30 Round One

Everyone met up to see the results of the test we took yesterday. It was a giant build board that showed all of the tournament participants as well as their brackets and matches. I sighed.

"Great, I'm the first match of the day," I crossed my arms.

"You can set the example for everyone, Lord Smarus," Aurora tried to cheer me up.

"That's if I wasn't up against Arlo in the first match," I sighed.

"Best of luck to you, Smaurs," Donkor patted my back. "I am in the second branch, so I will have my battles tomorrow. I expect to see you in the semifinals."

This tournament will take place over the course of five days. One for each bracket and one for the semifinals and finals. It gave all of the fighters rest, but it was a pain nonetheless.

"Don't get your hopes up shorty! We're in the same bracket!" Bodil looked at Donkor.

"D-Donkor won't lose to an oversized ape," Sonia tried to support Donkor.

It would have been convincing if she wasn't hiding behind his back. Naturally, Bodil was angry, but Irene held her back. Aurora sighed at the sudden competitive spirit, and Myra only laughed at them. This was why I avoided groups in my past life.

"Hey hey, Smarus, why is the big boobed princess here?" Lily pointed at Luna.

"She's a friend," I responded.

Luna was blushing as she was abnormally quiet.

"Oh… ok!" She smiled. She was way too simple sometimes.

I looked back at the board.

"Luna, you think you'll be ok? You're up against Ace in the third bracket," I asked her,

"I just have to make a good impression. After all, the judges are judging the students' abilities as well as their ranking," She looked determined.

I was sure she wanted to get back at Ace, and I couldn't blame her. I was still worried though. I shrugged as I turned to everyone.

"For the last week, you all trained your asses off," I caught their attention. "I don't accept failure. I expect each and every one of you to make the judges fall on their knees and beg to join this academy," I gave a twisted smile.

"You're a real nut case, but hell yeah! I'll make all of my foes taste defeat!" Bodil pumped her fist in the air.

"I suppose we have no choice then. I expect to see everyone in class after this tournament is over," Donkor nodded his head.

"I'll try my best," Luna nodded.

"Good luck, Smarus!" Lily patted me on the back. "I'm counting on you."

The mood died. She ruined it.

"I'm going to get ready for my match," I mumbled as I walked away.

Everyone nodded their heads, and we all began to go our separate ways.

"What?" I heard Lily ask as I was walking away.

On campus, there was a coliseum, and of course, rooms for the different contestants to stay in. I already had Aurora and Mystia bring my uniform and equipment to my room. It was mandatory for all participants to wear the school's uniform, but other than that, anything was fair game. On my way there, I ran into Vida.

"Mr. Dragonborne, it's a ple…"

"Just Smarus is fine," I stopped her. "What do you want?"

I was suspicious of her. She was supposed to be loyal to Arlo, so why was she here? 

According to the game, she was one of Arlo's maids at first. She was five years older, so she was practically a sister figure. However, Arlo fell in love with her and proposed when he was 12 years old. Of course, there was some backlash to this. As a result, Arlo trained to the point where no one in the right mind would dare protest against him again. It would have been a romantic ending if the idiot wasn't an unfaithful piece of shit. But that was the game, and he seemed somewhat decent in this world.

"You don't seem to be like other nobles. I'll change my approach then… Ahem. I have a favor to ask," She spoke more casually.

"No," I tried to walk past her but she stepped in front of me. "Move," I warned her.

"No," The beautiful woman glared at me. "Not until you hear me out!"

I sighed. "Fine."

Vida let go a breath of relief. She put her arms down and relaxed a little bit.

"Thank you. I need you to beat Arlo in a fight."

"What?" I was surprised at this request. "Isn't he your husband?"

"Yes, I have mixed feelings about this too. Arlo was always caring and sweet towards me, but he has one downside. He's an arrogant fool. He thinks everything will go his way just because he is strong and handsome," She began to explain.

"That handsome part is subjective," I commented.

"I would like him to become a bit more humble before it comes to bite him for real," She ignored my comment. "Arlo is bound to become a great leader, but I don't want him to be his own undoing. So please…" She bowed her head. "Beat him in your match!"

I crossed my arms and tilted my head back. I couldn't help but smile.

"And what do I get in return?"

