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Time for the next chapter of Dawn of Courage. (Warning: contains mild language)
It had been a few days since the party fought and defeated the Owlbeast. They were nearing a large town, which had a massive building in the center of it. Sir Reginald was guiding the party, looking at the notes he had been given.
“Okay, here’s the deal,” he said. “The town we’re about to enter is Colisemus, home of the King of Champions tournament. We know that a Goddess Key is up for grabs as part of the grand prize. While I doubt the sponsors and hosts of the tournament will just give us the Goddess Key, we might as well ask and tell them why we need it. Otherwise we’ll need to enter the tournament in order to win it.”
Elizabetta’s antennae drooped, “So we’ll most likely have to do things the hard way in order to get what we need. And even then there’s a good chance we could fail, since this is a competition with could attract some of the toughest fighters in the world. We need to be ready for that possibility.”
Nova nodded, “Yes, but we can’t give up without a fight. Even I know that. We’re just gonna have to figure things out as we go. Now, does anyone here know anything about the King of Champions tournament?”
Nina shook her head, “No, sadly, we don’t. Even I lack the knowledge on this tournament. We’re gonna have to wing it and work with what information we get from the tournament staff themselves. But we’re good at improvising and finding workarounds to our problems so I have confidence we’ll figure something out. We just need to keep our eyes on the prize and hope for the best.”
Zeeker nodded, “Yes, that’s the best course of action, since this whole tournament will be a mystery to us. We’re just gonna have to do our best and hope we can pull off a win, since the competition will be pretty stiff. But like you said, Nina, we’re pretty good at thinking on our feet and improvising with what we’ve got so we should be okay.”
The party nodded before entering the town. The town, or rather city, was large, full of various stores, booths, and tents. And in the center of the city was a massive building that took up a good two-thirds of the city. The party made their way to the center building, where a pair of women in bunny girl outfits were standing.
Sir Reginald walked up to one, “Excuse me, miss. Can you direct us to whoever is hosting this tournament? We need to talk to them.”
The bunny girl nodded, “Yes, that’s easy. Go inside the arena, take a right, go up a short flight of stairs, and you’ll see a room. That’s Jake’s office. He runs the tournament alongside his brother, Eddy. Talk to them to get any information you need.”
“Thank you.”
The party entered the arena building, found the staircase, walked up it, and found the office. Sir Reginald gently knocked on the door. The sound of footsteps could be heard before the door opened, revealing a member of the Gallop Clan. He had steel grey fur, a black mane with a matching tail, green eyes, and a strong build. He was dressed in a warrior’s tunic with jean-like pants, fingerless gloves, and a headband.
“Hello, can I help you?” he asked.
Sir Reginald nodded, “Yes. Are you Jake? Or Eddy? We need to ask you some questions.”
The horseman replied, “I’m Jake. And if you need any questions answered then you came to the right guy. Please, step into my office and I’ll gladly answer anything you need to know.”
The party entered the office. It was a large office with a table in the center, a couple of bookshelves, and some other items on the walls. Jake took a seat on the chair behind the table.
“Quite the interesting assortment of individuals you are,” the horseman observed. “Anyway, what do you need to know.”
The party explained who they were and what they needed. Jake listened attentively to their tale. After a few minutes the horseman heaved a sigh.
“I understand where you’re coming from, noble Demon King’s champion party. However, I cannot simply give you the Goddess Key. Believe me, I want to, especially if it’ll help end this war with Muu. But, sadly, the Goddess Key is the special item in this year’s grand prize, along with the usual prizes. Every year we offer a new item along with the usual prizes, and the Goddess Key is this year’s item. So after all the advertising we’ve done we simply cannot give you the key even though it’s crucial to your mission. I’m afraid you’re going to have to enter the tournament itself in order to win it fair and square. Sorry.”
Zeeker sighed, “We were afraid of that. So, on that note, how do we enter?”
