(SHIRO'S POV)
"Damn! This has got to be the longest walk in the freaking world!" I shouted with impatience.
"Would you shut up and relax. This is the only possible way that we'd be able to find the portal to the arena." Clyde said with an annoyed grunt.
We were walking through some bullshit forest that was covered with huge ass trees. I was sick of this long and tedious journey. I just wanted to get to the tournament and get my fight on.
"Hey, has anyone seen Tatsu?" I asked.
"I think that he was headed off to some interdimensional landscape to go and talk to the Chronomancer." Eliza said.
"What for?" Gabby asked.
"Said something about needing a refresher course. I'm not entirely sure. He promised to be back before the end of the tournament." Eliza said.
Xena led us to a large glowing tree. We all stared up at it with amazement. It was the biggest tree I had ever seen in my life.
"The mana emanating from this tree is incredible. It's so dense and free that it's making me all tingly." Clyde said to which the others agreed.
"I feel the same though…" I said with a shrug.
"You barely have any mana at all so I'm not surprised." Clyde said.
"Arrogant dick…" I muttered.
"I will now, open up the gateway to the Enchanted Mana Void. This place is solely based upon the use of magic. In here, you're only as strong and your magical abilities." Xena explained.
"In other words, Shiro is pretty much screwed." Clyde said with a small smirk.
"One more word Clyde...ONE MORE WORD!" I snapped.
"Enough of your childish antics. Please step into the portal." She said.
I flipped Clyde the bird and stepped inside. The minute I entered, I fell right to the ground. It was as if gravity was increased, making it absolutely unbearable.
The others hopped through and seemed unaffected by the change in gravity. They all stared at me with similar looks. Clyde and Viz started laughing, Izzy and Gabby were giggling and the three mentors held amused grins.
"What?! How come you guys can still stand?" I asked.
"Our mana essence helps us balance against the mana in the void." Amora said.
"Well...How the hell do I get up?!" I asked with visible irritation.
"You have to use your mana." Clyde said.
"Piss off Clyde! You know that I can't." I growled.
"I guess you can't compete then. That's too bad...Oh well! Time for us to go."Clyde said.
"No way you asshole!" I glared. I channeled some of my soul energy into both of my legs and stood up. I glared at Clyde and pushed past him. I stared at the area before us. The sky was a bright purple color. The oddly shaped trees were all blue. Strange little creatures floated in the sky without a single care. This left me in awe. "Goddamn…" I muttered.
"This place is so pretty!" Izzy said happily.
"Meh...I've seen better…" I muttered.
"Come! We shall depart to the arena at once." Xena said. She waved her left hand and surrounded us in a bubble. We were lifted up into the air and flew fast across the sky. In a matter of seconds, we reached the enormous arena.
Once inside said arena, we were removed from the bubble. Xena dropped us near five people. I only recognized one of them. Said person caused Clyde to smile.
"Master Xeno! It's so good to see you again!" Clyde said as he ran up and bowed before him.
"Ah yes. My young deciple. I see that you've decided to enter the tournament." The pyromancer said with a fired up grin.
"Yes! I wish the prove myself and gain access to the Mana Star." Clyde spoke with the utmost respect for the man.
"That is most pleasing. I do hope that you show off your mastery of the flames during the competition. I wish to see how much you've improved. You have been keeping up with your training, correct?" He asked Clyde.
Clyde nodded. "Of course. I would never neglect my training. I wish to live my dream of being a Grand Spellcaster."
The other four people with Xeno looked at Clyde with a set of intrigued looks. One of them was a man, slightly taller than Xeno. He had the same half black, half white hair. The only difference was that his colors were on the opposite sides. He looked at Clyde with an cold stare before walking up to him.
"You wish to become the greatest wielder of magic? This means that you hope to master some form of Cryomancy, right?" The man asked.
"Y-yes sir!" Clyde said without a hint of disrespect for the man.
"I see...Very well then...Based on how well you do in this tournament will determine on whether or not you will receive the ultimate training from the world's best Cryomancer." The man said.
