The new party, born in the Baratheon Kingdom, The Embered Flames, had been created, and now the entirety of the party had decided to register their names in The Hollow Veils Guild officially.
Xerxes and Leiya were easily able to walk, whereas Thornfum had actually created some mechanism to hold Claudia, which essentially had her resting on his back. Leiya commented on it humorously, applauding the dwarves for their strength.
Along the way to the guild, few words were exchanged; they were all simply ready to do what was needed. But the feeling of being watched, as if Orpheus still lurked somewhere in the shadows, nagged at Xerxes. He was a mystery, no doubt about it.
Before long, they arrived at a building. It was large, imposing, a testament to tradition and craftsmanship. Above, amongst the sturdy, honey-toned oak and dark green velvet drapes, at its centre hung a golden deer sigil. That was what represented the Hollow Veil.
Cast in gleaming metal, it caught the eye like light catching a crown. The emblem was repeated throughout the building, even carved into the armour of some passing guild members.
The hall towered almost fifty feet high, perhaps one of the largest guild halls Xerxes had ever seen. Having never passed through this part of town before, it was certainly a spectacle.
The only appropriate response was, "Wow," as Xerxes peered at the grandeur of the architecture. Leiya shared the same surprise, having never seen anything like it before. But to Thornfum, it was quite regular, so he casually strode inside.
"There wasn't anything like this in Layne, Leiya, I suppose this is a first for both me and y-"
"C'mon, ya' lot gonna spend so much time gawking, the tournament'll be finished by time ya's enter the building!" Thornfum roared as he marched ahead.
Leiya and Xerxes chuckled as they caught up. Entering the building, they saw long rows of oak tables with pewter goblets and dark green table runners. High-backed chairs were nearly all occupied, patrons discussing quests, aspirations, and whatever life had dealt them.
Conversely, a queue had formed by what seemed to be receptionist desks. But what felt truly imposing was something, or someone, in the crowd whom Xerxes could instantly distinguish from the others.
The concentration of power within the building was palpable. The entire party began noticing different mana 'signatures' and whom they might belong to. Xerxes spotted Nicolas, the bratty noble, amidst the throng.
Furthermore, Xerxes sensed others, one distinct presence, domineering compared to the rest. But amidst the horde, he couldn't pinpoint who it was.
Airi commented on the queue, "Seems like we'll be here all night. I didn't realise how big this tournament was until now."
Xerxes looked around; there must have been hundreds of people. "Yeah, the variety of unique abilities, individual strength, and fighting styles must be huge. But I'm excited—excited for battle. A feeling I'm sure I would've had a year ago."
Picking up on Xerxes' statement, Thornfum remarked, "Didn't know someone nicknamed 'the Executioner' before I met ya' wouldn't live for combat."
He followed up, "I need the full story behind that name. I've only 'eard bits. But once this tournament's done and we start a real adventure, I'm sure we'll all have tales to tell—won't we, Claudia?"
Thornfum grinned, glancing back as he raised her hand in a thumbs-up. "See? No hiding—Claudia's already motivated to share."
Xerxes seriously began questioning Thornfum's mental state. All he could hope was that the dwarf would at least be reliable, "Thornfum, maybe another time I'll open up more about my past but for the time being, let's try focus a bit, ey?"
Thornfum replied, "Aye, I need to begin making myself look the best and most imposing to the others, then they'll know not to mess with Thornfum the great."
Xerxes dismissed his comment, and he decided to occupy himself with various tasks, that weren't exactly taxing on the mind like talking to Thornfum, but something beneficial for the party.
Tapping Leiya's shoulder, Xerxes whispered, "I can't rely on the dwarf, but I can on you and I know your eyes and your sense for mana is sharp, track as many people as you can and keep a mental note, we can use this information later on, even if it's the weapon they use."
Leiya nodded affirmatively, "Even though the sign up period has been up for a few days, there still must be a large amount of adventurers our age who will be here, I'll keep track to the best of my ability."
As people passed the receptionist area after signing up, Leiya and Xerxes tried to track those within their age bracket. Granted, not all potential opponents were limited to today's arrivals, they assessed weapons, mana types, and physical tells.
She and Xerxes discussed their brief observations, but were holding off in case of any eavesdroppers and out of all the people that were visible amongst the crowd, there were a maximum of 4 people who could be a potential threat.
What Xerxes had picked up on, was a young woman, her body was quite small and petite, but she carried a great staff that circulated with residual mana that Xerxes could pick up was wind, she didn't seem to have the eyes and presence of someone who was eager to battle, more so in need of it.
Additionally, there was someone who alluded something different, it wasn't exactly something to keep 'track' off, but it oddly caught Xerxes' eye, it was a woman who had an eerie calm to her, as if her mana was being surpressed and with that sort of suspicion, Xerxes could only relate it to one other person he knew, Orpheus.
On the contrary, Leiya noticed more vividly, a man named Jaq, he held two daggers and he exuded earthern mana. He had previously entered into the tavern, owned by Bertha and Gundrik, however he was a man of very few words and what made Leiya notice him was the party he was with. They all seemed to be powerful in their own regard, and they all held weapons that complimented each others, whether it be a shield for defense. A bow and arrow for long range and a sword for front line.
Finally, Leiya had noticed a group of girls, she felt upset that her analysis wasn't as in depth as Xerxes when discussing it, as they all were...too put it simply, 'extravagant in their own way' they were all dressed in bright glowing rainbow coloured uniform, with each of them having a particular hair colour; red, green, blue and brown, one each representing one of the four elements, which is why Leiya had noticed them.