Jake replied, “That’s easy. I’m both the sponsor and the host so I can enter your names and group into the tournament bracket. Fortunately, we do have some spaces open, as this year’s tournament hasn’t attracted as many competitors because of the lingering threat of Muu. So we have an opening for your party to enter and I can take care of that.”
Sir Reginald nodded, “Then please enter us in the tournament. We need that Goddess Key, and if the only way to get it is to win it, then we’ll do just that.”
Jake smiled, “Good, I’m glad you understand the situation. Give me a second.”
He walked over to a cabinet, took out some papers, walked back to his desk, and took a pen out of its holder.
“Okay, you are the Demon King’s champion party. Please give me your names.”
Sir Reginald replied, “Our names are Sir Reginald, Nova, Nina, Kettu, Van, Zeeker, Angelo, and Elizabetta.”
Jake jotted it down, “…Okay, got it. And I assume you’ll use your party’s current title as your team name?”
“Yes, that’s fine.”
Jake made a few more notes on the paper before saying, “Okay, done. I’ll submit this entry form to my staff so they can get your names into the brackets. Now, before I submit your forms, do you have any other questions that you’d like to ask?”
Nova replied, “Yes. How does this tournament work and what are the rules and terms of the different battles?”
“Well, for starters, the tournament as a whole is a knockout tournament. Whenever a party loses a round they are done. We have four arenas inside this building, and each one has a different gimmick. There is the Trial by Fire Hall, Null Magic Hall, Survival Hall, and the Hall of Champions. You need to complete the first three challenges before you can fight in the Hall of Champions, where the final battle will take place. Each arena has a different type of battling style and rules. For example, in the Trial by Fire Hall you select three of your teammates and you fight against another team one-on-one on platforms suspended over lava. Whenever a person is defeated on either team both parties rotate to their next available fighter. Whichever team is able to defeat the other wins and moves onto the next round. In that arena, ranged fighters are considered the most ideal, since while you can use the various floating platforms to move in closer to attack it’s better to have attacks and abilities that fight from a range. Also, as a final note, you only fight in each arena once if you win the round, so you won’t fight in the Trial by Fire Hall twice, and each arena and what teams will be fighting will be chosen by lotto. Each arena’s gimmick will be explained to you before each battle. But that should give you the gist of how this works.”
Sir Reginald nodded, “Thank you, that does explain things quite nicely. When does the tournament start officially?”
Jake replied, “Not for another three days so you have time to prepare and train if need be. We offer great weapon shops both outside and inside the arena so if you want to upgrade your equipment then do so. And competitors get to stay at the inn free, since this is a multi-day event. And you don’t have to worry about any casualties or injuries, as we’ve got some of the best healers in the kingdom here, and we have a 100 percent safety rating. The rest will be explained as the tournament progresses. I hope that helped.”
Nova nodded, “Yes, we’ve got the information down. Thank you for explaining things to us, as this is kind of a first for us.”
Jake smiled, “Happy to help. If you have any other questions you can either ask me, my brother Eddy, or any of the staff for any details you need. Now, let me submit this entry form so you can be put into the brackets. Like I said the tournament starts in three days so you have time to prepare and take care of anything needed before the fighting can begin. Good luck.”
The party nodded and left the office and returned outside.
“Let’s check out the weapon shops and see if they can offer anything interesting,” Angelo suggested. “It might not hurt for some of us to upgrade our weapons. I know my rapier is getting a tad dull.”
Elizabetta looked at her boomerangs, “And my boomerangs could use replacing.”
Sir Reginald nodded, “Fine with me. We might as well check things out and get a feel for the arena before the fighting begins. So let’s go and see if we can upgrade our gear before the tournament starts.”
The party wandered around the city, checking out the various shops and weapon stores, purchasing anything they felt would be needed. Soon it was starting to get late so the party made their way toward the inn. After explaining they were competitors to the innkeeper, who took a moment to verify the information, they were given free rooms. They retreated to their rooms to rest until dinner.
