The first thing that hit us when we arrived at our dormitory was in peace. After the overwhelming journey of teleporting in this world, to finding magical people who know s our grandma, and the quite chaotic. The quiet was comforting.
We gathered in the living room, a space we hadn't yet claimed, to discuss our plans for the day. But Frank, ever the curious one, was immediately distracted. His eyes were fixed on the coffee table, specifically on a small stack of shimmering wristbands and a sleek, black envelope.
"Oi, what is this?" he wondered aloud, reaching for the mysterious items.
Ate Clydelle's voice, usually so calm, was sharp.
"Don't touch anything until I inspect it." Frank, taken aback, handed her the envelope. She held it, her eyes momentarily unfocused as she used her clairvoyance to scan the contents. A moment later, a frown of concentration on her face gave way to a surprised gasp as she carefully opened the envelope.
A brilliant blue light erupted from inside, coalescing into a hologram of a man in a sinister-looking mask. His voice, crisp and confident, filled the room.
"Greetings, everyone! I'm Yabo, one of the event's administrators, and I'll be the one to tell you everything you need to know about the tournament."
He proceeded to detail the tournament's structure, his voice resonating with an almost theatrical flair. "The specters of the event will be high-ranking officials from each kingdom. The Wizarding Zone's Class K wizards and sorceresses, as well as some elite members from each kingdom, will be the game administrators; they will also participate in some of the games to test the participants' skills." He paused for a breath before continuing, "The great rulers of each kingdom will be our most valuable guests for the final level, so do your best if you want to meet them all in person."
The man took a momentary pause before continuing with more information about the items left for us. "As you can see, we've provided wristbands for each member to identify which group you belong to, as well as to give you access to your designated rooms. You can also use it as a means of communication through the bracelet's settings, which will allow you to use telepathic ability. Don't worry, the other teams can't hear you unless they're listed as your teammates, and you can control your transmissions so that you only speak to the people you want to converse with. Oh! I almost forgot, you can command the wristbands to display the hologram of the building's map by saying 'MAP MODE,' and if you want to buy food in the cafeteria, just say 'MONEY MODE.'"
"That's it for today's announcement!"
With a final, sharp click, the hologram vanished, leaving us in a stunned silence.
Frank, ever the pragmatist, was the first to speak. "I like how advanced their technology is."
"Yeah, if they only had a gaming console here, that would be perfect," Tyler added, a wistful look on his face.
My brother sighed, "That would be a paradise for us." He trailed off, lost in a daydream.
Ate Clydelle, however, was already in action. "We should wear our bracelets now," she said, sliding one on her wrist. The moment the metallic band clasped shut, it pulsed with a faint blue light, seamlessly integrating with her. We all followed suit.
"OK, I'm done. I'll just go out and explore the area," I announced. Frank and Tyler immediately offered to join me, but Ate Clydelle quickly vetoed the idea. "Help me inspect the room and fix our things, Tyler," she said with a knowing smirk, making Frank burst into laughter. He playfully teased Tyler before pulling me out of the room.
"So, where are you going?" Frank asked as we left the room.
"I'm just going for a walk so I can memorize all of the building's twists and turns."
A sudden weight entered his voice. "Are you sure we'll pass the test tomorrow?"
I stopped in my tracks, and he did the same. "Lola Naomi is the reason we're here in Zeraschia, and do you know what that means?" I asked, a small smile on my face.
"What exactly is that?"
"It means she believes we will be one of Zeraschia's nine warriors."
"Ahh, of course, she is; after all, she is our grandma, and she is the one who trained us," he replied, but his eyes betrayed a flicker of doubt. "But I'm sure I won't be able to help tomorrow."
I smirked at him, placing my hands on my hips. "Now that you've mentioned it, you don't have to worry about being in a remote and isolated location... why don't you try practicing your skills here?"
"However, it's already too late."
"No, it's never too late!" I said, taking his hand. We exited the building and found a large, open space near the back of the arena, a perfect place to train. "Go ahead, focus and make me float."
"I can't," he mumbled to himself, turning away from me. "I DON'T WANNA— make the same mistake again."
A sudden wave of understanding washed over me. "You are overly eager to master your ability, but you haven't trained since that incident; is it because you're afraid you'll hurt me again?"
"No, of course not! I just have a lot of school activities, which is why I don't have time to train," he denied, but his reddening ears told me the truth.
"Aww, you're a sweet kid after all, huh?" I teased, laughing at his expression.
"Hmph, I-- Am-- Not!"
"Yes, you are."
"Fine," he said, rolling his eyes in mock defeat.
"OK, let's get started."
"I forgot how."
"Ughh, why do you always forget the most basic things—? Didn't Lola Naomi tell us not to forget to focus on channeling the chakra in our bodies?"
"And then what?"
I sighed deeply and slapped my forehead with my hand. "Ugh, tell me what is your ability."
"Well, you already knew that, didn't you?"
"Of course, just answer my question so I can start lecturing you."
