Chapter 108: Chapter 107 : Meeting The Duke (Part 2)

The Challenger Series.

Before explaining what this was, the topic of fighter ranks needed to be touched upon. When one first entered the main stage, one would obtain a fighter rank. Every new fighter, regardless of how strong their performance in the outer ring qualifying matches was, would start at the lowest rank.

Fighter ranks were updated weekly based on one’s victory to defeat ratio in that period.

To rise through the ranks, one would have to do battle. One wasn’t expected to just battle anyone though, only those ‘within acceptable range’. For ranks 421 - 101, this was within 20 ranks of one’s own rank; for ranks 100 - 51, this was within 10 ranks; and for those in the top fifty, this was within 5 ranks.

This arrangement made for a slow and long climb. Five years into the Combat Arena’s existence and the number of fighters had swelled to just over four hundred.

One would have to do many many battles to reach rank 1. If one followed the normal route, it would take several months to reach the number one spot, and this was assuming, you won every match.

However, there was a way to greatly shorten the time taken, by doing a Challenger Series.

Upon stepping onto the main stage, every fighter was given the privilege to invoke a Challenger Series.

To put it simply, the fighter presents an artificial ladder with which he/she can climb to the top, where each rung represents an individual match and opponent they have to best to continue upwards. Now, while the fighter’s input and requests were heavily weighted, they couldn’t request anything deemed too unreasonable.

The distances between rungs couldn’t be too big. For instance, if you were ranked 300, you couldn’t just request that your first opponent be someone in the top fifty. You’d have to go rank 250, then 200, then 150…something closer to that pattern.

The matches were all scheduled close together, spaced apart by a few days at max. To continue on the ladder, one would have to continue winning. Of course, most - or rather, only a literal handful of people had managed to complete their Challenger Series.

The rest, who had lost somewhere down the line would be given a new rank based on their performance. Most times, it was far from their original positions, with a select few barely moving.

Importantly, the privilege to invoke a Challenger Series was something one could only do once. Because of this, most chose to hold off on using it until they were sufficiently confident in their skills. This resulted in people holding the privilege for years on end, with a dozen or so, having done so since the Combat Arena’s inception.

Ralf was clearly not one of these people. He followed a path others didn’t - others couldn’t.

So, what would his Challenger Series look like?

The answer was at hand.

***

“My Challenger Series hmm, I was actually on my way to sort it out. Correct me if I’m wrong, but you have the power to approve these things right?”

“That’s right,” the Duke affirmed. “I look over all Challenger Series requests that come through and have the final say over what flies and what doesn’t. So, making your Challenger Series request to me effectively cuts out the middle man.”

“Excellent, that’ll save me the trip.” Ralf floated a cupcake over before having at it.

The trio of Walton, Chloe and Vincent had their eyes collectively light up as they anticipated what would come next. Remaining silent, they waited for the youth to finish his snack.

‘Oh, this is really good.’

Surprised at the delectable sweetness exploding in his mouth, Ralf found himself unable to resist another, and another. Seeing the rising impatience on the trio’s faces at his delay, he did the only logical thing. His Psi expelled out and quickly formed a Psi Clone right beside him.

The trio’s impatience faltered as they observed this strange action. Before they could ask, the Psi Clone showcased its reason for being.

((Okay, my Challenger Series. I’m thinking, eight matches total, with the first five being one vs many and the rest being one on one,)) Ralf - or rather, his Psi Clone voiced.

The trio’s eyes widened in bafflement at the happening, so much so, that Ralf’s words completely passed through their ears.

It was only when Ralf’s Psi subsequently constructed a visual representation did they fully register what he was saying.

-

Challenger Series:

Match 1: Rank 100 – 90

Match 2: Rank 89 - 80

Match 3: Rank 79 –70

Match 4 Rank 69 – 60

Match 5: Rank 59 – 50

Match 6: Rank 25

Match 7: Rank 10

Match 8: Rank 1

-

((This, to be exact.))

Finishing these words, both Ralf and the Psi Clone went silent, as they allowed the trio to digest the information.

‘This is…just crazy.’

Walton, Chloe and Vincent’s minds blanked as took in the arrangement. It was unlike anything they or the Combat Arena had ever seen before.

For instance, the inclusion of one-versus-many matches was something that had never been included in any Challenger Series so far. Another was the slope-like difficulty level the matches seemed to follow. Instead of rising in difficulty all the way to the top, Ralf’s Challenger Series’s difficulty spike appeared to lie in the middle.

It was bizarre, and yet the trio’s heart couldn’t help but bubble in excitement at the prospect of witnessing these future clashes.

