Quroe opens his right arm and leans it forward.

  "There! The clothing."

  "Oh! It's okay, Master! I just think of this as weight training. My body needs training every single day anyway! Don't worry about it!"

  ". . .if you say so."

  Quroe puts his right arm back into his pocket.

  "(. . .Why am I this awkward? I have zero problems about talking to women. Is it because I pity her that I view her entirely different than anyone I've met? I don't understand. . .)"

  "(Why did Master phrase it that way? Is there some kind of double meaning that I should learn about? Wow, Master is amazing! He's giving me lectures even when we're simply waiting for Luna-dono to come back from the restroom! I only have the utmost respect for you, Master!)"

  "By the way, who taught you your swordsmanship?"

  "Ah, yes! It was my previous master. Though he simply suggests it and gives me pointers here and there, I study it mostly on my own simply because he wasn’t an actual sword master or something.”

  "Seriously? You're insanely gifted. Not just anyone can reach a specific style without having someone else teach them the basics, in any skillset, even. I'm gonna view you a lot higher from now on!"

  "T-Thank you, Master! Your words were very warm to me! I'll treasure your advice forever!"

  "Forever is a bit overdramatic."

  "Y-Yes, I apologize, Master! I'll keep your advice for as long as I live!" said Kasumi as she bowed towards Quroe.

  "*sigh*. . .Suit yourself."

  "Yes, Master!"

  ". . . . ."

  Right now, Quroe has his thoughts flashing back to the time he fought Light, the first Judge, who went berserk together with Lily. He was reminded of just how valuable a Support to a Judge is. And a certain thought has finally crossed his mind.

  "(I have no logical reason for this, I have no actual basis for this, but. . . if it's her, I feel like I can see her being strong enough to bear the burden of the Judges. I've been with her and the brat for only a little while, but I already see some values in them. Faith-power-wise, the brats would combo a lot better with mine, but she's still too young. Her though, she can hold her own weight, she didn't seem to be the type to get in the way or trip someone else's path over.)"

  "(Maybe if it's her. . .)"

  "Say. . ."

  "Yes, Master?!"

  "Would you like to be my--"

  "GIRLFRIEND?!"

  "Ehhhhh?"

  *!!!*

  All of a sudden, Luna returned to them, and she immediately continued Quroe's sentence on her own.

  "(M-Master? Is. . . Is he serious?)"

  "I'm back!! Quroe-san! Kasumi-san!!"

  "W-Welcome back, Luna-dono!!"

  "Tch!"

  "Huh? Why are you clicking your tongue while giving me that annoyed look, Quroe-san?"

  "I-I apologize, but what were you saying, Master?"

  "Forget it! Pretend that this conversation never happened!"

  "U-Understood, Master!"

  "Eeeehh? Quroe-san! Are you embarrassed that I caught you red-handed as you were about to confess your love to Kasumi-san? Hm-hm!! You're moving quite fast, huh, Quroe-san? You two have only traveled together for. . .NOT EVEN A MONTH HAS PASSED?! WOW QUROE-SAN!! YOU'RE SO SMOOTH, HUH?!"

  Quroe turns towards Luna. Luna immediately bowed her head on the ground as soon as she saw his expression.

  "I apologize, dear Quroe-sama! I was just joking! Please stop staring at me with those murderous eyes of yours! It is honestly way scarier than those times I was chased alone all over the place! Please forgive me!!"

  Kasumi was looking at both of them, and she held back her laughter and tried to hide it with both of her hands covering her mouth, but her attempt ended in vain because the way her eyes blinked multiple times told everything about what she was doing.

  "(Pfft!! PFFFFTTT!! N-NO!! DON'T LAUGH!!! PFFFFTT!!!!)"

  "*sigh*. . . Let's just head out, you two! We have a long way to go! Let's get some supplies for the trip, food, and such!"

  "Y-Yes, Master!!"

  "Okay, Quroe-sama. . ."

  The three of them walk and continue to stroll inside the city as they look for food and other necessities for their trip together towards a cold area.

  .

  .

  .

  5 July 2018

  Japan, Tokyo, 10:00. . .

  Currently inside a mall, inside a clothing store, Yuki and Neo are shopping for their new getups. They really went inside the mall wearing clothes full of holes from the damage they sustained when they fought the 9th Strongest Believer, the Queen of Magma, Claudia Clay. They walked in without a care in the world.

