I Know The Secret To Surpass Level 100

All the people in and out of the arena were in a state of shock. There was nothing they could say, baffled by how things turned out.

Azure Scorch Guild's team was frozen in their spot as they watched Daniel hover over them. There was a wide grin on his face, smiling from ear to ear, and showing as much teeth as he could.

The only moment they were able to move again was when the loud horns rang, signalling the end of the match.

"I-I…" Irv trailed off, even he was shocked by the scene that had unfolded right before his very eyes. "The time is up! Round Three is finally over!"

The crowd burst into cheers after his announcement. Their hollers and yells were so loud, they reached the middle of the sea where Elliot and his teammates were.

"W-What…" Elliot stuttered. His vision started to darken as he slowly fell into a pit of confusion. "I… failed."

"Everyone, here is the result of Round Three!" Zia announced. She flew quite the distance from the ground with her island while a giant screen appeared behind her. "Coming in at first place, Vulture Torch Guild, gaining five hundred points after killing the Kraken."

"Second guild is…"

The hosts were silent in Elliot's ears. He could only hear a stinging sound, a deafening ringing that blocked every other sound. His mind was filled with the scenes of the things that woul happen after their failure.

The Cilcan villagers will be executed.

Christina will be assassinated.

Their Realm will be destroyed.

"Elliot?" Connor was the first to spot him when a dense red mist started to seep through his skin. His eyes were void of emotions, only staring into the vast fake sea.

"Elliot!" Ed yelled, running towards him. "Wake up, man!"

"And the tenth and last guild to qualify for the Battle of Champions…" Irv trailed off. "Azure Scorch Guild with four hundred thirty-nine points!"

The mist that surrounded Elliot immediately retreated not long after the announcement. Somehow, the mentioning of their guild broke through his trance, waking him up from the endless flood of thoughts.

"W-What?" Elliot fell to his knees and stared at the screen behind the hosts. Their guild was the tenth guild that was able to pass through the final elimination round. "B-But…"

He wasn't able to finish when the seas split apart once more. There was a concentration of magic coming from an area, bubbling as a large creature started to surface.

"Wait," Connor raised his hands. "Where is Hope?!"

The water splurged into the skies as a large gray dragon burst out of the waters. He was spinning in the air, opening his wings that showed his glory. The giant Supreme Dragon Emperor covered the sun with its size almost more than half as big as the Kraken.

"And here is our MVP!" Aquarius suddenly yelled. The waves below them got together again, joining the one Aquarius stood on. "You didn't notice, but Hope had been hunting sharks underwater."

"S-So…" Elliot trailed off. "We still have a chance?"

Aquarius smirk and patted his shoulder, "Of course, kid. Our chance is just as big as the others."

"I told you," Connor whispered to Ed. "Hope had become scarier."

–

It was almost dusk when the event ended and the Adventurers started to come out of the arena. Thr orange burst of color filled the skies with its beauty. Almost all of the teams came out with smiles on their faces even after their defeat. 

For the most of them, being in the Parade is a great honor. Only a handful of guilds were able to enter the Parade after all. Being one of those guilds to be able to promote and to easily let people in was enough for most of them.

But that wasn't the case for the Azure Scorch Guild. They needed to win the competition. The stakes are high for them, and as the days pass by, it only keeps getting higher.

"I am so sorry," Daniel bowed in front of Elliot's team. "I know it was a douche move from me, but we really need more members for our guild."

"That's okay," Elliot chuckled and held Daniel up. "It was a competition. Something like that was bound to happen sooner or later.

"Yeah, no. Elliot's too kind still," Connor whispered to Ed that earned him a kick from Elliot. "What?"

Elliot widened his eyes at him, "You could at least lower your voice."

"Okay," Connor fake whispered and rolled his eyes. For the most of them, they were upset. Only the older ones and Elliot didn't hold the grudge agaisnt the opposing guild. After all, just like what Elliot said, it was a competition.

But for the others, they weren't so keen on the idea of letting things go easily. 

"Everyone saw that we we're going to solo that beast," Ed whispered back to Connor. "They had to butt in."

He earned an elbow from Elliot this time, "They can hear you loud and clear."

"That was the intention," Ed rolled his eyes and walked to Lance who was at the back. Elliot rolled his eyes back at him and turned to Daniel. "Congratulations to your guild though. I was impressed by how powerful your paper magic was."

This was where everyone had gotten suspicious about. They could still remember a few days ago when Alice told them that Daniel could barely hit anyone. He was the biggest weight in their guild. Yet, when he defeated the Kraken with paper swords that grouped like birds, that would have required him great amount of magic and experience.

And there was another thing that bothered Elliot. Alice also mentioned that Daniel was a halfling of a vampire. This meant that he should've been weak at this time of the day just like Midnight.

His powers says something else.

"We will go now." Daniel woke Elliot from his thoughts. The boy smiled and waved his hand, "Thank you so much to you. I'll see you soon, Elliot."

"Y-Yeah," Elliot smiled back. "I'll see you."

Elliot watched the group walk into the gates of Solaguer. He didn't know what he should feel after it. There was so many things going on and the problems seems to stack up more.

"Clear your thoughts and focus on your goal." Elliot turned to see Frederick behind him. The man was also staring at the gate where the guild just entered. His reddish brown eyes didn't leave the gate even after the guild has disappeared from his vision. "You'll be facing more surprises. If Hope didn't take action, you would have lost."

"It will never happen again," Elliot said, voice filled with conviction that he made the guild master looked at him. "We will not lose anymore."

"Make sure you do it and not just talk empty words." Frederick turned and waved his hand. "I'll be watching you."

A smirk formed in his lips as he slowly whispered the words, "And so will your father."