All four wall segments of the arena crumbled down, revealing the rest of the room. It had changed substantially since moments ago. There were guild halls, two-story merchant centers, three-story guard forts, as well as a few temples, and several noble mansions. One thing that the archduke hadn’t explained was those different exits, twisting the path in a particular way. If Dallion were to guess, this would be changing one’s behavior based on association with the specific supporters.

As the challenge started, the archduke took the path that was right of the town square. Considering his options, Dallion took the opposite one. There was no point in getting into conflict early on. His overall plan was to gain some merchant and guild supporters early on, then go directly for the nobles. The city guards were right out and the temples of the Order were also not a priority. While it was true that the clerics were quite influential, they weren’t particularly fond of hunters, even if Dallion was technically an initiate.

As he made his way towards the nearest merchant building, Dallion glanced over his shoulder. The Archduke seemed to be focusing on guilds as well. Most likely he was going to go for the forts afterwards to achieve military dominance.

That was another thing that Dallion had to keep in mind: the significance of the various factions. Being backed by city guards tended to make convincing merchants and guild masters easier. Nobles and clerics, on the other hand, were more likely to look down on them.

This game really is like politics, Dallion thought. The worst thing was that all the skills that he had painstakingly gathered and improved weren’t of any help. Sure, he could probably use them to convince people, but if he took too long, he’d lose the lead to the Archduke.

“Why’s the speed limited?” Dallion asked. “In real life, it isn’t. The faster one would be able to reach a spot first.”

That’s correct, Nil agreed. Speed is important in the real world. However, each trial should allow you a chance to win. If speed were as it should be, you’d never stand a chance against the Archduke, or any noble for that matter.

Thinking about it, Dallion had to concede that he most likely wouldn’t. For the moment, he’d have to focus on targets of his caliber. Being a hunter allowed him to get a glance at the world of power and politics, but even so, he was just a visitor there, not a player. The best he could do was to be familiar with things enough so as to know the repercussions of his involvement, and not just be used like a headless pawn, as he had been back in Nerosal.

The first building Dallion entered was a “guild.” While a merchant organization was better, this was far closer and also gave him access to two merchant halls later on. From what Dallion remembered of his computer game days back on Earth, centuries ago, efficiency was the proper strategy. However, he had yet to see whether it was the right thing in this case.

A single person stood in the extremely plain room inside. He was quite nondescript—a person one would see in the street passing by. His clothes were his most remarkable feature, more specifically a bright green vest.

No sooner had Dallion glanced at the vest than a grape-sized blob of disapproval appeared in the person’s chest.

“Bad first impression,” the echo said.

“How so?” Dallion remained calm.

“My clothes are what you’ve set them out to be. It’s your realm, so don’t look at them, but look at me.”

Duly noted, Dallion thought. That was one lesson to keep in mind: in the real world, the game was always going on. The only preparation time was while being alone.

“What do I need to do to convince you?” Dallion asked directly.

“The direct approach. Good. I know you and I know your reputation. You, though, should know my stakes. If I side with you and you fail, I fail as well.”

“I didn’t think the Archduke was so vindictive,” Dallion said while adding a few notes of calm and confidence in his voice.

As he did, the disapproval in the other’s chest vanished, replaced by grains of opportunity. Dallion knew this was just a trial, but were it the real world, a guild master would be willing to gamble for a chance of better things. With a few notable exceptions, most of the small guilds wanted to get bigger, and the bigger guilds wanted to have more say. The only way either got to achieving such desires was if Dallion were to obtain control of the city.

“He’s not, but he might want to set an example,” the guild master said.

“That will only work if you’re the only one supporting me.” Dallion used his music skills further to increase the subtle pressure on his target. “If he goes against a third of the city or more, he’ll risk creating a rift.”

“That only works if you get more than five supporters.”

There it was—the “bribery” the Archduke had spoken about. Technically, it wasn’t so much a bribe as a promise. In this case, it was a pretty easy one to make. If Dallion didn’t have five followers, there was no way he’d win the trial, anyway.

“Then I’ll get five,” Dallion said. “I’ll get ten.”

The entire room lit up in bright white, the same as the path Dallion had created going there.

“Five’ll do.” The guild master nodded. “Lead the way.”

Apparently, that was how one won a negotiation. Granted, Dallion probably had picked an easy target, but it was a lot easier than he expected it to be, almost anticlimactic. Although, he had to admit that individual wins didn’t count. The trial focused on overall victory.

Beyond the other side of the building was another “road” that went along an entire lane of merchant buildings. Followed by his one supporter, Dallion quickly went to the one furthest to the right. Inside was another echo with an average appearance. The only difference was that instead of a brightly colored vest, he had a green cap in addition to the standard attire. Several of his emotions were visible as colored blobs, chiefly greed, fear, and determination.

Now, do you see why music is such a valuable skill? Nil asked.

Dallion had to agree. While good for entertainment and useful for haggling, it was extremely beneficial when it came to negotiations. A noble with a highly developed music skill would have an overwhelming advantage over everyone else. On that note, Dallion wondered what skills the Archduke Linatol had—not only the trial echo, but the real one as well. Maybe he had been too quick to give up his opportunity to ask questions.