Nova sat down at the desk and took out his crafting tools and materials, saying, “I might as well do some crafting, since we have time. Maybe I can open my shop while we’re waiting for the tournament to begin.”
Zeeker, who was checking out his new claw weapons, replied, “That’s a good idea. And I’m certain some of the competitors would be interested in your unique magical accessories. And since we asked one of the staff about items like magical accessories in the tournament, which we’ve confirmed are allowed, then I’d bet the various warriors and such would love some of your wares.”
Kettu nodded, “Indeed. And it wouldn’t hurt to get a few extra coins for the road. Especially since we just spent some decent cash on new weapons for Nina, Zeeker, Angelo, Elizabetta, and myself. Having a bit more pocket change for later on would be ideal. Plus I’m certain that, by now, even the warriors in this kingdom have heard of your magical accessory shop. So they’d probably want to buy some for both the tournament and the road ahead.”
“My thoughts exactly,” Nova said. “I just hope that we don’t have to deal with any other issues like Dominic. We’ve got enough to worry about right now so the fewer headaches we have to contend with the better.”
“Fair point,” Zeeker said. “So let’s hope that simply winning the tournament is the only thing we need to worry about.”
Nova resumed working on his magical accessories while the rest of the group relaxed. Soon dinner was served, prompting the party to go downstairs and eat. After clearing their plates they returned to their rooms to rest. They knew that they had to be ready for the fights ahead in hopes of winning the Goddess Key. Little did they know that a lone figure was standing outside of the arena, eyes gleaming.
The next day the party was running errands, still prepping for the King of Champions tournament. They had learned a couple of other teams had entered since they did, ensuring that the tournament would have a full bracket.
Nova and Nina had set up his magical accessory shop, both to make some extra coins and to see if they could fish for any information regarding Muu or their soon-to-be opponents. It wasn’t long before some customers would be attracted to their wares.
A group of warriors consisting of a human swordsman, a female elven thief, and what looked like a male axe-wielding naga soon spotted the duo’s shop. Curious, they approached the blanket where Nova and Nina were sitting.
The human swordsman asked, “Excuse me, but are you selling magical accessories?”
Nova nodded, “Yes. These are my custom creations. Would you like to take a look?”
The elven thief replied, “Wait. Aren’t you the Demon King’s champion? I’ve heard from my fellow elves that you not only helped us during the King’s Hunt Festival but also sell special magical accessories on the side. If so then it’s said you’ve got some very unique creations that no one else has. Plus you don’t have that annoying one item per person, per day rule that most other magical accessory merchants have. Boys, let’s purchase something, as this may be our only chance.”
The trio nodded and began examining Nova’s wares, asking questions every so often about certain items. Soon they had settled on some items.
Nova flipped through his notebook, “Okay, that’s one Zephyr Charm, one Muscle Ring, one Gale Glove, three Belladonna Rings, one Heal Armlet, and one Splash Armlet. In total that comes to 111 silver, or one gold and 11 silver, whichever is more convenient.”
The trio exchanged looks before the swordsman replied, “You have a deal.”
He paid Nova one gold and 11 silver, which he pocketed, before the trio of warriors equipped themselves with their new magical accessories.
“I feel stronger already,” the male naga said.
“And these items were so affordable,” the female elf chimed in. “Especially compared with other magical accessory merchants. And the quality leaves nothing to be desired. So it’s true what my fellow elves have said about you.”
The swordsman then asked, “By the way, why are you here?”
Nina replied, “We entered the tournament because we need something from the grand prize. I won’t say what but it could make or break the war with Muu if we’re able to get it. That’s all you need to know. In any case, spread the word about our shop, as we’re open for business to anyone, be it travelers or participants. Unless you’re name is Dominic Flight, that is. He’s the only one blacklisted from our shop. But please spread the word about our wares to others, as we take great pride in our work and they may not get another chance to purchase our unique goods.”
