– Rias Gremory -
She sat in front of the City Lord of the city they were staying in.
Lord Mervin Vale was an elderly gentleman who gave off the feeling of a jovial uncle.
She, however, had seen his information and knew that this happy-go-lucky old man is a T6 Holy Knight, one of the best warriors of the Kingdom. He had been a Holy Knight for over thirty years already and could have been promoted to be one of the King's personal guards but chose to stay in this town, his hometown, to protect and raise the new generation of Knights.
He was very respected among the Knights of the Kingdom as a veteran who had led the Knights of the Kingdom to victory in many wars over the years till now.
As for how she was here...
The Knight's Academy had informed her that one of the people she had rescued during her Knight's Exam was a relative of the City Lord and that he would like to meet them personally to thank him.
Unfortunately, he had not been around back then, or else he would have carried out the rescue himself when his relative had gone missing back then.
The man had gone to the capital and then to some other place and hadn't even known that his cousin was in trouble.
Now that he was back, he had sent for her to thank her.
"Thank you for saving Rio's life." He gave her a deep bow. He then slid a small book, a Skill Book, towards her. "This is something from my side to show my appreciation."
She took a quick look at the Skill Book. It was the Parry Skill, something she already knew as Chief Nyanta had received two drops of the Skill and had given her one when she had started levelling up her Squire Class.
Let's see if this can be used to grind some reputation points instead. After all, he was a Holy Knight, and Rias was aiming to become one before she could become a Paladin.
Getting help from him would make things much easier later on.
"You don't have to do this. I just did what I was supposed to do."
"And I am doing what I am supposed to. Rio has been very close to me in my family. Saving her life is a great debt to me. This is just me repaying my debt. Please don't deny it."
"I… thank you." She accepted the reward.
"It's good to see such talented newcomers joining the Knight's Academy. With talents like you rising in Whitevine, who knows l… maybe in the future, we can also have someone like the Monster of Greenfrost among our ranks."
She raised her eyebrow at the sudden name that was brought up.
"Monster of Greenfrost?"
"Oh yes. It's the title given to the winner of the Greenfrost Tournament this year."
Seeing her confused look, he explained further.
"Greenfrost is a territory in the north of the Kingdom under an old comrade of mine, Duke Black. A few days ago was his birthday ceremony, where, every year, he holds a massive tournament for the fighters of his province. Both independent fighters as well as those recommended by major institutions like the Knight's Academy, Magic Tower, and the Church participate in categories according to their tiers."
That sounds like a tournament-type quest.
Rias kept it in mind for later. Maybe they could go there and take part in the competition.
The man continued.
"It's an interesting show. We old ones often bet on the outcome, and the winner gets the bragging rights for a whole year hahahaha. The last two years, the church has been winning. It was fun to see the constipated faces of old Ralph and David." The man smiled happily, like an elder telling stories to children.
So she too played the part of an interested youngster and listened diligently. After all, these types of talks can often bring unexpected quests and rewards.
The man continued, happy with the attention. "This year however..." He paused.
"What happened this year?"
"Normally when organisations recommend someone, they choose their best of the best as they carry the face of the organisation. And in such tournaments, players are all in the upper levels of their respective tiers, like 47, 48, 49, and even 50 of Tier 5. That's how it has always been. Even the anomalies like Mountain Crusher, Arnold Straight, and Ogre Slayer Bradley Star, two of the previous winners of the tournament, who can fight Tier 6 individuals with Tier 5. These people were awarded the position of City Lords, something that is exclusively reserved for Tier 6 due to their incredible battle prowess… all followed this rule."
She took some time to take in all the information.
People can fight at a higher level than their own tiers.
Lastly, only Tier 6 individuals can become City Lords; the only exception were people who have the combat power of a Tier 6.
Arnold Straight and Bradley Star were both such people.
"So?"
"This year, however, the Knight's Academy pushed forward a Level 29 as a recommended player. All of us thought that it was someone who had pissed off old Ralph badly or maybe slept with his daughter or something for the old man to be so petty, but all that was thrown out of the window in the very first round of the games."
By now, she was actually listening with great interest. The City Lord was a great storyteller.
"In the first round, the participants have to face off against three T5 golems controlled by magicians. This is done to eliminate the riff raff. These golems are quite tough, as even level 50 T5 Knights would find it hard to go up against their team alone. This boy, however..." The man paused, creating suspense, and she leant in closer to listen, already engrossed in the story by now. "He ended the match in seconds... seven seconds. He sliced through those Golems in one slash each at such great speed that we all thought he was cheating. That he was someone of a higher Tier or level, pretending to be a low-level player. We were wrong."
She gulped.
She had seen the knights in the town, and they were strong, but even among them there were only two T5 level 50.
One was the Vice Captain of the Knights, Cedric Brown, and the other was the assistant of the City Lord, Brutus Summers.
Both of them were completely different beasts.
She had seen them fighting, and their skill and power are incredible.
The current her wouldn't last a minute against them. So this guy, he must be strong.
Could it be that he was a major character in the story in the future? His story did give the main character vibes.