“So, what do you think about the basic outline?”

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Having consumed the last of the final ‘snow topped’ cupcakes, Ralf dismissed the Psi Clone and spoke with his own voice.

“It’s very strange, but I love it,” the Duke said, merrily.

“Same.”

“I look forward to it.”

Following the Duke’s reply, Chloe and Walton echoed similar sentiments.

Ralf perked up at the positive reception. “Glad to hear. I’ll continue with the rest then.”

Vincent nodded. “Go ahead.”

Ralf did so, and for the next five minutes, he went through the individual match’s specifics and general conditions.

“The matches will be spaced a day apart, except the gap between match 7 and 8, which will be widened to three days.”

“...When do I want it to begin? Preferably, in ten days or so. I want my first batch of opponents to have at least a week to get comfortable fighting as a group and come up with some solid tactics to use against me…”

“...I’ll allow all my opponents in the one vs many matches to be linked to a shared telepathic network for real-time communication. They’ll be able to coordinate much better and also avoid crumbling as quickly as the group from last night…”

“...and that’s it,” Ralf concluded. “Are there any problems?”

His question hung in the air for a few seconds before Vincent managed to snap himself out of his stunned daze.

“No, nothing,” his voice quickly filled with energy. “It’s perfect. I hundred percent approve,” the Duke said happily, face practically glowing from anticipation overload.

His heart thumped a frenzied tune and his blood raced at what was to come. His subordinates on either side of him were similarly agitated.

‘Excellent, I knew coming here was a good idea,‘ Ralf remarked internally at having completed one of his tasks.

“Ralf.”

Ralf shifted to Chloe who spoke. “What’s up?”

Calming herself with a breath, Chloe asked the question that had been gnawing at her. “How confident are you in completing your Challenger Series?”

The question broke Walton and Vincent from their fantasies. They quickly sharpened their ears. Just like Chloe, they wanted to know where the young man’s limits lie.

Ralf titled his head and put on a puzzled expression as though totally ignorant of the language she was speaking in. “Confident...I’m very confident.”

His lackadaisical reply left the trio momentary speechless.

Walton, first to recover, fixed a curious gaze on Ralf’s figure. “Young man, are you implying that none of the Combat Arena fighters poses any threat to you, even as groups?”

“Of course…not.” Ralf shook his head. “Even I’m not that arrogant. The future is uncertain. Who knows, maybe my opponent or opponents level up during the match; or maybe I slip up and it ends in failure or my opponents surprise me with something I’ve never seen before or develop some airtight winning strategy and execute it perfectly…anything can happen. I’m not underestimating my opponents - or rather, I haven’t even estimated most of them. I don’t know what’s in store for me... still,” his aura subtly sharpened, “I know how capable I am, and am confident that I’ll be able to claim victory in the end.”

The trio’s eyes lit up at the words.

Ralf stood up from his couch.

“Huh, leaving already?” Vincent asked.

“Unfortunately, yes.”

Shoulders dropped and gazes dimmed at the response.

“Vincent, Chloe and Walton,” Ralf’s eyes shifted from couch to couch as he called out their names. “It was good meeting you three, real sweet, but I have to be on my way.”

“Have to?” Chloe latched on.

Ralf nodded. “Yeah. I have to head to Enviso to inquire about producing a movie?”

Vincent’s eyebrows raised. “You want to make a movie?”

“Yes. My other personalities and I have taken great interest in making one - making some, and need a bit of guidance.”

“Other personalities? You mean the black and silver one?” Chloe followed up.

“Yes. We’re all very eager to learn and master the art of film-making, especially the black personality. That’s why I’m in a rush.”

“Oh, I see. Then, we won’t hold you. Thanks for coming, Ralf. Short as it was, we enjoyed your company. Hopefully, we can do this again sometime soon. There are still a thousand curiosities burning inside me.”

“A thousand huh. I see, don’t worry, I won’t let you burn forever,” Ralf said as he circled the couch and headed to the doorway. “In the coming days...and the days following that, we’ll surely see each other.”

Ralf’s parting words brought smiles to the trio’s faces as they looked forward to future encounters with the enigmatic youth.

The doors swung open at the behest of Ralf’s Psi. As he passed through, Vincent’s parting words entered his ears.

“Good luck with the movie. I’m looking forward to seeing what your faction will create.”

Stopping at the doorway, a smirk crept on Ralf’s face. “You should, it’s going to shake the world.”

Resuming his stride, the doors shut behind him, leaving the trio to ponder his simple yet shocking claim.

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