[ Eren's POV ]
I looked at Zenos.
He stood just inches in front of me. Slightly to the left.
'I'm going to pour everything into him.'
I scrolled through my mental interface. Selected Zenos from the summon list.
A new window materialized before my eyes.
─────────────────────
SUMMON UPGRADE
─────────────────────
Target: Zenos the Unbound
Current Level: 3
Next Level: 4
Required Gold: 200
Available Gold: 9,200
─────────────────────
[ YES ] [ NO ]
─────────────────────
I selected YES without hesitation.
The moment I confirmed, Zenos twitched. His head snapped upward. He started scanning the air above him as if something invisible had descended.
I ignored his confusion and focused back on the interface.
─────────────────────
SUMMON UPGRADE
─────────────────────
Target: Zenos the Unbound
Current Level: 4
Next Level: 5
Required Gold: 400
Available Gold: 9,000
─────────────────────
[ YES ] [ NO ]
─────────────────────
YES.
─────────────────────
SUMMON UPGRADE
─────────────────────
Current Level: 5 → 6
Required Gold: 800
Available Gold: 8,600
─────────────────────
YES.
─────────────────────
SUMMON UPGRADE
─────────────────────
Current Level: 6 → 7
Required Gold: 1,600
Available Gold: 7,800
─────────────────────
YES.
─────────────────────
SUMMON UPGRADE
─────────────────────
Current Level: 7 → 8
Required Gold: 3,200
Available Gold: 6,200
─────────────────────
YES.
─────────────────────
UPGRADE COMPLETE
─────────────────────
Zenos the Unbound
Level: 8 (Upgrade not applicable)
Available Gold: 3,000
Next Level Requirement: 6,400
► INSUFFICIENT FUNDS
─────────────────────
Damn.
I had only made it to Level 8. The jump to Level 9 required 6,400 gold, and I was left with a mere 3,000.
But Level 8 would have to do.
I looked at my two fools.
Marcus was laughing maniacally. Pointing at Zenos. Practically doubled over with amusement.
Because Zenos was clutching his head with both hands. Groaning. His face contorted in what looked like tremendous pain.
Maybe memories were flooding back. Maybe forbidden knowledge was being unlocked. Maybe his combat instincts were being forcibly upgraded.
Whatever it was, one thing was certain that he had evolved. At minimum, he should have jumped at least one rank above C.
My Appraisal Sight had just finished its duration. Otherwise, I could have checked his new stats.
Then I looked at Marcus.
F-rank.
I glanced at my remaining gold.
3,000.
'I'm not feeding this weakling.'
'When I eventually get a new overpowered summon, I'm not even bringing Marcus out anymore. Too embarrassing.'
Speaking of embarrassment, he was absolutely humiliating me right now.
The crowd was laughing.
Actually laughing.
At us.
One of my summons was holding his head like he was having a seizure. The other was cackling like a court jester who had lost his mind.
Even the announcer was staring at them. Completely bewildered. Unsure whether to start the match or call for assistance.
'Fuck my life.'
I called out to him. "Hey! Beard guy!"
The announcer turned to me.
"If you're waiting for a divine sign, I'm standing right here. Start the damn match."
He nodded quickly. He had apparently been waiting for my signal due to my summon's... abnormality.
The horn blasted.
BWOOOOOOONG!
The match had begun.
All the frustration from yesterday. All the mockery I was enduring right now. It erupted out of me in a single command.
"MARCUS! CHARGE!"
He stopped laughing immediately. Drew his sword. And sprinted toward the enemy line.
Then I turned to my upgraded archmage.
"ZENOS! Fire tornado! Aim at Marcus... blow him forward and press the attack toward that penal soldier!"
The dazed Zenos who had been clutching his skull just seconds ago suddenly changed.
His eyes snapped into focus.
A devilish grin spread across his face.
And he roared. "RAAAAAAAAAGH!"
The sound was primal. Furious. Like a beast that had been caged for centuries finally breaking free.
He was angry. Genuinely, terrifyingly angry.
Azure energy exploded from his raised palm. Flames and wind began spiraling together. Growing. Expanding.
The tornado that formed was three times larger than anything he had produced before.
The air itself became scorching. I had to stumble several steps backward just to avoid being singed.
FWOOOOOOOOSH!
Marcus glanced over his shoulder mid-charge.
