skill. I'll do my best tomorrow!"

"That's the spirit!" cheered on the archer as they went in.

AN: Hello, readers. I am back with the next arc and the next chapter. Wanted to have at least a full set of chapters ready before posting up, so yeah... So, the festival, as well as the tournament, begins. Now, first, we introduce a few more guild members shown here. They are a team of three.

Oga Aragami

Mazoku Warrior

Path of the Juggernaut Barbarian with fighter dip(2 levels)

Former Officer of the Siege Breaker corps, able to break down walls while in his barbarian rage. He joined the guild with Shien after having come here post-retirement.

Shien Kageyama

Jackal Kemonomimi

Swashbuckler Rogue/Whisper Bard

Came to the city in search of his best friend, but ended up befriending Oga and joining the guild. In his off-time, he continues his search, often times Oga accompanying him.

I tried to keep to MaFia's backgrounds as close as possible. Shien being a leader of his own gang, I think got it right with his combination. Charismatic while skilled in dual daggers.

As for the last member...

Yogiri

Human Rogue

Wild Card

So... she is supposed to be a delinquent. I put her under the Urchin background. I'm considering linking her to the orphanage that was mentioned many chapters ago. She had gone to the school Artia is at but dropped out of it to join the guild. She is a very capable rogue with the Wild Card subclass, taken from the D&D Beyond Partnered Content with Legends of Runeterra. Instead of using cards like Twisted Fate, she uses dice. She has a pool of dice, the same amount and value as her sneak attack dice, which can be used to alter enemy attacks into her favor a.k.a. miss. She also recently gained the ability to blink around the battlefield, just like he could.

Now that we have that out of the way, on with the story. Day 1. Polka and Oga get past their fights. Day 2. Oga loses but Polka wins hers. Then, Holo5 finds out that the nobleman is attempting to bribe his next opponent. They put a stop to that.

And yes, everyone, Korone is taking part as well. No, she will not be taking any fingers.

Next chapter, we shall see the next round of fights. Not to mention the extra player characters I whipped up that I may use later on. Thank you for reading and have a good day, dear readers.

Omake: Death Day

The windows were shut. The shutters were clasped tightly. Rushia sat in the small dining room of her house. The first day of the festival. She spent her day at the school instead of joining in the revelry, finishing up on several tasks before heading straight home. She then shut her doors and sealed herself inside the house, not intending to leave until the festival was over. The larder was stocked with enough food to last her the duration of it. Still, it helped that the hired help wasn't exactly hired help either.

"Are you alright?" asked a voice as a patchwork arm placed a glass of wine in front of the necromancer.

"...I would be lying if I said I was fine, Ollie," she eventually replied after swirling the alcohol a little before taking a sip.

Next to her stood a zombie girl sporting blood-red hair and tattered clothes with a blood-red ribbon on the front. Her long hair was pinned up with a longsword. She wore a maid hat and was holding a silver-plated tray from which she took a soup bowl. She then placed the bowl, a napkin, and a soup spoon on the table.

"Are you sick?" the zombie girl asked worriedly.

The necromancer sighed and stated, "No, Ollie, I'm not sick. I'm just sad, that's all."

"But, it's a day of celebration, isn't it?" the zombie maid asked in confusion.

"Perhaps for them, it is," she stated morosely, half-agreeing with her, "I would know. I helped to kill the dragon after all. I still remember my friends. Subaru. Choco. That dragonborn bard... Coco Naught or something. My stepfather. He was a lich you know."

"You were raised by a lich?" the maid said in disbelief.

"He was a necromancer when he raised me," she clarified, "Still... the reason I don't join in the celebration is that he died in the fight. Died protecting me. He would have said that he was just showing off his genius, but in my heart... even now... I still feel that he still cared for me with that pitch-black heart of his." By the time she ended her small declaration, she was clenching her free fist as she placed the glass on the table, still half-full with wine.

Ollie stood there silently, stewing inwardly with the revelation while Rushia moved on to sip on the appetizer.