The development that occurred during the final battle of Round 1 was very predictable to someone as wise as Viers.

  The crystal-walled fort created by Prince Lutz became the final bastion of humanity (in Round 1) and the stronghold valiantly resisted the incursion of the black pest monsters.

  Some twenty groups were here. Many of them weren't fighting with all of their party members. Some got eliminated from the competition earlier or shared the room with Viers in the infirmary.

  The assault of the roaches was relentless. The perimeter of the fort became a meat grinder as a result. Very Starship Trooper-esque. The stronger Pathseekers such as Ciel played a heavy part in keeping the fort standing. There were other noteworthy individuals such as Prince Lutz.

  A bit odd but Farley and the others weren’t here… Ah, I see them. Under a new locust swarm far away from here. Those guys are here though. I gotta admit, them Rising Fortune folks seem to have a lucky star hovering above them to be able to come this far.

  Theus was here too, doing his utmost to be annoying and doing a pretty good job at it but Viers only gave him thought for a couple of brief seconds. He had a bigger fish to fry than the latest AYM, next in the chain after Prince Marvin who he sold to the Blood Church’s breeding pen.

  After a shitton of deaths and a gazillion of Victa spent, hours later the influx of cockroaches was finally slowing down.

  Viers coaxed Elvina, pushing heavily on the sense of camaraderie towards his team, to carry him to the rampart where he could at least survey the battlefield. His almost-fatal injuries were not faked so he needed her help. As she was a nice girl, she went on with Viers’ request.

  Suffering catastrophic amounts of injuries was an everyday occurrence during his three years of breakthrough to Level 4. He was used to it by now. It was not that Viers liked pain but he liked the gain at the end more. Even now his No Pain No Gain Arte was at work. He had tweaked the Arte to suit his needs.

  Viers based this Arte on an enviable trait of a certain warrior race from a vegetable planet. If they survived a near-death experience through extreme injury to the body, after they recovered, they grew much stronger.

  That was why Viers wasn't so averse to getting beat up and got close to 0 life. Close being the keyword.

  All in the name of power.

  When he and Elvina arrived at the top of the wall, he checked the condition of his comrades. They were fine, which was good, but it wasn't the main reason he was here.

  Arte - Euryale Sight.

  Viers used this Arte to the maximum to peer deep into the center of the Biome, where the cockroaches originated from.

  He saw signs of battle there. He recognized those people. With the unmistakable deva vulture and cobra, Prince Cassian and his group. With a black dragon flying above, Princess Celestine and her group. The leader of the final group was also easy to identify because he was a famous prince, Prince Vadym and his group.

  Those three groups were the reason the assault of the cockroaches became lighter. They caused so much destruction at the huge exit tunnel where the roaches came out, effectively creating a bottleneck.

  Prince Cassian and Vadym’s strength was as expected. The prowess of Celestine’s group was the unanticipated news for Viers. Yes, she had a dragon, and like Croix, the dragon was far from mature yet the group’s battle power was astonishing. After further observation, he found the lynchpin.

  There was a guy whose strength was a cut above the rest. He contributed the bulk of the kill score that Celestine’s group netted. Viers took a moment to recall his name, Stratos Gaelos. Apparently, his big brother was a Silver Legion bigshot.

  Power-wise, he’s like me, a few years older. Already a Level 4 under 25, a great achiever. His power is no doubt impressive and he’s not showing his real strength yet… My gut says this guy is super dangerous.

  Viers gave Stratos a high-danger rating and recorded his fights. He would use the data for the Grid to shadowbox later. If his intuition was correct, he’d need the practice fight against Stratos somewhere down the timeline.

  And no, Viers didn't think this was cheating or unfair in any measure. Because if that was the case, all Elden Ring players were cheaters once they failed to kill a boss on the first encounter.

  Yeah. And good luck with that with a certain consort. He will whoop your ass. He whooped mine 90 times before I killed him. Ohhh, the trauma… even deeper than Malenia or Isshin. Miyazaki, you madman.

  Viers shook his head to chase off the shadow of his mental scar. His primary objective for this scouting was to find out about the mystery of this Biome and why Duke Crowe wanted it so much.

  He suspected the Rank 5 monster that let out the screech earlier was related.

  Viers’ vision moved away from the three groups and went underground, switching to X-ray vision to see through walls and dirt. Past a complex of ant nest tunnels, he found a massive underground cavern. Of course, infested by roach monsters.

