The streets were completely packed. The entire city buzzed with excitement for the upcoming event.
High above the crowds, on a balcony overlooking the capital, a man in a dark suit bowed. He was known only as the Ripper.
"Ma'am Isbell. It's time to announce it," he said, showing his absolute respect.
"Yeah," Isbell replied. Her eyes glowed as she activated her special skill: Telepathy. Her voice echoed directly into the minds of everyone in the country. "Listen well. The tournament will begin in a time span of three days. To register, all you have to do is defeat other participants anywhere within this country and take their badges."
The Ripper stepped forward. "Are the drones all set?" Isbell asked.
He nodded. "Yes. They will allow us to view every single fight."
...
Down in the crowded streets, Lynx walked silently, blending in as a nobody. He wore a black hooded cloak that cast a shadow over his face. Its exterior was covered in an intricate, glowing network of gold cracks, resembling shattered glass. Underneath, a dark tunic was strapped tight with criss-crossing leather harnesses and utility belts. With his dark combat trousers, he looked fully unreadable.
He arrived in front of the massive registration hall just outside the battle arena and walked up to the front desk.
"How may I help you, sir?" asked the registration girl, tapping a stack of papers.
"What are the requirements to participate?" Lynx asked, his voice muffled slightly by his dark collar.
"Oh, you just need to give us your name so we can give you a registration badge," she replied with a polite smile.
"After that, all you have to do is find opponents who also have badges and fight them. The loser must hand theirs over. The badge requirement to advance will keep getting higher as the available spots become fewer," she said, reading the rule book.
Lynx narrowed his eyes beneath the hood. Knowledge was a weapon. "What if they cheat, or run off instead of handing over the badge?"
"Don't worry about that," she said, her eyes darting outside. "We have drones that track every single badge. The moment a fight starts, the badges turn red. Drones will immediately fly to your location and act as a fair middleman. If someone tries to run away after losing, their badge will explode, and the winner will automatically be accepted if the staff is satisfied." She pulled out a blank tag. "So, what is your name?"
"Lynx Vrren," he replied.
While he waited for his badge to be created, Lynx extracted more information from her.
The tournament would be a team battle, maxing out at four members per team, but one could go solo. After the final round, the winning team members would have to fight each other.
Whoever came out on top would be taken in by the higher authorities as their personal disciple.
"Here's your badge," she said, handing it over. "My name is Phoenix, by the way. Good luck!"
"Thanks."
Lynx walked away from the desk. He suddenly realized he was sweating. He wiped his forehead with his hand.
{Why is it so hard to just talk with people?}
As Lynx searched the area for potential opponents, the sky suddenly shifted. He looked up and saw glowing figures slowly falling toward the ground like shooting stars.
A voice suddenly echoed in his head.
"You all have been summoned from different worlds," the voice declared. "I know the summoner has already transferred enough information and the ability to understand the language of this world into your minds. You have been blessed with different types of powers. Use them to win this tournament."
Lynx stopped walking, his eyes narrowing.
{Why doesn't she just say that to the summoned people? Is it that she can't control her telepathy... or does she want the rest of us to know that this won't be easy?}
Lynx turned and kept walking, analyzing his own strength.
{It doesn't matter. I have created my own fighting style, and I've trained both my Positive and Negative Will to a greater ceiling.}
{I even created a skill of my own. I call it 'Imagination.' It allows me to do anything that my mind can imagine or think of.}
He smirked with confidence beneath his hood, but it quickly faded.
{But... it's weak. The skill requires an immense amount of willpower depending on the request. If I ask for anything too crazy, it simply won't work. If it's hard but barely within my limits, using it will leave me completely drained, unable to do something as simple as thinking.}
He sighed, his stomach suddenly growling. He realized he was starving.
"Let's buy some food first."
By midnight, Lynx made his way back to the dense forest to think of a plan in quiet isolation. As he walked through the trees, he noticed a bright light glowing deep within the woods.
Lynx smiled menacingly. "If it's an opponent, I'll start by taking their badge."
He moved silently through the shadows of the trees. Arriving at the source of the light, he gently parted the bushes to look.
His eyes widened.
Leaning against a tree was a girl, heavily injured and bleeding. Clipped to her slightly torn clothes was a registration badge that read: 'Hayat'.
Lynx froze.
{How is she here?! This is a completely different world from the one she lived in.}
Without thinking, Lynx stepped out of the bushes. Hayat's head snapped up. In a flash of movement, she drew her daggers, gripping them tightly despite her wounds.
"Don't come any closer!" she warned, her eyes filled with desperation and killing intent. "I might look weak right now, but I can instantly kill you!"
"Princess?" Lynx blurted out, immediately raising both of his hands above his head in surrender.
Hayat stared at him in disbelief. "Who are you? Wait... you must be one of the assassins they sent to kill me!"
Lynx's mind immediately went into overdrive.
{Interesting. I think I understand what's going on.}
{From what I remember, Hayat had an older brother who absolutely despised her because she possessed a relic that protected her from everything harmful, which the Prince wanted.}
He looked down at his own clothes.
{I can't tell her that I'm Nx. But playing the victim and saying I got kicked into this world would look stupidly suspicious too. My clothes definitely give off the vibe that I'm an assassin.}
He looked back up at her glowing daggers.
{She is way stronger than I am right now. She can kill me in one blow. What do I do...?}
Lynx's eyes rolled back, and he fell unconscious to the ground.