Chapter 208 Fellow Contenders

—

Before Kieran's arrival, Harlan suspected he had cold feet about the entire competition after learning of Alythia's perspective. The Gladiator's Coliseum was a truly brutal event, so deciding not to participate was understandable from a spectator's point of view.

However, it was an unpardonable offense within the War Deity Council's upper echelon because it symbolized cowardice—a principle unwelcomed within the ranks of the War Deity Council.

Once a nominal member refrained from participation after signing up, they'd be barred from signing up again, which is why Harlan spoke harshly against Alythia's opinion.

It would pain his heart if a great talent and the successor of a Commander had their ascent forcibly thwarted due to circumstances that could be easily avoided.

After hearing Harlan's comment, several others turned toward Kieran, especially Captain Liam, whose eyes flashed with a meaningful light.

'That young boy has grown much stronger in a short amount of time. No wonder I saw his name on the participant list.'

Kieran acknowledged Harlan's greeting with a light smile before sweeping his gaze through the two other people besides Harlan, Alythia, and Captain Liam.

The first individual was a young man with his long green hair tied into a ponytail. His sharp red eyes hid a piercing spirit as his gaze languidly swept toward Kieran.

With his arm snaked around an exquisite halberd decorated with a roaring dragon, the young man analyzed Kieran.

Harlan noticed that Kieran's gaze fell upon this individual and introduced him.

"I see you've noticed another contender. This young man is Yashua, lauded as the Destructive Halberd. He is also attempting to become an official member this year and is a high-ranking prospect."

「 Lv.49 Yashua Dabura, The Destructive Halberd (Epic NPC)

Class: Fatal Halberd

Health: 26,000,000/26,000,000 (100%)

Affiliations: ?War Deity Council? ?Dabura Family?」

Kieran noticed a significant piece of information from Yashua's description.

'A family?'

Usually, a family strong enough to be recognized by the system meant they were tied to some aspect of an organization or an ancient family that built up their reputation over time.

Considering that Yashua attended a branch in a humble kingdom, Kieran felt it was the latter.

Even then, the family's renown may not be as strong as he presumed. Perhaps it was worth mentioning in relation to their current location, but in the grand scope of Xenith, their power was inconsequential.

"Aatrox, Inheritor of the Berserk Path," Kieran introduced.

The hint of contempt in Yashua's eyes faded after listening to Kieran's introduction. In its place, battle intent surfaced.

"Yashua Dabura," Yashua said, sliding his hand from under his large sleeve.

The two shook hands, testing each other Strength through the grip. It was a petty and otherwise masculine way to assert dominance, but the outcome surprised them both.

A few subtle cracks appeared on the floor around their feet as neither side gave in.

Considering Kieran's Strength surpassed 1,400 in its base state, Yashua's Strength was also somewhere in that ballpark.

Did that mean Kieran was stronger than him despite his lower level? Not quite.

From Yashua's expression, it was clear he hadn't exerted all of the power available to him. Still, he retracted his hand with a new opinion of Kieran.

"Strong," Yashua commented.

"You as well," Kieran nodded, understanding that Yashua was someone to be wary of. His earlier opinion may have been a misjudgment. He was young—several years younger than Vidal but already classified as an Epic NPC.

Afterward, Kieran cracked his neck and rolled it side to side before looking at the last newcomer. From her appearance, it seemed she was a type of Thief or maybe even a female Warrior.

Rather than daggers or dual blades, a set of twin swords was strapped to her back, suggesting she specialized in speed and power.

Despite her petite frame, Kieran could sense a hidden ferocity thanks to his Retaliatory Sense heightening his perceptivity to this sort of feeling.

"This is Azahara the Rampaging Storm. Another one of your fellow contenders," Harlan said.

Azahara's amber eyes fell upon Kieran with a distant gaze as her short tangerine-color hair shifted across her forehead with the movement of her head. The light armor she wore seemed like a cross between leather and malleable light armor.

However, the presence of the armor felt more like something designed to resemble a female knight's equipment.

「 Lv.50 Azahara the Rampaging Storm (Epic NPC)

Class: Scorching Blade

Health: 20,000,000/20,000,000 (100%)

Affiliations: ?War Deity Council? ?Adventurers' Guild? 」

Despite her lower Health, Kieran understood Azahara was a fearsome opponent. When regarded as an Epic NPC, even a disparity of one level made a world of difference, especially from Lv.49 to Lv.50 and Lv.50 to Lv.51.

