Once the chest-opening ceremony was over, Sheko was about to return to his seat to finish his chat with Yuso. However, he was stopped by GesStar, whose expression was unreadable since his avatar had a skull for a face.

  “We need to talk. In private, please. It’s important,” GesStar said, his tone serious and more urgent than Sheko had ever seen.

  “Okay, I don’t know what’s made you so alarmed, but I’ll come with you,” Sheko replied, trying to mask any signs of stress. Does he know I want to ambush them? Did Tsuno tell him about it? She’s known these people for one day, and she’s already betraying me?

  GesStar led him toward the tavern's stairs. Though the building appeared to be a single story from the outside, Hestia’s modifications seemed to disregard such limitations to accommodate the guests. Yuso said they also have a private hall. How big is this place?

  Once they were out of earshot of the rest of the party, GesStar sighed and began, his voice barely above a whisper. “It’s about your sister...”

  Thinking he understood immediately, Sheko jumped to defend her. “I know she’s prone to anger, but it’s manageable, and I think she’s trying.”

  GesStar paused, momentarily stunned by Sheko’s response, before shaking his head and continuing. “That’s not what I was going to talk about. Honestly, I haven’t seen anything like that from her. No, I’m worried because of her embryo. Did she tell you anything about it?”

  “No. I know she wanted a Maiden, but I think she would’ve told me if she got one. I thought she might be sulking in secret or maybe she hasn’t gotten it yet.”

  GesStar considered his words carefully before replying. “She did get it, and I don’t think she’s unhappy with the outcome. But that’s what worries me. She got a Gardner-type embryo—a marble golem... with your face.”

  Sheko’s thoughts scrambled. What does that mean? Embryos are supposed to be based on a person’s personality. Feeling a deep sense of unease, he asked, “What do you think this could mean?”

  “I’ll start by telling you what Tsuno said, since her perspective shouldn’t be entirely dismissed—distorted or dishonest as it might be. She said she looks up to you and values your opinions very deeply.”

  “Well, that’s a good explanation. It could be much worse, but I should probably tell her not to put me on a pedestal... almost literally like that.”

  “I’m glad to hear you think so,” GesStar replied, “but that doesn’t erase all my concerns. For one, you’re an adult—you could be lying to me."

  “Rude. Well... a little,” Sheko said with a weak laugh. “Sorry, please continue.”

  “Second, it has more to do with embryo personality theory. Everyone has their own interpretation of how embryos work; it’s literally impossible not to. From what I can tell, Gardner-type embryos, in particular, usually manifest from their master’s feelings of neglect or a need for protection.”

  “Thanks for coming to me with this before jumping to conclusions. I’m not sure what to say to Tsuno about it, but I’ll try to find the right words. I’m not the best at voicing my feelings... especially the ones I find hard to accept myself. Oh, I’ll tell someone if I don’t like them—I might even mock them—but when it’s something important, I freeze up.”

  "Well, you should think about working on that. I don’t want to pressure you, but I’ll check with Tsuno to see if you’ve talked. Not now, of course—I’ll give you some time, but don’t forget it. Anyway, I heard you’ve got a duel coming up in a week. I tried getting some info on Phantasm since I plan on watching your fight. From what I’ve found, surpassing level 500 generally requires a superior job. That makes me believe he has a truly horrifying embryo. You probably won’t close that level gap even if you forgo sleep entirely. So, what’s your plan?"

  "Honestly, I haven’t thought about it much," Sheko admitted. "I’ve got a cockatrice eye that I could maybe use to petrify him. Or, I could just make it a timed duel and run away until the time’s up."

  "Both are terrible ideas," GesStar said flatly. "The first might work, but I doubt it. His END is probably high enough to completely resist petrification. If he has any equipment with protection against it, it’ll definitely fail. As for the second idea, yeah, you can’t do that. You’re the challenger—he gets to dictate the type of duel."

  "I see. Well, I guess dying again won’t be the worst. My track record’s already bad," Sheko said dejectedly.

  "Don’t be like that. Where’s the crazy pirouette that distracted a raid boss for five minutes?"

  "But you already said I can’t make it a timed fight. I barely did any damage to the boss during the raid. I did less damage than some level 50 noobs!"

  "I wasn’t talking about damage; I was talking about spirit. Don’t give up. You have potential. I suggest you focus on learning how to duel as much as possible. Go to the arena and make it a show. Give everything you’ve got to capture the attention of the regulars. If you convince them to duel you, it’ll be worth as much as ten raids—well, maybe."

  "You think you can help me with that? I mean, making a show?"

  GesStar stared blankly for a moment, tilting his head slightly. "Sorry, still not fully adjusted to this avatar. I was thinking... yeah, I think I can help. But you’ll have to bring your best. Some people in the arena know me. If they see me going easy on you, they’ll lose interest."