"...Who is this guy?" I asked, feeling in the dark. Clyde turned around and punched me. I dropped to the floor and held my bruising cheek. "Ow! What the hell is your problem?!"
Clyde's glare intensified. "Show some respect you ignorant jackass! You're in the presence of the three strongest users of magic! They can kill you in seconds!" Clyde snapped.
"Punch me like that again, and I'll kill YOU in seconds!" I hissed back.
Clyde turned his attention back to the man. "Please forgive his foolish nature Master Xeto. His brain isn't always working."
The taller man chuckled. "Such a noble young man. I do hope you live up to your hype. You've trained with my little brother and are my little sister's apprentice. That alone puts you at an advantage." Xeto said.
"But do keep in mind, young Yukio. There is no favoritism. We will judge you fairly and accordingly. Your skills will determine how far you get in this tournament." Xeno said.
"He's right Clyde. Don't underestimate your opponents just because of who you've trained with. We may be powerful, but that doesn't mean that you have our skill yet. You have little combat experience compared to some of these mages. You'll need to keep that in mind." Xena said to him.
"Ugh! Can we just go a sign up for this thing already. I'm ready to whoop some magical ass!" I said with a smirk. That's when all five faces looked at me with dark expressions. "W-what? Did I say something wrong?!" I asked nervously.
The tallest man stepped over to me. His long red cloak was dragging against the floor. The way he carried himself showed that he was of high authority. When he stepped closer, some weird energy force was forcing me to kneel to the ground. Attempting to stand was becoming more and more difficult. I couldn't move a muscle.
"Young man...Do you plan on entering this tournament?" He asked me. His voice was deep and intense.
"No! He only came to watch-" Clyde started desperately.
"Yes! I came to enter!" I said, shutting Clyde up.
The mans looming gaze hardened. "...I would recommend that you change your mind…" He said.
My eyes snapped open at him. "Hell no! I'm not about to be shown up by Clyde again!"
"You have the weakest mana flame inside of your core. It is so faint that I couldn't even tell if you were alive or not. You will be beaten with ease little boy." The man said.
I glared up at him. "Screw you! I don't care about that! I'm gonna win and you'll all see what I can do!"
"How do you plan to fight with close to no mana essence?" Xeto asked.
"I have my ways! I'll kick everyone's ass! That includes you Clyde!" I said, glaring at my rival. He scoffed in response.
"You do realize that those that enter without using magic will receive the ultimate punishment, right? If you so happen to choose to fight in this tournament with any other utility, you will be killed." The man said.
"Well...does this count?" I asked before flaring up my soul energy and once again being able to stand. The man's eyes seemed to widen a bit a me.
"I had a feeling that you were using such an ability. I could sense a sinister power deep down inside of you. Do you not realize the effects of using that form of power. It can corrupt ones mind." The man said.
"Yeah...I've been training hard to get past that little issue." I said.
"I see...I'm interested to see how well you can use such...controversial forms of power. I will allow the use of soul energy…However…" The man spoke before I was slammed into the ground by a much more forceful amount of that weird energy that he was giving off. "Any lethal weapons that are not magic based are strictly prohibited. Do you understand my words child?" He asked me.
"Y...yes…" I choked out. He relieved me of the intense pressure and allowed me to stand once more.
The whole time, Clyde stared at the man with admiration. He slowly walk over to the man and bowed. "Grand Spellcaster Dex! I am honored to be in your presence sir!"
Said man turned to Clyde. He held his serious expression and nodded to him. "I'm expecting big things from you mister Yukio." He said before him, Xeno and Xeto disappeared from sight.
"...I can't believe it...I actually met them!" Clyde said like some stupid fan boy.
"Yeah whatever…" I grumbled.
"Let's depart to the sign up section. The tournament will begin shortly." Xena said.
Once we made our way to the sign up station, we were told to stand on a circular pad in order to measure our level of mana. It went about as well as you'd expect. Not only did it take place in front of everyone that was watching, which was like a million people, but is was also done with a ranking system. It went:
Rabbit, Badger, Cobra (Below Average), Eagle, Shark, Tiger (Average), Griffin, Wyvern, Dragon (Above Average), then there was the God class which I could only assume had Xena, Xeno, and Xeto. Judging by Dex's insane amounts of mana, I'd say he's in a league of his own.
