Watching the numerous young masters bustling around below was rather entertaining; almost enjoyable, even.
I say almost because, well, the is still the issue of starvation looming over me.
Still, it wasn't all too bad right now.
Firstly, nobody was staring holes through my back anymore, at least as far as my senses could pick up.
And secondly, Voracity seems to have loosened its grip on my mind, having returned to slumber with some incomprehensible talk of 'vessels' and the like.
"Well, what's good is good is good, right?"
I spoke those words out loud, with a turn of my head, towards the girl who'd unknowingly saved everyone present, myself included - she, in return, met my crescent curved yet closed eyes with bewilderment:
"Sorry..? Uhh, I don't follow."
The corners of my lips curved up mischievously as I realized the kind of character I was dealing with.
Extremely awkward, cutesy, and outwardly clueless… But with some rather dense internal energy in contrast to the foolish presentation.
Heh, she's just like Rennie, ain't she?
Upon seeing my smile, her confusion grew even deeper.
Fine, I should probably stop teasing her before she bursts into tears.
"Don't sweat it; just a bad habit of mine, where I voice my thoughts out loud without context."
*Whew*
The girl exhaled in relief, a warm smile stretching over her lips.
Odd. Her personality's very straightforward and kind… Makes me wonder how she ended up here with no friends to accompany her.
Mid-thought, I realized that I hadn't even asked for her name yet. And neither did she.
In the past, I might have dismissed it as a human custom I was unfamiliar with, but Dren's relentless 'teachings' made me well aware of the importance of names.
Noticing that my attention was still on her, the girl inquisitively tilted her head.
And so, I'd decided to take the first step myself:
"What's your name, by the way? I think we've forgotten to introduce ourselves, Young Lady."
Though a casual remark, I explicitly worded it in a way to share the blame on both of us.
Given the girl's timid personality, I figured she might feel guilty if I said something along the lines of 'ya realize you haven't introduced yourself yet?' in my usual, direct manner.
"A-ah! Must've slipped my mind! I'm Seorin; Seorin of Stone Cauldron's Twelfth Division."
What the-? Stone Cauldron has that many units?
Regardless of my mild surprise, now was my turn to state my affiliation.
And, of course, my made up name. This one - I was real damn proud of.
"Seorin, huh? That's a pretty name. I'm Yeran; just Yeran."
We shared some more pleasantries before switching to chatting about irrelevant stuff to pass the time.
During our brief conversation, I learned some peculiar things about this tournament.
As it turned out, a lot of the Young Masters here never even entertained the idea of victory - instead, they came for the social aspect, to build up a sort of reputation and form relationships with the promising youths for the benefit of their clans.
When I asked why Seorin wasn't doing the same - joining conversations and forming connections of her own - her answer was shockingly straightforward, but also perfectly fitting with the image she'd shown me so far:
"What, me? No way… The genius prodigies are way too intimidating to strike up a conversation with. I'd die of embarrassment."
I only laughed at her explanation, but one question remained.
Why, then, did she feel comfortable approaching me? I mean, not to glaze myself too much, but my current appearance could easily pass for that of a model.
Roughly ninety minutes passed - in that time, me and Seorin bonded quite nicely, sharing tales of our adventures and making trivial jokes.
Most of my stories were made up. Naturally.
Couldn't exactly tell her about the time I destroyed Vaynar and brought destruction upon Nether, now could I?
I even grew a bit of fondness for the girl. She was genuine and pleasant to chat with, which was why…
It's quite sad, really. After all, she only knows me as Yeran, the talented Young Lady. Ori, on the other hand, isn't a great person.
A Villain? Wouldn't go that far, but… Heh, I might pass for an average piece of shit just fine.
I was starting to understand, ever so slightly, why humans tried so hard to appear noble and kind.
*Clang!!*
Suddenly, the loud ring of a bell interrupted my self deprecating thoughts.
Well, it wasn't quite a bell. More like a blunt, ear piercing ring of stone colliding with stone.
How corny.
Shortly after the sound settled, the kids below bowed to each other and gracefully made their way up to seating spots.
So it's finally starting?
I absently fiddled with the wooden plaque in my pocket, a number etched into the wood with finesse.
It read '128'.
64 duels before my turn, in other words.
Guess I might as well get comfortable and enjoy the show.
*Buzz*
…Or not.
At a ridiculously inconvenient time, to the point of making me stifle a laugh, I felt three extremely sharp gazes land of me from above.
It didn't take long to realize who the three people were.
Heroes of Nether. I don't know shit about them. Uhh maybe I should've listened to Garran explanation..?
It was too late to lament on my past decisions, though.
They were staring at me, not even trying to hide the traces of sorcerous energy linking their minds. Marin's used this technique to wordlessly communicate with me innumerable times, hence why I recognized it instantly, but still - why single me out?
I grew agitated.
Focusing on their energies, I tried to grasp a clearer picture of their levels. Not really beneficial, but knowing who I was dealing with at least game me some peace of mind.
Upon further inspection, my questions only piled up:
Strange. Why do I feel like I recognize them?
My memory of people, terrible as it was, didn't help one bit.
For a second, I considered sending a string of essence to poke them out, but quickly dismissed the idea.
If anything, doing so would only increase their curiously, plus -
- Yeah, right. Where would I have possible met these Heroes of Nether before? I'd lived the past five years huddled up in a cave with Dren, save for some infrequent outings.
"Yeran? Everything okay?"
Seorin, surprisingly enough, noticed the masked unease in my expression and asked with concern.
"Mm, not really."
I responded with a serious voice, which penitent her to sit up with concern.
"Are you feeling unwell? Wait, I've practiced medicine extensively! Give me your palm - I'll check your energy flow."
Hoh?
A seemingly harmless question, yet it gave a lot away.
This girl is crazy perceptive, to have noticed the subtle disturbance in my essence. I let my guard down again.
Keeping the serious mood up, I spoke up in a low tone.
…Relatively speaking, at least. My 'Yeran' voice was quite high pitched.
"Yes, I sensed something dire, internally. Specifically, around my lower essence core."
That was a plain old lie. As a Threadripper, I possessed no such thing as an 'essence core'.
"Lower essence core?! Oh no, this is very serious. Quick, show me your wrist!"
Seorin's eyes sprung wide open, as if I'd stated something dire.
"…But worry not, my dearest of friends. This condition of mine is natural. In fact, I experience something like this at least once every couple of days."
This time, Seorin's reaction was peculiar.
Clearly, she was lost in thought, trying to figure out what I was getting at, however -
"I'm sure you've already figured it out, Seorin."
"?"
"My lower abdomen. The bowels are in a disarray. I think I might…"
"You might..?"
*Hoooh*
Taking a final deep breath, I delivered the metaphorical one-two knockout:
"I might soil myself."
"…"
"…"
"…What?"
"That's right. So excuse me, Lady Seorin, but I'll see myself out for a moment."
Without waiting for her response, I stood up from my seat and gracefully turned on my heels.
As I walked, a smirk tugged at my lips. I was barely holding in a beaming smile.
"Pfft… Hah. Hahahahahaha!!"
From behind, where I left the dumbfounded Seorin, a melodious laughter broke out.
Satisfied with my perfectly executed bit, I strode ahead with light steps, but eventually my smile faded.
I glanced upwards discreetly, still feeling the three piercing pairs of eyes on my back, and picked up the pace.
Before their energy throws me right off the deep end… I need to get my emotions under control.