Three months passed in the blink of an eye. During that time, the heroes trained relentlessly, bid farewell to their loved ones and received their wishes of luck and victory. Then, with determined hearts, they set out toward the town where the decisive matches would be held.
Upon arrival, their eyes were immediately drawn to three massive towers—strange in both shape and color. Each stood like a colossal column pierced with holes of varying sizes, glowing faintly in hues of crimson and black.
Tristan : " What on earth are those things?"
Merrick : " I have a feeling they're connected to the matches."
Aiden stepped forward, his tone calm but certain.
"They are spatial transporters of a special kind."
Jayden turned his head sharply.
"A special kind?"
"That's right," Aiden replied. "They're designed to send you to the arenas where the matches will take place. I believe I mentioned this before… though perhaps you've forgotten."
Before they could ponder further, they reached the town's welcoming banner. There, a man appeared—an assistant of the Archive Scholars, the ones who had organized the competition. Without a word, he motioned for them to follow him.
After a long walk, they reached a facility surrounded by high walls. Inside, the very same three towers loomed, more imposing up close than from afar. A guard opened the gate, ushering the heroes in. Beyond the walls, their rivals awaited, standing in silence.
Aiden advanced, approaching two figures—the leaders of the National and Fighter divisions. Yossan greeted him with measured politeness.
"Welcome, Aiden."
"Greetings, Yossan. Are you and your followers ready for the matches?"
"Yes, we are prepared. And I assume you and your people are as well?"
"Of course. We trained diligently these past three months."
Murphy, however, did not speak. His gaze remained fixed on the Ribwan twins from a distance. Quietly, he retrieved a small vial of water from his coat, swallowed a pill and closed his eyes to ward off the headache he feared would strike again.
Around them, the others took in their surroundings—two buildings, three tents and the crimson-black towers rising high into the sky. Then, suddenly, two men emerged. One was brown-skinned with silver hair and eyes the color of sea-glass green. The other was pale, with brown hair and deep indigo eyes.
The crowd parted as the two approached. Aiden, Murphy and Yossan stepped forward to meet them. The silver-haired man spoke first, his voice steady.
"Greetings, three leaders. Surely, you know who I am?"
Aiden gave a nod.
"Yes. You are Klaus—one of the distinguished Archive Scholars. And with you stands Yusaku, another prominent scholar."
Klaus smiled faintly.
"It seems you are as well-read as your father, Aiden."
The two scholars shook hands with the three leaders before exchanging quiet words with them. The rest simply observed.
Luna sighed, leaning closer to Yuna.
"Are we just going to stand here waiting forever? Can't they hurry up?"
"They're likely discussing important matters," Yuna replied. "Leadership isn't an easy burden, you know."
"Hmph. It just looks annoying to me."
At last, Klaus stepped forward and raised his voice.
"Allow me to introduce myself. I am ( Klaus ) one of the Archive Scholars."
He paused for a moment, then continued.
"You have gathered here today not as mere fighters but as warriors entrusted with the survival of your kind. To fulfill this duty, you must compete in a contest—three matches that will decide your fate."
Yussaku added firmly,
"One rule stands above all: fairness. No killing. You may not take the life of another, but only face them in combat without intent to kill."
Klaus's expression darkened slightly.
"We are aware that many of you have lost comrades in past conflicts. But hear me now—no deliberate killing will be tolerated in this competition."
His words rang true. Yossan's, Murphy's and Aiden's followers had already suffered greatly in previous clashes, leaving only the most seasoned survivors behind.
From afar, Karaido muttered to Shiro, his voice dripping with disdain.
"Damn it. I wanted to kill that Luna girl who annoyed me before."
Shiro smirked coldly.
"Don't worry. After we win, we'll execute her."
"Or worse," Karaido replied with a cruel grin.
Klaus raised his hand.
"Now, follow me to the first tower, where the opening match shall begin."
The entire assembly moved toward the first tower, gathering in the vast courtyard surrounding it.
Meanwhile, the heroes huddled together. Milo broke the silence.
"According to Klaus, only eight participants will compete. They'll be divided into three teams. The three leaders will not be joining, which means the eight chosen will be the strongest among us. And I already know who they are."
He paused, glancing at everyone before listing the names.