  Usually, Neo would point out how weird it would be for them to just casually walk in with their current getups, but Neo was too exhausted for two reasons: the fight with the 9th and the fact that this wasn't their first time.

  Yesterday, right after the fight, they had already gone to different malls looking for clothes, in between their Judge activity, of course. They already tried a lot of different clothes, yet none were true to their tastes. This is their second day, and currently, Yuki is trying on clothes and asking Neo for his opinions.

  "Senpai, does this look good?"

  "Hmm, maybe something a little different? This one looks too similar to your previous getup."

  "So, you want me to become someone else than senpai? Alright then."

  "What? NO! That's not what I meant!! I just thought that since we're buying new outfits anyway, we should change our fit to look fresh! Besides. . ."

  "Senpai? What is it?"

  "I. . . I just want to look at you wearing a lot more different outfits. You'll look great. . ."

  ". . . ."

  If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

  Yuki's face went red without her facial expression changing even the slightest.

  "Okay. . ."

  Yuki changes her clothes to another set of clothing that she had already picked beforehand. She opens the tray in the fitting room.

  "How about this senpai?"

  "G-GOTHIC??? TOO EMO!!! ARE YOU 15, MY DEAR KOUHAI?"

  "Hoooo, I must say I've been enjoying every last one of your reactions to my clothing since yesterday. Thank you, senpai."

  "Please stop that! Don't toy with my heart, my dear kouhai."

  ". . . okay senpai. I'll pick clothes for real from now on."

  "HUH? THEN WHAT HAVE WE BEEN DOING SINCE YESTERDAY?"

  Yuki looks at Neo with her neutral expression and sticks out her tongue adorably, and then she closes the tray in the fitting room.

  ". . .*sigh* I've fallen in love with such an annoyingly adorable creature. . ." said Neo as he sighs in relief, covering his face with his right hand.

  "How about this one, senpai?"

  *!!*

  Yuki opens the tray and surprises Neo. This time, it's proper clothing befitting of her.

  Yuki wears a white camisole covered by a long-sleeved pale blue shirt with a V-neck, a pair of white hotpants, a pair of long white socks, and a pair of dark brown strappy wrap shoes. She also wears a sleeveless white hooded sweater as outerwear on top.

  ". . . ."

  "Is it bad senpai? I'm sorry, I'll change it right awa---!!!"

  "You look amazing, my dear kouhai! I was speechless. My heart genuinely skipped a beat, and my breath legitimately stopped for a second. You look gorgeous kouhai-kun!!"

  Yuki was cut off mid-talking and was bombarded by a bunch of praise from Neo.

  "T-Thank you for the kind words, senpai. . ."

  . . . . . .

  And now they just silently stare at each other.

  . . . . . .

  A few seconds later, Neo breaks the silence.

  "Ah! I guess it's my turn now, kouhai!"

  "A-Ah, please do, senpai."

  And so, they continue to look for clothes as their relationship starts growing deeper.

  .

  .

  .

  5 July 2018

  Jakarta, Indonesia 13:00. . .

  *GROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO*

  *GROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO*

  *TRREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEETT*

  *TREEEEEEEEEEEEEETTT*

  *TREEEEET TET TET TET TREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEETTTT*

  "AAAAAANNNNDDDD WELCOMEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!"

  "EVERYBODY WELCOMEEEEEEEE!!! TO THE 1128th ANNUAL OF THE BWC, THE BRAWLIEVER WORLD CUP!!!"

  "WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!"

  "YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!'

  "WOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!'

  "UUUUUUUUUUUUUUOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!"

  "RRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!"

  Inside one of the biggest stadiums in Indonesia, located in Jakarta, the capital city of Indonesia, one of the biggest events in the entire world is currently happening in this stadium.

  The BWC, Brawliever World Cup, is a global scale event where Believers compete with each other in a high-risk high reward 1 on 1 tournaments where Believers from all over the world have gathered here, right here, right now with many spectators from all over the world as well, to fight in a healthy battle where only the strongest of the strongest remain at this level of the event.

