A Tale From Lanoria: The Princess of Barough

Chapter 5: Arrogance

After the aggressively overprotected relaxation period, Oriana returned to the balcony. Tyir was waiting for her so that they could watch the other competitors. There were seven others who completed their own battle against the Minotaur. A few had died at the hands of the large creature or had decided that they no longer wished to compete. Those who moved on met with the princess. Oriana got to know a bit about each competitor. Unlike with Donovan, Tyir refused to leave her side. Afterwards, each was shown to a room. A small dining hall was nearby, where they had been provided refreshments and a meal.

After the Princess had met the last of the mages, Celsy joined Oriana once more. The rest of the competition was going to start soon. "I don't like you meeting all these mages," Celsy grumbled.

"I should be able to trust my courtmage, shouldn't I? And be comfortable being with them." Oriana saw no harm in talking to them one-on-one; most of them were pleasant and polite. Thoughts of Donovan were coming a lot more frequently than she would have expected.

"Thank Novada that you were there as well, Prince Tyir," Celsy said.

"I wasn't going to leave the Princess alone again," Tyir said as he patted Oriana's hand before lacing his fingers with hers.

"Thankfully, we only have to deal with one more competition and then this whole thing can be wrapped up," Celsy grumbled. "Have you thought of who you would pick out of those remaining?" she asked curiously.

"Not quite yet, but if any were to have the upper hand, they would win without bloodshed. I don't think I can stomach it anymore." Oriana said.

"You are quite adamant about that, aren't you, Princess? Since this is the second time you've mentioned it," Tyir asked her.

"I know...but it is the only request I have for my courtmage. It would prove to me that there is still compassion in Lanoria and that Medeis is not all about bloodshed and power. I still believe there can be mages who will rise above without slaughtering others to get to the top,"

Celsy brought the Princess into her arms for a swift hug, unaware that their conversation had not been as private as they'd believed. "Your innocent and sweet personality is wasted on those heathens, Oriana!"

"Celsy, they're not heathens," Oriana grumbled, but she didn't push her away.

Donovan, meanwhile, had been snacking on a turkey leg and listening to their conversation. Hearing the princess, he knew he had better continue his non-killing trend if he wanted to beat the others.

"The first guy was unlucky. I should have just punched him out. The minotaur I wanted to take out with style... I was planning on wreaking through the rest of them, kind of showing off." he grumbled to himself. "Though I guess if I want to win this thing, I have to do it the slow and boring way. Too bad... I really was looking forward to killing that cocky elemental mage." Donovan used his speed to quickly zip away before anyone could notice him.

As the sun began to set and the day came to a close, the rest of the competition commenced. The mages were to be pitted against one another once more. To make it tougher, they were given a certain time limit. It was also a tournament-style competition. Each of them would fight in pairs. All of them would be fighting at the same time. Once everyone was done, they would take a day to rest. The competition took place over the course of the next two days. Above them, safely away from the battle, the Princess watched nervously.

The fights were especially brutal as the mages stuck to their ways. Each fight was fought to the death. One after the other, bodies dropped to the ground, or at least what was left of them. Oriana coughed repeatedly throughout the fights, almost becoming ill a number of times from the gore, though she felt she had to watch. Not just to honor those who had come this far, but to see what her courtmage was capable of. However, there was one contestant who did not kill their opponents; Donovan stuck to knocking out his opponents instead.