AN: English is not my native language and this is my first fanfiction. Please do not to harsh
"I love cookies" → thoughts
"I love cookies" → speech
"I love cookies" → spell, Martial art
Chapter 10
→ "the golden pavilion"-inn in Re-Estice / blue roses and Litzelot ←
The night was peaceful for blue roses and Litzelot. Nothing attacked and nothing happened. Even if you would ask Litzelot about the sighting of a dullahan chasing goblins in the outskirts of a local forest, he and Evileye had nothing to do with it.
While Gagaran and Litzelot prepared themselves and were unable to hide their enthusiasm for the tournament, the rest ate breakfast and made themselves presentable. Lakyus had gotten an invitation for a booth at the tournament by Princes Renner. The breakfast was eaten fast and GAgaran and LItzelot walked to a makeshift arena near the palace. The rest of the group was a bit slower, since they had time, till they would meet the princess.
→ Tournament grandstand of Renner/ Renner, Climb and rest of blue roses ←
When Lakyus and the rest met princess Renner, they were led by climb, to a booth. The booth was comfortable and had a good view, while staying a little hidden. After they arrived and the courtesies were gone they sat and made smalltalk.
"How about a small favor Lakyus?" Princess Renner asked.
"What would be the subject of the favor?" Lakyus answered.
"I want to test something I read about. I don't want you to tell me who your new friend is. I want to guess it myself" Renner
"That is possible," Lakyus grinned.
The first few battles and rounds were nothing that would be aweinspiaring. When the last eight were selected, the battles began to be exciting. Gagaran had decimated her opponents like they were nothing. Meanwhile, Princess Renner concluded who Litzelot was and saw him holding back, since he didn't use his shield. This made her reevaluate him and her mind searched for a way to make him one of her pawns or at least for him to teach Climb.
→ Kings grandstand / Family of the King Ramposa III ←
The royal tournament, while being unnecessary in the eyes of the nobles, was something special to the king. It made it easier to spot talented people. This was the main reason why the king paid the money for the tournament, even though the nobles would claim that the nobles made it possible. It was a win-win situation for everyone involved. The participants would, when they proved to be in the top, win money and maybe some jobs. The nobles, even if they did not contribute to it, could get the support of the people for a very short time.
The King would maybe spott and contract a few people with talent.
King Ramposa III would be seen this day with his two sons. He wore clothes of the finest quality. His gray hair and beard was topped by a golden crown. He had ruled Re-Estize for most of his years and was teaching his heir to be a king.
Prince Zanac wore the typical clothes of a noble. He was clever but lacked the muscle of his bigger brother. Even worse was that he was fat. He usually spoke with Raeven about the gossip that was in court. It also seemed to Ramposa III that prince Zanac was taking some views from the noble. He saw the value of adventurers and commoners.
Prince Barbo was the heir to the throne, simply by being older than Zanac. He was tall and very muscular. Even though the closest thing he had seen to a battle was him beating up commoners, he paraded around like a general. Ramposa III sadly had no luck until now, in teaching Barbo to be a king. Barbo would be a nightmare for every peasant, adventurer, magic caster, craftsmen or soldier.
"Why do we need to watch or fund this tournament? It is stupid. The commoners should work and these participants should simply be conscripted." Barbo spoke in disgust. He hated these leeches that are called commoners.
"No value for the pests. Only leeching of the entertainment meant for us nobles. But the participants are the worst. Only fighting for the money. pah" were the disgusted thoughts of Barbo.
"We need to find people with talents and we need to find talented people. This is one way of finding them. People with great abilities are urgently needed and we should treat them with respect brother. What do you think they will do when you treat them like the trash in the streets?" Zanac hated his brother. This was mainly thanks to marquis Raeven. By showing the prince how talented people had great potential and adventurers were grossly underestimated. But Renner also, if involuntarily, taught him that with all the visits of blue roses.
"They should be glad to serve the kingdom!" Barbo answered.
"They would simply move away if it gets too much to bear for them. Where do you think they would move?" Zanac spoke.
