The Ancients World

~~~(Location: The City Of Jaerey, The Kingdom Of Laasir, The Islands Of Haestar)~~~

~~~(Time: 7:04 AM)~~~

Now that Rianna has told me what she\'s been hiding, I don\'t think there is any reason to be suspicious of her now. Yeah, she betrayed the trust I put in her, but she\'s a Player who doesn\'t have the same luxuries as me.

If selling information that Marcus and I are in Jaerey made her life easier, I don\'t see why she wouldn\'t. I know I would\'ve done just about anything for more money on Earth when we were poor.

Rianna is waiting for my response to her admittance of betrayal. We\'re still standing next to the potions that she\'ll for the tryouts if she wants better odds of winning. I\'ve already decided to give her one last chance.

"I get it, Rianna. I really do. Back on Earth, my family was as poor as dirt. Crippling debt nearly ruined my family. If it weren\'t for my other brother, we would have had nothing. It\'s hard not to take an opportunity to make your life a little easier."

The girl I\'ve come to call my friend starts to shed tears, and I\'m not sure what to do. I\'ve never been great when it comes to the whole dealing with people who cry thing. Cera has helped me in the past. But his version of helping is different from everyone else\'s.

He knows that I respond best to anger and provocation. So, that\'s what he did to get my mind and will from being crushed.

The teenager in front of me won\'t respond the same way I will. Sensitivity is supposed to be something women are good at. But I find myself lacking in that area.

"I\'m really... Really... Sorry. I wish there was something I could do to make it up to you..."

She talks between her sobs and gasps for air. I reach out my hand and place it on her shoulder. Before she can do or say anything, I bring her into a one-armed hug. Mom would do this to me when I was having a hard time.

Dad would just give me money. Which was bad on both our ends. I don\'t like to talk about or admit it, but I was a financial crutch.

"Listen. Don\'t do it again. Secrets are worth a lot to Players. You know this now, thanks to getting 5 million gold for telling Big Guilds Marcus and I are here. Now, dry your tears and toughen up."

She cries a little harder after I basically forgive her. This is out of character for me, but I\'d only do this to people who aren\'t as experienced in life as me. She\'s 15 to 16 years old, and that means she\'s not got a lot of life experience.

While it\'s not an excuse, there is a reason why young men and women are forgiven for their mistakes more than adults are. It\'s because they don\'t know as much.

I\'m an adult compared to Rianna. Yeah, I was immature for a long time, but I\'m not the same woman I was when all this started.

"Okay..."

We pull apart from each other, and Rianna has red eyes. I place my hand on the top of her head, and she wipes the last of the tears building in her eyes away.

I turn away from her and start looking for the potions she\'ll need. They\'ll need to be attack-boosting and defense-boosting. And they\'re not cheap. We eventually find them, and I pay for them and give them to Rianna.

Now that we\'re done with this, we make our way to the Player Arena and eventually find Marcus. He\'s got better seats this time.

I take a seat next to my youngest brother, and he\'s got his eyes on the center of the Arena. General Daenal Roane is in the Arena with his top officers. They\'re definitely discussing something pertaining to the tryouts and tournament.

They have a silencing barrier erected around them, and they\'re covering their mouths. Making sure no one can read their lips. The tryouts still don\'t start until 10:00 AM, and that\'s a few hours from now.

"Do you have any idea what they\'re talking about down there?"

Marcus has been here longer than me, and I\'m hoping he\'s picked up something that worthwhile. He looks at me and shakes his head.

"They got down there and started talking. A few minutes before you arrived. There was no chance to learn anything. They\'re being really tight with information."

A few more minutes pass, and the barrier around them falls. One of the officers next to General Daenal Roane takes a step out of the ground and heads to a podium.

He takes a deep breath and seems to cast a spell.

"Test. Test."

We\'re able to hear his voice all around the Arena, and everyone is leaning forward in their seats. We\'re about to be told something important. I don\'t know what it is, and no sense in speculating about it now.