Kieran suspected that if these two were to fight, Azahara would hold an advantage over Yashua. Of course, it was only speculation because raw power wasn't the only factor capable of determining a battle's outcome.

"Aatrox," Kieran nodded, acknowledging Azahara's power.

Afterward, he fell silent while appreciating Scar's training.

Now that he understood the general scope of his opponent's, Kieran knew his chances would be extremely slim if he hadn't experienced his power up.

Following these three introductions, Harlan let Captain Liam take the lead since he was the highest-ranking member present.

Captain Liam looked over everyone and cleared his throat while clasping his hands behind his back. "The Gladiator's Coliseum is an important event taking place in the main headquarters just outside the Protus Empire located on the Southern Continent of Slazoya."

'Southern Continent?' Kieran's ears perked up after hearing of Slazoya. Why? Because Slayoza was famous for housing the headquarters of another reputed organization, making it the continent with the highest combat power.

Aside from this matter, Slazoya was also rumored to hold several different realm entrances. As much as Kieran wanted to explore the continent, he knew how dangerous it would be if he traversed the wrong areas.

'I wonder if we'll be granted freedom to roam after the event's conclusion or be immediately sent back to our respective branches. I hope it's the former because it'll be an excellent time to obtain useful items.'

After giving back 6 million Gold, Kieran had slightly over 780,000 Gold remaining in his possession. It was the perfect time to utilize some of his funds to acquire items seen as irresistible in the eyes of Lifestyle Players.

Meanwhile, Captain Liam continued speaking as Kieran formulated his plan to roam whatever city they landed in.

"There will be many high-ranking members in attendance, so it is imperative that you present your best quality performance. If you perform well enough, a special opportunity may befall you."

Aatrox, Azahara, and Yashua looked amongst themselves, wondering what this unique opportunity could be.

Furthermore, they were also shocked that high-ranking personnel would be in attendance.

Could this be an opportunity where certain factions within the War Deity Council chose their newcomers? If so, Kieran felt conflicted.

He had no interest in joining any factions besides that of his teacher. Who else could provide him with proper guidance?

"Follow me; I'll be guiding you all to the temple's hidden rear," Captain Liam said.

He directed the others to follow him as he walked past the training area, heading toward what seemed to be a majestic statute of a warrior clad in dense armor wielding a massive battle axe.

Beside this statue was another depicting a man wielding a massive warhammer with sparsely worn armor. Despite the differences between the figures, one could sense the comparable might imbued in the skillful chisel marks.

As Kieran and the rest examined the statues, Captain Liam retrieved his War Crest and pricked his finger.

A drop of blood fell upon the crest as Captain Liam presented it to the statues.

Their eyes flashed with radiant golden light before sliding aside with a loud rumble. The movement of the statues exposed a recess in the wall where one could see an exquisite teleportation gate in the distance.

"Under normal circumstances, this teleportation gate would be sealed off. Only during times of emergency or council-wide events is the usage of this gate allowed. Fortunately for us, the Gladiator's Coliseum qualifies as one such event."

'I should have suspected as much. Even if it's a temple within a lower kingdom, the War Deity Council is an organization of almost hegemonic power. Why wouldn't something as basic as a teleportation gate be built within its temples?'

However, although the War Deity Council possessed such a gate, their members couldn't just use it as they pleased. At least, not members underneath the Commander level.

Unless they possessed a status lofty enough to act without authorization, most members required permission before unlocking the gate.

Why? Suppose a temple experienced an infiltration. Unlocking that gate created a direct link to the headquarters, which could allow intruders entry to do as they pleased until stopped.

The portal activated after Captain Liam placed his physical War Crest, powered with a drop of blood, upon the indentation.

A stable gateway appeared in which Captain Liam gestured for them to enter.

Surprisingly, the gateway created by this impressive gate exhibited stability on par with the portals created by the Gatekeeper of Teleportations.

Most of the time, gateways formed through external means were less stable than those created by an adept individual, which is why Kieran felt discomfort when activating the Bloody Hero's Symbol.

"After you all," Captain Liam said.