  "I think I’ll be fine. You’re a geomancer throwing rocks. I’ve seen how they move. They’re fast for giant boulders, but I’ve gotten much faster since the last time we met."

  "Last time we met?" GesStar asked, puzzled.

  "Ha...? It wasn’t long ago. In the forest clearing—we met by coincidence while hunting kobolds in different spots. I was going to bleed out, and you gave me a potion."

  "Oh yeah, I think I remember now. That quest was a chore. Apparently, a master was behind it all. He was farming monsters in one area and released his kobolds to hunt players and NPCs."

  "Wait, hunting NPCs? Why do that? Sounds like being evil for the sake of evil. And a quest? I thought you were doing it because Kaizo made you."

  "For your first question, don’t tell others, but Tians are worth a lot of EXP. Like, way too much for their average strength. As for the second... yes, technically Kaizo told me to finish that quest. I screwed up our last job because. Of. You," GesStar said, pausing between each word. "You made me lose two days playing cat and mouse with that fat dragon. I’m not forgetting that. Now, about those leather bags with the gems—"

  Damn it, why did I remind him?

  "Yeah, what about those?"

  "I want one of them. Repayment for the potion and my time."

  "That’s insane, dude! You said the potion was a gift. And it’s not my fault I noticed you were kidnapping someone!"

  "Fine. Half a bag. Half a bag, or I’m not helping you get noticed in the arena."

  "Damn it, fine. But this is payment. You give me at least two hours of your time in the arena. I want to train against you as well."

  "Sure. So, are we done here?" GesStar asked, starting toward the stairs.

  Sheko followed him, handing over five zircons from one of his gem bags.

  When they reached the first floor, they were surprised to see the dining hall transformed. Instead of the well-lit space filled with dining tables and chairs, there was now a raised fighting ring made of basalt in the center of the room. The room itself had been altered to emphasize the ring.

  Inside it, a duo of small jade soldiers—one with a spear and the other with a bow—faced off against a marble golem of ...

  me? That has to be Tsuno’s embryo, like GesStar said. Seeing it for myself makes this so much more surreal. I get why it worried him so much now. Not to mention, she hasn’t even seen my in-game avatar to base him on. But he has a chiseled body like some Greek hero myth.

  The fight was already underway, and cracks covered the marble doppelganger. One of its palms was missing, and a deep crack ran along the shoulder on that same side. In contrast, the jade soldiers remained unharmed. They appeared to be giving the golem a moment to recover, as it was clearly losing the fight.

  Confused by what he was seeing, Sheko quickly caught up to GesStar and asked, "What’s going on here?"

  "This is a variant of summoner duels adapted for masters," GesStar explained. "We call it Gardner duels. Yeah, it’s not the most creative name, but it’s fun and relatively safe. There aren’t always enough arenas available for proper duels, but at least with Gardner-type embryos, they have healing as a built-in feature—usually. Then again, with embryos, it’s more about exceptions than rules.

  "Anyway, in Gardner duels, each master puts up their embryo, and they fight it out, usually until one submits. That way, the loss isn’t too devastating."

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

  "Okay, that explains part of it," Sheko said. "But how is it fair to pit Tsuno against Yuso? He has way more experience and is probably close to fourth rank, while Tsuno is only first rank."

  "Yuso isn’t using his full strength," GesStar pointed out. "His other soldiers are still busy catering the event."

  Sheko glanced around and noticed GesStar was right. Several jade soldiers were still moving among the crowd, serving drinks and snacks.

  "And second," GesStar continued, "Tsuno might actually have this in the bag. The golem’s been resting for about 30 seconds now. I think it’s ready."

  Sheko was about to ask what GesStar meant when the marble golem suddenly dashed forward. The jade soldiers were caught off guard but managed to react in time. The archer released an arrow aimed at the golem’s cracked shoulder, but the golem seemed to anticipate the attack, sliding beneath it.

  The spearman attempted to intercept the golem, thrusting his spear toward its face. However, the golem dived even lower, landing on its hands and spin-kicking the spearman off his feet. Before the archer could release another arrow, the golem struck its arm with a punch, disrupting its aim.

  At the same time, the golem grabbed the butt of the spearman’s weapon. Despite fighting for control of the spear with only one arm against the soldier’s two, the golem was winning!

  The archer dropped its bow and drew a short sword, lunging at the golem. Somehow, the golem moved even faster than it had moments ago, launching a high kick at the jade soldier’s head. The attack was obvious, and the soldier blocked it with its forearm before delivering a downward slash.

  The golem twisted its body, dragging the other soldier with it as it continued to wrestle for the spear. The slash struck the golem’s less-damaged shoulder, causing a large crack to spread across it, mirroring the one on the other side.

