Chapter 100 100: The Terms Of The Contract

The air had turned awkward after Amelia had turned down Sara's begging for help. Sara looked shocked and even Amelia looked uncomfortable with what had just happened.

But they both accepted Amelia's wishes without much fanfare. Keith was glad that things had blown over without much problem and that Amelia had chosen to keep her original objective. It showed that the guild had a tight hold on her.

'I am so lucky that Amelia has such a tight moral compass. She would never betray the ones who had shown her kindness.'

That was the whole reason Amelia had not betrayed the guild and the grandmaster even when she had been asked for help point blank. She had chosen her priorities straight which Keith was glad to see.

"Hey, you both. If you are done talking, then we should get going now. I can see the stage our host has prepared to welcome us."

Keith broke the awkward atmosphere with his words. He did not want Amelia to think back on her decision and decide to go back on it. So, the best way to achieve this was the keep her busy.

"Huh? What are you talking about? O-Oh, that stage. Yeah, I can see it now as well. I wonder why I did not notice it until now."

Amelia looked behind Keith, finally noticing the stage from the opening of the cave. It was a well-established stage as well.

Sara did not say much, she just followed behind the pair with a sullen expression. But there was something about her determination that irked Keith. He felt like he was letting in a snake near his neck.

'I hope I do not regret allowing Sara to come with me. I do not have a good feeling regarding her.'

But Keith could not do anything against Sara right now. She was under Amelia's protection and Keith did want his relationship with Amelia to remain intact.

When they reached the first stage, Keith was surprised to see a lot more people than he had first expected there to be. The members gathered near the stage were over 100 currently and they were only multiplying at this point.

There was no one at the central stage which meant that the host had not arrived yet. Either that or the host was watching them from a hidden spot.

"Wow, there are a lot of people that are participating. Would we even be able to win anything at this rate?"

Sara looked nervous now. She was already not favored to win, and now she had so much competition. She was beyond agitated at this point.

If only her request had not been denied by Amelia, then Sara would have no reason to be this nervous. But Sara had denied Amelia's request and that had wounded Amelia a lot. She had just lost such an important asset.

People were looking at Amelia from the corner of their eyes. She had not hidden her aura so her massive potential was leaking out of her.

Has Keith been closer to Amelia and he knew Amelia would not take offense to his words, Keith would have asked her to contain her overflowing aura. But alas, that was not to be the case.

Amelia was doomed to be the object of these people's envy and silence. That was her punishment for not being able to control her aura.

Just as people were about to make Amelia their target and play tricks, the stage saw some movement. A figure covered entirely in black stepped on the stage. This person had no recognizable features due to the black covering his whole body.

People tensed up, not expecting what would happen next. The person, no, the creature that had walked up the stage looked unique for sure.

Even Amelia tensed up Keith, getting ready to defend herself if the need arose for it. But Keith was not worried about being attacked.

Had the host wanted to kill them all, there would have been no need for such massive and large-scale preparations.

This creature was likely here to announce the next round and how one could qualify for the said round.

"Hello everyone, and welcome to the Cross Arena. I hope you all were able to make it here without any trouble. But it's unfortunate to say that your journey has just started yet. Now, we will announce the first obstacle of your challenge today."

The black-clad figure announced and many people tensed. They did not look happy with the announcement that had been made in front of them.

"Hey, what do you mean the 'first obstacle'? I almost died while coming here. And now you are saying that you will not even compensate us?"

"I missed a whole day's worth of work because I had to come here. Give me my money or else-"

People threatened the shadow, wanting justice and redemption for their missed day. They did not realize that they had no power in this arena or on this island.

These people had also not read the rules but signed the consent form anyway. Keith felt sorry for them but at the same time, he refused to pity these foolish souls.

The person on top of the podium sounded surprised as well when he spoke.

"Ah, what are you all talking about? You did read the rules before signing away your life, right? It clearly states that the first round will only begin once the announcement has been made and there will be no compensation for anyone. We are just here to have fun."

People did not like this announcement and riots could break out at any moment. Keith tenses as soon as he felt the atmosphere getting bad. It was about to get difficult in the meeting for him and others.

One of the persons near a tree ended up punching the poor thing. The trunk of the tree broke under such a relentless attack and snapped into two.

"Are you seeing this? It was a tree this time but it will surely be your neck the next time. Don't you dare play with me or I will not forgive you. Now give me my compensation or else-"

That man threatened with his giant fists. He looked intimidating and he knew that as well. As long as he did not back down, he was sure that the sponsors of this tournament would give him what he wanted.

Too bad for this man, the black-clad figure did not look scared. He looked elated that someone had tried to challenge his authority and he raised his hands.

"Oh, someone is being naughty when they should not even try. I can see that none of you read the contract rule section. But oh well, first-hand experience is often more effective anyway for people like you."

The black-clad figure snapped his fingers and the angry man froze before he felt his body twisting and he was thrown on the ground.

He tried to move but his body would not obey him. Everyone else looked shocked and backed away from that man, giving Keith a clear view of what was going on.

"Hey, what the hell happened to this man? Can he not move now?"

Sara questioned as soon as she noticed the man trying to struggle out of his invisible binds.

Most people had no idea what was happening but then there were some like Amelia who knew and had experienced this kind of magic.

"It's salve magic. If the terms of the contract are not violated by the host party or the timer doesn't expire, they can do with us as they please. We cannot attack them or disrupt what they are trying to do."

Amelia explained with a tense voice. Contrary to belief, she did not have a problem with this magic anymore, but she still did not like it much.

It reminded her of the worst days in her life and it was also a hindrance to everything she was trying to achieve nowadays.

"S-Slave magic? Isn't this forbidden magic? Why was it in a contract? How do we get it out of us?"

Sara questioned with a panicked voice. A few others who had heard Sara's words looked shocked as well. They had not expected their freedom to be taken away by the host of this tournament.

It was Keith's turn to speak up now since people were glaring at him as well.

"We will be free when the timer runs out or when the terms in our contract are fulfilled. So, we will likely have to wait a week for this tournament to finish. Did you seriously not read the contract?"

Sara looked sheepish but also uncomfortable. She was hiding things from Keith and he had no intention of forcing her to speak.

Before people could break out into panic, the black-clad figure spoke up from the stage again.

"I am sorry for this disruption. Now that things have cleared up again, it's time to announce the first part of this tournament open."