Scouting the Competition

After taking a quick shower at the joint baths that Kaden had found at the end of the hall, he changed out of his old attire and had put on a new set of clothes that had been prepared on his bed.

Before leaving his room again, he grabbed the rule-book that had been left for him, planning to read it while he ate.

Kaden walked down the hall past the baths and into a large cafeteria. It seemed like most of the people had already left, or it was in between meals, which made him realize he must have really been out for a long time.

It seemed that they were starting dinner, so Kaden grabbed some food and sat down in a quiet part of the cafeteria, hoping no one would bother him.

Taking a few bites of his food, he flipped through the pages of the rule-book:

Here are the list of rules that your are permitted to follow.

1. No violence/assault outside of the tournament games.

2. Murder within the tournament itself is not permitted.

3. Engaging in conspiracy outside the games is not allowed.

4. Threatening or using other contestants for your own gain is not allowed.

5. Teaming up with other contestants outside assigned groups is not allowed.

6. No items may be used that were brought in from outside the tournament unless permitted by organizers.

7. Harassment and/or violence towards organizers is not allowed.

8. Rules are subject to change based on the organizers discretion.

If any rules are broken, immediate disqualification from the tournament will follow.

Kaden sighed in relief, knowing that his life would not be in danger — at least for now. His eyes hovered over the final rule, contemplating its implications.

As the tournament continued, it seemed the rules would become more relaxed.

'There's no way they would remove rules like "no murder," would they?'

Kaden shuddered at the thought.

To his knowledge, no one had ever died participating in the tournament, but with all the changes being implemented, he was continued to doubt the normalcy in this year's tournament.

Taking another bite of his food, he began to think of ways to exploit the rules. Violence and assault were forbidden here, but that left room for other opportunities.

Kaden glanced over at other contestants, who were starting to fill the cafeteria for the evening.

His eyes landed on Jade, who was cursing at another contestant to keep the line moving.

Almost as if she sense his gaze, Jade glanced over and gave him a terrifying smile.

'Well, at least I know verbal assault is permitted,' Kaden sighed, as he tried to eat a bit quicker predicting the coming storm that was Jade.

He was half-hoping that she would come over — maybe he could bait her into punching him and knock her out of the tournament before it even began. One punch now would be worth preventing the possible thousands of punches she might throw at him later.

'One punch, two knockouts... Heh.'

While anticipating a confrontation with Jade, Kaden observed the other contestants for any obvious changes after gaining foundation.

To his disappointment, everyone was relatively the same.

Of course, a foundation without any extra advancement wouldn't change much, but there were a few people who, when he glanced at them, gave him an uneasy feeling — telling him to stay away.

Not willing to betray his instincts, he tried to ignore them.

Looking back at the rule-book, the only page with any real substance was the one listing the eight rules. The rest was filled with motivational words and a map of the common area, which would have been useful when he was looking for the baths.

As he continued to flip through the rule-book, a tray abruptly landed across from him.

Without looking up, Kaden could already feel Jade's piercing gaze as she sat down.

Kaden continued to ignore her until Jade finally spoke up.

"Good evening, shrimp. You look even weaker than the last time I saw you."

Glancing up from his page, he saw Jade with a stupid grin on her face, and a large mound of food in front of her.

Up close, Kaden could feel the change in her aura, — she must have gotten a potent foundation.

"And you've become even more unbearable to look at."

Jade's eye twitched.

"I'm not falling for your provocation, twerp. I read the rules."

Kaden closed the rule-book, giving her his full attention and a genuinely surprised look.

"Oh, so you're no a total muscle brain after all? I was beginning to think that maybe you couldn't read."

The smile on Jade's face faded as she leaned forward.

"Listen here, twerp, I know we can't fight here, but once I find you in the tournament, you're as good as dead."

Kaden looked blankly at Jade.

"I would like to offer my formal apology."

Jade scoffed, clearly offended.

"You really have no backbone, do you? Baiting me into a fight and then trying to play it off when you feel threatened."

Not having any reply, Kaden squirmed and began to pick up his tray.

Watching him leave, Jade spoke in a more reserved tone, "Just hope that I don't see you tomorrow."

***

"Well, that didn't go well..."

The plan to provoke Jade had failed. She was more astute than he had thought, making her a more dangerous opponent than expected.

Kaden decided that becoming stronger as quickly as possible was the best way to survive the first phase. He would need to hatch a plan to catch up to everyone else.

Kaden had no doubt that he was currently the weakest contestant — he was literally at rock bottom. 

He focused on his foundation:

Name: Kaden Urden

Race: Human

Foundation: [Rock Bottom]

Foundation Description: It's only up from here!

Rank: Poor

Attunements: —

Attributes: [Lucky], [Problem Child], [Steady Learner]

"Sometimes, to move forward, you need to take a few steps back first. Isn't that the saying?"

His current predicament was displeasing, but Kaden was determined.

'For now I think it's best if I start planning.'

As he walked back to his room, formulating a plan, he bumped into someone.

He turned and saw a tall, lean young man about his age with dyed green hair and a sharp, angular face.

Instantly, Kaden felt the "stay away" aura and slightly froze for a second before apologizing and scurrying off.

The green-haired man just stared at him as he walked away.

As Kaden left, he shivered.

'Yeesh... That guy gave me the creeps.'

Another person to avoid.

"Whats with all these weirdos man..."

Finally, Kaden made it to the safety of his dorm, flopped on his bed, and began the start of a great plan for his tournament debut.