Limitless Path

"Is there anything else?" Beth asked when they had spent quite a few hours reviewing documented accounts of the Grand Palace.

"That's all we have," Sera said with a shrug. "Even as the Black Dragon Clan Heir, I can't get to anything else. If there's more information than that, it's held privately."

"Well, we have a good idea what to expect from those," Val said. "I think we understand what's going to happen. Our roles are pretty obvious as well."

"They are?" Blood asked.

"Yes, dear, they are," Val said, scratching Blood's ears. "You're our spy and assassin, depending on the job. Beth's our fighter and intimidator. Sera's our social relations person. I'm the politics and command assessment person."

"Well, I'm glad somebody has it all figured out," Beth said in a slightly sarcastic tone, but with a smile taking the sting out of it.

"It's a good plan," Sera said. "We'll probably need to adjust on the fly, but depending on what happens, we'll also have the element of surprise on our side in a major way. We're all abnormally strong for our level, and if you don't actually reveal the physical form of your Ideal, Beth, then you'll seem monstrously strong for nor reason. Nobody would it expect to be your Ideal, so you could win a large number of fights without anyone even catching on to what's happening."

"Talking about it that way, I'm starting to get a little excited for this," Beth said with a huge grin. She was so powerful now that her very excitement caused the area around her to very slightly distort, like heat waves just visible off a bonfire right after it started burning.

"You've got to contain yourself better," Val snapped, giving Beth a glare, which prompted a sheepish look. "Even without displaying your fire, if you do something like warp reality around you at ten rebirths, people can narrow that fucking shit down real quick. Even a Diamond Mana Physique won't do shit like that."

"Sorry, sorry, I'll contain myself," Beth said, still grinning.

"We should just take it easy for a few days," Sera said. "There's no reason to reveal any more than what we already have to everybody else, and it would be better to just relax before entering the dungeon. There's no reason to train right up to the last second and go in tired and stressed."

"Sleeping is always the best plan," Blood agreed emphatically.

Blood did exactly that, and while they couldn't get Beth to entirely stay still, she still only spent a bit of time training. The three days passed quite quickly, though Beth did remember to check in with the rest of her group and message her family during that time. When it was the appointed day and hour, they followed Sera's lead to make their way out of the main building and walk a distant of a couple miles to a building at the back of the massive estates that the Black Dragon Clan managed. There, they joined a huge gathering of people, most of them from the dragon clans, but there were both mixed groups like theirs and a couple groups without any dragon members that were clearly there for the opening of the challenge dungeon. Recalling what Sera had explained, Beth knew that those other external groups would have paid out the nose to join in this run of the dungeon, making her extra glad they had an easy ticket with Sera. The groups had plenty of people of different strength levels, all the way from a handful of Awoken to a group that had five higher rebirth Enlightened.

Sera's father kept it short and sweet, giving a very, very basic explanation of what was about to happen and the dungeon before signaling for the opening to start. A group of Elders and Clan Heads would use the array to open the dungeon and then teams would enter one-by-one. Anybody holding on to each other when entering was considering a group, so Beth and the others held hands when it was their turn and quickly stepped through the dungeon entrance. The dungeon itself, externally, was a huge building of some kind of ancient wood with silver, gold, and platinum adornments and inscriptions all across the surface. When they walked through the now open doors, they were teleported to a room with a matching theme, even the furniture having gold and platinum embellishments. There was a person in the room, which would be a surprise they weren't hostile considering the place was described as a dungeon, but Beth's group had been well prepared.

"Good, you're here," the man said. "I'm Team Assistant Nova, and I'll be helping you during the tournament. Our sponsor, Lady Amelia, is waiting in the meeting room. Make sure to make a good impression."

Beth muttered as Nova opened the door, "Tournament type. Yes!"

The man either didn't hear her little celebration or chose to ignore it, ushering them into a lavish sitting room with a tall, regal woman in a chair across from a seating group. This was clearly Lady Amelia, and the team gave her shallow bows, acknowledged with an idle wave, before they sat across from her. The lady clearly had some kind of dragon ancestry, as Beth could see some scales and the hint of small horns on her head, but she wasn't sure if that was how the dungeon always had been or an artifact of the dragon clans using it for so long. Amelia took a moment to look the team over, examining each of the four of them before giving a decisive nod.

"Good. I see you've brought your best," she said, which was clearly the dungeon working them into the scenario. "This tournament of champions is to decide the grant of a new duchy, and everything must go well during the running. You will fight under the banner of the White Flame during the tournament. I expect you to perform to your utmost, and that includes in scouting the other teams as well as preventing their own espionage. Team Assistant Nova will have further details for you. Do you have any questions for me at this time?"

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"As long as we're circumspect, it is acceptable for us to interfere with other teams outside the ring?" Val asked.

"If you are going to do more than simple spying, make sure it doesn't come back to us. It would reflect…poorly on my image," Lady Amelia replied idly, waving a hand as if to dismiss the thought.

"Then we have no further questions, My Lady," Val said.

"Then I will eagerly look forward to your performance," Lady Amelia said with a flick of her fingers, dismissing them from her presence.

The team rose and bowed, Beth only belated after a swift elbow in the ribs from Sera, and followed behind Nova as he led them out and down the hallway. They walked for a minute before entering a set of rooms that were clearly set aside for them, likely created in that manner when their team had stepped into the instance. There were more bedrooms than they needed, but Beth supposed the dungeon was just being safe with the numbers. They had their own kitchen, bathing facilities, meeting room, dining hall, and a training room. Nova brought them into the meeting hall first to discuss the finer details of the tournament with them before he left them to adjust.

"What's the overall structure?" Val asked after they were seated.

