In the Rune Thrones there were three phases, each with its own style. The first phase was the battle for the flag in a massive battlefield. It was divided into five zones, separating all thirty teams into six groups, where only the last two teams that managed to keep their flag safe in each zone would advance to the second phase.
That meant only ten teams would remain, fifty students in total, who would move on to the next stage. The teams were gathering in the battle arena, each entering one by one. During that time, a small change had occurred—Elowyn had entered the top fifteen after defeating Robero, and she had also reached Circle Three.
'From what I heard, she reached Circle Three a few weeks after me. I have the advantage—and Elaris too.'
Elaris had worked very hard during that time, so she deserved it just like the others who had reached Circle Three ahead of schedule. There were also changes like some students rising to Class S and others being demoted.
[That makes sense, since they want to surpass you.]
'It's good that I'm doing my job well.'
Enrico was being carried in a carriage toward the place where the thirty participants of the competition would gather, so if there were any last-minute changes, he would see them there.
When he got off the carriage, he met his teacher Virelle, who was waiting with Angela. The two approached as soon as they saw him.
"I hope you slept well, Enrico."
"Of course I did. Today's an important day."
[Barefaced liar—you slept at most one extra hour.]
'That's enough for me to rest completely.'
So the girls wouldn't find out, Enrico pretended to sleep beside them, and once they were fully asleep, he slipped out quietly, then truly rested after training.
"Do you know if there were any changes, Professor?"
"Yes, there were. The boy named Nicholas defeated his academy companion Ramon Dino."
So Nicholas was now the Rank 1 of the academy. In a way, Enrico wasn't that surprised, since Nicholas was a reincarnator who seemed to have been strong even before coming to this world.
"I see. Even so, he probably chose Ramon as one of his teammates, so it won't change much."
"You're right. Just be careful with them, my discip— I mean, my student."
It was clear Virelle wanted to call him her disciple in front of others but couldn't until he defeated Victoria.
'My lady must be hurting a bit, but she can relax—I'm sure the young master will succeed.'
Dropped off in the room where everyone would gather, Enrico waved them goodbye with a confident smile, which they returned.
"The young master really is confident."
"Of course— I wouldn't expect less from the one who'll be my official disciple."
"That's right, Miss."
It wasn't just Enrico who was confident; his teacher and maid were certain he would become Astrong's best student.
'You'll make it, my disciple... I'm sure of it.'
Walking down a corridor past that door, Enrico entered another and realized he was the first to arrive.
"These youngsters, why are they so slow?"
[Maybe because you arrived half an hour earlier than everyone else's carriages?]
'That's just a detail. If they want to win, they should've arrived an hour earlier.'
[I don't think that's how it works.]
Moving to the center, Enrico sat in one of the front chairs, deciding to take a thirty-minute nap while waiting.
'Hey, Nartheis, you there? I'm sure you're watching... alright, if you're not, maybe the original is... Enrico Original, are you there?'
During that short nap, he tried to communicate as usual with the two who seemed to dwell within him, but as always, there was no response.
'What's wrong? He only takes over my body when he feels like it? Fine then—know it won't be easy next time.'
[Depends—if you let him, it'll be easy.]
'I didn't ask for your input, nosy. If I did, I'd call the system.'
"Looks like someone got here first. Damn, I wanted to be the first—where did I go wrong?"
Five minutes before the others arrived, Nicholas appeared, a bit disappointed that he wasn't the first. It really seemed he had confidently taken Ramon's place.
"Congratulations on becoming Rank 1 Sentinel."
"You knew? Seems you've been checking the rankings a lot... and you seem smart, so maybe you can explain—why do we have to fight so much just to enter the top thirty if we can just wait to be chosen by one of them?"
It seemed Nicholas had grown curious about this world. At first, to be honest, he didn't seem to care much about it, but he must've seen how vast and powerful its people were. As the strongest of his former world, his curiosity naturally grew.
[I'm surprised this guy jumped headfirst into things without knowing anything... he seemed smart.]
'He is—just like you said, he jumped in headfirst.'
"The reason why is that they won't get the same rewards as the top thirty."
Those chosen would gain money and recognition throughout the competition, increasing with each phase reached, while the top thirty would gain much more—and special privileges.
"Just being in the first phase, besides earning more money and recognition, we'll also gain access to the second level of the library, where we'll have an advantage in our studies."
"The second level?"
"Yes, it's only open to the best students. It grants access to climb the magic tower, which is hidden somewhere and constantly changes location."
"That sounds interesting, very interesting—and that's just for being in the first phase."
Nicholas now had the same confident, intrigued expression of a protagonist who had found something that truly caught his attention—and it suited him.
"Those who reach the second phase will be recognized as Junior Mages—a title only given to second-year students halfway through the next year."
"What do we gain from that?"
"We can go on missions more often, enter dungeons at our level, and earn our own money."
From Nicholas's reaction, he now seemed very satisfied with himself for having entered the top thirty.
"The third phase is different since only the winner gets the final reward, while the others simply increase what they can obtain—for example, someone who reaches phase three can take up to three copied books from the magic tower home."
"So it's an increase in rewards."
"Exactly. Another improvement is that you'll receive the Junior Mage VIP badge, which can be used to become an official mage a month after reaching Junior rank—if you show enough potential."
The rewards had improved greatly, and they were already good before, so it was no lie to say Nicholas wanted to go as far as possible.
"And the winner?"
"Well, the winner will be taught by a madman."
"A madman?"
"The strongest person in this world will teach you for an entire week—and you might become his official disciple if he likes you."
Opening his eyes in surprise, Nicholas grew excited—after all, in his world he had been known as the strongest even until his death. Before he could ask more, several people began to enter: the rest of the participants. What caught their attention most was their curiosity about who the competitors from other continents would be.