Chapter 521 First Match
5.
That was his name now.
Born as the son of a simple woodcutter, Morgan had been delighted when he had been picked to enter one of the Big 4.
Aiming to reach the top, he had mixed with the sons and daughters of the higher-ups, who treated him like trash even though he tried to suck up to them as much as possible.
His thinking had been simple: coming from a normal life, his main goal was that he should never have to go back to having nothing. He wanted power and more resources, but because he didn't have any background, he was treated the same as everyone, which wasn't enough for him.
With the idea to become indispensable for this gang of arrogant, spoiled brats, he had become the one to do their dirty work.
Initially, it had been fine. As he was a gifted Warrior, and because he would never hesitate to resort to dirty tricks no matter what the situation was, victory was easy when he was dealing with those at his power level, especially if the opponent was someone who had grown up in the sect and, thus, didn't have much exposure to the outer world.
His mage skills were lacking, but he had still found a way to incorporate magic into his style to make sure that he could do as much damage as possible.
Most of his 'work' had involved beating up those who weren't like by the arrogant brats discreetly, so that they could gloat in the misfortune of others while not being scolded by their powerful parents.
However, it had all gone wrong during a certain exploit into the outside world.
They had gone to a village which wasn't affiliated to any Kingdom or force, and there, one of the gang had gotten carried away.
He ended up killing a family, but the Mayor of that town revealed that he was someone who had a connection with a different member of the Big 4, as the latter usually came to this town for supplies and recruitment.
The Mayor was going to send the report and condemn the gang to be reproached by their parents, which was when one of them had the brilliant idea to have Morgan slaughter the entire village.
He was hesitant at first, as the punishment was very severe. However, he was promised something that he had been looking for for a very long time: a proper Warrior Inheritance that gave him a method to strive to become a Champion. These were few and far in-between, so he had gone ahead and done the deed after taking payment preemptively, just to be safe.
He was found and sentenced to death, but that was when Morgan threatened that he would tell all of the gang's dirty secrets if he was killed.
The gang panicked, and his sentence was changed to exile.
This was just a typical story which had common elements with other stories of other rogue Fighters and Mages, but his had a twist.
He had been the one to make that member of the gang kill that family, after making sure that what he wanted was in the possession of one of them.
After that, even their actions had been choreographed by him by dropping subtle hints.
The problem had been that no longer how much dirty work he did, those arrogant sons of ******* would never hand out anything more than scraps.
So, he had created this elaborate plan, and the end result had been that he had been able to make a clean exit from all the politics and constrictions of the Sect with a big bag of Ker Gems, an Inheritance that included and Acquired Champion Path and the freedom to do whatever he wanted.
In other words, he was someone who was ready to do anything to live and prosper.
That hammer had made it very clear that his life was now in the hands of this King, who had somehow risen from being a target to a shark that was ready to devour them.
So, to live, he would win in this show, and do whatever it took to reach that goal.
Meanwhile, Daneel had sat back down with Raul, who was tonguetied.
"Come on, talk. Who do you think will win?"
Meanwhile, in the ring, the two seemed to have reached the same conclusion that they didn't want to have another taste of the hammer. They were circling around each other carefully, and because they hadn't had much of a feeling of camaraderie before, either, there wasn't that much push needed to make them turn on each other.
There were a few among the 21 who had known each other for a long time, but that definitely did not include these two.
Raul had just recently recovered from the shock that he was in this situation, so he had just been interrupted in an introspection of all the choices that had led to this moment by the King's question.
Well, what did he have to lose?
For someone who had pursued balance all his life, this was the most imbalanced thing he was seeing.
"Mor-"
"No names. Numbers. That's all they are to me, and the spectators. Well, except you, at least. But we'll get to you later. Answer."
Gritting his teeth, Raul said, "5 will lose, for sure. He's just an Eminent Warrior who has broken into that level very recently. He's even just an Exalted Human Mage. His opponent is an Eminent Mage who has quite a few killing moves up his sleeves."
"Oh? Let's see if you're right."
Watching as they circled for a few more seconds, Daneel got irritated and made his voice reverberate inside the ring, while making sure that this wasn't broadcasted.
"Stop circling and fight. If either of you is close to death, I'll intervene and save you, as I've decided that you will die by my hand if you lose. But if you win, you should be alive to claim your prize, right? Nothing is in your control, except for the chance to impress as many people as possible. Fight, or the hammers will descend again."
Nothing was more effective than the thought of having that body-shattering pain lace through their bodies again.
So, the two inside the ring conjured the same attacks which they had been about to launch at Daneel before, and…launched them toward each other.
…
"WOW! DAD, VOTE FOR 5! FLAMING PUNCHES ARE COOL!"
"NO, TORNADOES ARE COOLER! VOTE FOR 15!"
"It's simple logic! A tornado will blow fire out!"
Among excited cheers, the match that had started was now being heavily commented on by the children.
Meanwhile, the parents were having more of an…intellectual discussion.
"The muscular man looks like an honest Fighter. Look at his flaming punches…they embody the manly power of youth."
"Pfft! 'Manly Power'! Your wife should talk about that, not you! The delicate one is so much nicer! He looks like one of those nice kids who can take your daughter out!"
"Both of you, shut up! We need to analyze their attacks, not their appearances! Now, look, the fire punch is strong, but it pales in comparison to the versatility of the tornado."
"Yes, but look at the delicate guy running around while trying to avoid getting close to the other one. He definitely looks pathetic!"
"But the hefty guy is running away from the tornado, too! All of his punches are getting extinguished!"
Each turn of the battle was dissected into multiple components in this way, before each was judged thoroughly using what limited knowledge the citizens had.