A while later after the analysis had completed, they reached the receptionist's table, where a young woman sat, dressed simply—neither extravagant nor bland.
She slid forward a paper. "Hello, adventurers. My name is Freya. I presume you're a party wishing to enter the Eclipse Tournament?"
Xerxes answered, "Yes. We'd like to apply for the younger age bracket."
She nodded, murmuring as she organised the correct form. "So, to confirm: no one in the party is above twenty-one, correct? Do any of you have prior adventuring evaluations? I'll need to know this, as this tournament will issue a new licence with an upgraded rank."
"An E-rank licence restricts you to E- and D-rank quests. D-rank permits D- to low C-rank. C-rank is exclusively for C. B-rank covers B, and A-rank or higher allows A-rank quests. An A-rank licence also grants access to Star Gates during specific seasons."
The look on the parties face lit up, however it quickly dimmed as she went onto explain, "But, all members of the party must reach the age of 15, as anything below is deemed irresponsible and this license only works in partnering nations, so that would juristict the human and dwarven nation's stargates."
Xerxes was surprised, 'In Layne, I never really knew the benefits adventuring license cards held, I was too fixated on other matters like..aya, but now where travel and convenience is necessary, it was good to know that because who knows how long it may take to get back to Layne.'
The party nodded.
"Starting left to right," Freya said, "I'll need your name, primary mana type, age, date of birth, and any prior adventuring rank including where and when it was issued."
Leiya went first. "My name is Leiya Truth. My primary mana is water. I'm thirteen, my date of birth is August 12th, 749 pgwos[1] and I've never recieved an adventuring rank."
Thornfum followed. "Name's Thornfum Furdia, feel free to add 'Greatest Craftsman' next to it. My mana's the gracious gift of earth. I'm fifteen, I blessed the earth on February the 5th, 747 pgwos and I earned a D-rank at the Eclipse Tournament two years ago."
Xerxes noted mentally that 'if he was D-rank at thirteen, Thornfum must be strong now, maybe even tier five or four. Hmm I guess all that talk does come from somewhere, but I still have that inkling he will be reckless...'
Thornfum spoke for Claudia. "This is Claudia Ostum. Primary mana: water. She's twenty—I think? Date of birth, irrelevant, I ain't too sure, but yeh she's twenty. She got a C-rank at the Guild Dawn years back, literally couldn't tell ya' any definitive details, she's practically half dead."
Freya recorded everything, surprisingly not frustrated with Thornfum, after all, the world had the ability to create and do very strange things. She finally turned to Xerxes.
"Xerxes Draedon. Primary mana: fire. Twelve years old. My Date of Birth was the 5th of October, 750 pgwos, I received an E-rank at the Crossed Seas Guild when I was nine."
Leiya looked at Xerxes and gazed at Airi with worry, 'It's his birthday that soon! it's literally next week, I need to be fast and get him something, oh crap I've been too focused on training.'
Leiya winked at Airi quickly, whilst Xerxes was speaking too Freya, as Airi nodded her head, in acknowledgement that Leiya was in need of something or in certain distress, what it was Leiya could only hope she could piece it together.
Finally Freya noted it down, eyeing the names, perhaps recognising some, but she asked no personal questions.
"Leiya, Xerxes, Claudia, and Thornfum—what's your party name?"
Xerxes said proudly, "The Embered Flame."
As she wrote it down, it finally felt real. Xerxes envisioned the future: if he won this tournament, his name would be known.
Not just for Aya and Dorian, but for something more. All this time, he'd been fixated on returning home. But along the way, he'd forgotten why he wanted this.
It was simple.
With a smile, Xerxes muttered, "To become a renowned adventurer."
But as Xerxes spoke the words 'renowned adventurer', it was as if the universe was answering and materialising his words in reality. The crowd erupted into chaos around him.
Xerxes' focus sharpened like a blade. The intrusive mana signature, an unwelcome trespasser all night, finally revealed itself, this was the presence that nagged at him, that Leiya and perhaps everyone in the room noticed.
"That's him. Tristan Godfrey." A few people wailed, as if he was some sort of god amongst man.
Murmurs spread like wildfire. "The Son of Tywin, the man who rejected position of aspect… Don't tell me his sons competing again."
Every eye in the room snapped toward the source, drawn by the suffocating weight of his presence.
Tristan stood draped in a dark brown trench coat, its straps and belts laden with hidden purpose. His attire was unassuming, but Xerxes' gaze locked onto the pendant—golden, intricately shaped around a faintly glowing red orb—the very one Orpheus had warned him about.
The more Xerxes studied it, the more an unsettling cold seeped into his mind that didn't feel imaginary, it felt physical.
He had faced strong opponents before, but this… this was different.
Tristan's power wasn't just immense for his age—it was absolute as if the mana itself bent to his will. His focus was unshakable, his hazel eyes fixed on some distant, unseen horizon. No hesitation. No weakness.
And in that moment, Xerxes knew with chilling certainty:
Tristan Godfrey was no mere opponent.
He was a force of nature.
Glancing at him, as he walked he wasn't noticing anyone, however as Tristan walked closer, Xerxes and Tristan's eyes met for a brief moment, but that was all Xerxes needed.
'I'm going to crush him.' Xerxes said with conviction, his mind voiding the doubt he held, as Tristan finally left the building, the tension clearing from the room like water to flames.
[1] Post Great War of Succession