Threads of the Soul

Woe was utterly stunned by the sudden turn around. He, like many others, was sure without a doubt that the victory belonged to the Japanese lady, only for it to quite literally slap her in the face and toss her to the side to make way for the Nordic snow man.

He was so occupied by the thoughts of the match, that he didn't notice that his Lord has spoken to him until he felt an expectant gaze boring into him.

"W-what? I'm sorry my Lord. My mind was occupied, may I ask you to repeat that?"

"You may, but really there is no need to be so formal with me. I asked you to tell me where she went wrong.

Was it simply a case of her powers being wrong?"

Woe tilted his head as he considered the question, reviewing the match over in his head. Not only did he think about everything that they had done, but he also considered what he himself would do in the situation.

Of course with his own powers it would have been much simpler, so his mind wandered to what he would have done with her powers instead. Not only did he think that was a line of thought that Corvus would want him to have, but it simply felt right on an instinctual level.

When he spent a few moments in silence, deeply considering the question, Corvus didn't rush him to answer. Instead the dreadful Lord nodded his head softly in pride for his younger brother.

Eventually, Woe raised his head with a resolute expression on his face as he answered,

"No my Lord. I believe she could have still won with the power difference."

Corvus smirked underneath his hood and gestured for him to continue, before leaning against Astra. She rested her head on her hand and leaned on the arm of the chair, idly dancing her finger over the paper tiger that Corvus had once more returned to her lap.

Woe gulped nervously at the pressure of both of their attention on him, as well as the feeling of others staring at him as some listened in on their conversation. They presumably knew the answer he was going to give, and could have guaranteed victory for themselves, but they wanted to see what this teenager had figured.

The intelligence and intuition of the younger generation was always the best sign of a societies progress and education.

He took a few more seconds to steady his nerves, ignoring the beads of sweat dripping down the side of his head before finally answering, trying to keep his voice from trembling.

"Her most vital mistake was ignoring the signs of his true nature. She cut him multiple times, yet not a single drop of blood was spilled. Perhaps it was due to her attempts to subdue him without killing him instead of the instant lethality that her abilities would usually allow that would have caused her to look over something so basic.

But it also led to her second mistake. Assuming victory and removing her guard because of it.

It might be another flaw caused the non-lethal sparring rules, as she assumed that putting him in such a position would mean her victory and nothing more. However he could have had all manner of abilities that would have allowed him to slip away from a position that seemed like sure death on the surface.

Instead of hoping for a surrender with the threat of death, she should have used her stealth opportunity to attempt to render her opponent unconscious. Perhaps then she would have discovered the truth of his body."

A smirk spread across Astra's face, although with the nature of Astra's expressions and the already nervous wreck that was Woe, it was not a smirk that reassured him. Instead it made him feel like prey underneath the gaze of a hungry lioness, one that was ready to devour him whole. ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ NoveI-Fire.ɴet

When she spoke, although she was trying to make her tone warm and reassuring, it sounded more like the tone the spider would use to lure something into her web. False sweetness laced with impending danger that made the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end.

"Well done, smart boy. But what if she had discovered the truth of his body. How could she hope to defeat him without killing him, when her blade doesn't harm him?"

Woe gulped again, his fingers fidgeting whilst his palms were slick with sweat,

"Master particle theory. Something inside him must be the gathering force. Find it and either trap it, or threaten that instead of his snowy shell. Even then, do not assume victory until it is decided."

Corvus nodded softly as Astra patted his shoulder, reassuring him that he had made a good choice in bringing Woe, even if he didn't need him to use his powers for any reason. This was going to be the perfect teaching opportunity, whether he won or lost.

Once the miniature pop quiz was over, the other nearby leaders quickly lost interest, even if a few of them were slightly impressed at the observation skills of the young boy. That was all it was, mildly impressed.

Any one with the right training would be able to figure that out, plus it was easier to say it all in hindsight and with an outside perspective. They would only be truly impressed when they saw how the boy handled pressure first hand.

While this lesson had been going on, the second rounds of fights had already commenced and were currently being carried out. However it was less visually appealing than the previous fight and had a much more obvious winner.

It was a fight between a German man and one of the Indian warriors. Unfortunately it seemed completely weighted in the favour of the German.

He was strolling around the arena with a cocky smirk on his face, a flask in his hand that had appeared from nowhere. He seemed utterly unconcerned with the Indian man, mostly because his opponent was stumbling around the arena like he was completely drunk.

The Indian could hardly keep himself on his feet as he stumbled and wobbled. Any time he staggered near enough to the German to put him in reach of his sword, the German would simply swagger backwards once more.

The 'fight' if you could even call it that didn't even end with a knock out. Instead, after a few minutes of staggering around, the Indian man collapsed to his knees and spewed his lunch all over the floor before flopping to the ground unconscious.

Thankfully, he managed to avoid falling asleep in his own puddle of vomit, but the drunken snores coming from the hardened warrior was anything but respectable.

Victory was declared for the German, who took a bow as well as another swig of his flask, before returning to the stands, while the Indian had to be dragged out of the arena.

A Kobold in a very frilly french maids outfit, the type you would get for your girlfriend as a joke gift, waddled out into the arena. With a wave of his hand, the pool of vomit was swiftly washed away and the arena was cleaned in its entirety.

It only took a few minutes at most until the arena was once again ready for its latest match, as its newest challengers stepped into the ring.

Corvus leaned forwards in his chair, leaning on his hands with intrigue and expectation as he watched Woe slowly make his way into the pit arena.

The young boy glanced over his shoulder at his Lord, who gave him a reassuring nod. Gulping softly, Woe filled his lungs with the smothering air of the strange world he found himself in, before turning to face his first ever opponent.