  The event itself has been going on for the past year all around the globe. Believers are fighting in the national cup in every nation in the world, where every Believer can enter, no matter what their rank on the Brawliever app is. Most winners of the national branches ended up fighting in a previous battle called the BWC International Elimination Cup. After that match, 16 winners from all around the world have been chosen to appear at the main event today, the BWC itself.

  The stadium is called Gelora Bung Karno, or GBK for short, and it is very big and can contain more than 75.000 people inside. There is a gigantic sports field in the middle of the oval-shaped stadium with a size of 105x68 meters. This time, though, because of the occasion, there is a giant square-shaped stage with a size of 65x65 meters, a giant fight arena for one-on-one battle, yet it fits the grand occasion of such an event.

  This tournament is also broadcast on the internet on multiple popular streaming websites and is currently watched live with a total viewer from every website of 115 million live viewers from all over the globe.

  "AAAAAAAAAAANNNNNNNDDDDD BEFORE WE BEGIN SHORTLY, LET US ALL LET OUT OUR CHEERS FOR ALL OF THE CONTESTANTS THAT HAVE MADE IT TO THIS STAGE, THE HIGHEST OF THE HIGHEST LEVEL OF FIGHT BETWEEN BELIEVERS!!! LET'S GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!"

  "OOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!"

  "RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!"

  "WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!"

  "WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!"

  "GRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!"

  "THAT WAS SO HYPEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!! LET'S JUST GET ON WITH THIS, DEAR SPECTATORS!!"

  "I'M YOUR HOST, DANIEL OFFIELD!! AND WITH MY CO-HOST!!"

  "AND I'M YOUR CO-HOST, RADOMIN REDFIELD!!"

  "AND ONCE AGAIN, WE BOTH WELCOME YOUUUU!!! TO THE BRAWLIEVER WORLD CUP!!!!!!"

  "WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!"

  "YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!"

  "RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!"

  "WOHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!"

  "YAHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!"

  "BEFORE WE BEGIN, WE WILL REMIND EVERYONE IN THE STADIUM AND TO THE PEOPLE WHO ARE WATCHING THIS LIVE FROM ALL AROUND THE WORLD, ABOUT ALL OF THE RULES OF THIS TOURNAMENT!!"

  "LET’S START FROM THE TOP!! RULE NUMBER 1: KILLING IS NOT ALLOWED! Any murder attempt will be rewarded with just consequences, and the punishment itself will be delivered by one of the Ten Commandments of God, who is actually here in the commentator seats with us!"

  "EVERYONE!! PLEASE WELCOME! THE 7TH STRONGEST BELIEVER IN THE WORLD, THE NEPTUNE, LUKIA PRICHYLLIAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!"

  Lukia Prichyllia. The Strongest Believer number 7. Lukia has brown skin. She's 22 years old. She is 162cm tall and weighs around 52kg. She has very pale pink hair that almost looks white if anyone is not paying clear attention to her hair. She styled her hair into a ponytail. She has flat hair and bangs. She has a pair of pale orange eyes. She wears a pink and white stripes motif camisole with a yellow short-sleeved hoodie as her outerwear, a pair of short pale blue jeans that hang just above her knees, and a pair of straw sandals. She also wears frilly pink bracelets on both of her wrists. Her bust size is B-cup.

  Lukia is a very warm and cheerful person. She is one of the most open and well-known people to the public compared to anyone else within the ranks of the Ten Commandments of God. Her bright personality almost makes everyone who looks at her fall in love with her and idolize her.

  All the public knows about her Faith power is that it's a water-based Faith power, but they have no knowledge about even the type of her Faith power. Her power has been kept in great secret from the public.

  "Hi everyone!!"

  "OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!"

  "LUKIA-CHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANNNN!!!"

  "LUKIAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!

  "WE LOVE YOU, LUKIAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!"

  "LUKIAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!"

  "LUKI-CHAAAAAAAAAAAAANNNN!!!"

  "LUKIAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!"

  "WHAT A CHEER FROM THE SPECATORS ON THE SEATS."

  “WAHAHAHAHAHA!! THAT GOES TO SHOW HOW POPULAR OUR WATER MASTER IS!!”

  "AND NOW FOLKS!! LET’S CONTINUE WITH THE RULES!! FOR RULE NUMBER 2: NO ONE FROM THE TEN COMMANDMENTS OF GOD IS ALLOWED TO ENTER THIS TOURNAMENT!"

