The Fourth Garden

  Langst: So, it's about to begin... the Supreme Warriors Tournament.

  Anastasia Kingdom – higher Warriors Tournament Arena

  Announcer: Welcome, dear spectators! Today, after four long years, the higher Warriors Tournament is finally about to begin! We are just minutes away from the grandest event in Anastasia Kingdom! And, of course, attending this event is the greatest power of Anastasia Kingdom—the Sacred Warrior, Aelius Ryum!

  The stadium erupts into cheers. The excitement is palpable.

  Aelius, thinking: This tournament is not just for entertainment. It exists so that the people of the kingdom can witness the greatest warriors and place their trust in them completely.

  Announcer: As we all know, the winning team will receive golden medals, and the most outstanding participant will be awarded the Diamond Medal!

  Aelius, thinking: Team members are selected randomly, but the selection is also balanced as much as possible. Of course, a team made up entirely of support or defense warriors couldn't possibly go up against an attack-focused team.

  The teams are displayed on the massive screens.

  Announcer: The first team!

  Nuywaru Roden

  Kanoui Volcharding

  Hitaro Voltaren

  Winda Kuamodori

  The second team!

  Yutomori Ryum

  Renma Shidel

  Lakora Travian

  Yukio figalim

  The audience roars with excitement. They've been waiting years to see a battle between Nuywaru and Yukio!

  As the higher Warriors step onto the battlefield, the tension rises.

  Announcer: Here they are—the greatest forces of Anastasia Kingdom! The Eight higher Warriors!

  Nuywaru: Yukio, get ready. You’re the one I’m going to pin down.

  Yukio, smirking: As if I’d let you lay a hand on me.

  Kanoui: I didn’t expect us to be on opposing sides.

  Renma: Agreed.

  Hitaro: Lakora, let’s see which is more effective—my precision or your speed.

  Lakora: The fight will be over before you even land a shot.

  The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

  Yutomori: I don’t want to face you, so I’ll go after the others.

  Winda: I won’t allow that.

  Yutomori, thinking: Love is a problem...

  Announcer: The grand battle is about to begin! Will Nuywaru succeed, or will Yukio foresee everything?!

  Will Kanoui's support compensate for Renma’s defense, or will it be the other way around?

  Will Hitaro, the sharpshooter, win, or will Lakura, the master manipulator, prevail?

  Will plants triumph over steel?!

  This year's match-up is unbelievably thrilling!

  The teams take their positions, standing meters apart.

  Announcer: 3... 2... 1... Begin, higher Warriors!

  At the sound of the signal, Hitaro leaps high into the air, scanning the battlefield, then immediately fires four arrows at the opposing team.

  Renma quickly raises a wall of earth in front of him.

  Name: Renma Shidel

  Ability: Earth

  Yutomori’s Shingen activates—it’s the Absolute Sense, allowing him to instantly detect incoming attacks and automatically counter them with his steel ability.

  Name: Yutomori Ryum

  Ability: Steel

  Lakora effortlessly deflects an arrow with his dagger. Yukio dodges another with eerie calm, as if he already knew it was coming.

  Hitaro: You haven’t changed much.

  Yukio: Are you testing us, Hitaro?

  Name: Yukio

  Ability: See five seconds into the future

  Winda then unleashes her ability, making plants erupt from the ground to attack the opposing team.

  Name: Winda Kuamodori

  Ability: Plants

  Meanwhile, Hitaro continues to search for an opening to strike Lakora. Kanoui enhances Nuywaru's and Hitaro’s speed while using a Shingen of defense to shield Winda.

  Nuywaru charges at full speed towards Yukio, who remains eerily still.

  As Nuywaru reaches him, he attempts to land a blow, but Yukio narrowly evades it.

  Yukio: Even though I saw it coming, you're unbelievably fast.

  Nuywaru: And now that I have Kanoui's enhancement, you won’t escape next time.

  Their battle intensifies as they exchange rapid blows with incredible agility. Suddenly, Yukio ducks—Hitaro had fired another arrow at him. But then Hitaro activates his Shingen of Control, redirecting the arrow at lightning speed. Yukio is struck, and the arrow vanishes.

