Wise turned around, and behind him stood a female Ork who had been observing him for the past minute.
She leaned against a pillar with an amused look on her face. Her blonde hair was short and wavy, similar to the color of butter and her sly brown eyes seed to hold a certain depth to them.
She was wearing clothing Wise had seen a thousand tis by now, a long black shirt with silver patterns and a lace-up neckline.
There was a shiny emblem made of steel placed on her chest, a hamr and mace crossed above two horns—
And a thick leather belt wrapped around her waist, to which her sword sheath was strapped.
It was the uniform of the arena guards, but this was the first ti Wise was seeing her.
The Ork took slow steps towards him, each one with a poise befitting an experienced warrior.
When she got to him, pulled out the stool opposite him and sat down. "Good morning," she said in a lighthearted voice, as though she had not just been spying on him...
’Probably one of the queens people...’
"My na is Tyris, I believe I already know yours— Mr Xanthos."
Click!
Tyris picked up her first piece, the knight and moved it forward. She had started with the black piece, a mistake that Wise ignored.
Click!
Wise moved his pawn a step forward. "Tyris, I like that na."
Click!
"Thank you, you’re quite polite, aren’t you? You’re not like I expected you to be."
Wise smiled as he watched the chessboard. "It seems there are certain rumours flying around about , nothing of consequence I hope?"
Tyris shrugged. "We all have a bad rumour or two don’t we? People call a berserker but that doesn’t an it’s true."
Wise perford a queen’s landing, tucking his queen behind a small army of pawns. "Is that what you’re here for?" He asked, looking up to gauge her reaction.
"I don’t think I follow." Tyris played dumb, shrugging off the question.
"Is that so?" Wise took a rook in his hand but paused midway, rubbing his finger on the wood before returning it. "Are you here to confirm the rumours?"
"All I hear is that you’re very powerful, a girl is free to explore her interests isn’t she?" Tyris asked.
Wise took a mont to observe the chessboard.
Tyris was an intriguing player, she charged forward without care for those behind her. She focused on the raw offensive power while totally disregarding defense.
Sadly, the match would be ending soon so Wise decided to get to the point of their conversation.
"So what does your queen want?" He asked calmly.
"The queen?" Tyris chuckled lightly, her voice reverberating through the empty space. "Believe it or not, I’m here of my own will."
She paused and then brought a finger to her chin. "Let’s just say I’m doing a little sightseeing."
Click!
By now a good number of pieces had left the board, most of them being Wise’s pieces.
"Can I ask you for a favour?" Tyris asked, her lips curled up in a smirk.
She was baiting him, Wise knew that much but there was no harm in listening to her request.
"As long as it doesn’t involve sleeping over at your place," Wise said coyly. "You’re a pretty lady but I’m afraid there is no shortage of beauties with these days..."
"Oh? You’re breaking my heart Xanthos. You seed like the type of guy I needed— a guy that can handle a girl like ."
Wise almost coughed but held himself just at the last minute.
’I walked into that one...’
Tyris laughed before looking towards the window. "Jokes aside..." Her face beca sober and her mood dimd.
"There was once a man that took everything from , my life, my family and my daughter..."
An uncomfortable silence settled between them.
"The masked warrior Mr Anonymous... Can you do the favour of killing him?"
Wise’s expression darkened slightly, but he said nothing in response.
Click!
Tyris frowned, her disappointnt evident by the way she pouted. "It looks like it’s your win."
She rose from the stool and walked towards the exit. "Be careful with him... he’s many tis stronger than the princess," she said right before she left.
Once again, Wise was alone in the silence of the empty space.
’Stronger than the princess huh?’
*
Wise was not impressed, after all, he was sure that most foes he had faced so far due to the queen purposely setting him up to lose, were just as powerful as the princess.
’Just what is your ga?’ Wise wondered as he rose to his feet.
The finals were about to begin.
***
"Ladies and gentlen!!!!!" The announcer scread at the top of his lungs. "Welco to the finals of the 100th annual Power Gas!"
The crowd roared with excitent that far surpassed those of the previous days.
Today the three most powerful warriors would clash in an all out free-for-all!
"Okay, here are the rules for today’s matches." The announcer went on to remind the crowd of the event rules.
Basically, for today’s match, there were no rules. The only rule was that the only way to eliminate a warrior was if they surrendered, were knocked out or killed.
"Now, introducing our warriors. First, we have a fan favourite, the man who had fought through all the odds!"
"Defeated the profane mockingbird, a monster from the king’s personal collection without breaking a sweat!"
"Brought desolation to the night wolves in their own domain!"
"Ploughed through warriors with ease and cut a path for himself to the finals, give it up for the Demon Slayer, Xanthos!"
The crowd cheered at the top of their voices and their cheers only intensified when Wise walked into the arena.
He had gone for the sa weapons he had used last ti, although a new pair. The twin daggers shone softly in the gentle light.
"Now for our next contestant. The man who single handedly brought down a demon with the wave of his staff, the man people are now calling the wild card."
"The sorcerous sage, Akaza!"
The crowd’s reaction to the old man’s appearance was good, but still on the tar side of things.
When Wise noticed him, his eyes lit up in recognition.
It was none other than Stanley’s partner. The old man was dressed in long flowing white robes that swayed in the wind and was stroking his long beard when he walked toward the Center of the arena.
’I knew he was strong, but not this strong..."
"And last, but not least, the man that stood against the disaster Ogre and lived, the man that defeated not just his enemies but his teammate as well at the group stages."
’Wait what? How is that a boast?’
"The knight of ruin, the birth of calamity, the world slasher, the armoured demon!"
The crowd has risen up at this point waiting for the announcer to finish his introduction.
"Please welco the Abyssal Herald, Mr Anonymous!"
A man dressed up in a suit of red steel armour stepped onto the stage and it was like the arena turned a tad cooler in his presence.
His armour was all encompassing, enclosing his face as well as every other part of his body, leaving nothing to the eyes.
Behind him was a large sword, a colossal red Odachi with a gold tip that glimred softly.
This ti, the crowd went wild. Their reaction to the mystery warrior was even far greater than their reaction to him.
Wise cautiously glanced at the two of them, his eyes settling on Mr anonymous.
’So that’s the man I’m supposed to kill?’
’Well, whether I kill him or not is up to chance. Either way, this match shouldn’t last long...’
That was what Wise believed, but he couldn’t be more wrong.
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