“I see you’ve already gotten the hang of things,” the merchant said, glancing at the guild master accompanying Dallion. “Give me your pitch.”

“I can personally bring artifacts from the wilderness,” Dallion began. However, no new emotions appeared within the other. That wasn’t the best start. “As a hunter, I also know the importance of—” he quickly stopped. It was almost impressive how he had managed to make it sound so horrible. “I’ll make things easier for you and hunters,” Dallion added.

Judging by the change of the merchant’s emotions, that had done a pretty good job, but it still wasn’t enough. The security concerns still hadn’t been alleviated. Thinking back to all of Dallion’s dealings with merchants, that was their major fear. The creatures of the wilderness were the greatest danger for merchants small and large. Having hunters and mercenaries was one solution, as were guards, to ensure the safety of goods in the city as well as around it.

“The guilds will mend your damages and protect you as mercenaries. That should be alright, right?” Dallion glanced at the guild master next to him.

“You’ll need city guard captains,” the merchant said firmly.

“Then I’ll get them. How many do you need?”

“The one in the district, at least. The more, the better.”

Merchants need protecting, Dallion told himself. Got it.

It wouldn’t be bad to also get other hunters involved. Dallion couldn’t be sure, but he thought he’d seen a hunter’s den in the city as well. That was something he’d have to check while getting more followers.

“You’ll have them,” Dallion extended his hand.

With the final concerns of the merchant fading away, the echo shook Dallion’s hand, at which point the building lit up. That made two for two. The ease and speed with which Dallion had acquired his initial following made him somewhat suspicious. There was no way a trial of this level could be so easy. Was he missing something?

Going out of the building, Dallion went to the next merchant hall and had an almost identical conversation. Having already one merchant over, the second was much easier. The third and fourth practically agreed to join him before he opened his mouth. At this point, Dallion knew that he’d made a mistake somewhere.

“Lux, lift me up,” he said. Unfortunately, nothing happened.

That is one ability you’re not allowed, dear boy, Nil said. You can only use things in the city itself to affect it.

That didn’t seem right, but Dallion knew better than to argue. The puzzles of the trials weren’t perfect metaphors.

“Can I climb onto buildings?” he asked.

Only buildings of people who support you.

That made sort of sense. It stood to reason that people of greater influence would know what was going on in the city. If that was the way the trial wanted it, getting a city guard fort was a rather good investment, not to mention that it was a promise that Dallion had given to the merchants. Continuing along the roads, he went directly to the nearby fort and stepped inside.

The atmosphere was completely different from in any building Dallion had been to. While guild masters and merchants liked him, the guard captain echo absolutely despised him. Dallion could see a bundle of emotions within him, full of spite, annoyance, and disapproval. This wasn’t going to be easy.

“What do I need to do?” Dallion asked, using his music skills to add authority in his words. From his experience, that was one of the things that guards respected almost above anything else.

“Do some actual work?” the captain crossed his arms. The sword and breastplate suggested that the echo was in condition to fight. The newly emerged emotion in his head showed that he was more than willing to challenge Dallion to a fight.

“Does killing chainlings count? Or do you prefer a one-on-one?”

The response was instant. Skipping all the banter, the captain drew his sword, making a slashing strike with the same action. He was definitely skilled, probably a level fifty at least.

Blocking with his shield, Dallion drew the Nox dagger.

“Ready, Nox,” he said, hitting the captain’s blade on the side. Normally, the dagger had the power to create cracks on any item, splitting them to pieces. Yet, instead of that, the edge of the dagger bounced off.

Indestructible? Dallion wondered. He hadn’t fought with a city guard captain before, but for some reason, he didn’t expect them to have intractable weapons. Think about it, though, it made pretty good sense.

Drawing a dagger of his own, the captain continued with his attack. By the way he fought, it looked like he was an attack oriented awakened. In more cases than not, that was advantageous, especially when dealing with people who hadn’t faced one before. Dallion, however, had.

Evading the next few attacks, Dallion managed to complete a guard sequence, slowing down time. Two more sequences followed, bringing it to a near halt. At that point, all that was left to do was to strike. Since Dallion had no intention of killing a future supporter—even if it was an echo—he struck the captain’s right hand, causing him to drop his main weapon.

“Enough for you?” he asked, filling his words with the notion of surrender. “I can disarm the dagger if you want.”

Remaining perfectly still, the captain looked Dallion in the eyes, then at the sword that was on the ground.

“No need,” he said slowly. “You’ve won this one. But if you lose any of your next three fights, I’ll reconsider my support.”

“Good to know.” Dallion took a step back. This appeared too much like a game, even more so than other trials. Every echo was going out of its way to help him, telling him the consequences of his actions and what actions to do.

“How do I get to the top of the building?” Dallion asked.

“There’s a staircase,” the captain said. As he did, a flight of stairs appeared on the side of the room. “Keep in mind that going up is considered movement.”

That was the trade off—if Dallion wanted to see what the Archduke was doing, it was going to cost him advancement. It was a gamble, but one Dallion was willing to make. Nine times out of ten, being informed was always better in the long run.

Dallion ran up the stairs until he reached the top. It was a short trip to the top, but it allowed him to get a view of the entire room. Sadly, once Dallion did, he saw what a mistake he had made.