"They wouldn't dare to move! That would be their undoing!" Barbo spoke
"They would either move to the Baharut Empire. Or dying in the process. Use your brain for once." Zanac spoke, obviously angered.
"The Kingdom is already at the brink of a revolution. Think brother or your rule will be much shorter than your thought process." were Zanacs thoughts.
"Your brother is right, Barbo. Commoners are quite clever in their regards. Their patience is also not infinite. You also should look for talented people, since they are far stronger than your usual soldiers." spoke Ramposa III with a low voice.
"Sad that Zanac couldn't be stronger and the older of those two. Then I could be sure that my kingdom would survive." were his sad thoughts.
"Sister had already talked to me. She can't wait to see the new friend blue roses made in their last quest." Zanac tried to change the topic.
"Is that so? Did she say anything about this new friend?" Ramposa III asked curiously, since he knew that his daughter was smart, scaringly so.
"Yes. She said that he had quite a few martial arts and would be quite strong. Have you heard more about him, Gazef?" Zanac asked Gazef, hoping that Gazef heard something from Climb.
"Indeed. He was able to beat blue roses in a spar and can fight in melee and use magic. And if what I heard is right he is strong in both aspects." Gazef answered.
"Do we know if he is an adventurer?" Zanac asked, thinking about ways to get this potential under his belt.
"If Climb heard correctly he is only with blue roses for a job. He didn't plan anything afterwards." Gazef spoke
"Such scum. Doesn't even know that he should serve his king and kingdom. Why do these pests not have any values? Urgh" Barbo ranted. This statement even shocked Ramposa III.
"Sadly that is my heir. Why can't Zanac be the older brother?" were his even sadder thoughts.
→ Grandstand with the nobles ←
In the booth with the nobles, the games of politics were played. Every one of them is trying to gain allies and further their agendas. Most of them were simply here for entertainment, while others wished to contract with strong individuals.
Marquis Raeven, a slim, blond man, wore his usual attire made of high quality silk. He was here for both reasons named above. He had heard of a spy about a powerful individual. That spy being a maid in the palace, positioned as maid to princes Renner. His excitement for the unknown warrior was great. It was easy to distinguish between him and the others in the first rounds. He didn't use martial arts while his opponents tried to use theirs, which proved that he was tough. And his paid eyes and ears didn't even give him his report.
→ Ainzach, Rakeshir and Muller ←
The three Conspirators had seen the matches till now. For them this was a catastrophe. While the dullahan didn't even use any technique, magical or martial arts, he defeated his opponent easily. This enraged them quite a bit. For Rakeshir this was quite a bad omen, since he could now see blue roses defeated by the dullahan.
→ Makeshift Arena / Gagaran and Litzelot ←
Gagaran defeated her enemy, an adventurer that was fighting like a thief, with one single hit. The hit was placed on the chest, taking out the breath of her opponent. The reactions were ecstatic and the cheer was loud.
The last battle of the quarterfinals was called out.
"May Litzelot and Oscar come forth." The referee called out. Both preparing for the battle in their respective corners.
Litzelot wore his usual armor, which was polished, and had his helm closed .This time he took his shield from his back into his left hand. The bastartsword was sharpened and shone an extremely dark blue. Overall, he had the appearance of a diamond covered in dirt.
Oscar was a tall man with a two handed sword. The guard was slightly slimm, while the hilt went into a spiked pommel, which could be used for stabbing. He had no helmet, therefore his brown hair and his brown eyes were exposed. The leather armor was seemingly thick and well crafted. All this showed that Oscar was going for mobility.
Both contestants got into position and waited.
" Last quarterfinals Litzelot vs Oscar. Three… Two… One… Start!" shouted the referee.
Oscar, slightly cautious because Litzelot now used a shield, slowly advanced. Litzelot stayed still. When closer Oscar sprung into action, using one strike from his right, Litzelots left, to cover his flanking to Litzelots left.
Litzelot saw this and leaped to his right and crouched behind his kiteshield, waiting for an opening. Oscar now began his ferocious attacks.
"Bulwark" Litzelot used. The Shield glowing slightly red. Oscar is still continuing.