The trio exchanged a nod before moving on. It wasn’t long before more people came to the duo’s magical accessory shop, eager to purchase some new items. For about an hour and a half the duo bartered with the various people and warriors that wanted to buy their unique creations. Soon the last buyer walked away, new item in tow, allowing the duo to rest for a bit.
“So far so good,” Nina said. “We’ve made a decent profit at this point. And we managed to fish for a few rumors and bits of information, including some dirt on what teams will be participating in the King of Champions tournament. After all, knowledge on the enemy is crucial to succeeding in our endeavor.”
Nova nodded, taking a moment to refreshen his display, “You said it, Nina. At least we’re getting the general idea of what teams will be facing. Hopefully we can use that information to come out on top and win. Now, enough of this, as I see a few more customers approaching.”
Nina looked up to see a cluster of people approach their magical accessory shop, curious and eager to see what the duo had to offer. For the next hour Nova and Nina sold more of their creations to the various travelers, warriors, and mages. Soon the last mage walked away, new trinket in their possession, allowing the duo to relax a bit.
A familiar voice chuckled, “Looks like you two are killing it again.”
The duo turned to see the rest of the party walk up.
“Hey, gang,” Nova said. “Completed all your errands?”
Van nodded, “Yes, we’re finished. We think we’ve gotten enough for both the tournament and road ahead. Why don’t you two pack it up for now so you can take a break and get some lunch? I’m certain you could use some refreshments after all that.”
Nina nodded, “Sure, sounds good. And since we have another day before the tournament starts maybe we can open up our shop a second time while we’re at it. Anyway, let’s pack it up, beloved, and get some food in our bellies.”
Nova nodded and began packing up his magical accessory shop. Soon he was done, strapping his Digi-Pack back on, and the party went to one of the local restaurants to eat. They knew that the tournament would be intense but were determined to win.
Next Chapter: Trial by Fire Hall
That's all for today. And some trivia, this event is an expy of the Contest of Champions from Breath of Fire 3, complete with horseman brothers as sponsors (albeit they're good guys compared to Balio and Sunder). Tune in next time to see what our heroes face.
The King of Champions Tournament
It had been a few days since the party fought and defeated the Owlbeast. They were nearing a large town, which had a massive building in the center of it. Sir Reginald was guiding the party, looking at the notes he had been given.
“Okay, here’s the deal,” he said. “The town we’re about to enter is Colisemus, home of the King of Champions tournament. We know that a Goddess Key is up for grabs as part of the grand prize. While I doubt the sponsors and hosts of the tournament will just give us the Goddess Key, we might as well ask and tell them why we need it. Otherwise we’ll need to enter the tournament in order to win it.”
Elizabetta’s antennae drooped, “So we’ll most likely have to do things the hard way in order to get what we need. And even then there’s a good chance we could fail, since this is a competition with could attract some of the toughest fighters in the world. We need to be ready for that possibility.”
Nova nodded, “Yes, but we can’t give up without a fight. Even I know that. We’re just gonna have to figure things out as we go. Now, does anyone here know anything about the King of Champions tournament?”
Nina shook her head, “No, sadly, we don’t. Even I lack the knowledge on this tournament. We’re gonna have to wing it and work with what information we get from the tournament staff themselves. But we’re good at improvising and finding workarounds to our problems so I have confidence we’ll figure something out. We just need to keep our eyes on the prize and hope for the best.”
Zeeker nodded, “Yes, that’s the best course of action, since this whole tournament will be a mystery to us. We’re just gonna have to do our best and hope we can pull off a win, since the competition will be pretty stiff. But like you said, Nina, we’re pretty good at thinking on our feet and improvising with what we’ve got so we should be okay.”
The party nodded before entering the town. The town, or rather city, was large, full of various stores, booths, and tents. And in the center of the city was a massive building that took up a good two-thirds of the city. The party made their way to the center building, where a pair of women in bunny girl outfits were standing.
Sir Reginald walked up to one, “Excuse me, miss. Can you direct us to whoever is hosting this tournament? We need to talk to them.”