"It looks like we have thirty-two registered teams," Nova said. Not that many teams had entered the dungeon, so the instance had clearly generated some random teams to make up the numbers it wanted. "It's going to be a single-elimination tournament, but losers fall into a losers bracket for a second set of single-elimination fights. Winning the losers bracket isn't as good, obviously, but the prize is still quite valuable, so don't be concerned with a single loss destroying all your chances. Two losses, however…"

"Right," Val said, clearly taking over as leader for this instance. "What information do we have on other team compositions?"

"I have some preliminary data for you here, but many of the teams are just now arriving. I will compose more complete dossiers today and tonight and get them to you first thing tomorrow morning. The tournament's first round is scheduled to start the day after tomorrow. As Lady Amelia said, espionage is not just allowed but encouraged, as long as it doesn't circle back on us, and you might want to do your own investigations and even sabotage, if that is within your group's skill set," Nova said.

"We'll consider it, though I'd like a more complete picture of the teams and their sponsors before we decide to do anything…rash," Val said.

"What are the rules for the actual fights?" Beth cut in to ask.

"Standard rules," Nova answered. "Two teams in a large dueling field with simple terrain. Knocking an opponent unconscious or delivering a killing blow will teleport them from the field and fully heal them. The last team with at least one member combat capable wins the round. No time limit or time penalties apply."

Beth glanced at the others with a smile before clarifying, "And, are there rules on the number of on-field members?"

"The maximum is six, which it looks like we don't have to worry about. Team Assistants and Sponsors can't fight themselves, so however many people you've brought is what you can fight with," Nova answered.

"Excellent," said Beth, rubbing her hands together and grinning. The air didn't distort around her this time, or only a very tiny bit, but it was clear she was pumped about the fights.

"Do we know the brackets yet?" Val asked.

"We do, though we might not have information on the other teams," Nova said. "The brackets were initially made by using the sponsors to fill out the chart, so the White Flame will face the Green Stags first. Who is on the Green Stags, I do not know, they are a late arriving team, but I know the Team Assistant and sponsor well. Their information is already in the documents."

"We'll review the data," Val said. "Don't worry about the fights; our side has quite a ringer. I'm more concerned about countering the other team's espionage and dirty tactics. We'll be focusing more attention on that than anything else."

"I'll be sure to get the rest of the information as quickly as I can," Nova said, giving Val a nod. "If we need anything, contact me immediately."

"I'm sure we'll do fine, but please get the information to us posthaste," Val said.

With a nod, Nova took his leave, departing from the set of rooms they were assigned to continue his information gathering. The girls weren't going to let him have all the fun, nor rely on him for accurate and timely information, so all four of them undertook to scout. For Beth, it was browsing through the public training grounds and talking fighting with anyone there and the guards. For Sera, it was chatting with the staff and servants in the giant palace complex that the dungeon had created for this instance. Val went to politics with the lords and ladies, her time as the leader of the Young Scions and her training as the future leader of the Milky Way kresniks coming into play. Finally, Blood went to scout, but much more quietly and stealthily than the others, slipping through the shadows and trying to learn routes and accesses.

They reconvened the next morning after having worked all night, not bothered by the lack of sleep at their level. Nova brought them reports on the other teams, though it was just what he could collect. The most important of the information he gathered was the details on the dungeon generated teams, which Sera and the others would have no information on before they entered. Beth didn’t really see any problem with the dungeon generated teams, though one was clearly meant to clean up the weaker teams as it was a ringer team with six Enlightened on it that would be tough for a lot of the competitors to beat. Beth was thinking about fighting that team solo, but she was sure the others would have something to say about that. Still, their first two fights she was going to solo, as their first fight she could wipe the floor with even without revealing her Ideal and it didn't matter who won in the bracket next to them, she could wipe the floor with either team herself.

"You want to do all the fighting alone?" Val asked with a sigh.

"Well, these first teams are wimps," Beth said with a scoff. "I won't even need to try that hard."

"Don't get overconfident," Sera rebutted.

"Don't worry, I know my limits," Beth replied with a roll of her eyes.

"I would urge caution," Nova said, glancing between them. "Some of these teams are extremely powerful. I know it's not my place to lecture a group of Enlightened such as yourselves, but some of these groups likely have hidden depths that aren't readily apparent."

"I understand your concerns," Val replied, "but trust us when we say, only a couple of the strongest teams in this entire tournament would have a high chance of beating Beth if she fought alone. If all four of us take the field, we will win this tournament, provided we aren't taken out through subterfuge or other forms of espionage. We just need to make sure we do enough in the background to ensure it all comes down to the combat and we'll win the tournament, guaranteed."

"Well, having such confidence is quite good, but make sure you don't fall too much into arrogance," Nova warned.

Beth thought it was amusing how concerned he was, considering their power disparity, but she understood the warnings of not underestimating their opponents or overestimating themselves. Nova explained some of the finer points of the competition in terms of what sponsors to watch out for and what teams he suspected would try some underhanded tactics, which took them through lunchtime, before he left them to their own devices. It was strange being in a dungeon and not to be fighting for their lives, but they knew going into it that it was going to be a different experience than normal. Beth just hoped that the fights would prove at least a little interesting, as she wasn't interested in the other elements of the challenge.

Their plan was to send Beth out alone the next day to face the first team, which was a team that had come in with them. Sera knew the team, once they had figured out who it was, and said that it wouldn't pose a problem for Beth herself. It was apparently the heir of the Blue Dragon Clan, and he had entered with two companions and an Elder of the clan. The Elder would be the toughest part of the fight as he was a more advanced Enlightened, but Sera said that he just wasn't all that powerful, especially considering that Beth had her Ideal. Again, even without Beth actually manifesting it, her Ideal just made her a lot stronger baseline, so even many Enlightened were going to find themselves having an awful lot of trouble against her at this point.