"Master, what did you sa—"
He never finished.
The fire tornado swallowed him whole.
WHOOOOOOSH!
Then it continued forward. A raging inferno of spinning death. Charging directly at the enemy.
The timid boy across the field was panicking. His eyes were wide. His body frozen.
His summon—the Penal Soldier stood ready. Waiting for a command.
But no command came.
The boy was too paralyzed by fear to speak. Too overwhelmed by the horror approaching him. A massive tornado engulfed in flames. And inside it, a soldier screaming in agony, his sword spinning around the edges of the vortex like a blade in a blender.
The boy looked like he might piss himself.
Actually, he probably already had.
His cowardice cost him everything.
The tornado reached his summon. The Penal Soldier tried to dodge on instinct but the burning sword caught him.
SLASH!
The blade still revolving at the tornado's edge carved straight through the soldier's chest.
He felt the pain. Screamed. And then the vortex swallowed him completely.
CRACKLE! WHOOOOSH!
His rusted spear clattered to the ground. Abandoned.
I reached out to Marcus through our mental link.
'That was a cool move, Marcus. That precision with your sword while inside the tornado—marvelous, man. Truly marvelous. Now finish him off inside that prison.'
His response came back broken. Strained.
'What sword? I lost my grip the moment I got sucked in! Master, tell that old hag to release the tornado!'
Wait.
His sword had moved on its own?
So the sword was more valuable than him?
Interesting or Rather Disgusting.
'It's fine, Marcus. I don't need you for this match anyway. Just die like a hero in there. Throw some punches while you're at it.'
I glanced at Zenos.
One hand was still pressed against his temple. The other was extended outward, casually maintaining the tornado while he enjoyed the view.
I sighed.
'I really could be the best parent.'
After some time, I looked at the spear lying on the ground.
It was fading. Dissolving into particles.
I knew what that meant. It was over.
Marcus had already returned to me several seconds ago. His essence flowing back into my core, battered but intact.
I began walking. Casually. Unbothered by the tornado still raging nearby.
I strolled past it as it slowly began to calm. The flames dying down. The winds settling.
My target was the boy.
His legs were shaking violently as I approached. His entire body trembling.
"Zenos. Pull him."
A gust of wind erupted from behind me.
FWOOSH!
The boy was yanked off his feet. Dragged forward four or five stumbling steps before collapsing onto his knees directly in front of me.
He looked up at my face.
Terror in his eyes. "I submit."
The announcer's voice echoed across the arena.
"Ashen has been eliminated from the match!"
I ignored the announcement.
The boy was already kneeling. Convenient.
I adjusted my position. Then sat down directly on his back.
Using him as a stool.
'Much better.' I turned my attention to the other half of the arena.
The ongoing battle between two blood-related specimens.
Thalia versus the prince of the Elven Kingdom. Cousins by blood. Enemies by circumstance.
I didn't want to interfere in this fight.
Not because I wanted to watch her fail. Not because I would enjoy her suffering.
It was the opposite.
I wanted her to win this alone. To face him without assistance. To walk the path of her revenge on her own two feet.
She needed to know she was capable. That she had potential. The potential she had been missing yesterday when she nearly crumbled.
I knew she was broken.
And that's exactly why I wanted to help her like this.
Don't know why it felt correct. But it did.
She was a victim. Just like me.
I watched her commands carefully.
She wasn't giving Vaelis any openings. Her barrage of arrows was relentless barely letting the saber-wielding elf advance even a single step.
FWIP! FWIP! FWIP! FWIP!
But Vaelis wasn't struggling either.
His twin crescent sabers were moving impossibly fast. So fast they appeared as silver and black blurs. Like he was wielding shields instead of swords.
Every arrow was cut down before it could reach him. The aura energy within each projectile fading harmlessly against the ground.
CLANG! PING! CLANG! PING!
With each barrage, both Thalia and her summon retreated slightly. Creating distance. Maintaining the gap.
It was a solid strategy.
And the prince was smart too.
He stayed directly behind Vaelis. Using his summon as a living shield. He had clearly studied our previous match. If Thalia created any gap between him and his summon, she would exploit it to attack him directly.
He wasn't giving her that chance.
The battle was at a deadlock.
Neither side advancing. Neither side retreating significantly.
But I also knew it would be really hard for her.
The prince had a very unfair advantage.