After a short while Litzelot simply caught the blade of Oscar with his bastardsword.
"If I were you I would give up. Your blade is dull and you're panting like a fat wolf after a week of running. I on the other hand didn't even get a scratch nor did I attack." Litzelot offered.
"Pah, someone like you will be easily defeated!" Oscar shouted enraged.
"As you wish then." Litzelot stated, while pushing Oscar back
"Te Secabo" was heard, while multiple deep and nasty cuts appeared on Oscar. There were cuts on the inner thighs, side of the knee, inner arms and multiple on the back. Oscar didn't even know what or how this happened. While he was confused, Litzelot stabbed his shield into the sandy ground and grabbed Oscar. Then Litzelot proceeds to hit Oscaar on the forehead with the pommel of his sword. The bloodloss together with the continuing hits onto his head led to Oscar losing consciousness.
"Oscar is unable to continue fighting. Therefore Litzelot won." stated the referee with finality, while fighting his shock.
"Heal" Litzelot casted and Oscars wounds closed, while he was still unconscious. Afterwards he was carried out of the ring. Gagaran meanwhile paled slightly.
→ Grandstand of Renner / Renner and rest of blue roses ←
Renner was shocked at the brutality, while blue roses simply exhaled.
"That was extreme. But how did he do that and what was that language?" Renner thought out loud.
"If Climb could learn that" shot through her head.
"And that isn't even everything he got. I told you that he had beaten us easily in a spar." Lakyus reminded Renner.
→ Grandstand of King Ramposa III / Royal family and retainers ←
Zanac was shocked, much like everyone else. Even Gazef was astonished by this martial art. The only one who didn't see it was Barbo.
"Why do you like a fish out of the water? This Litzelot could easily be beaten by someone of noble birth. Henceforth it is worthless to be shocked like you all are." was heard by the rest in this grandstand.
The rest of the royal family facepalm in their mind while Gazef and a few of his men were just shaking their heads.
→ Grandstand of the nobles / Raeven ←
This battle was extremely exciting for the nobles. It was the amount of peasant blood that mostly excited them, while Raeven thought about the abilities.
"If it would just be possible to have my paid eyes and ears near me right now. I could use his expertise right now" were the frustrated thoughts of marquis Raeven. He could see the grandstand of princess Renner and immediately saw her calm demeanor.
"She is calm, like always. That means she already knew to some extent the abilities of the unknown guy, Litzelot was his name if I remember correctly. That is beginning to get scary. I should talk with prince Zanac after this is over" were Raven's thoughts.
→ Ainzach, Rakeshir and Muller ←
The three were shocked at the ferocity. Especially since even Muller with his fast eyes was unable to explain the martial arts the dullahan used.
→ Makeshift Arena / Gagaran and Litzelot ←
After the first round was over the participants had a break, in which they could eat and drink. Gagaran used this and then met with Litzelot. They made smalltalk and joked around.
After the break the referee called forth Gagaran and her opponent. The opponent was quite tall and wielded a shield and a hatchet. He had protections for his legs, torso head and sword arm. The shield was large enough to cover his left arm and a bit more.
"Semifinals, Gagaran vs Timon. Three…Two…One…Go!" the referee stated.
The battle started immediately by Gagaran charging at Timon, unleashing the fury of her warpike. Timon, realizing the effectiveness of his shield, tried to dodge but was quickly cornered by Gagaran. The hail of her warpike made quick work out of Timons shield and left arm, breaking the bones at multiple places. In a klast effort Timon countercharged and headbutted Gagaran. This caught her off guard, throwing her back. Timon now tried to use his hatchet and hacked at Gagarans arms, to no avail. Gagaran now grabed Timons healthy arm and proceded to headbut Timon into unconcousness.
"Winner of the first semifinal, Gagaran." the referee shouted.
The cheer of the crowd exploded while Gagaran retreated to a lounge where the participants waited and spectated.
"May Litzelot and John come forth for the second semifinals." The referee shouted. Litzelot stood in his corner of the ring while he looked upon his opponent.