  "Well, this rule seems a bit obvious. If anyone from the literal 10 Strongest Believers of the entire world were to compete, then it could no longer be called a competition."

  "RULE NUMBER 3: THE USAGE OF THE SECOND STATE IS NOT ALLOWED!"

  "There are two main reasons for this rule. One, not everyone has access to Second State and Two, Second State would break the competition as every fight would just end with either one of the contestants or both to use Second State on their last moments and it would make every fight to be too similar with one another, as entertaining as it is to see different Second State on the stage, we've decided this would be the better options to make each fights unique and memorable, especially at this stage!"

  "RULE NUMBER 4: THE FIGHT IS DEEMED FINISHED IF EITHER ONE OF THE CONTESTANTS ADMITS DEFEAT OR IF THEY HAVE BEEN KNOCKED OUT OR IF THEY WERE PUSHED OR LANDED OUTSIDE THE ARENA, WHICH WOULD COUNT AS A RING OUT!!"

  "This would make the difficulty of the fight much higher, as knocking your opponents with various strengths and durability difficult without accidentally killing them! The ring out sounds easier, but it is also the most obvious. One careless contestant who tried this will be easily countered by an experienced Believer. The uncertainty of this would make each battle feel so exciting to watch!"

  "AAAANNNDDD THAT'S ABOUT ALL OF THE RULES!!! NOW WE'LL ANNOUNCE THE REWARD FOR THE CHAMPION!! AND THAT IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIISSSSSSSSSSSSS----!!!"

  At the center of the arena, there's a square glass covered by a cloak that was placed on top of a small table. A woman from the event organizer walks to the center of the stage and lifts the cloak, revealing the contents of the square glass.

  The trophy has a general shape like most trophies, but what's unique about this specific one is that on the top, there's a statue of a ball shooting something from its top, and it breaks the top of the ball, leaving fragments of the ball everywhere in the air, attached by see-through and thin but durable glass connections, to mimic the very iconic scenery of the Awakening of Faith power.

  "THERE IT IS, THE AWAKENING TROPHY FOR THE WINNER OF THE 1128th BWC! COMPLETELY MADE WITH PURE GOLD!!!"

  "AND THAT'S NOT ALL!! ASIDE FROM THE AWAKENING TROPHY, THE WINNER WILL HAVE THE CHANCE TO BE RANKED AMONG THE 11th-20th STRONGEST BELIEVERS BY FIGHTING ONE MORE BATTLE AGAINST ONE OF THE TEN COMMANDMENTS OF GOD! BUT THE PERSON IS NOT HERE WITH US YET SO WE'LL INFORM YOU ABOUT THEM WHEN THEY'VE ARRIVED LATER!!"

  "AND TO TOP IT OFF, THE REAL WINNER OF THIS CHAMPIONSHIP WILL BE DECIDED NOT JUST BY SOMEONE WHO WINS THE ENTIRE TOURNAMENT BRACKETS, BUT WHEN THEY FIGHT ONE MORE BATTLE AGAINST THE WINNER FROM LAST YEAR'S BWC, THEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE CHAMPIOOOOOOOOOOOOONNNN, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, CHEER FOR THE WOOOOOOOLLLLFFFFF!!!!"

  And then someone, a man, wearing a wolf head costume, a black office suit, a pair of black gloves, a pair of black long pants, and a pair of black shiny shoes, came unto the center of the stage. The wolf-headed person grows a pair of claws from each of his fingertips.

  "AWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!"

  The guy with the wolf head costume roars as he spreads his claws to the audience, and the crowd cheers once again.

  "AWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!"

  "WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!"

  "LETS GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!"

  "YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!!"

  "AND SO LET US BEGIN WITH THE INTRODUCTIONS OF EVERY BELIEVER WHO HAS MADE IT HERE TO THIS STAGE!!!"

  .

  .

  .

  There is a certain pair of people standing at the entrance to the stadium. One of these people had already met Quroe a month ago, while the other missed him by a few seconds.

  "We've finally made it to this stage, Ei-chan!"

  "It's been a long journey, but yes, we're finally here, Mari-chan!"

  These two people are the pair of the 6th Judge and her Support.