The bunny girl nodded, “Yes, that’s easy. Go inside the arena, take a right, go up a short flight of stairs, and you’ll see a room. That’s Jake’s office. He runs the tournament alongside his brother, Eddy. Talk to them to get any information you need.”
“Thank you.”
The party entered the arena building, found the staircase, walked up it, and found the office. Sir Reginald gently knocked on the door. The sound of footsteps could be heard before the door opened, revealing a member of the Gallop Clan. He had steel grey fur, a black mane with a matching tail, green eyes, and a strong build. He was dressed in a warrior’s tunic with jean-like pants, fingerless gloves, and a headband.
“Hello, can I help you?” he asked.
Sir Reginald nodded, “Yes. Are you Jake? Or Eddy? We need to ask you some questions.”
The horseman replied, “I’m Jake. And if you need any questions answered then you came to the right guy. Please, step into my office and I’ll gladly answer anything you need to know.”
The party entered the office. It was a large office with a table in the center, a couple of bookshelves, and some other items on the walls. Jake took a seat on the chair behind the table.
“Quite the interesting assortment of individuals you are,” the horseman observed. “Anyway, what do you need to know.”
The party explained who they were and what they needed. Jake listened attentively to their tale. After a few minutes the horseman heaved a sigh.
“I understand where you’re coming from, noble Demon King’s champion party. However, I cannot simply give you the Goddess Key. Believe me, I want to, especially if it’ll help end this war with Muu. But, sadly, the Goddess Key is the special item in this year’s grand prize, along with the usual prizes. Every year we offer a new item along with the usual prizes, and the Goddess Key is this year’s item. So after all the advertising we’ve done we simply cannot give you the key even though it’s crucial to your mission. I’m afraid you’re going to have to enter the tournament itself in order to win it fair and square. Sorry.”
Zeeker sighed, “We were afraid of that. So, on that note, how do we enter?”
Jake replied, “That’s easy. I’m both the sponsor and the host so I can enter your names and group into the tournament bracket. Fortunately, we do have some spaces open, as this year’s tournament hasn’t attracted as many competitors because of the lingering threat of Muu. So we have an opening for your party to enter and I can take care of that.”
Sir Reginald nodded, “Then please enter us in the tournament. We need that Goddess Key, and if the only way to get it is to win it, then we’ll do just that.”
Jake smiled, “Good, I’m glad you understand the situation. Give me a second.”
He walked over to a cabinet, took out some papers, walked back to his desk, and took a pen out of its holder.
“Okay, you are the Demon King’s champion party. Please give me your names.”
Sir Reginald replied, “Our names are Sir Reginald, Nova, Nina, Kettu, Van, Zeeker, Angelo, and Elizabetta.”
Jake jotted it down, “…Okay, got it. And I assume you’ll use your party’s current title as your team name?”
“Yes, that’s fine.”
Jake made a few more notes on the paper before saying, “Okay, done. I’ll submit this entry form to my staff so they can get your names into the brackets. Now, before I submit your forms, do you have any other questions that you’d like to ask?”
Nova replied, “Yes. How does this tournament work and what are the rules and terms of the different battles?”
“Well, for starters, the tournament as a whole is a knockout tournament. Whenever a party loses a round they are done. We have four arenas inside this building, and each one has a different gimmick. There is the Trial by Fire Hall, Null Magic Hall, Survival Hall, and the Hall of Champions. You need to complete the first three challenges before you can fight in the Hall of Champions, where the final battle will take place. Each arena has a different type of battling style and rules. For example, in the Trial by Fire Hall you select three of your teammates and you fight against another team one-on-one on platforms suspended over lava. Whenever a person is defeated on either team both parties rotate to their next available fighter. Whichever team is able to defeat the other wins and moves onto the next round. In that arena, ranged fighters are considered the most ideal, since while you can use the various floating platforms to move in closer to attack it’s better to have attacks and abilities that fight from a range. Also, as a final note, you only fight in each arena once if you win the round, so you won’t fight in the Trial by Fire Hall twice, and each arena and what teams will be fighting will be chosen by lotto. Each arena’s gimmick will be explained to you before each battle. But that should give you the gist of how this works.”