They had been right, number 5 was constantly on guard against the tornado, which was being actively controlled by 15 to get near to his opponent's body while he either dodged 5's attacks using barriers or ran away.
Finally, the tornado with lightning bolts reached its target, which resulted in the hefty man being flung across the ring.
Hitting the barrier, he slumped to the ground, while Daneel prepared to pick him out.
The pure Mage was quite talented, and there even seemed to be a difference of two minor levels between him and the Fighter. The latter couldn't even get close enough to use his Fighter attacks, which had resulted in this loss.
Just as he was about to intervene as the tornado was nearing 5 and would soon kill him, he saw something that made both his eyebrows rise high up on his head.
"No! For my father, I must survive! I need to fulfill his dying wish!"
With acting that would have won an award back on Earth, the hefty man valiantly wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and shakily stood up.
The sound from inside the ring was being transmitted to the Network Trinkets for realism, so the spectators all heard this line.
Silence shrouded over the houses where boisterous discussions had been going on till now, while citizens gazed as number 5 heroically launched one last punch before disappearing from the ring, right before the tornado madly collided into the barrier at the spot where he had been.
This made many scream with fright, wondering whether that 'poor man' who needed to fulfill his father's dying wish had died.
However, the screen flashed once and went blank, before changing to show the two contestants standing on two wooden podiums.
It seemed that barriers had again been set up to stop them from moving, which became evident when the delicate man launched a punch and shook his head when his hand collided with the transparent membrane.
For the spectators, numbers appeared below each podium indicating the contestant's identity, while Daneel's voice reached them through the trinket.
"Press the 'left' button on the trinket to choose 5! Press 'right' to choose 15! Their fate lies in your hands! Choose wisely!"
No one even heard Daneel, as most were busy viewing the hefty man again, who had fallen to the ground after 'realizing' that he wasn't dead.
Daneel's instructions that he would save them hadn't been broadcast to the people, so they didn't know that number 5 could have known that he would live.
So, seeing him collapse on his knees and cry while looking as if he was ecstatic that he was still alive, it looked like he really had been ready to let death take him valiantly with that last attack.
"Daddy, 5 should live to fulfill his father's wish. Vote for him."
"Yes, we should vote for him!"
"Now that I think about it, he was pretty impressive. And the King did say that victory and loss doesn't matter. All that matters is whether he impressed us. 5 impressed me!"
"No, how can you believe that he's not acting?!"
"Did you SEE him cry? It was so honest!"
Although few were still skeptical, many had been bowled over by this 'performance'.
The votes started pouring in, and Daneel watched as the 'bucket' which indicated the number of votes for 5 started filling up.
Right now, he was…pretty irritated.
He hadn't expected that these Angarians would adapt so fast!
The hallmark of any reality show contestant was his/her ability to enter the hearts of the spectators through their performance. Clearly, the hefty man had aimed for that, and had succeeded, despite the fact that the other was more impressive than him.
This was an aspect of reality TV that Daneel had always hated. So, seeing it enter his show so soon, an expression of exasperation was visible on his face.
Even Raul seemed to agree.
"Heh. His father? What a joke. Morgan is known to be one of the most cold-blooded guys in the rogue circles. His father was killed by some human robbers, but I know for a fact that he didn't even bother to go for the funeral as he was too busy sucking up to others. The only one he values is himself."
This made the irritation in Daneel grow to new heights.
It was one thing if a person was being dramatic using the truth.
However, if someone was being someone they were not just to win, that…was someone Daneel wanted to squash.
Sadly, he could only bide his time. Forcefully putting on a fake smile, he spoke when the screen shifted to him.
"The people have spoken! 5 advances, while 15 enters the loser's pool! We will be having a 5-minute recess before the next match! Get some refreshments, but don't. Go. Away!"
In Ophelia's house, many shouts of happiness were heard, as most of them had gotten what they wanted.
As for the rest who had been skeptical, they could only grumble.
Just like them, Daneel was the one grumbling the most.
However, suddenly, it was as if the Gods above had heard his 'prayers'.
"Young King, I understand your frustration. But I think you have a chance to make it right. Focus on the spot where number 5 is sitting."
After the proclamation of victory, 15 had had a baffled look on his face while 5 had jumped into the air with joy.
After that, they had both been bound again and placed along with the other captives.
As Daneel followed Drakos's instructions, he smiled after a few seconds.
Immediately contacting the Network Crew, he prepared for a…'special' broadcast.
…
Back in Ophelia's house, people were chatting happily about how they had done the right thing. It was almost as if they had forgotten that that man had been about to kill them, which was something that those who hadn't wanted to vote for 5 repeatedly tried to remind them about.
Yet, that was shrugged away, with the reply being that 'Even the Wicked should be shown Mercy, sometimes'.
Ophelia didn't want to leave even to the bathroom, so her eyes were glued to the screen, which was blank.
When the screen suddenly flashed and showed a picture of two people, she yelped and shouted, "Look, it's back!"
Hurriedly, all the people assembled again, with some even buttoning their pants in the process as they had been in the bathroom.
They were all expecting another show, but it was number 5's voice which floated through the Network Trinket.
When they heard his words, shock, disbelief, and anger started to shine on the faces of those who had voted for him, while those who hadn't prepared to utter the biggest 'I-told-you-so's of their lives.
The beginning part of his conversation with the one bound next to him had been cut off, but the remaining was enough for everyone to understand the truth.
"-knew it! I guessed that those stupid sheep would fall for whatever sob story I spouted! They're only fit to be slaughtered! Hehe, my dad's only last wish was to never see me again because I stole his life's savings when I left! Well, in a way, it's true, cos I would have seen him if I died! HAHAHAHA!"
.....
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