"After that, he dominated every match with skill, actually holding off going all out and honing his skills against the different players. The boy had already proved his worth for every senior individual watching, and we didn't think we would even get to see him going all out until the finals."
She could see the look of awe on the face of the man as he spoke.
"He defeated a very... very talented T5 Stalker, someone who could even fight T6 individuals with his ambush. No, saying defeated doesn't do it justice. He destroyed him, broke his will and spirit until the man was left with no drive to fight."
"Is he… not a good person?" She asked with a frown at the sudden turn of events.
"Oh no. No no no. On the contrary, he is as knightly as they come. It turns out that one of the players had had his companions kidnapped to have him throw the match. Thankfully we found them at the right time, but the boy kept holding back the entire match, not attacking until his companion was found; even when on the verge of defeat, he didn't attack. A remarkable quality. And apparently, from what I have heard, it was not the first time he has done something like that to save his companions either." He clarified.
That was a classic main character troupe.
She bet that the companion was some girl he will be getting together with later on.
The old City Lord, however oblivious to her inner thoughts, continued.
"It was when his companion was found that he started going all out. It was a wonderful fight. No, calling it a fight would be wrong. It wasn't a fight; it was a show, a show of dominance and brutality. The boy possessed the strength of a Tier 6 while being a Level 30 Tier 5. That's… absolutely unheard of." He finished and then shook his head with a smile.
"I'll be honest, I was hoping he would become a Holy Knight as he had used some Holy Knight Skills. He could have become one of the best Paladins with that kind of talent, but after that fight, I gave up that hope. He was a born Imperial Knight. Becoming anything else would actually do him a disservice."
"What is the name of the man?" She asked, hoping to keep tabs about him in the future.
Main characters always have the best missions around them.
"Arthas… his name is Arthas. He even has the same name as the Prince hahahaha. I wonder if there is some magic in the name. You should keep an ear out for his name. I think he even has a guild of his own. At least that's what his companion told us."
"Oh, what guild?"
"Fairy Tail."
…
…
…
…
"What?!"
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"That's some incredible story. Are you sure it's the same Guild as in the World Announcement?" Henrietta asked.
"I verified it with the City Lord… thrice."
"Wow… he must be incredible." Ley Fay said, looking awed.
"Strong." Was the only thing Koneko said, but it told her everything.
"He must be using some really good equipment and buff-type skills. I guess being the Guild Master of the first Guild does give you access to some good stuff." Chief Nyanta said after a thought. "I wonder if the kidnapping thing was some kind of timed quest?"
"That... makes sense. Still, if it wasn't, then he would totally be a knight in a shining armour from those stories, wouldn't he?" Henrietta said with a grin.
She did have some really adorable dreams.
Rias smiled at her words.
"I know, right? I even thought he was the main character of this world or something. His story did seem like one."
"Technically, all players are supposed to be main characters in this world." Koneko added with a hint of a smile at the corner of her lips.
Rias smiled at her words.
Knowing the truth about the whole Kuroka incident had done wonders for Koneko.
She was doing much better than before, as if she had again found a will… a goal to strive for.
Often times, she could even be seen making jokes like this and showing hints of a smile like now.
"Well, main character or not, it does prove that the Fairy Tail Guild is not just in name only if they have such strong players."
"Exactly. The highest level player we have in our team is Chief Nyanta and he is only level 30 of T4, while that guy is fifty levels above. Just how did they level up?"
She did have some ideas.
Maybe it was someone from the supernatural side of the world, like Ley Fay, Koneko, and her? Someone used to fighting and taking lives for real would find it easier to level up in the game... at least in the starting phase, when other players were still squeamish about taking the lives of other human NPCs.
Supernatural beings always had an advantage on this side. Even Koneko was the same with her hand-to-hand combat experience translating into the game.
Rias herself found it easier to learn magic than other mages. The same was true for Le Fay.
That would explain his initial growth over other players.
He must be a swordsman of considerable skill if he was praised so much by the City Lord.
"Umm… could he…" Ley Fay asked.
Rias understood what she wanted to ask and shook her head.
"The City Lord's description of him didn't seem to be similar to that of your brother. Not to mention, your brother wasn't even in the game when we got stuck here."
The girl looked down at the words, and she patted her head to reassure her. "Don't worry. We will get out of this safe and sound. I mean, if Arthas of the Fairy Tail Guild can get so strong, why can't we do the same? The City Lord has also offered to help me train, and once I become a Templar, he will teach me a rare skill." Looking at the rest of the team, she cheered them on. "We are going to win this game."
"Yeah!"
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Author's Note:
I am back with another chapter of 'Soul Art Online'.
I am really sorry for the delay in the chapter. I am stuck with some irl issues.
I will try to get the next chapter out early.
Anyways, several things happened in the chapter.
We got to meet? the trap vampire.
Rose got what she wanted… at least a bit of it.
Veena is the bestest wingwoman.
Rias accidentally broke the fourth wall.
The Next chapter will be lemony and then we will see how things are on Akeno's side of things.
Enjoy the new chapter.
Good Day, Peace Out.