The question made the air feel heavy. A simple question that held so much weight. She slowly looked up with beads of sweat rolling down her cheek. She was prepared for this question, but she was hoping that I wouldn't ask. Or more importantly, that I would accept any answer but one.

"I-I have mon…"

"So do I. A good bit of it too," I interrupted her.

"Th-then, I could… I could…" She was stammering on her words.

"Let's call it an IOU then," I sighed. "Depending on how strong this guy is, I will want him as an ally," I smirked.

I could tell that sudden relief hit her when her shoulders relaxed. She looked grateful.

"Thank you," She gave a weak smile.

"Also, just so you know," My smile widened as a purple hue showed on her face. "I already planned to bring the man to his knees. The moment he was matched against me was the moment he lost."

I walked past her without saying another word. I went to my room and saw everything that I needed. I did some stretches before changing into my uniform. It was a simple grey uniform. I rolled up my sleeves to my elbows. I looked at the ring on my right middle finger.

Originally, it was embedded with a skill called Steal. It was practically useless though, since it needed to match with the user's class, and the user had to have high stats to use. Even then, it could only steal small items from someone's inventory. However, not everyone had an inventory. There were more downsides than upsides, so it was considered a failure. That is if I didn't already have a plan.

The books I had Lily get me were actually documents explaining alchemy, skills, and infusions in depth. So together with the 11 journals, I read a total of 25 books. It was the most mentally draining nights of studying in my life. My intelligence also went up to 5.5 afterward. That was how I knew what instructions to give Sonia.

After creating a detailed experiment, and a whole day of incubating, I was able to transform the skill Steal to Gluttony. This upgraded version allowed me to permanently steal skills and even stats. It had a massive trade-off, but it would help me with my lack of spells and skills, and with Odin's Eye, I was practically unstoppable. Theoretically.

I also had Aurora order a sword for me. It was crafted by a skilled blacksmith, and he even engraved the Dragonborne crest on the hilt of the sword. I strapped the sword around my waist. I was now fully prepared for battle.

"It's time for the first match!!" I heard the announcer call.

There must have been a large audience since hoards of screams could be heard. I did see vendors and different markets on campus, but how many people actually came to see the tournament? I stood outside my room and saw that a bunch of the contestants were also outside. They must have wanted to see the match.

"The first contestant of the day is an eye-catcher! At only the age of 17, he already has two wives! That doesn't stop all of the ladies from falling from him though! It's none other than Arrrlooo Maaalik!" The announcer introduced Arlo.

I should move up, but I was scanning the students' stats. I was looking for skills to steal as I walked past. As I found two worth stealing, I brushed my hand against them.

"Oh sorry," I apologized.

"Watch where you're going," The guy grumbled.

As Arlo took the stage, the student female body all screamed. Arlo had a disgusted look on his face as he heard the girls scream. The people that knew of him began to murmur amongst themselves.

"I feel bad for the guy who has to fight him."

"Talk about bad luck."

"I want to have his children!" Some girl yelled.

"Aanndd the poor soul that has to fight him is a fallen noble!" The announcer began his introduction.

There was a loud gasp in the audience. Now, they were speculating how I fell out of nobility.

"A man with an unheard-of class, Hermit Wiseman, and he's been building up quite the reputation. The Hero's rival, Smarus Dragonbooorne!"

The crowd went silent when they heard my name. I took the arena that stood in the middle of the coliseum. Everyone just stared at me, not daring to speak. They must have thought that whatever I did, it was horrible. The first person spoke up.

"GOOO Smarus!" Lily yelled.

"YOU GOT THIS!!" Myra chimed in.

I was thankful for them. I also knew the others were watching too. I sighed as I looked at Arlo. There was no way I was gonna lose when I had people looking up to me.

"You got some fans, yeah?" Arlo smiled. 

He had two swords by his waist, and he still wore a cultural satchel on top of his uniform.

"Better than a few than a crowd of hollow side characters," I smirked.

"That is true," Arlo shrugged. "No hard feelings when you lose, 'kay?"

Arlo unsheathed his sword and assumed a fighting stance.

"Hmm… That's assuming I lose." I unsheathed my own sword. "Too bad I won't."

"AAANNDD FIGHT!" The announcer's shout was followed by loud cheers.

Immediately, we dashed at each other and exchanged blows. Nothing will stop me from climbing to the top!