Sir Reginald nodded, “Thank you, that does explain things quite nicely. When does the tournament start officially?”
Jake replied, “Not for another three days so you have time to prepare and train if need be. We offer great weapon shops both outside and inside the arena so if you want to upgrade your equipment then do so. And competitors get to stay at the inn free, since this is a multi-day event. And you don’t have to worry about any casualties or injuries, as we’ve got some of the best healers in the kingdom here, and we have a 100 percent safety rating. The rest will be explained as the tournament progresses. I hope that helped.”
Nova nodded, “Yes, we’ve got the information down. Thank you for explaining things to us, as this is kind of a first for us.”
Jake smiled, “Happy to help. If you have any other questions you can either ask me, my brother Eddy, or any of the staff for any details you need. Now, let me submit this entry form so you can be put into the brackets. Like I said the tournament starts in three days so you have time to prepare and take care of anything needed before the fighting can begin. Good luck.”
The party nodded and left the office and returned outside.
“Let’s check out the weapon shops and see if they can offer anything interesting,” Angelo suggested. “It might not hurt for some of us to upgrade our weapons. I know my rapier is getting a tad dull.”
Elizabetta looked at her boomerangs, “And my boomerangs could use replacing.”
Sir Reginald nodded, “Fine with me. We might as well check things out and get a feel for the arena before the fighting begins. So let’s go and see if we can upgrade our gear before the tournament starts.”
The party wandered around the city, checking out the various shops and weapon stores, purchasing anything they felt would be needed. Soon it was starting to get late so the party made their way toward the inn. After explaining they were competitors to the innkeeper, who took a moment to verify the information, they were given free rooms. They retreated to their rooms to rest until dinner.
Nova sat down at the desk and took out his crafting tools and materials, saying, “I might as well do some crafting, since we have time. Maybe I can open my shop while we’re waiting for the tournament to begin.”
Zeeker, who was checking out his new claw weapons, replied, “That’s a good idea. And I’m certain some of the competitors would be interested in your unique magical accessories. And since we asked one of the staff about items like magical accessories in the tournament, which we’ve confirmed are allowed, then I’d bet the various warriors and such would love some of your wares.”
Kettu nodded, “Indeed. And it wouldn’t hurt to get a few extra coins for the road. Especially since we just spent some decent cash on new weapons for Nina, Zeeker, Angelo, Elizabetta, and myself. Having a bit more pocket change for later on would be ideal. Plus I’m certain that, by now, even the warriors in this kingdom have heard of your magical accessory shop. So they’d probably want to buy some for both the tournament and the road ahead.”
“My thoughts exactly,” Nova said. “I just hope that we don’t have to deal with any other issues like Dominic. We’ve got enough to worry about right now so the fewer headaches we have to contend with the better.”
“Fair point,” Zeeker said. “So let’s hope that simply winning the tournament is the only thing we need to worry about.”
Nova resumed working on his magical accessories while the rest of the group relaxed. Soon dinner was served, prompting the party to go downstairs and eat. After clearing their plates they returned to their rooms to rest. They knew that they had to be ready for the fights ahead in hopes of winning the Goddess Key. Little did they know that a lone figure was standing outside of the arena, eyes gleaming.
The next day the party was running errands, still prepping for the King of Champions tournament. They had learned a couple of other teams had entered since they did, ensuring that the tournament would have a full bracket.
Nova and Nina had set up his magical accessory shop, both to make some extra coins and to see if they could fish for any information regarding Muu or their soon-to-be opponents. It wasn’t long before some customers would be attracted to their wares.
A group of warriors consisting of a human swordsman, a female elven thief, and what looked like a male axe-wielding naga soon spotted the duo’s shop. Curious, they approached the blanket where Nova and Nina were sitting.