  Name: Hitaro Voltaren

  Ability: Target Location

  When Hitaro hits someone with an arrow, he gains the ability to see their exact location for one full minute—anywhere they are. He can also share this ability with his allies, which he does immediately, making Yukio visible to Nuywaru. Yukio can no longer hide.

  On the other side of the battlefield, Hitaro is still locked onto Lakora, but Lakora's sheer speed makes it nearly impossible to land a shot, even with the Shingen of Control.

  Suddenly, Lakora appears in front of Kanoui.

  Hitaro tries to fire an arrow, but in an instant, Lakora disappears and reappears behind Hitaro, placing a dagger at his throat.

  Hitaro: I lost this quickly, huh?

  Lakora: That makes three left.

  Name: Lakura Travian

  Ability: Manipulation of the Five Senses

  Lakora moved towards Hitaro, but he activated his ability to manipulate Hitaro’s vision, making him see him in front of Kanoui.

  While everyone was distracted, Renma reached Kanoui, forcing her to cancel the enhancement and focus on facing Renma.

  Although Renma is a defensive warrior and Kanoui is a support warrior, their combat skills should not be underestimated.

  As for Yutomri, he didn’t want to fight Winda, so he simply avoided her attacks.

  Finally, Nuywaru was able to touch Yukio in a surprising moment, activating his ability and turning the surroundings into a long road.

  Nuywaru: "How about we have some tea here?"

  Nuywaru's ability activates when he touches someone. They enter a place with a long road that they must walk on for an hour. Every second in this place drains physical strength and Shinta, and fighting cannot take place here.

  Yukio: "Damn..."

  Aelius: "This fight is unfair. With Kanoui, Winda, and Hitaro all on one team, while the enemy has Yutomeri, Lakora, and even Yukio... What’s the point of such a division...? Could he be trying to shine the spotlight on the other warriors? Nuywaru and Yukio were the most outstanding warriors in the past years, so perhaps the king is trying to make the other warriors the focus as well. But what a foolish way to go about it. A person like him couldn’t possibly do something so obvious... Is he underestimating the intelligence of the people? Or has the people really become this foolish...?"

  After Hitaro’s defeat and the fight between Nuywaru and Yukio reaching a halt, the battle became one-sided.

  Renma defeats Kanoui thanks to his Earth ability, and at the same time, Lakora manipulates Winda’s senses to reach her and defeat her.

  Announcer: "Team Yukio is the winner!"

  After hearing the announcer's words, Nuywaru deactivates his ability and announces his surrender.

  Nuywaru: "The result was clear from the start."

  Yukio: "But you beat me this time."

  Nuywaru: "Of course."

  Winda: "You didn’t do anything."

  Yutomeri: "I said I don’t want to fight you."

  Winda: "Stop underestimating me."

  Yutomeri, thinking: "I’m not underestimating you."

  Hitaro: "And so, speed and manipulation have won."

  Lakora: "Of course, Rabbit Eyes."

  Hitaro: "Who are you calling Rabbit?"

  Kanoui: "That wasn’t fair. I could have beaten you."

  Renma: "Yeah, yeah, whatever."

  After this quick encounter, the top warriors rest.

  Aelius: "Clearly, the king succeeded in this. He wanted Nuywaru to trap Yukio so that they would be out of sight, and for Winda’s focus to be on Yutomeri, who likes her... When I think about it, I don’t know how she doesn’t know he likes her. I think she’s really dumb...

  The fight between Hitaro and Lakora was enough to showcase Lakora’s skills and Hitaro’s planning, while Renma and Kanoui always remained at the bottom in terms of confrontations. The king clearly doesn’t care about them in this tournament."

  Announcer: "Now, we will announce the medalists!"

  Yukio figalim, winner of the third Gold Medal! He demonstrated unique combat skills, and his ability alone makes any fight thrilling and exciting!

  Nuywaru Roden, winner of the second Gold Medal! The first person to charge directly into the enemy team and engage with Yukio, with his incredible speed and unparalleled intuition, we witnessed a fight of the highest caliber!

  Lakora Travian, winner of the Diamond Medal! The only one who was able to defeat two top warriors, and with his unimaginable ability, Lakora ascended to the throne of this tournament!

  Aelius: "Did the king want to highlight Lakora’s excellence? But why... Why Lakora specifically? Could the tournament have been planned from the start?..."