"Go on ahead Clyde." Xena said.
Clyde stepped on the pad and flared up an enormous amount of mana. The pad glowed bright green underneath his feet. He stepped off and waited for his results.
"Clyde Yukio...Your mana flame is above average. Your ranking is Wyvern." The cloaked man said. "Next!"
Clyde stepped forward with a grin on his smug face. "I'm already a Wyvern classed mage! Soon, I'll be a Dragon class and then I'll be in the God class!" He said happily. I rolled my eyes at him and watched as Izzy stepped on the pad.
"Isabel Yang… Your mana flame is above average. Your ranking is Griffin." The cloaked man said as Izzy stepped off of the green pad. "Next!"
"I guess that I'm up." Gabby said.
"Wait, I thought that you weren't competing." I said.
"I know. I'm just curious to see how far I can get by only using weapon magic given the fact that that's all I know how to really use." She said. She stepped on the pad and flared up her own mana. The pad glowed a bright yellow color.
"Gabriella Vasquez... Your mana flame is average. Your ranking is Tiger." He told her. "NEXT!"
Gabby stepped off with a smile. "Not bad for someone that doesn't use magic all that much." She said.
"Guess that leaves me…" I walked to the pad and stepping on it. "So uh...What now…" I asked the cloaked man.
"Bring out your mana for the pad to measure it…" He answered with a tired sigh.
"Well...here goes…" I tried to bring out whatever mana that I had, but I wasn't sure that I had made a difference. I kept trying until I saw the pad beneath me glow. My heart dropped when I saw the flashing red color.
"Shiro Tatsugami...Your mana flame is far below average. You've broken the record for lowest mana essence in existence. You are the first and only person to ever be put in the lowest possible mage class. Your ranking...is Rabbit…" He said.
"The first person...but there's gotta be someone with mana like mine…" I said in a broken voice. I can't say I didn't expect this, but it did hurt to know that I was the literal WORST in all of history.
I could hear the howling laughter from the crowd. The chuckles and giggles from the other competitors that were surrounding me. I felt rage boiling up inside of me and I wanted nothing more that show off my strength, but I couldn't. My mana was pathetic and I didn't know how to fix it.
I grit my teeth and clenched my fist as I stepped off of the pad. Clyde and Gabby looked at the other competitors and glared. Viz was practically snarling at them as he flashed his sharp fangs with hatred.
"Are you ok Shiro?" Izzy asked me.
"...I don't care. Forget about that shit!" I growled before storming off.
"Shiro!" Gabby called out me.
I ignored her and stomped over to a nearby wall, and sat against it while trying to cool off. I was so pissed off and yet I felt so weak and inadequate. Fucking RABBIT! I knew that my mana was weak but damn! Not even Badger. I stared at my my hands as they flashed purple. They were shaking uncontrollably and that left me panicking.
"Relax...Relax…" I said to myself.
"You ok?" Gabby asked before sitting next to me. She sat right against me. I noticed that my hand went back to normal.
"...I'm fine…" I said to her. I really wasn't but she did help me get rid of some of the rage.
"You know, you shouldn't let them get to you. They won't be laughing when you kick their ass." Gabby said with a grin.
"Yeah…" I said distantly. I wanted to believe that.
She turned my head towards her face and stared at me. "You gotta give them everything you got. I don't know much about that soul energy, but it does seem useful. I know you can do this." She said.
"You really think I can win?" I asked hopefully.
"Well no, not really...but you've proved me wrong before so what do I know." She said. She continued to stare at me. She look directly into my eyes. I moved my head forward and was gonna kiss her until Viz dived into my lap, crushing my nuts in the process.
"BETA MALE! ARE YOU OK?! DO YOU WANT ME TO TEACH THOSE ASSHOLE A LESSON? I'LL RIP THE TO SHREDS!!!" Viz growled.
I narrowed my eyes at him. "GET OFF OF ME!" I said as I tossed him off my lap.
"I was defending your honor you sack of human shit!" Viz barked.
