172 Proelium Honoris (1/2)
Sunrise came quickly. Greyson rose early and dressed himself quickly. His injuries from the fight before were completely healed. Tatyana had sent the antidote to him, so the poison was also quickly solved. Yesterday night, he did not meditate and just slept. He stretched out his muscles feeling refreshed. This time, he could not leave the animals behind so he just let them follow him to the field. They were going stir crazy stuck in his room all day and he did feel bad about leaving them. He was just worried about what type of trouble they would get into without him around to watch. Therefore, they ended up joining him for today's team practice. He had heard that battles at the competition allow for magic beasts to join as there were a lot of magicians who were also beast tamers. Since they were always around him, Greyson thought it would be a good idea to try to incorporate them into his fighting. Lucius might not be able to just in case of revealing his true identity, but the other two could definitely fight with him. Both of them did not stop practicing and were about as powerful as magister level stage four magicians. With truly powerful opponents, Greyson would probably not take the risk of them getting hurt. Otherwise, they could help him take out the weaker ones without expending much effort.
Apparently, there was no limit on magic tools, either. The competition sees magic beasts, magic tools, and other extraneous items as part of strength and luck. However, if someone passed through the rounds using only treasures or things outside of them, they could rank highly but not get the same rewards. The whole point of the competition was to beat other outer countries for reputation and also to gain entrance into inner countries. The borders inwards were blocked off to outsiders and a certain level of strength or talent is required to go in. Many powers from every inner country come to the competition to recruit. Therefore, if a person stands out using items, they could be ranked first but still not get recruited by anyone.
Greyson was also looking forward to checking out the inner countries. He felt that he would be able to catch the eye of at least one power with his talent. Obviously, he wouldn't leave right away if he gets chosen. He had to go back and say bye to the important people. He had not seen Sister Lily in so long, so he should definitely say his goodbyes as it could be a long time before he comes back. However, in order to continue growing, he had to move forward. He saw how his grandparents were able to fly straight into the center region with no issues. Although they could take him in as well, it would be more interesting if he could fight his way in. If he went as he is now, he might just end up embarrassing himself in comparison to the young geniuses there.
”It seems I am late today.” He greeted the rest. The nobles nodded back looking slightly awkward.
”Really, though! Did you sleep in today?” Aphina quickly responded.
”Well, I did sleep a little deeper this time, so I didn't wake up as early.” Since he was not meditating but actually sleeping, Greyson did end up starting his day a little later. But, at least with Colin and Cherell, he was surprised that everyone else beat him. He did not count Keaton because he had a feeling that Keaton would not show up today at all. After all, that guy seemed to take his pride very seriously. Getting bludgeoned by a healer's staff off the stage was a pretty disgraceful way to lose. Even Greyson would have felt bad for him if Keaton was not always such an arrogant prick.
”Oh~ someone almost became leader and suddenly got lazy...” Eris teased while elbowing his arm.
”You know that's not it.” Greyson just helplessly smiled at her antics.
”You are not the latest today anyway, so I guess it's still fine.” Braiden also chimed in with a chuckle and a well-timed glance at Colin and Cherell. The pair just forced a smile as only they knew what kind of suffering they went through in the morning when they tried to pick up Keaton.
”Whoever is not here we will just ignore for now. Instead of practicing your team coordination right away, I want to ask how many of you know all the structure of the competition.”
Most of the representatives raised their hands, but Eris, Greyson, Colin, and Cherell were completely ignorant.
”Okay, that does not surprise me. The information does not really go past the higher nobility.” Zaire replied plainly.
Greyson and Eris did not care about not knowing, but Cherell and Colin looked bitter at their families' statures in the empire. They were nobles, but they were more comparable to the two outsiders.
”The competition has a formal name. It's called Proelium Honoris from the Ancient language which means 'battle of honor'. There are many facets and side competitions that you guys can participate in. There are some competitions for specific occupations like physician, blacksmith, alchemist, etc. There is also a split between the individual competition and the team competition. The individual competition is mostly for your own sake and honor. It is the most direct way you can catch the attention of the inner countries' powers. It's a pretty straightforward tournament style battle. The team competition, on the other hand, is not where individuals stand out. It is a way for a specific outer country's representatives to win honor and glory for their home. Especially because it takes strength and teamwork to win. It's much less straightforward and has different types of stages just like our selection. Usually, you are sent into another temporary spacial dimension that is like a dungeon. It is not as advanced, but there are still rewards that you can win for yourselves. That part is more of a speed battle to see who can get through the fastest. The next stage is a mystery. Even I do not know what it will be. The competition organizers keep it a secret until the day comes. The final stage is always the same. It's a tournament-style team battle. However, all 10 of you do not fight each battle. It's a best of 5 situation. Where the first fight is two-on-two, then four-on-four, and so on and so forth. If you get to the last battle, then it's the full ten-on-ten. This is where strategy comes into play. If the team is really individually strong, then it would be better to send out our weaker representatives first and wait until we can use teamwork to take them out. There are all sorts of team situations that we will have to take into account when figuring out combinations and order. I cannot help you, so it will be up to you guys to make decisions at that time. Most likely, Trevion will be the one making the final roster decisions for each battle.” After his last cautioning statement, Zaire paused to look at them to see if they understood.