  Between the huge cavern and the surface, the tunnel that the roaches used to get out seemed to be man-made. Too smooth and too straight to be otherwise.

  There was a castle sitting there.

  Unfortunately, because of the roaches and distance involved Viers couldn't find out further details. He only picked up strong energy from there. Whether it was the Rank 5 alpha roach, Biome’s core, or valuable treasure he didn't know.

  Whatever it was, the castle was Duke Crowe’s true aim. Viers already sensed a faint but weird connection that the roaches had with another being. He suspected it was the Rank 5 and since the Rank 5 wasn’t coming to the surface, it was clear it was guarding its lair, the buried castle. Viers had a theory based on the facts.

  The roaches empower the Rank 5. The more they are, the stronger it gets. The Rank 5 is so strong that Duke Crowe won't risk fighting it at the heart of its lair. So the duke devised this competition to cull the minions using Latias young talents.

  If that was the plan, it was working pretty good. The Grand Prix contestants meticulously axed the cockroach population, about 70% of them I’d say. When this competition ends, the duke will swoop in, slay the roach alpha, and claim the castle and whatever secret it hides.

  Viers showed his Sherlock Holmes mode. Whether it was the truth remained to be seen.

  This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

  But it has nothing to do with me. My job here is done… A shame about the souls, though.

  The souls of the roaches numbered around the tens of thousands and he couldn't gather them. What a colossal waste.

  Oh well. I better not risk it with Ciel and Breiz so close in proximity. By taking less risk, my power growth will be slower but I also won't be jumping into life-threatening situations at every turn like so many xianxia MCs.

  Viers learned from those MCs. He might not harvest supermassive gain at every mini-arc but it also allowed him more freedom. His enemies didn't dictate the course of his adventure. Besides, his growth was still explosive enough thanks to his villainous ways.

  As always, he didn't finish Round 1 with empty hands; his harvest was quite good from the Power Spots and his Proof of Death had accumulated nicely. It wasn't as high as it could be but it was an acceptable net gain on his part.

  …Speaking of xianxia, normally, in a xianxia plot like this, the super treasure hiding underground will be taken by the MC who is a participant in the trial, stealing the supreme treasure under everybody’s nose. When Duke Crowe descends to claim his prize, he will find the grand prize missing. Poor duke.

  Viers wondered if it would happen in this instance.

  He continued data gathering until the end. Even though he didn't move much, the fort was abuzz with people going to and fro. He had some interactions with other people during this time.

  With his teammates during the brief window when they moved around from one breach to the next.

  With the Rising Fortune group, who didn't expect to see him in this faraway land. Both sides saw each other during the opening ceremony but didn't have the chance for a proper talk, which still wasn't even now.

  “Let’s catch up when things settle down,” Viers told the adventurer group.

  He ignored Theus’ attempts to rile him up and other insults from those who didn't like a commoner and foreigner like him participating and by the virtue of being Ciel’s (fake) boyfriend.

  When the clock struck midnight, the observers opened portals for the contestants to exit.

  They returned to the stadium from which they gathered three days ago. The returning people did so under the rain of applause from the audience. The contestants themselves were in high spirits, like soldiers having a triumphant return from war. Those who needed medical attention were quickly tended to by the medical staff.

  Viers was among them.

  While having his wounds treated by Pathseekers specialized in healing Viers missed the closing speech from Duke Crowe, which wasn't a loss at all in his book. He expected the summary and the result from Croix later.

  He didn't actually need treatment per se. There were no special wounds so if he supercharged his healing factor, he should be fine even if Round 2 was tomorrow.

  However, experiencing medical treatment firsthand was still valuable. Most Pathseekers were not healers, a minority could heal their own wounds but not others. One’s own Unreality Field field could stop bleeding or attach bone but was unable to truly heal them. And good luck doing that to others. Even Viers had given up on the attempt. Too difficult.

  As was common in Fables, healers were valued pretty highly. In that same regard, apothecaries, the ones producing healing potions and medicines. How could they not, in a world where fighting and conflict were so common?

  Viers analyzed the healers’ techniques and prescriptions to add to his library.

  On a side note, Viers could increase vitality from eating food rich in vitality like monster meat so why not medicine? Following that reasoning, Viers chugged a lot of potions in the past almost to having an overdose but there was no noticeable increase in his lifespan.

  Weird.

  “Hmn!!?”

  Suddenly, Viers jerked, surprising the healers.

