n

n

nAll of them followed Runo to another room. They all expected him to put them to fight against each other, trying to scope their strength.

nHe did not. The room Runo led them to had a table filled with food, like a fancy dinner.

n“You can eat and chat to get to know each other better. If you want that, of course. Or you can just eat and leave, or just leave. I don’t care.”

nRuno said that and left the room, leaving 6 people inside. Arthur was one of these people.

nThey could not understand the reason behind what Runo did, but why not eat and chat? All of them were comrades in the fighting career, after all.

nThe first one to take the lead was a bulky, tall man. He had huge muscles all over his body, and a two-handed weapon attached to his back.

n“If anyone wants to know, I’m Phil. Nice to meet you all.” Phil said. He ate like a starved best, grabbing the chicken legs and destroying them.

nArthur did not want to be the first to eat, as it could be poisoned or something like that. After seeing everything was okay with the food, he also ate.

n“Yo, Phil. I’m Arthur, nice to meet you.”

n.

nPhil looked at Arthur from toe to head, and said, ” You look strong. Let’s do an arm fight.”

nAn arm fight. That was something Arthur did not do in a long, long time. What could go wrong?

nBoth men stop their eating and positioned themselves on the table. After the count of 3, they started.

nPhil was confident he would easily win against Arthur, but that wasn’t the case. They both used their strength, and for a moment, no one could get the upper hand.

nIt surprised Arthur. He was using all of his strength, and yet Phil was his equal.

n“A draw?” Phil said, incredulously.

nHe gazed at Arthur, and everyone else inside the room thought a fight would occur, but it was the opposite.

nPhil laughed, hugged Arthur, and said, “You’re strong. You and me, we are best friends now. Hahaha, come, let’s eat and drink.”

n

nThe appearance Phil had was of a strong and angry man, but it was the exact opposite. Arthur felt he was a reliable person, so he went along with the flow.

nThey both drank the beers that were above the table and ate like there was no tomorrow. The others that were watching took part, and soon everyone was talking with each other.

nThere were two women in the group, Emma and Cheryl. The only thing Arthur got to know about them was that both of them were mages.

nOne of the remaining men had a bow behind his back, and the other a sword and shield. They both probably used magic as well, alongside their weapons.

nEven though all took part in illegal fights, none of them seemed like bad people. Maybe they had to fight to get the money to survive. Maybe it was their only option. Arthur had no right to judge them, that is.

nAfter a night of socializing, Arthur left. It turned out they were inside one room in the arena they fought. They all said goodbye to each other and left.

nIn a week, all of them would leave for the tournament.

n~~~~

n“Where were you? Your training took a lot longer than I expected.”

nKai was waiting for him on the first floor of the inn. Arthur would always go out to train, and everyone knew that, but he never took so long to get back.

n“I was kidnapped by Runo to meet with the others that will take part in the tournament.”

n“What? Are you okay?”

n“I don’t know. My stomach isn’t feeling that good.” Arthur said. He put his hand on his belly, and Kai was worried that he got stabbed, or worse.

nKai rushed to check if Arthur was okay, and the only thing wrong was the immense belly he now had.

n“I ended up eating too much. Is it bad?”

n“What your child’s name will be?”

n“Oh, ** you.”

nArthur pushed Kai lightly after that joke. He wanted to go upstairs and sleep to recover from eating that much, but Kai said something that worried him.

n“Did you see Hayla? She’s never this late.”

n“What do you mean? She’s not here?”

n“She’s not.”

n“Fuck. Go upstairs and gather a few people to go search for her. Only a few please, or else the guards will come, causing troubles.”

n“Okay.”

n“Lead them, Kai. I’ll go out now.”

nArthur wanted to go searching by himself with no one on his way. He still did not know if Hayla was indeed in danger, but after seeing how he could get kidnapped, why couldn’t she as well?

nThere was no time to waste, so he ran through the streets wearing a black-hooded cloak to search for her.

nOne thing his dragon senses could do was to pick up a scent and follow it. Hayla had been around for a long time, so he had her scent.

nArthur kept following Hayla’s scent, and eventually it lead outside of the city. When that happened, he was sure it was not a good sign.

n“This day keeps getting stranger, damn it.” he thought.

nOutside of the city, there were only trees, bushes, and wild animals. The houses were few and rare, which would make the searching easier.

nA bad feeling arose within Arthur, and he hoped that nothing bad had happened to Hayla.

nHe kept going through the woods until the scent led him to a wood cabin. It was not a smart decision to rush in, so he stayed behind a bush and tried to peek inside the house.

nA few men he had never seen walked outside of the cabin, and when they opened the door, Arthur got a glimpse of Hayla all tied up in a chair.

nIt was not a sight to behold, but at least Arthur knew she was alive.

n“You’re all dead, you **ers!”

n