The human swordsman asked, “Excuse me, but are you selling magical accessories?”
Nova nodded, “Yes. These are my custom creations. Would you like to take a look?”
The elven thief replied, “Wait. Aren’t you the Demon King’s champion? I’ve heard from my fellow elves that you not only helped us during the King’s Hunt Festival but also sell special magical accessories on the side. If so then it’s said you’ve got some very unique creations that no one else has. Plus you don’t have that annoying one item per person, per day rule that most other magical accessory merchants have. Boys, let’s purchase something, as this may be our only chance.”
The trio nodded and began examining Nova’s wares, asking questions every so often about certain items. Soon they had settled on some items.
Nova flipped through his notebook, “Okay, that’s one Zephyr Charm, one Muscle Ring, one Gale Glove, three Belladonna Rings, one Heal Armlet, and one Splash Armlet. In total that comes to 111 silver, or one gold and 11 silver, whichever is more convenient.”
The trio exchanged looks before the swordsman replied, “You have a deal.”
He paid Nova one gold and 11 silver, which he pocketed, before the trio of warriors equipped themselves with their new magical accessories.
“I feel stronger already,” the male naga said.
“And these items were so affordable,” the female elf chimed in. “Especially compared with other magical accessory merchants. And the quality leaves nothing to be desired. So it’s true what my fellow elves have said about you.”
The swordsman then asked, “By the way, why are you here?”
Nina replied, “We entered the tournament because we need something from the grand prize. I won’t say what but it could make or break the war with Muu if we’re able to get it. That’s all you need to know. In any case, spread the word about our shop, as we’re open for business to anyone, be it travelers or participants. Unless you’re name is Dominic Flight, that is. He’s the only one blacklisted from our shop. But please spread the word about our wares to others, as we take great pride in our work and they may not get another chance to purchase our unique goods.”
The trio exchanged a nod before moving on. It wasn’t long before more people came to the duo’s magical accessory shop, eager to purchase some new items. For about an hour and a half the duo bartered with the various people and warriors that wanted to buy their unique creations. Soon the last buyer walked away, new item in tow, allowing the duo to rest for a bit.
“So far so good,” Nina said. “We’ve made a decent profit at this point. And we managed to fish for a few rumors and bits of information, including some dirt on what teams will be participating in the King of Champions tournament. After all, knowledge on the enemy is crucial to succeeding in our endeavor.”
Nova nodded, taking a moment to refreshen his display, “You said it, Nina. At least we’re getting the general idea of what teams will be facing. Hopefully we can use that information to come out on top and win. Now, enough of this, as I see a few more customers approaching.”
Nina looked up to see a cluster of people approach their magical accessory shop, curious and eager to see what the duo had to offer. For the next hour Nova and Nina sold more of their creations to the various travelers, warriors, and mages. Soon the last mage walked away, new trinket in their possession, allowing the duo to relax a bit.
A familiar voice chuckled, “Looks like you two are killing it again.”
The duo turned to see the rest of the party walk up.
“Hey, gang,” Nova said. “Completed all your errands?”
Van nodded, “Yes, we’re finished. We think we’ve gotten enough for both the tournament and road ahead. Why don’t you two pack it up for now so you can take a break and get some lunch? I’m certain you could use some refreshments after all that.”
Nina nodded, “Sure, sounds good. And since we have another day before the tournament starts maybe we can open up our shop a second time while we’re at it. Anyway, let’s pack it up, beloved, and get some food in our bellies.”
Nova nodded and began packing up his magical accessory shop. Soon he was done, strapping his Digi-Pack back on, and the party went to one of the local restaurants to eat. They knew that the tournament would be intense but were determined to win.
Next Chapter: Trial by Fire Hall
That's all for today. And some trivia, this event is an expy of the Contest of Champions from Breath of Fire 3, complete with horseman brothers as sponsors (albeit they're good guys compared to Balio and Sunder). Tune in next time to see what our heroes face.