Chương 101: 168 - Brackets

Vivi didn't get to finish her meal, unfortunately. Embralyne— Ember —turned out to be even more interested in the tournament than Vivi had expected. So after being flooded with questions she couldn't answer, and also moving on to other topics that required her steward's input, she decided to go and find Rafael.

"Not that I intend to dominate the opposition, of course," Ember had said halfway through.

"That would be highly uncouth. It's a mortal tournament. I'm merely curious about the details." She coughed into a fist.

"A competitive duel is hardly the sort of occasion where I'd be permitted to reveal myself, anyway." Saffra had cleaned her plate by the time Vivi and Ember headed over, and she gave Vivi a sympathetic look for having had to abandon her own. Technically, Titled could go days without eating and not feel much discomfort, so it wasn't some huge sacrifice. She did wish the interruption had happened a few minutes later, though. With her two companions in tow, Vivi sought out the beacon she had laid on Rafael.

It sat eastward a short trek from the city's wall, which meant he was at the in-construction stadium—at the aptly if redundantly named Arena of the Second Age. Branding does take repetition to stick, she mused. Before setting out, she almost summoned an illusion to hide her tattoos, but she stopped herself. The secret was out.

She might have a few months before the exact details of her appearance spread to the furthest reaches of the mortal realm, but in the capital city, there was little point in covering her identifying marks. She would have to create a full-body disguise if she wanted anonymity, much like the princess beside her. Which hurt her soul, a bit. She'd already had precious little escape from her reputation, and now she had almost none. A few teleportation spells later, she arrived in the bowl-like megastructure.

She couldn't help but let her gaze drift around. Rafael had enlisted her help to erect the skeleton of the arena, drastically cutting labor and costs, but filling in that frame was still a gargantuan undertaking—one that had progressed at a striking pace considering she had visited no more than two days ago. She had [Blinked] just outside of what seemed to be a command-and-control center for the project.

A large canopy provided shade to a U-shaped desk cluttered with schematics, clipboards, writing utensils, and a slew of other miscellanea. Rafael stood underneath the overhang, joined by a human that Vivi had seen but not met: Allegra, his protégé and the current Guildmaster of the Human Kingdoms. The woman had her black hair done up in a bun and wore a practical outfit for the setting in the form of trousers and a blouse. The youthfulness of her face suggested she hadn't even reached the midpoint of her twenties.

Vivi had known to expect someone, since outside his office Rafael would always be politicking or planning, but the new Guildmaster was a more important figure than she'd braced for. Unfortunately, she could hardly turn back. Her group of three had popped into existence in the woman's line of sight. Besides cutting off halfway through her sentence, Allegra showed no sign of shock. Her pale green eyes surveyed the unusual scene of three people materializing in her midst with unflappable calm.

"Lady Sorceress," she said smoothly, "and company. It is an honor to finally meet." Vivi suppressed a shiver. She really is a second Rafael. And this one is only sort of on my side. Sarielle Keresi might have been intelligent enough to catch Rafael's attention, but she didn't have the same social grace—which was the scary part as far as Vivi was concerned.

"The honor's mine," Vivi said.

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything important."

"Not at all," Allegra no doubt lied. Anything the Steward of Vanguard and Guildmaster of the Human Kingdoms were discussing would be of at least some significance. Rafael visibly took note of the Dragon King's daughter standing at Vivi's shoulder, then turned to Allegra and said politely, "If you'll excuse me?"

"By all means."

"It shouldn't take long," Vivi offered apologetically. She received a perfectly neutral smile in return. Whatever Allegra thought of the interruption was anyone's guess. Vivi got the sense that if Allegra were annoyed, not even Rafael would be able to tell. Vivi wrapped a privacy bubble around the group and told them that she'd done so.

"Your Highness," Rafael said to Ember.

"I would bow, but that would be unwise given our audience." He nodded in the direction of a cluster of workers. There were many milling about inside the arena, some stealing covert looks at Vivi and her party.

"Your discretion is appreciated, Steward of Vanguard," Ember replied.

"Indeed, dispense with the courtesies, particularly those that pay respect to my royal title. I am afraid it is suspended for the time being." A look of regret crossed Rafael's features, and Vivi wondered how authentic it was.

"I feared it would come to such." He sighed.

"I dare not speak against your father's judgment, but know that this humble steward saw only virtue in your actions." Ember grunted, not bristling at his words but also not accepting the praise. Vivi got the impression that the woman was already tired of the topic, even if she'd only discussed it once—earlier, with her. If Vivi could tell, Rafael obviously could.

"Never mind that, however." His gaze flicked between them.

"How may I be of service?"

"I wanted to keep you in the loop, mostly," Vivi said.

"She showed up at Vanguard's doorstep twenty minutes ago. Some people saw. Not sure if that'll start any rumors?" If it did, then to be blunt, it was for Rafael to worry about.

"But we also have a few questions. We really aren't interrupting anything important, are we?" The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

"No. Ask away." Rafael had no sycophantic streak, so Vivi took him at his word. She relaxed a fraction. She didn't like imposing on people.

"Ember's going to be here a while, in the human kingdoms, so she might need a more solid identity. Lady Ember Caldwell is…" She paused.

"Well, without much substance, as far as fake names go." Ember sniffed.

"It's not as if we require any great subterfuge during our investigations."

"Also, we're wondering a few things about the tournament. Details," Vivi said. Rafael raised an eyebrow, but he took her statements in stride.

"What kind of identity are you imagining?"

"She has a real gold-rank adventuring card, but that's probably too low for her. Plus, I don't think 'Lady Caldwell' will hold up under inquiry. More legitimacy on the social front will likely save us some headaches."

"Associating with Vanguard will draw the highest levels of scrutiny," he agreed.

