172 Proelium Honoris

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.

At this moment, all Greyson could think was that he was glad he gave up the leader position. How much pressure would it be to have to make the final decisions about who to send out with what team and when they should go? It could be the end all be all of the competition. If they send out the wrong people at the wrong time, it could lead to an irreversible loss. Although everyone can insert their opinions in the order, he would have to make the final decisions in the end to prevent fighting and disorder. Trevion was already aware of the situation, so he knew what accepting the leader position truly meant. Yesterday, he was still confident, but now he could not help feeling nervous. Hearing about it is one thing, but it is another when he is soon to be dealing with the situation. Suddenly, the pressure felt more tangible. 

"Is there anything more specific about the first round or does it change all the time?" Eris asked.

"All we know is the part about it being a new spatial dimension that was created for the purpose of this competition. Usually the inner countries send powerful spatial magicians for that stage. They usually make it very tricky on purpose and will test your trust in your teammates. I'm already worried about you guys passing the first round let along making it to the last round. Therefore, Trevion and the rest of you shouldn't worry about the last round right now. It would be putting the cart before the horse. I know that you all have started accepted the situation, but the trust between you guys is poor and that's putting it lightly. From this moment on, we will be doing some exercises to help with your team coordination as well as trust."

All of the representatives looked at each other listening to Zaire's words. They could not deny that they had neither trust nor tacit understanding with everyone here. Travion, Tatyana, and Efren were probably the only ones who could say otherwise. Even Aphina, Braiden, Eris, and Greyson could not be said to trust each other. They just get along on a surface level, but if it truly came to a point of life and death then who knows how the other would act. But could such things be trained in a short amount of time? They only had around a month of time in Snow Country before they had to start their journey to the competition site. Although they could train on the way, it still would only be around 2 months of training. How could that go against years of team training?

"I know what you are thinking, but there are not many countries that train their team of representatives from young. They wait until they start to show their potential or even survive. Of course, you will run into some groups that will have that kind of amazing teamwork. It depends on luck really, because who knows what will happen in those ten years. Wouldn't it be unfortunate if we created a team starting 10 years ago after the last one and ended up missing a talent like Greyson? The other teams will also definitely have their own struggles. This is what make the competition hard in the first place. A lot of teams get eliminated in the first round. Otherwise, with the set-up of the last round, it would take forever to get a winner."

The others nodded in relief. If everyone was pretty much at the same starting point, then they would just have to try their best. Who is to say they would not come out on top if they worked hard.

"My first challenge for you guys is a hunting trip. I will set you guys in pairs... well since Keaton is missing then there will be one group of three. Otherwise, one person will be blindfolded while the other is not. I want you both to hunt ten Jegers. The one who can see cannot use any magic other than for moving. Only the blindfolded one can use magic to kill the beasts. For the group of three, you will have one blindfolded and two without blindfolds. That can be an advantage or a disadvantage depending on how well the two can work together. Otherwise it could just be more confusing with one more voice and opinion in the mix. My guards and I will be monitoring so don't even think of cheating. We will catch you."

Greyson already knew that this would not go well. Jegers were extremely fast furry beasts that jumped between trees. They had great sight, hearing, and even sense of smell. To catch them off-guard is already hard. If they would have to take the time to speak commands and hope to get their blindfolded teammate to attack the right spot, then the chances of missing were too high! However, he and rest knew that they could not fight against the Duke's orders. So they could only helplessly listen and wait for the pairings.

"I will now announce the pairings and one group. The person whose name is spoken first is the blindfolded one. Listen carefully:

First pair: Trevion and Aphina

Second pair: Eris and Efren

Third pair: Greyson and Cherell

Last group: Tatyana, Colin, and Braiden

Alright, we will head to the forest now. I hope you guys are prepared. I will not let you out unless I see ten Jegers."