  He chalked it off as feeling the pain when asked and laid back down.

  He was sweating rivers.

  ***

  “When you left in secret at the height of the battle, I wonder what was so important,” Princess Celestine said while looking at the black-colored gem of imaginable power at the table. The black dragon was looking at it like it was enchanted by it. “So it’s this.”

  “Sir Stratos, that’s-” Solany couldn't believe her eyes. “That’s a dragon core, isn't it?”

  “A Divine-tier dragon core,” Stratos said. “I don't know if it’s the equivalent of Rank 6 or 7 or above, needs more research, but it’s undoubtedly greater than Rank 5. Furthermore-”

  “Void affinity,” Celestine finished. “The same thing I feel from Serena. You got this without alerting anyone, including Duke Crowe. You’ve surprised me once again, Sir Stratos.”

  Serena mewed at Celestine, showing her desire for the dragon core.

  “You can't, little lady, this belongs to Sir Knight,” Celestine said.

  “And now I gift this core to you, my lady,” Stratos knelt on one knee and offered the core to Celestine like he was offering her a wedding ring. “It will honor me beyond measure if you receive it.”

  “Sir Stratos…” Celestine was dumbstruck.

  “Princess, you made me your knight. My loyalty is to you, forever. Besides, when I first lay eyes on the core, I already decided only one person is worthy of this, you.”

  “But…” While Celestine looked troubled, Serena was hopping around in glee.

  “If the princess finds this core is not to her liking, I suppose I should throw this out of the window,” Stratos threatened. “Surely it is worthless if the most esteemed princess has no use for it. Yes, most definitely.”

  “Princess, please take it,” Solany urged with a smile.

  “Even you, Solany?” Celestine sighed and her mouth curled to a defeated smile as she extended her hands to her knight’s offering.

  She cupped the core with both hands and pressed it to her chest. With shut eyes, she felt the unimaginable power inside the dragon core.

  “You are the finest knight I’ve ever met, Sir Stratos. A thousand thanks to you.”

  To Stratos, those words were enough, however when he felt the soft touch of her lips on his cheek. He couldn't believe it. He snapped his head upwards but Celestine already turned her head. Still, he could see the redness on her right ear.

  Serena was making her happiness known by running around the room with the core after Celestine bestowed it to the dragon. Stratos wished he could do it too but he refrained because he was still in the presence of the princess. His heart had been drumming loudly, he feared it would leap out of his chest.

  All the effort and the near-deaths to gain the dragon core from the underground castle were so worth it. Why? Because a kiss from a woman he loved was priceless! He would readily do it again.

  “...Hm?”

  Stratos felt something cold on the back of his neck for a brief moment. He used an investigative Arte but nothing was amiss.

  ***

  “I’ve got nothing,” Bai Songbing, cultivator of the Spirit Venerable Realm said.

  “I am also drawing a blank,” Tao Wang of the same realm said.

  “Same. Destiny is pulling the destined to events such as this but it seems we are fishing at the wrong river,” Wen Shenhu the leader among the three equals shook his head with a sense of disappointment.

  The three were hovering above the Crimson Capital of the Latias Kingdom. They were using their spirit sense to scan the entire city, especially the contestants that just returned from Round 1 of the Grand Prix.

  “Still, the young sprouts are too lackluster compared to back home.”

  “Peace, Brother Bai. A few of them are not half bad,” Wen Shenhu said.

  “Gaaah! How annoying. The Guardian Beast got himself killed and now we must search for his spirit core, as if it’s not hard enough already.”

  “We already knew the task would not be simple, Brother Tao,” Wen Shenhu placated the more temperamental of the three. “We must persevere for our great cause.”

  “Yeah yeah… So shall we get the Spirit Venerable Realm dragon core or what? Such a precious thing is wasted on a bunch of kids still in their diapers,” Tao Wang raised his qi. “It'll make the trip worth something, at least.”

  Behind them, Popess Salustia silently roused her Victa in response.

  “Peace, Brother Tao. We are not lowly thieves. Let us not stray from our mission.”

  Wen Shenhu turned to Sallustia and cupped his hands.

  “The guardian bull’s spirit core isn't here. Shall we go to the next place, Fellow Daoist Sallustia?”

  Popess Sallustia Amaris, the strongest person in the Lumen Continent, had the unenviable task of chaperoning three foreign dignitaries who each had the power of a nuclear bomb.

  The term herding cats didn't do it justice.