"Luna and Yuna—obvious choices. Then Melvin, Jayden, Tristan, Merrick, Tia… and myself."
The ones left unmentioned bristled with protest.
Sony burst out, "We want to fight too!"
William added sharply, "Exactly! We're strong as well!"
Melvin silenced them with authority.
"Enough. Your exclusion does not mean we doubt you, nor that you are weak. But Milo, Tia and I have battle-hardened experience—we are commanders after all. The others were chosen carefully as well. Please understand."
The grumbling subsided. Aiden then spoke, his voice grave.
"This is a dangerous gamble. Yes, the rules forbid killing or cheating. But make no mistake—if our enemies win, they will likely execute us all… or worse. So, I ask you to fight with everything you have."
The crowd answered in unison.
"As you command, sir."
The rules of the first match were soon announced:
The tower would transport the chosen fighters to a mountainous region of four peaks—one central mountain surrounded by three others. Upon each of the three outer mountains lay a colored flag. Each team had to seize the flags and place them upon a glass platform at the central peak. But beware—the terrain would be riddled with traps.
The contest was set to begin the next day.
From the Moon Division, the fighters were Merrick, Tia and Milo.
From the National Division: Sam, Hal and Nina.
From the Fighter Division : Betty, Senko and Karaido.
The nine fighters stepped into the first tower, exchanging sharp, hostile glares before the transporter engulfed them in light, hurling them to the battlefield.
Merrick's eyes snapped open. He found himself standing in a snowy mountain range, Milo and Tia at his side.
"I think we need to locate our flag first," he said, scanning the icy slopes. "Then we head to the central mountain and place it on the glass platform. And we'll need the other teams' flags too."
"Right," Milo nodded. "Ours is green. Let's move. No wasting time."
They split up, agreeing that whoever found the flag should fire a burst of energy into the sky.
Milo searched for a long while, combing the snow. At last, he saw a flare streak upward—a burst of icy light. That could only mean Merrick had found it.
Rushing to the signal, Milo found Merrick perched atop a rock, a green flag in hand, Tia already by his side.
"Well done, Merrick," Milo said.
Merrick shrugged.
"Honestly, it was my water stone that helped. I cleared the snow easily and found it buried near that slope over there."
"Not an easy spot," Milo mused.
"Not too hard either," Merrick countered. "It was close to where the tower dropped us."
"Either way, let's head to the central peak. We need to place the flag."
The three heroes made their way toward the heart of the mountains. But as they searched for the glass platform, an uneasy sensation struck them—an aura, unmistakably that of a stone wielder. Or perhaps… more than one.
Tia tightened her grip on her weapon.
"Looks like the enemy beat us here."
"Probably," Merrick agreed grimly. "Maybe they even found the platform already."
"Let's move carefully," Tia whispered. "See what they're up to first."
They crept closer, peering from behind the rocks. Sure enough, the Fighter Division had arrived before them. Karaido, Senko and Betty had already found the platform and placed their flag.
"They're ahead of us," Milo muttered. "But where's the National Division? They haven't shown up yet."
"I think they—" Tia began.
Her words were cut off when Karaido turned suddenly, his voice booming.
"Come out! No use hiding. I can feel your presence!"
Milo exchanged a quick glance with his allies, then gave a nod. Together, they stepped into the open.
Merrick, Tia and Milo stood facing Karaido, Betty, and Senko.
Karaido smirked and said,
"So, you came here to hand us your flag and let us win, right?"
Milo replied,
"That won't happen—not even in your dreams."
"You insolent brat! You'll regret your arrogance!"
Karaido drew his double-bladed axe and instantly teleported above the heroes, attacking with sound waves. Milo quickly blocked with an air-pressure barrier then leapt up and thrust his wind spear at Karaido. Karaido countered with his wind axe. Both landed back on the ground, clashing fiercely. Their powers were equal—for they both held an Air Stone.
Betty hurled her weapon, a crushing ball on a chain, at Merrick and Tia. Tia blocked with her weapon: a star with four sharp blades, each with jagged teeth
Betty wielded lightning powers, while Tia commanded fire. Both channeled their elements into their weapons and clashed. Tia was beginning to overpower Betty but Senko stepped in, throwing his icy bat straight at Tia. It nearly shattered her but she dodged in time.