"You just curb stomped my nuts!" I said back angrily.
Izzy and Clyde walked over to us. Clyde gave me a bored look. "Get up loser! You dare call yourself my rival after letting yourself get hurt by meaningless words?"
I stared at him with wide eyes. I smirked at him and got up. "Shut up Clyde. I'm still gonna kick your ass."
He smirked back at me. "We'll see…"
A large gong was heard, signaling the start of a tournament. Clyde and Izzy stared at me. "None of us have to fight each other in the first or second round." Izzy said.
"Good. That just means we all get to see each other in the semifinals." I said.
"So don't you dare lose before I get to fight you Tatsugami." Clyde said.
The gang and I walked over to the tournament stage. Xena had joined her family in the Judgement booth at the top of the colosseum. Amora, and Eliza found some seats that were reasonably close to the action.
In the center of the stage was a pint sized woman that was the size of my middle finger. Her little wings flapped vigorously as she flew around.
"We will now commence the beginning of The Tournament of Mages! Will all twenty eight competitors come forth!" She said loudly in a cute little voice.
Everyone that was fighting stepped forward. I looked around nervously. Everyone had determined looks on their faces. Even Izzy looked ready for action. This left me feeling anxious. How far could I possibly get without mana. These people are all skilled mages. I'm just a level 32 rogue with a frowned upon form of power. I don't even know how to use soul energy all that well. This was gonna suck.
"Well will now start the first round of the tournament. Will Sheqs Viheimer and Nikko Aroste come to the battle stage."
A tall man in a short black tattered cloak walked forward. On his right arm was a bronze gauntlet with three different colored gems on it. He walked casually to the stage without any hint of emotion. He was Sheqs.
The other fighter was a woman with a loose blue and white robe. She had a seductive feminine charm. Her messy long hair was dropped down to her back. Her yellow eyes held playful mischief. She also had six thin whiskers on her cheeks. She stared at and licked her lips at Sheqs.
"Will you give me a good fight?" Sheqs asked in a serious, husky voice.
"Mmm...I'll give you more than that if you play rough with me." Nikko said to him. Is it wrong that part of me wanted to be in that ring…
"Hmph...I'm not here for you meaningless flirting. If you're here to play around, then you're better off just leaving now." The brooding man said.
"Aww...Come on now, Sweetie. No need to be so mean." The woman gave off a golden aura and smirked. What was weird about her was the addition of cat ears and a tail. "Spell of Enhancement: Sacred Beast Alternative!" She yelled.
Sheqs lifted up his gauntlet and and narrowed his brown eyes. The red gem glowed brightly and gave off an aura. He flared up his mana before shifting into a stance. "Hidden Boost, Second Gate Awaken!"
Sheqs punched the ground sending tremors throughout the stage. Large pillars of stone arose from the floor. Nikko dodged and avoided the attacks with cat like reflexes. She danced around the stage with graceful movements. She moved forward with swiftness and buried her foot deep into his chest.
Sheqs skidded back but ultimately stood his ground. This lead to him glaring at the cat-woman. He aimed his gauntlet at her and let out a shout. "Third Gate Awaken!"
Sheqs pushed forward and struck her with blinding speed. Nikko took the hit head on, and responded with a kick to his head. He swung at her again but she was still much quicker than him. She ducked under the fierce attack and sent him a staggering uppercut. His head snapped back and he landed flat on his ass.
"Aww...You're not as attractive when you're getting your ass kicked, sweetie." She taunted.
"Hmph...First Gate Awaken!" He said as the blue gem glowed brightly. He glared at her. "You can't win now. Not when I have all gates awakened."
She licked her lips teasingly. "Trust me…" She said simply. Before I could even blink she had used her sharp nails to stab a hole into Sheqs. Blood dripped down to the stage floor. "I've fought plenty of men stronger than you."
Sheqs dropped to the floor gasping for breath. He was holding the wound in chest and choking on his own blood. I stared at the scene with a horrified expression.
"D...did she just...kill that guy?!" I asked.
"Well...Killing isn't exactly forbidden in this tournament." Clyde said, much to the shock of Gabby, Isabel and I.
