Making his way back towards the town center, Eric hummed happily to himself as he thought about what he had just learned. It turned out that magic was even more complex than he'd thought, something which made him inexplicably happy for some reason. Even better, he'd made that cute teacher of his blush, an achievement he could be proud of. Unfortunately, this wasn't an achievement he could brag about, as he didn't really want to become a scorch mark on the walls of Lucy's manor.

Taking out the Quickwind Dagger, Eric admired his new focus. Taking a closer look at his new athame, he let out a low whistle in appreciation.

The dagger was just under twelve inches long, with a blade made of bluish steel. The hilt was made of wood, with black leather creating a comfortable grip. At the base of the hilt, a large white gemstone was socketed into the pommel, giving the athame an elegant look. Etched into the blade, close to the hilt, was the rune for Wind, which upon close inspection was giving off a faint glow, hinting at its use.

Opening the status window for the athame, Eric's face split into a huge grin.

[Quickwind Dagger - Rare Focus]

Attack: 5-8

Durability: 100/100

Requirements for use:

Journeyman 1 or higher Arcane Magic

Apprentice 5 or higher Wind Magic

Effects:

Casting Speed of Wind Spells increased by 15%

Casting Difficulty for Wind Spells increased by 10%

Description: One of the lower level focuses created by the enchantress Lucy Morningstar. The Quickwind Dagger is made of materials that increase the speed at which the caster can infuse mana into a rune formation. However, this comes at the cost of making the mana more difficult to control. It is advised that only mages proficient in mana circulation use this focus, lest the user suffer mana rebound from a failed spell.

...

Closing the status window, Eric couldn't contain his smile, Lucy had truly given him a great gift. With this new focus, he was sure to do well in the tournament, in fact, he might even be able to win the entire thing.

Still, Eric thought, it paid to be cautious. The threat of mana rebound was a very real risk, especially in a one-on-one situation. If he messed up and failed a cast during the tournament and the mana rebounded, the worst case scenario was him falling unconscious, something that would ensure his swift defeat. In order to avoid that ignominious fate, it was probably in his best interest to practice his magic while using the athame.

Checking the time, Eric set off for the northern gate, heading for Stillwood Forest. He had almost three hours in game before he was due to meet up with the guys, and he planned to use that time to familiarize himself with his new toy.

Twirling the dagger between his fingers, Eric hummed a jaunty tune to himself, already daydreaming about what the view from the winner's podium would be like.

Three minutes past midnight, Eric sprinted into the village square, skidding to a stop in front of an unimpressed looking elf and a grinning half-orc.

"Sorry, am I late?" Eric asked, panting as he waited for his stamina to recover.

"Nope, you're actually early. After you left I told the rest of the guys that they could feel free to show up at five minutes past just to account for you," Mark told him, a sly smile tugging at his lips.

Eric sighed, "Well I suppose at least I arrived before the rest of them did."

"Nah Ryan and Gio are just over there reading the notice. I think Jaime's there too," Griffin said. "Also you owe me another ten bucks," he said, turning to Mark.

It was Mark's turn to sigh, "One of these days Eric will be on time, and then I'll earn it all back."

"Unlikely," Griffin replied with a laugh.

Eric rolled his eyes, "What about Jun? Where's he?"

"Right here dumba.s.s," came a voice from behind him.

Turning around, Eric saw Jun, biting into a sandwich that he'd gotten from who knew where.

"Hey Jun, that a new bow?" Mark greeted, pointing to the bow slung across Jun's shoulder.

"Yeah, just picked it up from Craig's shop a few minutes ago," Jun replied proudly, unslinging the bow so that they could get a good look.

Jun's new bow was a composite bow, resembling a recurve bow, with long limbs that curved upwards like the horns of an ox. Looking closely, Eric could make out a few different materials layered on top of each other to create the limbs. After a few moments of observation, it was pretty easy to tell that Jun's bow was of a higher quality than Eric's Yew Longbow.

"How much did that cost you? And how did you get it? Aren't all the shops closed right now?" Griffin asked.

"Just over thirty Sricks. Craig had to import quite a few of the materials and it took him a few days to make. As for how I picked it up, I have my ways, when you're not a broke f*****, businesses are willing to bend the rules a bit," Jun replied.

"Five bucks says he broke in," Eric drawled.

"I ain't taking that bet," Griffin said with a laugh.

"Didn't Craig give you a key after you became his apprentice?" Rob asked, joining the circle with Ryan and Gio in tow.

"Possibly," Jun gave out a sly grin. "But yeah, the stats on this thing are insane. Here check it out," he said, holding out the bow so that they could inspect it.

[Tonburan Hornbow - Rare Composite Bow]

Attack: 9-13

Durability: 100/100

Requirements for use:

Journeyman 1 or higher Basic Archery

Effects:

Damage of all Archery Skills increased by 10%

Agility increased by 10%

Description: A bow made by Craig of Tonbura village. The bow is made of a variety of different woods and other materials, including the horn of a Scaled Hornbear. Craig used a synthesis of Nova.n.a.lban and his native Barotan fletching techniques to make this bow.

As a composite bow, this bow is smaller than standard Nova.n.a.lban bows, while still providing the same level of power. The user is thus able to exert more mobility using this bow than with a regular bow.

...

"d.a.m.n, that's a nice bow. My new sword isn't that nice," Ryan said regretfully, staring at the shiny new sword at his waist.

"Yeah, with this bow I'm gonna win this tournament," said Jun, slinging the bow back over his back.

"Are you forgetting that the rest of us are signing up too?" Eric asked dryly.

"Which of you are gonna beat me? Gio? Griffin?"

"Ouch," Griffin winced.

"Yeah. I mean you're not wrong, but ouch," Gio echoed.

Mark rolled his eyes, "As long as all of us get into the elite unit we're good. Winning is just a bonus."

"Sounds like a losers mentality."

"I'm not entering to do well."

Jun and Eric both spoke at the same time.

"I agree with Eric and Jun. If we're entering, we should be aiming to win," Ryan echoed.

Mark sighed, "I'm not saying we shouldn't be aiming for the win. I'm just saying not to lose sight of the real reward. The elite platoon is where we can earn the real rewards."

"But won't we get into the elite platoon anyways if we win? What's the point of not aiming to win?" Rob asked, an amused smile tugging at his face as he watched the normally calm Mark grow fl.u.s.tered.

"That's not what I meant. You're missing the point- Ah forget it," Mark grumbled, abandoning the argument.

This got laughs all around as the group began to discuss the tournament, joking about how easily they were going to crush their opponents, and chirping anyone who claimed they would finish higher than the rest.

After a few minutes of talking, the group began to move towards the southern gate, beginning the long trek to Vindammer Town.