"Telekinesis."
"So, what do you think that ability is capable of?"
"To move things with my mind."
"See, you already knew, so just do it."
"Ahh— Sure, sure," he nodded, the lightbulb finally going off in his head.
He took a step back, closed his eyes, and began a breathing exercise, focusing on the flow of his chakra throughout his body.
"What do I do now?" he wondered aloud.
"Don't you watch anime or movies?" I slapped my forehead again. "Try to imitate what they're doing, focus on your surroundings and pretend you're making things float; once you can feel the weight, open your eyes and attack the enemy."
"Wow, you sure know a lot," he praised, a genuine look of admiration on his face.
"Of course I knew everything!" I boasted, crossing my arms across my chest, even though I was just as unsure as he was.
"All right, I'll give it a shot!"
He closed his eyes again, and I watched as the air around him began to shimmer. A tremor shook the ground, and leaves, small rocks, and fallen branches began to lift into the air. He was doing it.
Frank opened his eyes, and they glowed with an ethereal yellow light. He pointed his hand at me, and the floating objects flew towards me, but he quickly pushed them aside, the projectiles narrowly missing me.
"Ate! Did you see that?! I did it! I did it!" he cheered, jumping up and down like a kid on Christmas morning. It was truly incredible. He hadn't practiced in years, yet he'd picked it up immediately.
"Yeah, but it's not enough to win; try practicing lifting heavier things," I said, my voice serious. He needed to be pushed, not complimented.
"OK! I can do it!" He closed his eyes again, and this time, the tremor was so strong it created a web of cracks in the ground.
"You can do it, Frank, just a little more practice, and you can completely control it."
"GAAAAAAAAH!!!" he roared, and a yellow aura erupted from his body, the energy crackling with power. All the stones from the cracked ground lifted into the air and swirled above him, a miniature vortex of rock and dust.
"Wow, am I really seeing that? Was that what our Lola Naomi was talking about before?" I thought to myself.
He opened his eyes and threw his hand into the air, a command to the swirling stones.
"Throw it all at me!" I yelled.
"No!"
"Come on, I want to put my skills to the test!"
"No! What if you didn't avoid it in time?!?"
"Frank! That's why I need to put my skills to the test!"
"Even so, what if you didn't—"
"Trust me."
"Ugh!" He paused for a moment, and I noticed him biting his lower lip. He finally made up his mind after a few seconds. "All right!" Suddenly, all the floating things above him began to accelerate in my direction. It's so fast that I only paused when there's only an inch between me and the dirt with gravel.
"Whew... That was close," I said to myself. I pushed aside everything that was coming my way and resumed the time after.
All of the rocks that were about to hit me had fallen to the ground, and we both laughed at our recklessness.
He rejoiced, "We're so cool!"
"Of course we are! Come on, let's go back to our room!" I stood up and brushed the dirt out of my pants with my hand.
"Go ahead Ate, I'll just train here until the curfew," he said with a smile.
"All right, if you say so, but be careful," I said as I turned my back and walked away. I smiled to myself, thinking that if this were an individual tournament, he'd be picked right away.
I have one more thing to do before I return to our room. I'm not sure how I did it, but I sensed someone with a strong aura spying us.
"Oi!" I approached the person staring at my brother from the building's corridor, but he vanished as I was about to grab his clothes.
Is he a ghost?!
No, that's not possible; perhaps his power is invisibility.
"Are you looking for me?" he asked, chuckling.
I turned around as soon as I heard his voice behind me, but he was gone.
"Hey, if I catch you, I'll definitely knock you off."
"Please don't do that; I'm a good guy."
"Uh, really? What do you want from my brother?"
"Nothing, I enjoyed watching you two train. I'm impressed that your brother is a quick learner, and oddly enough, both of you have the ability that equates to a person with royal blood from the Eclipse family, though I don't recall seeing both of you there."
What the unknown person said puzzled me. Our Eclipse family's ability?
"That's impossible; we're not related to anyone in that family."
"Oh, is that so... Then be careful, because the king may imprison you for having imperial abilities."
"What do you mean?" I asked, irritated.
"In this kingdom, only royal blood is permitted to acquire such great power— if you're just a commoner and you possess the imperial ability, then a demon could be the reason for you to have that." He said, and I felt him right next to me, but when I looked at it, he was gone.
"Stop! We inherited our power from my grandmother, so it's not a sin! MY GRANDMA IS NOT A DEMON!" I yelled.
"Calm down, Cutie~! Let's just meet tomorrow, Ciao!"
"AAGH! I'LL DEFINITELY BURY YOU ALIVE!" I yelled, he's obviously a weirdo.
"Ate?" Frank surprised me by unexpectedly appearing. "Why are you here?"
"I heard you screaming, and I thought you were in trouble," he expressed his concern.
"No, I'm not in trouble... HE IS." I'm referring to the freak who had a disembodied voice a while ago; I just hope he's not a spirit because I won't be able to whacked his face when we finally meet.