  Despite the damage, the golem didn’t falter. It reacted to the archer’s follow-up attack—a straight kick aimed at its chest, likely intended to push the golem off its ally and regain the advantage.

  Before the kick could connect, the golem pulled the spear with all its strength, lifting the jade spearman off the ground and hurling him into the archer. The impact sent both soldiers tumbling out of the ring, making Tsuno the winner.

  Sheko mimicked Yuso's expression, his mouth falling open in disbelief. She’s still in her first form, right? How has less than four days with Kaizo’s group allowed her to catch up to me so quickly?

  Tsuno walked up to the ring to celebrate her victory with her embryo. It smiled—a sight that felt alien to Sheko, as he rarely smiled with her or otherwise. In a sad way, it looked idyllic—a brother and sister celebrating together. However, when Tsuno noticed Sheko in the crowd, she immediately recalled the golem back to its crest and tried to disappear into the gathering as the next fighters were announced.

  The next duel was between Yuso and Mai. Since there weren’t many Gardner-type masters around, Yuso seemed eager to redeem himself, sending four soldiers into the ring this time.

  Sheko was interested in watching the duel, but he knew his sister likely took precedence. He wandered through the crowd, figuring she was hiding somewhere away from the others. It took him less than a minute to find her curled up in a ball in the middle of a darkened hallway.

  "You wanna talk about it?" Sheko asked gently.

  Tsuno looked up, surprised to see him. “I... uh, yes. I was afraid you’d be angry about Achilles. Please, I don’t know why he looks like you.”

  “I’m not angry,” Sheko assured her. “Mostly just confused—and maybe a little flattered. Listen, GesStar already told me about it. That’s actually why he pulled me aside earlier. He’s a good person. He said you told him it’s probably because you think highly of me and value my opinions. Was that a lie?”

  “No, that’s really how I feel,” Tsuno admitted. “You’re just so hard to talk to sometimes. You barely spend time with us. But you always rush to help when it matters. Mom knows she can count on you, and Dad really misses you too.”

  The subject of visitation days with his father was complicated for Sheko. It wasn’t because he didn’t know how he felt but because his family seemed to think his opinion wasn’t valid. He didn’t want to see his dad much, but his mom believed cutting ties wasn’t an option. Tsuno, being under 18, didn’t have a choice in the matter. Out of empathy for her and to ease his mom’s stress, Sheko spent every other weekend at his dad’s place.

  “Fine,” Sheko said after a pause. “I just wanted to say that I’m not angry, and I’m happy you could talk to me about this. But you should value my opinions a bit less. I think I have a reasonable outlook on life, but I can tell you my standards are unreasonable.

  "I compare myself to great people in history who changed the world—or at least became famous. I think people who are okay with being ‘just fine’ are giving up too much. That said, I’ve been failing my own standards for years now. It’s probably not healthy, but that’s just how my brain works. Don’t make yourself miserable trying to follow my standards just because you think I know better.

  “Of course, I’m not saying you should slack off. You’re probably as talented as me—maybe more so. You’re starting from a better place than I did, so make the most of it. Just don’t let it weigh you down.”

  “Okay, I guess,” Tsuno replied. “What do you plan to do about Kaizo’s team now, then? You said GesStar is a good person, but it doesn’t feel right to repay him by planning to kill his friend.”

  “It’s still a game,” Sheko said. “Player vs. player is fair. You just kicked someone’s ass with your first-form embryo. This isn’t that different. It’s tit for tat, you know? ‘Those who kill must be ready to be killed in turn.’”

  “Fine,” Tsuno said reluctantly. “I guess I should tell you what Kaizo’s embryo does, then, if you’re still planning to fight him.”

  “Oh, do tell. I was starting to worry you were backing out of the plan.”

  “It still sounds fun,” she admitted. “Anyway, his embryo is called Chiron. It’s that metal horse body thing—you’ve seen it. It has four modes based on the seasons, which you can tell by its current color and slight changes in shape. Each mode gives him different stat boosts and abilities. He said it’s stretched very thin, so it’s a lot weaker than other fourth-rank embryos.”

  “Alright, thanks. Want to come see me fight GesStar?”

  “Wait, what? Why? I thought you just talked and were fine.”

  “Well, yeah. He’s helping me train for my arena fight against Phantasm.”

  “Oh, okay. Sure. The party’s getting a bit too long anyway.”

  “Yeah, I agree. Grab some takeaway for Mom and meet me there.”

  Tsuno picked herself up, summoned her embryo now that she wasn’t worried about his reaction, and ran off to grab something for their mom. Sheko waited a moment before heading off to find GesStar, ready to tell him he had spoken with Tsuno and was ready to begin training.

  After a brief stop by the guild to acquire a new job— Philosopher —Sheko and GesStar continued onwards to the arena.