His Opponent wore a big armor made out of a gambeson and with parts of chainmail. The legs, arms and head were protected by plate armor. He wore a buckler and seemed to use a flail with two balls.
"Semifinals, Litzelot vs John. Three…Two…One…Go!" was shouted by the referee.
Litzelot began by waiting for a short while defensively. John did something similar, not giving Litzelot any mistake to use. This standstill lasted for quite a while, until John realized that his left arm began to tire.
"Don't want to attack, little chicken?" John teased.
"Trying to blame me for your passiveness?" Litzelot teased back.
"Boock bock booock." John imitated a chicken, to everyone's amusement.
Litzelot now was humiliated and began to feel his anger rise. So Litzelot made the first move. He closed in and slashed with his sword onto the buckler. John reacted by using the flail to hurt Litzelots left arm behind the shield. While this did hurt, it astonished Litzelot by hurting not as much as expected. John hastily retrieved his flail and fell back.
"Etiam" was heard and John felt a hard pull towards Litzelot, who crouched behind his kiteshield. John felt the pull become stronger and stronger and decided to use that momentum. So he charged at Litzelot, intending to smash Litzelots head with his flail.
"Ad Profundis" was heard and John didn't know what happened. First he was closing in on Litzelot and then he was on his back behind Litzelot. Litzelot now closed in and pressed the side of his shield onto John's neck, cutting off the air to John's brain. After a short while John lost consciousness.
→ Grandstand of Renner/ Renner, Climb and rest of blue roses ←
Lakyus grinned, remembering her surprise when she had spared against Litzelot. The rest of the blue roses just shook their heads in friendly manners. Climb and Renner meanwhile were shocked.
"What is that martial art?" Climb wanted to know.
"it is "Ad Profundis", extremely useful to surprise an enemy or make an opening. As you saw it throws the enemy over the user's shoulder." Lakyus answered.
"Ok. And why did he choke his opponent like that?" Climb asked, getting more and more curious about Litzelot.
"It gets the job done" threw Evileye into the discussion, even though she knew Litzelot was just testing himself.
"Ok." Climb answered thoughtfully.
"It gets the job done, he? If that is his mentality he could proof even more useful." were Renners thoughts.
→ Grandstand royal family / royal family and guards ←
Gazef was looking at Litzelot with interest. He knew that this stranger was even stronger than him and could barely wait for the final. Gazef only hoped that Litzelot would not get into the clutches of eight fingers or drop on the wrong path like Brain Unglaus.
Meanwhile prince Barbo became more and more furious about being humiliated by his younger brother. He knew that comonors were only good for serving the people that truly mattered, the nobles.
Ramposa III on the other hand thought about ways to get Litzelot to serve the kingdom, while Zanac wanted to speak with marquise Raeven more and more.
→ Grandstand nobles / Raeven ←
Marquis Raeven was analyzing Litzelot. As far as the marquis could tell, Litzelot was tough and straight forward, using openings of his enemies. He could already hear the other nobles whispering between each other how they wanted someone as him in their ranks. He could also see some nobles a little away and faintly heard eight fingers. This made Raeven scowl in disgust.
→ Makeshift Arena / Litzelot vs Gagaran ←
"May the finalist move forth" was heard.
Gagaran and Litzelot moved into the arena. Gagaran grinned while Litzelot radiated happiness.
"Finally a rematch aye?" Gagaran spoke, grinning further. Litzelot was also happy about the rematch
"Yes it is." Was the natural reply. Both got ready.
"Finals. Litzelot vs GAgaran. Three…Two…One…Go!" was the signal.
Gagaran and Litzelot stood in a standoff. Litzelot did not want to lose his advantage in defense, while Gagaran didn't want to give Litzelot that advantage.
After some time, and after the witnesses began to be bored, Litzelot began to close the distance slowly.
"Shy, aren't you?" Litzelot taunted.
"I know that you are strong in your defense. Therefore I want to fight you on offense" Gagaran replied.
"As you wish then" Litzelot replied while taking his shield on his back, Gagaran permitting, since this was a rematch. After that Litzelot used his bastardsword like a longsword and got into a stance. His knees slightly bent holding his sword with both hands.
