Kael had always wondered how the tournament tracked who killed who.
Well, now he knew.
Every time someone killed a monster, a small crystal appeared in its place. The crystal's color determined the monster's level. When a player touched it, the crystal dissolved, automatically adding points to their score—which Kael hadn't realized.
Turns out, since the soldiers under his command killed those monsters, their points went to him because of his ability.
The same rule applied to players. According to Liz, when a player was knocked out, they were sent back to the Colosseum for treatment, and in their place, a white crystal appeared to mark their elimination.
The point system was simple:
• Green = 1 point
• Blue = 3 points
• Red = 5 point
• White = Player elimination points
Kael thought about it and wondered why the professor hadn't mentioned it earlier. Liz had to explain it to him instead.
She was suspicious at first, especially since he had 60 points and didn't even know it. But after thinking about it for a moment, she let it go.
Kael and Liz moved through the battlefield, the chaos of the tournament raging around them.
Liz held her bow at the ready, prepared to strike down anything that came her way. She was focused and determined, ready for anything.
Kael?
Well, Kael was being Kael.
It was clear he had a thing for strong women—probably thanks to his mother.
They walked deep into the forest, hunting monsters to gain as many points as possible without running into other players.
The tension? Thick.
The stakes? High.
Kael's flirting? Relentless.
"Sunshine, you know what?" he said while casually dodging a stray fireball that exploded nearby. "I think you and I make a great team. This partnership is working out beautifully."
As he spoke, he tried to hold her hand.
Liz's terrifying glare made Kael quickly pretend he was just stretching.
She suddenly stopped moving, her expression sharpening as if she heard something.
Then, out of nowhere, she raised her bow and shot down two opponents hiding behind the trees with flawless precision. She took a deep breath, lowering her bow.
"Stop messing around and focus, Kael."
Kael gasped. "Oh, Sunshine, it's hard to focus when you're right here."
She pulled back her bowstring again, golden energy crackling around the arrow's tip. "I don't want to be in last place because of you. If you're just going to get in my way, then stop following me."
"I can't do that because we're meant to be, of course."
He hopped over a fallen log, grinning. "Think about it! I was born in the dark, you were born in the light. We're opposites. That's why you and I—" He gestured between them. "Perfect balance."
Liz gave him a look of pure disgust.
"That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard."
Kael placed a hand over his heart, mock-offended. "You're telling me you don't feel it? The deep, cosmic pull? The undeniable chemistry?"
She deadpanned. "The only thing I feel is secondhand embarrassment for you."
Kael smirked. "So you do feel something."
Liz rolled her eyes so hard he thought they might fall out of her skull.
They walked deeper into the forest, slaying multiple low-level monsters along the way.
Kael made for an excellent bait, drawing out enemies, while Liz took them down from a distance with her bow.
After a while, Liz came up with a plan.
"If we're going to team up, we're splitting points equally," she suggested.
Kael tilted his head. "How many points do you have?"
"30 so far." She replied.
"Well, in that case, you can take all the points we get from now on."
Liz narrowed her eyes, suspicious. "Why?"
Kael shrugged. "I don't care. I already have a lot of points, and I just want to be in the top 30. Also, think of it as payment for putting up with my stupidity."
For a brief second, a small smile formed on her lips.
"Okay," she said. "Let's move."
Liz loosed an arrow, striking an approaching demigod in the shoulder before he could swing his axe. The opponent yelped and promptly disappeared—eliminated from the tournament.
She turned to Kael, unimpressed.
Despite her absolute refusal to acknowledge their obvious destined connection, they worked surprisingly well together.
Liz provided cover fire, striking down both monsters and opponents with perfect accuracy.
Kael handled the sneaky business—sabotaging traps, distracting enemies, and bonking people on the head with the blunt end of his dagger whenever they got too close.
At one point, he dropped out of the shadows behind an unsuspecting player, tapped him on the shoulder, and—when the poor guy turned around—yeeted him off a ledge.
(The opponent screamed all the way down. Very dramatic.)
Liz saw the whole thing and sighed.
"Do you ever fight with dignity?"
Kael grinned. "Absolutely not."
Deeper into the battlefield, they stumbled onto an almost buried temple that had been ruined. The architecture was old, overgrown with vines, and full of crumbling pillars that made for excellent cover.
Liz crouched behind a broken column, scanning the area for threats.
Kael, meanwhile, did the responsible thing—he leaned casually against a wall.
"You know, Sunshine," he replied, "if you wanted some alone time with me, you could've just said so."
She didn't even look at him. "I swear to the gods, Kael—"
"No, really! You dragged me into a romantic, abandoned temple with moody lighting and just the two of us? If you wanted to confess your undying love, you could've picked a less obvious setting."
Liz inhaled slowly, as if she were debating whether murdering him would break the tournament rules.
"This isn't alone time," she muttered.
Kael grinned. "It could be."
She fired an arrow at his head.
He ducked, laughing. "Careful! You might accidentally kill the love of your life!"
Her eye twitched.
"I—"
BOOM.
A massive explosion rocked the temple, cutting her off.
They both turned, eyes narrowing.
Somewhere outside, something big was happening.
The tournament had just gotten even more dangerous.
Kael stretched his arms. "Well, Sunshine, looks like our date is getting interrupted."
Liz sighed heavily. "I hate you."
Kael smirked. "You say that now, but by the end of this tournament, you'll be madly in love with me."
She notched another arrow. "Wanna bet?"
Oh, this was going to be fun.
The ground trembled again.
But this time, it wasn't a random explosion.
It was rhythmic. A deliberate pulse of power.
And then they heard it.
Not the roar of a beast.
Not the clash of warriors.
But voices.
Three of them.
Low, mocking, and way too familiar.
Kael felt his stomach drop.
Caius Aetos. Vander Vex. Rowan Rho.
The heirs of Zeus, Poseidon, and Ares.
The last people he wanted to run into right now.
Liz must have realized it too because she sighed. "Great. The arrogant trio has arrived."
Kael groaned. "And here I was, enjoying our romantic getaway."
Liz shot him a glare. "Focus, idiot."
They peeked over the broken column, watching as the three of them stepped into view.
Caius cracked his knuckles, thunder dancing in his stormy blue eyes.
"Well, well," he said, with a smirk. "Look what we have here—the rat and the archer."