Senko then controlled the snow and water around them, sending waves of frost and ice at Tia. Merrick intervened, channeling the same snow into his sword and countering. Senko's eyes narrowed at Merrick.
Merrick : " So, you also have the power of a Water Stone."
Senko : " Yes. You and I share the same element."
"You're right. But only one of us is stronger. Let's settle this face to face."
"I'd like that but unfortunately, I can't."
Merrick was puzzled by Senko's words but had no time to dwell on them. Betty and Senko combined their powers—Senko turned the snow into water, and Betty charged it with lightning. They hurled the electrified water at their enemies. Tia and Merrick responded together: Merrick shaped the snow, and Tia created a fiery tornado, blocking the attack.
Tia then leapt into the sky and threw her blazing star. Senko blocked with his bat. Merrick struck next, charging Senko with his icy blade but Senko jumped back. Betty surprised Merrick from behind with her crushing ball, but he turned and blocked with his sword.
Meanwhile, the three leaders sat in special chairs, watching the match on a giant screen in the tower facility. Yossan sat in the middle, Aiden on the right and Murphy on the left.
Murphy was deeply tense—Betty was his niece and he had warned Senko and Karaido to protect her at all costs. This was why Senko refused a one-on-one duel with Merrick: he had to stay near Betty.
Luna, Yuna and the others were watching too. Chris commented,
"Our forces are evenly matched with theirs."
Yuna nodded. "Yes, you're right."
"But there's still a problem—the National Division ."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, isn't it strange they haven't shown themselves yet?"
"Actually… yes, it is strange."
Jayden : "I think they're waiting. They'll let the Moon and Fighter Divisions fight each other to exhaustion. Then they'll step in and finish things easily."
Tristan frowned. "That's bad news. If you're right, they'll surely win this match."
"Yes," Jayden said. "I just hope our comrades realize it and stay cautious."
And Jayden was right—the National Division really was watching from afar, waiting for the battle to end before making their move.
After a long clash, both sides broke apart to regroup. Merrick, Tia and Milo huddled together.
Milo said, "Listen, I've got a crazy idea. But we have no other choice—we have to do it."
Tia asked, "Is it dangerous?"
"Yes. But like I said, it's the only way."
Karaido, Senko and Betty also gathered.
Karaido muttered, "Our powers are equal so far. I think this fight will end in a draw."
Senko shook his head. "A draw—or even a win—doesn't matter. Even if we beat them, we'll be exhausted. Then those National Division scoundrels will swoop in and claim victory."
"You're right. That must be their plan."
Betty asked, "Then what should we do?"
"I'm not sure, but I think we should—"
Milo cut him off. "Break time's over. Let's continue the fight."
Karaido grinned. "Fine by me."
Once again, Milo clashed with Karaido, while Betty and Senko advanced toward Merrick and Tia. Merrick struck at Betty with his ice blade, but she blocked with her ball. Senko swung at Merrick but Merrick ducked and slashed at his legs—Senko barely leapt away. Betty threw her ball again and Merrick blocked once more.
Then Senko suddenly realized something: Tia was gone. He froze in alarm but didn't dare leave Betty unguarded—Murphy would punish him if she came to harm.
Tia had already slipped away to the glass platform. She snatched the red Fighter flag and replaced it with their green one. The platform lit up green. Everyone turned toward the light. Senko understood—Tia had abandoned the fight to seize the flags.
The rules were simple: whoever placed all three flags in succession would win the match.
Karaido stopped fighting Milo and teleported toward the glowing platform but when he arrived, both flags—and the light—were gone. Tia had taken them and disappeared. Karaido returned to his allies, only to find them struggling against Merrick and Milo, who were now gaining the upper hand. Karaido intervened, sending a storm of slicing wind from his axe, forcing Merrick and Milo back.
He regrouped with Betty and Senko.
"There's a big problem," Karaido said grimly.
Betty asked, "What happened?"
"They took our flag. I'm sure it was that girl—she's vanished."
Senko cursed. "I knew they were planning something! What now?"
"I'll stay with Betty. I'm stronger than you, Senko. You—go after the girl."
"…Fine. I'll do it."