The next day, all the registered competitors were assembled on the grounds of the arena. There were 500 people of all ages and genders among the crowd. The king of the country of Sacrilmon addressed us from his royal box. His family and closest advisors were also there with him. He smiled down at us and said "Thank you all for answering my call. No one knows the power of faith than you. And it is the faithful that makes strong warriors. For a warrior of faith, it is precisely that faith that keeps you fighting to victory." I guess I agreed with that. He then smiled and said "Their are 500 warriors, ready to put it all on the line for the glory of the gods. That does mean that there are 12 spaces for BYE rounds. I chose them at random. I will now list them off for you." Leon and I were able to get BYEs. That made me raise my eyebrows. We all registered at the same time so it was not probable that we both got one. The odds of that were 1/2500. Regardless, it actually served us pretty well. We could destroy all the low ranking opponents but now, we would be fresher than most.
Looking at the line up for the tournaments, there were nine rounds. Chien and Chat cut through their opponents and it was clear that it was okay to fight to the death. In a way, it was a masterful. It was a bit concerning as I did not want it to be too bloody a win in the end. It might be bad for relationships with the other churches. The last thing we all needed was a crusade. That was a possibility for the higher rankings of the clergy and paladins. It would be hard to defend against a larger church. Other matches were more of less peaceful with some other small exceptions from the three from the Church of the Dragon's Flame. The first day was done with a eighth of their matches done. That meant that there was going to be seven more in-game days before the second round. I did not really care about the others. I was in it for myself. I wanted to win the whole thing, so I kept ready for my first match. Leon seemed to be feeling the same. Seven days later, we all returned to the arena and found our worthy opponents. I was facing a monk of the Church of the Sky. I was confident.
Chien and Chat cut down their opponents again. They were pretty ruthless. I was actually surprised. It was probably due to their training. There was another break as the tournament was suspended. There was only time for a quarter of the second round. We had three more days. I had my sword as I charged the monk. On the day of my match, I looked across at my opponent. He had a long staff made of wood and was very competent with it. I had to watch him really closely or quick attacks could come in from anywhere. Even still, I was able to keep him at bay with my ice magic and get in close with my sword. It was a very close battle, but I won in the end. I spared him because I saw no need to kill a person in a sporting event. Leon slaughtered a paladin from the Church of the Sun. We had all made it to the third round. Another violent bloodbath with the two comfort men occurred and people in the crowds cheered for them. They did not seem to care whether or not the crowd was on their side or not. I did not know whether that was good or not. There was a three day wait for my fight.