"I don't know about this anymore…" Isabel said nervously.
"To be honest...I'd say you'll be fine. You're the only one of us that has true healing abilities and probably the best one here when it comes to that." Clyde said to her.
"Really?!" She asked.
"Yeah. You'll at least do better than Shiro will." Gabby said.
"Damn babe...That kinda hurts…" I grumbled.
She pecked my cheek and giggled. "Oh calm down you big baby. I'm just teasing you." She said.
We all looked up as Dex snapped his fingers. The stage was made as good as new. He then signaled for the start of the next match.
"I guess that means that I'm up next." Clyde said.
"Knock em' dead douchebag." I said.
"Will Clyde Yukio and Utikate Shioh please come to the stage!" The tiny pixie lady said.
Clyde walk up and stared down his opponent with a serious stare. His opponent was a burly man with a brown jacket. He had a belt with four bottles tied to it. Each bottle had a purple liquid inside of it.
"Well, it looks like my first match is gonna be a quick victory. They put me against a shrimp like you?! What a joke!" He said.
"...What's your little gimmick? You a magical alcoholic or something?" Clyde asked. Not bad, but he should use one of my one liners.
"I'm a high ranking alchemist! With my best concoction, I shall secure my victory!" He said.
"Judging by the four bottles, I'd say that you're planning to use one per match. Am I correct?" Clyde deducted.
"Ding ding ding! The little shit stain is right. Good thing I'll only need one bottle to put you down kid." The man said with a grin.
"...Right…" Clyde flared up his mane, causing gusts of wind to blow in our faces. "I'll make this quick!"
The man drank one bottle and grinned. His skin turned purple and he began to grow bigger and his muscles bulged out. "Now you done kid!" He said with a deeper voice.
"Ward of Binding: Web of Shadows!" Clyde yelled as his shadow began to shoot up from the ground and constrict his opponent.
"What the hell?! Get this shit off of me!" He yelled.
Clyde clapped his hands together. "Ward of Lightning: Blitzkrieg!" Several large bolts of of lightning shot out and fried Utikate. The alchemist fell to the floor, knocked out. Clyde stood there with a bored look on his face. "That wasn't even a fight…"
Clyde hopped off of the stage and landed next to us. Izzy automatically congratulated him on his swift win. It wasn't hard to tell who'd win. The guy's "magical weapon" was steroids.
Another few fights happened up until it was Gabby's turn. I was hype to see how she used magic. "You got this Gabs!" I said to her.
She nodded to me and hopped up on the stage. Her opponent was Leach Sifón. She was a blue haired girl with a sad expression stuck on her face. She was forever frowning. She had on a dark green dress and white stockings.
"Good luck to you." Gabby said to her.
The girl nodded as a response before slamming both of her hands on the ground. Large, thick vines bursted through the stage floor and flew towards Gabby. Gabby dipped and dodged each off the vines. She kept avoiding them until she was held in place by small thin vines on the ground. The vines crept up Gabby's legs and restrained her.
"I'm sorry for this…" The girl said before flinging a hand forward and sending out two large, carnivorous plants with fangs that rivaled Vizeron's. As they got closer, I got more nervous.
"I summon the power of Tituné Jeune Fille!" Gabby shouted. "Sword of Excelsior!"
A large golden blade appeared and sliced through all of the vines. It cut the heads off of the two man eating plants and landed in Gabby's hand. She lifted the sword and pointed it at Leach. "Now I'm sorry!" She said. Leach sent out more thorny vines. Gabby used her gargantuan blade and made quick work of the plants. "Free form stance!" Gabby's thick armor disintegrated and leaving her only in a white tank top and her skin tight short shorts. It also gave me a great view of her curves. God, did she look good!
"Why would you lose your armor?" Leach asked.
"My armor weighs about thirty five tons. Needless to say, it slows me down quite a bit." Gabby then seemingly vanished from sight. She the reappeared behind Leach. She swung her sword in order to finish the fight but Leach brought out a huge tree to shield herself. While the tree did protect her, it was still easily cut in straight through the middle.
"No way…" Leach gasped.
