But that was for tomorrow Tomorrow he would get the chance to try out his new skills he would talk to Shal about this tournament and he would explore the strange floating city that he found himself For now
Randidly removed a leather bracer from his spatial ring and an Engraving Needle With his even more powerful Control Randidly hoped that he would finally be able to crack the 40% on the engraving Randidly suspected that if he did so something would happen
But before he did so he took an action that surprised himself The teleportal had interrupted his usual time of taking the black potion and so by the evening he had been able to sift through notifications although they were blurry and strange But now he drank the strange potion again watching the menus slowly faded away He didn’t want to lose this edge he had not taking notifications for granted but instead growing based on how he performed
After he took his usual sip Randidly looked at the potion oddly After all it still appeared full He had never had to refill it the entire time he had been provided it But he supposed it was better that way
Shrugging Randidly put away the potion and got to work
Chapter 124
You have chosen the tournament Excellent Let’s depart immediately Shal said with a wide smile
Eh Randidly said blinking I thought we had two months
Hmph can any trash who desires it walk in off the street for such a tournament No they must prove their worth Come come it will be but a small thing for a student of mine
And so Randidly was whisked off back to the deck level where that strange old man still sat peacefully ignoring their passage They crossed dozens and then hundred of boats passing brunches gay parties children training with spears but most of all they passed men and women sitting in meditation on their boats seemingly heedless to their passage But what struck Randidly most was that aside for some small daggers the only weapon that he saw from the people were spears Always spears
Shal does everyone on your world use a spear Randidly asked cautiously It wasn’t that he didn’t think that the spear offered advantages that no other weapon held The combination of power reach and speed was truly impressive But there would always be differences of opinion when it came to what weapons were best But here there didn’t seem to be a single other weapon
Obviously the Spearman was born here Shal said not bothering to explain further as they vaulted over the side of a boat onto another As the proceeded the type of boats that they were crossing quickly changed Where it was previously a sort of houseboats now they were on flatter barge type boats where small stalls were set up where they sold food or knickknacks But still they pressed deeper and the boats under them grew larger and longer until it didn’t even seem like they were on boats at all but walking on land
They only give away was the occasional falling in the pit of your stomach as a wave large enough to rock these boats reached them
Squeezing through a press of bodies Randidly realized that Shal was not the typical member from this planet They all seemed to possess a strange tint to their skin (red orange yellow and Randidly saw one young woman who was decidedly purple) and a third eye on their brow but Randidly did not see another with the blue tint that Shal had
They seemed to afford him some small measure of respect because of it too When they saw him they stepped to the side quickly moving back to where they were just in time to make Randidly’s passage more difficult No one seemed to care that his skin was human colored and that he only possessed two eyes however No one gave him a second glance
After walking for almost an hour they arrived at the largest boat Randidly had seen It towered over the surrounding boats and from it hung hundreds of thousands of streamers in different colors The banners were covered in a strange scrawl too strange hieroglyphics that Randidly couldn’t read but as he looked the words trembled and shifted swiftly becoming english
They were names he realized All of them names
Setting aside the strange feeling he got as the system compensated so easily for the language Randidly asked What is this place
The Gauntlet Shal stated proudly The largest gambling den in Qtal and in the surrounding area No one Style rules Qtal so the money grubbers have more influence Come you need to familiarize yourself tomorrow you shall fight
And Shal was off pushing people to the side Sighing Randidly followed They moved with and through the crowd climbing up the rather steep ramps to enter into the Gauntlet A man who looked like a doorman seemed to be collecting money from all who entered paled when he saw Shal bowing and scraping letting the two of them walk passed without paying All though many saw this no one commented which led Randidly to believed there was a secret about Shal that he was missing
But there wasn’t time to ask and Shal pulled him forward The inside was set up like a jail with a large thick tower at the center towards which Shal continued Randidly followed and when they arrived Shal began climbing the stairs They continued to climb until they reached the second floor from the top which was a lavishly decorated open area There was food in the center of the room and the outside seemed dedicated to seating
And without walls you could clearly see out from the central tower to the strange prison like area that formed the outside Shal stopped arms behind his back and Randidly walked to the edge In the prison cells opposite that surrounded this tower there were fights
Brutal and bloody fights And from his vantage Randidly could see dozens happening at the same time There were 10 levels The lower levels had more cells but they were smaller and more brutal On the 9th level where they stood there were much fewer the cells much larger more spacious As Randidly looked he realized that not all of the cells were fights Others appeared to be tasks where only one individual silently struggled But there was a strange intensity to it all
Randidly’s eyes narrowed These would not be easy opponents
Unfortunately Shal commented You are too late to climb in the normal manner The only remaining way to receive an invitation to the tournament in time is through the melee Look down
Randidly did so and saw that below him on the wooden ground there were 3 wooden platforms wide things built like a square stage He slowly walked around the inside of the tower and more and more came into view The entire circuit took quite some time as the tower was massive but there ended up being 20 such platforms
They allow a maximum of 3 people per platform All who remain on the platform at the end of the 2 hour period will receive an invitation If there are more than 3 they have 1 minute to bring that number down to 3 or they all will not receive invitations
His expression thoughtful Shal stepped up next to Randidly and clapped him on the back Do not worry All who participate in such a competition are latecomers and trash Even with your meagre skills you should be fine
Such a latecomer Randidly sighed
Besides Shal continued We shall have time today for some more pointed instruction Your form is sloppy and without inspiration It is like you forgot that the true weapon you have is the spear You try to do the work yourself but you are just a man with a spear The spear knows its business
Ah But first Shal said with a wide grin You must obtain your Tassle
A Tassle Randidly realized were those strange banners hanging from the Gauntlet It also seemed like they corresponded to the sails above the boats There was a sort of pride in one’s Tassle so when they showed up at the store the building constructed of bamboo with thick bolts of cloth everywhere they were greeted warmly
And when the attendant saw the color of Shal’s skin his eyes twitched and then he brought at an older man with a thick beard whose skins was a dusky green color
Welcome welcome The man said with a smile How may this one serve you on this day
My disciple shall enter the Gauntlet for the first time tomorrow He needs his first Tassle