  They reached the arena quickly. GesStar wasn’t kidding—he was a wizard. Despite Sheko’s AGI-based build, enhanced by his embryo to increase his speed by 150%, GesStar kept pace with him by making powerful leaps that clearly relied on his STR stat.

  I guess that’s how Emilia could supposedly clear the cave faster than me, Sheko thought. Probably just cutting through monsters without stopping to stabilize. There’s a lot to learn from these pros. Even their running is unique.

  Once inside, Sheko was surprised by how active the arena was, contradicting Nate’s disparaging comments about the dueling scene in the city. There was a constant stream of people entering and exiting, including would-be fighters and spectators. The building itself was enormous. Sheko hadn’t seen the Colosseum of Rome firsthand, but he was pretty sure it wasn’t even half as large as this arena.

  At the edge of his vision, he noticed the glowing dome of one of the fighting grounds and asked GesStar about it. GesStar explained that the domes served two purposes: to slow down fast fighters so spectators could follow their movements, and to ensure the safety of onlookers by containing accidents within the arena.

  The building was covered in overgrown foliage, but it seemed intentional, adding to the aesthetic rather than being a sign of neglect. Maybe Nate is just a snob, Sheko thought.

  GesStar quickly led Sheko through the halls and filled out a form. “We’ll get the arena in about 15 minutes. We’ll have two hours, like you asked. After that, if other people are waiting, we’ll be kicked out. Tough but fair. I’ll be leaving in two hours anyway, but if you don’t get kicked, you’ll be listed as LFD—looking for a duel.

  “Try to be accommodating, even if someone is clearly out of your league. Getting beaten down looks bad, but throwing a fit about it looks worse.”

  The wait was short before they were led to one of the smaller fighting pits. The arena was a simple flat grassland, fitting the natural aesthetic of Legendaria without turning it into an obstacle course of trees and vines.

  GesStar wasted no time. Using magic, he raised the ground beneath him and flew to the other side of the arena just before the barrier activated. Without checking if Sheko was ready, GesStar picked up another patch of dirt. It condensed into a solid boulder, and with a swing of his staff, he formed a bubble around it that resembled the night sky. The bubble enveloped the boulder, accelerating it toward Sheko as if gravity were pulling it down rather than magic flinging it forward.

  I think I understand now. He showed this to me before, but it was too fast for me to follow. His embryo creates bubbles where he controls gravity.

  “You’ll need more than this to beat me!” Sheko shouted with bravado. He jumped onto the boulder, nearly slipping off as his gravity shifted toward the arena wall. Regaining his balance just in time, he leapt off and started running toward GesStar.

  Focusing intently, Sheko activated his newly acquired skill, High-Speed Speculation. The world seemed to slow down around him. He resisted the urge to equip his knives, using his enhanced mental speed to predict GesStar’s barrage of boulders. A small hill began forming behind Sheko as GesStar dug a moat around himself, using the earth as ammunition.

  When Sheko finally got close enough, he used his homing skill, Steady Hand, Eyes on the Target, throwing three knives at GesStar by using every charge of Sleight of Hand at once. The sudden dip and return of his mental speed was disorienting, and he was nearly crushed by a boulder. However, thanks to his Matador job, which increased his speed with every dodge, he avoided the attack in time.

  Sheko paused, expecting to see GesStar skewered by his knives. Instead, three rock walls had risen to shield him.

  He’s taking this lightly. He isn’t even dodging. Well, I’ll show him a new trick.

  The knives left temporary marks on the walls. Sheko hadn’t tested what would happen if he tried to create more marks than his ability allowed. The result was that only the front and left walls were marked by Odysseus. Undeterred, Sheko spun the left wall toward GesStar, who dodged easily by jumping back.

  Then, Sheko spun the front wall twice around its top, successfully striking GesStar’s head. The wall shattered from the impact, but GesStar wasn’t seriously hurt. He wasn’t even knocked down.

  His eyes, however, were alive with excitement. Sheko had seen GesStar angry and relaxed, but now he could tell GesStar was smiling.

  “You’ve gotten a lot better since I last saw you,” GesStar shouted across the pit. “Don’t disappoint me, you hear?”

  The duel began in earnest.

  GesStar’s staff broke apart, its pieces circling around him as black particles multiplied and blocked Sheko’s knives. Sheko couldn’t even use Odysseus effectively, as the marks landed on tiny particles, rendering them useless.

  Once the black sphere fully enveloped GesStar, he rose into the air and shot forward like a human-sized cannonball. Sheko barely dodged, but GesStar immediately doubled back, igniting into a giant white fireball that incinerated Sheko before he could recover.

  Sheko reappeared on his side of the arena, staring at GesStar. The pit GesStar had created was completely repaired.

  These are going to be the longest two hours of my life. Who am I kidding? Nothing feels longer than the SATs.