Chapter 15: Yggdrasil XIII

Chapter 15: Yggdrasil XIII

It took the group a few hours to reach Helheim. Because the Tournament was going to start tomorrow, they logged off the game and decided to meet tomorrow.

~Momonga's POV~

After a good night's rest, I was pumped for the Tournament. I ate a hearty breakfast and jumped into the VR Pod.

After logging in, I received the notification for the start of the Tournament.

...

[World Champion Tournament will start at 10:00.. Time Remaining: 00:59:23]

[You will be teleported to Helheim Tournament once the time ends.]

...

The news of the Tournament had been made public two months before its start. During this time, all the Players who wanted to participate began their preparations.

To take part in it, Players needed to submit their applications a month before the Tournament's commencement. However, not all participation requests were considered.

Only a finite number of Players could participate in the Tournament, precisely 10,000 participants per realm, totaling 90,000 Players from the entire game.

There were restrictions on the Players who could join the Tournament; the Player needed to be level 100, etc. And even if someone failed to participate this year, they could do so the following year.

I opened my console and checked how many Players participated in the Tournament.

...

Asgard: [8,500 / 10,000]

Alfheim: [9,856/ 10,000]

Helheim: [ 8,036 / 10,000]

Jtunheim: [ 8,959 / 10,000]

Midgard: [9,950 / 10,000]

Mspellsheim: [8,000 / 10,000]

Nifelheim: [9,500 / 10,000]

Niavellir: [8,361 / 10,000]

Vanaheim: [8,739 / 10,000]

...

'Hmm, Midgard has the highest Player count.'

The structure of the Tournament was unique. In the first round, the players were divided into different brackets.

The number of Players in each bracket depended on the total number of Players participating from a realm.

The first battle was a free for all. The last standing Players in a bracket were moved to the next round. The devs decided to do so because of the number of Players participating.

After the free for all, rounds start from;

Preliminary Rounds -> Elite Rounds -> Quarterfinals -> Semifinals -> Finals

After reading the rules of the Tournament, I decided to wait for my clan mates. Some of them also participated in it.

I had to wait; half an hour before they started to log in.

After another half an hour, I received the notification for the start of the Tournament.

[The World Champion Tournament is starting! Please use your console to accept the teleportation request!]

I turned toward my clan mates and spoke in an excited tone.

Momonga: "See you guys on the other side."

Bukubukuchagama: "Good luck, big brother Momonga~"

I accepted the teleport request and vanished into motes of light.

~Scene Change~

Because the Tournament was an official event, the devs made a dedicated arena for it.

The arena was in the shape of a roman styled colosseum. The seats of the Colosseum were packed with golems meant to mimic a crowd.

Flags featuring a deep black backdrop adorned with a vibrant, multicolored depiction of Yggdrasil were proudly raised at the 4 cardinal directions of the Colosseum.

The arena in the middle of the Colosseum was filled with Players of different races. There were Humans, Elves, Demi-Humans, and Heteromorphs. The players were mingling with each other.

Because Momonga was using a sword, spear users were naturally his greatest opponents.

As time passed in the arena, it became a cacophony of clashes, spells, and tactics. The initial chaos gradually gave way to calculated maneuvers as Players adapted to the intense conditions.

Amidst this turmoil, Player 420, a figure clad in a red coat, was locked in a fierce struggle against the spear-wielding adversaries.

Player 652 and Player 965 closed in on Player 420 from different angles. Each step was deliberate, each strike aimed with precision.

Player 420, undeterred, expertly parried the incoming thrusts, his sword dancing with practiced grace. Sparks flew as the blade met the spear, the clash of weapons resonating throughout the arena.

With a sudden burst of speed, he evaded a sweeping attack from Player 652, narrowly escaping the spear's trajectory. Seizing the opportunity, he swiftly closed the distance, his sword whirling like a vortex of destruction.

Player 965 reacted instinctively, attempting to intercept the blade, but Player 420's speed proved too much to overcome.

In a flurry of motion, Player 420 executed a seamless combination of strikes, his sword finding its mark with unerring accuracy. Player 652 and Player 965, caught off guard by the ferocity of the assault, found themselves unable to mount a proper defense.

"INCREDIBLE! PLAYER 420 HAS MANAGED TO OVERTAKE HIS OPPONENTS WITH ASTOUNDING SKILLS!"

The commentator's voice boomed across the arena, a fitting tribute to the remarkable feat witnessed by all.

After defeating both Players, Momonga drank an HP recovery potion. Despite emerging victorious in the duel against his spear-wielding opponents, Momonga did not remain unscathed.

The blue screen atop the arena showed the eliminated and the alive Players. The eliminated Players had a red cross over their avatar.

With the last elimination, only 248 Players remained in the arena.

"CONGRATULATIONS! TO ALL THE PLAYERS WHO MANAGED TO MAKE THIS FAR!! THE NEXT ROUND WILL START IN 20 MINUTES!"

As the announcement ended, all the Players began to prepare for the next round. Momonga also took potions from his inventory and stored them on his belt for easier accessibility.

The next round was going to Preliminary Round.

This round introduced team battles, where Players would collaborate in teams.

The reason why the battles in the Tournament were so varied was that the winner of the Tournament received the job class known as the 'World Champion,' which was considered to be the powerful warrior-type class.

How was a Player who was only effective against one other Player qualified to take the class? The Tournament was designed this way to judge various characteristics of Players. At least, that's how Momonga viewed it.

After 5 minutes, the blue screen changed its content. Now it showed multiple teams and their opponents.

Momonga was on a team with 2 other Players, a paladin, and a Club user. The opponent team had a war wizard and two great sword users.

Our team number was 32, and we were up against the team number 53.

Each team had a 10-minute bracket for their battle. The team that caused more damage than the opposing team was declared the winner if they failed to defeat them in the allotted time.

In this round, multiple battles took place at the same time. The teams were given 15 minutes to develop their strategies.

I met with my team members and discussed our strategy for the upcoming battle.

After discussion, we made a good strategy; as part of this plan, the paladin would bestow blessings upon both myself and the club user.

I and the club user will act as a vanguard while the paladin will remain behind and support us.

After deciding on the strategy, we started to wait. After about half an hour, our team was called out to the arena.

~Commentry POV~

"Ladies and Gentlemen, this is the last batch for the Preliminary Rounds."

8 different teams entered their designated stage. After the teams were done setting up, the matches started.

Team number 32 decided to act upon their strategy right away. The paladin moved to rearguard and started blessing Momonga and the club user; named Harry.

The war wizard of team number 53 used a lightning spell to damage the vanguard of team 32.

The spell managed to hit the vanguard but failed to deal much damage.

Without wasting time, the great sword users of Team 53 attacked the vanguard of the opposing team.

But before they could reach them, the paladin of team 32 finished casting blessings, and Momonga lunged toward the great sword users.

He used one of his favorite skills from the 'Weapon God' job class, known as 'Widened Phantom Strike.'

It was able to pass through the enemy's defense if the user's Physical Attack was higher than the target's Physical Defence.

The great sword users failed to evade the attack. As the sword struck them, a club struck them from the sidelines.

The combined attack of Momonga and Harry chipped away a large portion of their health. While they were fighting with the great sword user, the paladin was engaging the war wizard.

Team 32 didn't know whether the war wizard of the opposing team could use recovery spells. So they decided to keep them busy.

Both teams kept attacking each other, and after 9 minutes, team 32 emerged victorious.

To Be Continued...