"This is the end of this fight!" Gabby said before pointing her large blade right in between the poor girls eyes. "Surrender, or get hurt…"
"...I...give up… " Leach muttered. Gabby nodded and let her sword fade away. Her suit reappeared back on her body, much to my dismay.
Gabby hopped over to us with a wide smile. "So what do you think?" She asked, mostly to me.
"Amazing…" I said in awe of her skills.
"I...I think that I'm next." Isabel said.
"Just remember to do your best out there." Clyde said as he placed his hands on her shoulder. "I know you can win this. I believe in you."
"We all do! Now get up their and kick some ass!" I yelled.
She smiled at us and nodded. "I'll do my best." She slowly walked over to the stage and stared at her opponent.
"Why hello my dear. I am honored to do battle with such a beautiful girl such as yourself." Said a boy with strawberry blonde hair and green eyes. He wore a pair of bifocals and was rocking a navy blue suit and tie. His name was Gustavo Otavolla
Isabel blushed at his words. H...Hello…" She said timidly.
"May I ask you miss Yang, to please forfeit the match. I would hate to ruin such a pretty face such as yours." He said. I could feel Clyde ready to explode.
"I...I can't! I won't let my friends down. Not ever again." She said with determination.
"Pity...I suppose you leave me no choice. Art of Passing No. 25, Doppelganger!" The man shouted before he made about ten clones of himself. The clones all charged at izzy with the intent to kill.
Izzy's face got serious and she closed her eyes, then let out a deep breath. "From the holy day to soulless night, let those that fear me flee with fright. The blood I shed shall form a new, to the being that strikes and seals your doom." She spoke slowly. This left me and practically everyone else confused. That's when Izzy's mana skyrocketed and she was covered in a strange black energy. When it faded, she stood there with pale skin, blood red eyes, two sharp fangs and a pair of bat wings. I stared at her with a shocked look. Her appearance brought back a ton of memories.
"What the hell?!" Gustavo said with panic.
"Sorry, but...weak scum like you really piss me off!" She said before flying through and straight up bodying every single clone in a matter of seconds. She flapped her wings and floated in front of the well dressed prick. "It's been so long since I've had bite to eat…Care to be a good friend?" Gustavo face went blue and he hauled ass out of the ring and towards the exit. Izzy soon after went back to normal and landed by us. "So...How did I do?"
"That was fucking sick!" I shouted.
"You did great Isabel! I knew you would." Clyde said with a grin.
"Next up is Shiro Tatsugami and Mezuku Ginto!" The pixie yelled.
I walked up to the stage. I could hear Vizeron howling from the stands and that made me grin. I stood at the center of the stage. I locked eyes with my opponent and glared. He had primarily black hair with blonde highlights. His eyes held just as much determination as mine.
"Are you sure that you want to do this? Your mana flame is-" He started, but I had heard enough.
"Screw it! That's not important. Worry about your own goddamn self!" I barked back.
He narrowed his eyes at me. "Very well…" Light particles danced around his body. "Spirit of Xangarde! Lend me your power so that I may defeat my foe!" The particles swarmed around his feet and hands. As the light dimmed down a bit, he was seen to now have sharp dragon claws for hands and feet made entirely out of light. "Prepare yourself!"
"Fine…" I said as I channeled a bit of soul energy into my own hands and feet. Purple static shifted around my limbs wildly. We both took off at each other with blinding speed and started trading blows. I shoved my fist against his chest and then kneed him in the chin. He quickly recovered from that and kicked my in the face and sent me flying back. I backflipped and landed on my feet and blasted forward with my fist cocked back. I sent a brutal fist into his gut. Spit flew out of his mouth as he flew to the opposite end of the stage.
He crawled to his feet and looked at me with a confused face. "How are you able to keep up the power of the Light Demon Xangarde?!" He asked me.
"I pushed myself to my limits...plus I got soul energy so…" I said.
"Soul energy? I've never heard of that before." Mezuku said.
"Then watch and learn because I plan on winning this!" I said with a grin.
"Not a chance dude! Xangarde, Maximize Potential!" He said.
Oh shit…