"This is an announcement pertaining to the tryouts that will begin at 10:00 AM today."

This is the moment of truth. We might even be learning if it\'s leveled-out combat or true power combat.

"The tryouts will be one match of a 1V1, and if you win that match. You\'ll qualify for The Ruins Of Tasdir. However, there will also be a 2V2 battle to determine your starting place in the tournament."

There are mixed reactions from the Players all over the Arena. It\'s really not something that changes anything for the strongest. Now, here comes the most important announcement next.

​ "All battles in the tryouts will be leveled-out combat. We\'re looking for people who can really fight and not rely on overwhelming power."

I can\'t help leaning back in my chair, a little disappointed. This means there is a good chance the tournament is a true power combat match.

"When you win you\'re 1V1, it\'s up to you to find a teammate for the 2V2. We\'ll only be assigning opponents, not making the teams. Good luck, everyone."

The man steps away from the podium and leaves the Arena with Daenal Roane and the other officers. Some of the Players around us look devastated, and others look more motivated than ever. This was the information everyone was waiting for.

Since they didn\'t talk about the tournament, that means they\'ll make another announcement the day it starts.

"It\'s a good thing we prepared by practicing. We\'ve got a chance."

Marcus is right about that. It\'s a good thing that we\'ve prepared just in case it did happen. I look over at Rianna, and she\'s looking at the ground. But I don\'t see disappointment or sadness. If I could describe it, it\'d be a look of contemplation.

Like she\'s weighing if this is the best situation for her in the end. I think this benefits her greatly. This way, she won\'t be matched up against someone who out-levels her and out Tiers her and gets crushed. They\'ll fight on an even playing field.

For the most part, that is.

"Marcus, I won\'t be teaming up with you when the 1V1 comes along. You\'ll have to find another partner."

My brother looks at me funny, and realization dawns on him. I want to help Rianna if she\'s able to beat her match-up. If I can get her a better position in the tournament, her odds of getting better loot in The Ruins Of Tasdir gets higher.

"I understand."

Marcus is a good brother.

Today is when the real competition starts, and I\'m excited. It\'ll be interesting to see how effective I am in a 1V1. That\'s what my Duelist Class is meant for. I\'m fantastic at taking on opponents when it\'s just the two of us.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A/N: Below this line, I\'ll be keeping Cera\'s player information. That way, I won\'t have to place it into the story above anymore. It takes about 180 words up.

[Slayer (Zern) Lvl.237][Tier-4]

[Exp: 72/100%]

[Title: The Son of Arch-Angel Michael (Hidden)]

[Stats] [Strength - 7095][Endurance - 7045][Dexterity - 7215][Speed - 8240][Focus - 19,660]

[Mana aura control: 6/100%]

[Health: 76,560,000,000/76,560,000,000] [Mana: 216,600,000,000/216,600,000,000]

[Stat Points: 440] [Armor rating: 500]

[Inventory] [Dice of Wayland (Divine)] [The Witness (Legendary Sword)] [Fenrir\'s Whistle (Divine)] [Camping gear] [Fishing poles 2x] [Festival Garbs 2x] [4x EXP Boosts] [Princess Saliandra\'s Panties (Black Lace)] [Desert Warrior Nomad Set (Rare)]

[Passive Perks]

[Inheritor of the Sword] [Son of Heaven] [Slayer of Evil] [Holy Willow Trees Savior] [Finder of Legends] [The Divine who has Legend] [Destined for Greatness] [Dungeon Diver] [An Overachiever]

[Active Skills]

[Heaven\'s light Lvl.74 325/7400] [Protected by Heaven Lvl.74 225/7400] [Slash Lvl.92 4600/21000] [Parry Lvl.68 85/6800] [Double Strike N/A] [Kingslayer N/A] [Raging Machine N/A] [Winged Glory] [Angelic Flight] [Divine Pressure Exertion] [Divinity Pulse] [Controlled Fun] [Aspect of Transportation (Legendary)]