The battle began, when Litzelot made his first move, by making a slashing move. Gagaran tried to block it, but it never hit her, as Litzelot had fainted his attack.
"Te Affligam" was heard as Litzelot bashed forward with his shoulders, throwing Gagaran backwards. This made an opening in which Litzelot jumped and hit her on the stomach with his fist, then with the pommel of his sword. Afterwards he used the guard of his sword to throw Gagarans weapon away. Then he had retreated.
Gagaran now used her fists and tried to hit Litzelot, who dodged the attacks. After a short while Litzelot wanted to end the battle
"Effugisse Debes" was heard and Litzelot punched the pommel of his sword against Gagarans instantly lost her consciousness and fell to the ground.
"Winner of the final battle is Litzelot." The referee spoke.
→ Grandstand with Renner and blue roses ←
Renner saw the battles with Gagaran and Litzelot closer and was now determined to get him to her side. The raw power, and therefore some political power, could be useful. If she was lucky he could even teach her Climb a few of his abilities. And the most important point was that if he was under her thumb, he wasn't under the thumb of someone else.
Climb meanwhile was just wishing to train more. And hoping that he didn't anger Litzelot in a bar.
Blue roses meanwhile were split. On one hand they were saddened at the defeat of Gagaran. But it was also expected.
→ Grandstand of King Ramposa III / Royal family and retainers ←
Prince Barbo was seething inwardly. Not only was he humiliated by his younger brother a number of times. He also saw the strength that the winner of the tournament had.
"How dare a commoner have such equipment and such strength. Such things are only for nobles. He should be groveling at my feet." were his angry thoughts.
Prince Zanac and King Ramposa III thought about how to get such warrior loyal to the kingdom.
Gazef, like the royal guards, was impressed by the newcomer. He never had seen these martial arts and was quite impressed by their effectiveness.
→ Grandstand nobles / Raeven ←
Marquise Raeven was now sure that this warrior needed to be made loyal to the kingdom. He would need his contracted friend to get more information. He could also hear that the other nobles were whispering about Litzelot, and it made him worry about the kingdom.
"What a scary thought. Such a warrior in the hands of the noble faction or even the eight fingers. If he should be loyal to the kingdom, it would be the best. Maybe we could even end the annual cacophony that we call katze plains. What are you capable of ,Litzelot? How could I get you to be loyal to the kingdom?" was racing through Raeven´s head.
→ Ainzach, Rakeshir and Muller ←
Our three conspirators were scared. They knew that they had to be careful in their planning. Their first plan was to attack him after the tournament. This proved to be too much of a challenge. Their only hope would be a strong group of warriors, stronger than adamantite adventurers.
"If Rakeshir contacts his friend in the clerus, we might get a chance without getting our hands dirty." shot through Ainzachs head. He would need to speak about it with the other two in the privacy of their trip to E-Rantel.
→After the tournament / Litzelot and blue roses ←
It didn't take much time for Litzelot to wait for the prize money. While Gagaran got 50 Silvercoins Litzelot got 100 Silver Coins. This was quite much. He and blue roses then retreated to their inn and then celebrated, with alcohol, meat, and much more alcohol. Sadly, or luckily, Litzelot and Evileye remained sober, thanks to their immunity to toxins.
"What will happen tomorrow?" Litzelot asked Evileye deep in the night, when everyone was in a drunken slumber.
"We will meet our client. After that we will plan for our job and then take the rest off. The day after tomorrow will be the day where we will move out." Evileye summarized.
"Sounds good to me" was Litzelots answer, while he smiled over both ears.
AN: Sorry that it took so much time. I was not really sure how to write it. Reviews are welcome.
For the parts in Latin:
→Te Secabo → I cut you / I sever you
→Etiam → Come here
→Ad Profundis → Into the abyss
→Te Affligam → I will crush you
→Effugisse Debes → You shout have fled
I know it is obvious, but I disliked Barb. It was a combination of arrogance and aggressiveness that just went strongly against me. I also hope that you liked the chapter. See you then.