Gacha Harem System

And just like that, two days passed quickly.

The tournament continued, and Lukas fought both his opponents the same way.

With the [Deathstalker Gauntlet] as his only weapon, firing beams at them at range to end the fights early.

He didn’t worry about damage, since there were healers on hand. He was putting this effort to keep his trump card, [Smite], hidden away.

Not to talk of the fact that if he engaged them in close quarters combat, his future opponents might be able to read whatever habits he had.

The only other skill he used was [Wing Fortress], which he’d already shown before. And even then, he made sure to keep his uses if it brief.

Everyone only saw him use it in a defensive manner, instead of offensively.

He could tell that most of the other competitors were doing the same.

They were all holding back, revealing their skills selectively, and trying win their fights without showing future opponents what they could do.

Of course, some were more successful than others, while most had to fight their opponents on equal grounds and ended up being pushed to the brink where they had to use their trump cards to survive.

The exception, as always, was Morgana.

She fought with the same plain steel sword, and moved at the same speed that was somehow neither fast nor slow.

She used no skills that anyone could identify, displayed no abilities that could be named or categorized, and won every match without even appearing to exert herself.

And of course, speculations had filled the city since then.

There had been rumors of her being A-rank circulating, and nobody could agree on who she was or where she’d come from. All they had to work with was her mask and lack of aura, so every rumor was equally as outlandish as the other.

Some say she was the City Lord’s hidden daughter. Others say her family died in a fiery battle and she was here for revenge against the City Lord.

But while they were speculating about Morgana, Liam Walker had confirmed what the rumors had already predicted.

He had advanced to A-rank during the two days between rounds, the news spreading quickly through the city.

So right now, he was the only visible A-rank in the tournament, and the guilds were watching with interest, waiting for someone to knock him out.

Because if he won, the Iron Fist guild would cement their place as the number one guild in Havenhart.

After his advancement, Lukas had considered if he should also advance. After all, he was already close. All he needed was a small push.

However, he decided not to. A no name B-rank Awakener like him making it to the quarterfinals was a beautiful underdog story of hardwork. But if he advanced to A-rank?

He would be bringing a different kind of attention towards himself. People would begin to wonder, does he really have a hidden backer?

So he kept the limiter on. No matter what happened, he was sure he’d win.

He kept this attitude through each day, and now it was the fifth day of the Prodigy Tournament.

Only eight competitors remained, and the quarter-finals were about to begin.

Lukas sat down at the edge of the arena, and at this point, only eight stone chairs remained.

Since the others had been eliminated, the remaining chairs were spaced evenly apart, and due to the size of the arena, this meant the gap between each competitor was wide enough that if they wanted to converse with each other, they’d have to yell to do it.

Rollo descended from above, moving slow enough that the crowd was going impatient.

He hovered a few meters above the center of the floor, watching as the anticipation grew in the crowd, before speaking.

"Welcome, citizens of Havenhart, to the quarter final matches! Today, we greet the eight exceptional Awakeners who have made it here. But now, it is time to defend your spot."

"Four will be knocked out, and four will progress to the semi-finals. Which one will you be?"

The crowd cheered at his speech. A minute later, he raised a hand.

"For our first quarterfinal match," he said, "we call on the first Awakener."

"A young man who has made a habit of ending his fights before they have a chance to become complicated."

The crowd was already cheering, each one knowing who was about to be introduced.

"He is decisive. He is difficult to read. And somewhere along the way, he seems to have collected quite a few people who want to see him win." Rollo’s eyes moved to the competitor seating. "I present to you, Lukas Valentine!"

Lukas stood, nodded once to the cheering crowd, and walked to the center of the arena.

"And his opponent," Rollo continued, "has achieved something that only two other people in this tournament has managed."

"She has reached the quarterfinals without sustaining a single point of damage. Not a single scratch has blemished her skin."

"I present to you, a fighter who doesn’t take hits, but gives them instead. Give it up for Rashka Lightfoot!"

A woman stood from the chair at the far end of the arena, and began walking to the centre with a relaxed demeanor.

She was fully armored, from her plate, to her boots, and up to her helmet, with every joint covered and the visor down.

In her left arm she carried a large shield that she held easily, and Lukas couldn’t tell if the shield was naturally light or she was just that strong.

But in her right hand was a sword that she twirled lazily as she walked, the blade reflecting the light of the sun into the stands.

Unlike Morgana, Lukas had seen her without the helmet before.

He knew she was a fierce looking drow, and her eyes were always calculative, as if she was always trying to figure out the best move to take you down.

It was because of her [Knight] class that she’d debuted as number three on the best sixty four rankings, and carried her through each subsequent round without even a scratch on her skin.

Only her, Morgana, and Liam had done that.

Lukas would also have been among that number if not for Kaida Steele and Ansel Potter.

She stopped across from him and raised her shield, bringing up her sword as she settled into a stance.

He couldn’t see her eyes through the visor’s narrow opening, but he could tell that her eyes were on him.

He watched her back.

Rollo raised his arm above them both, looked between the two fighters, and brought it down.

"Begin!"

***

A/N: Yes, I’ll still post the regular two daily Chapters.