"Any falsehoods need to be impenetrable."

"Right. For moving her up to orichalcum-ish, at least, we can ask Allegra for help?" He hesitated. Amusement touched his face, and he deliberated how to respond.

"No, we will use my contacts. Allegra is… principled. She has little tolerance for the sort of legal flexibility that falsified advancement would require." Vivi was briefly baffled. Then she realized that fabricating noble lineages and false identities—along with a fake, unearned adventuring rank—was, technically, illegal. Not even technically. Just straight up against the law. Not that anyone would get upset with the Sorceress over something so comparatively minor. … does that make it worse?

she thought with a wince. It's still an abuse of power, isn't it? For some reason, she'd always viewed Rafael as a 'rule-follower' himself. That clearly wasn't true. A wry smile crept onto his lips, Rafael probably guessing some of what she was thinking.

"It's good to be rigid about the rules when you're young," he said in defense of Allegra.

"Everyone learns the nuances of compromise over the decades, but it's better to start from a strict foundation. Otherwise, you may run out of lines to cross far too soon."

"It'd be a bad look for her to begin her career by immediately doing favors for the previous Guildmaster." The purpose of the deception was so innocent that she hadn't considered how the whole thing might be viewed by an outsider. She almost rescinded the request—but then what would she do about Ember? Before she could, however, Rafael said, "It will be arranged, my lady. The groundwork has been laid. I did foresee these events." Right, she realized.

He'd been the one to warn her of Ember's potential banishment in the first place. Why wouldn't he also be ready to accept her into the fold with minimal complications? Like usual, Vivi was a few steps behind.

"As for your questions on the tournament?" he asked. She shook herself, then glanced at Ember. The dragon took her cue.

"Primarily on initial qualification. The Sorceress indicated that it is complex. That it varies based on rank and other factors?" Rafael gave Vivi an entertained look, and in the safety of her mind, she blushed. I was listening when you explained, okay? she thought defensively. But having high stats doesn't give me a perfect memory. It'd been a few days since that conversation, and she'd had a lot of stuff bumping around inside her head.

Like breaking the secrets of an enigmatic world-ending energy, and the upcoming horror of having to teach strangers.

"It's not overly complicated," he told the dragon.

"Though it is not simple, either, out of necessity. It depends on one's rank, whether they are registered with the Adventurer's Guild, whether they are willing to have their level verified, and their age." A second passed.

"For the most part," he amended. Ember raised an eyebrow, and Rafael sighed.

"Yes, I am aware. But a single open bracket where qualifications begin and end with combat would not accomplish our goals. Let me give an overview so you understand. There are four brackets. The open division is of course the main attraction, the beating heart of the tournament. It will no doubt contain exclusively orichalcum and Titled once the preliminary matches are complete." He shook his head.

"But technically, any person of any rank can join and earn their place, without exception.

"Then there are the level-restricted divisions, as both Vanguard and the public will wish to see the most skilled bronze, silver, gold, and mithril ranks of our era. This requires level verification and, since the number of interested parties will be so much higher, other criteria as well. Such as qualifying fights as with any proper tournament, but also completing Guild quests, for example. There are simply too many people who will apply, and we might as well turn this…

sudden mass labor force toward an honorable purpose." He snorted at the idea.

"And finally there are the youth brackets. No level restrictions, similar to the open bracket, but designed to highlight the rising stars of the generation." He nodded at Saffra, who seemed immediately embarrassed even though he hadn't drawn much attention to her.

"There will be no team divisions. The tournament is already an outrageously complex logistical challenge, and past gold rank, all classes can hold their own in single combat—though some are naturally disadvantaged. This does restrict our ability to judge support- and mage-type classes at silver rank and lower, but I deemed it an acceptable limitation. Their relative performance will be noted in their fights regardless, and the Church and various mage academies already act as identifiers of emerging talent."

He paused.

"That answers your question?" There was a reason Vivi hadn't kept it all in her head. She guessed it wasn't that complex, but she couldn't have recited it from memory either. Better for Ember to get it from the horse's mouth.

"Reasonably constructed," Ember said thoughtfully.

"It would indeed be a nightmare of logistics—I shudder to imagine. To clarify, though, for my situation, I merely have to fight?"

"Do you intend to participate in one of the restricted divisions?" She scoffed.

"I would not dishonor myself in such a way. The open bracket. No falsehoods required."

"Then yes. It is designed to allow even those not registered with the Adventurer's Guild. For people in your exact situation. We will see more than one Titled without a Title, I expect, who will crawl out of the woodwork. And it is of the classic format—fight, win, advance. Having an official rank would allow automatic qualification, but that is simply for the convenience of our members and to minimize preliminary matches."

"Simple, as you said." Ember sounded pleased.

"It is double elimination?" Rafael's tone turned dry.

"Yes. To account for promising participants encountering"—his gaze flicked to Vivi—"unfortunate pairings on their way through the bracket." She pretended she hadn't heard him.

"Though I am more than happy to answer further questions on this topic," he said, "every guild receptionist will be thoroughly briefed on the procedure, and explanations will be posted shortly. The papers are being disseminated now."

"We won't bother you anymore," Vivi said. Chiefly, she'd come to implicitly warn him that there was an exiled draconic princess in the city so that he could start planning. Not that she had apparently needed to.

"Thank you."

"My pleasure, Lady Vivisari."

"Your assistance is greatly appreciated, Rafael of Vanguard," Ember said.

"Before we leave, however, I have news of my own, in regard to Vanguard's pending invitation to my father's palace." Vivi paused and glanced at Ember, not having anticipated the announcement.

"The event can be rescheduled if needed, as it is short notice. But my father has set the date three days from now. Is that agreeable?"