‘I’m going to miss your affinity when I’m gone,’ Percy said.

His host’s metal mana was among his favourites, offering many advantages over his own pure mana. In fact, Percy didn’t think he could use his new trick without it – be it the original Instantaneous Imprint spell or its most recent upgrade, the Instantaneous Armament. Both of those relied on the malleability of Kassorith’s mana, which Percy’s lacked. Of course, having a spell he couldn’t use with his main body wasn’t a first. His Concussive Blast had started like that too, yet he had found a way to elevate it into a powerful Secret Art. He had no doubt his new spell would earn its own spot in his arsenal sooner or later.

‘Says the man with the soul affinity,’ Kassorith replied, rolling his eyes.

Ignoring the Thess’kalan’s quip, Percy shifted his attention back to the rewards in the “Personal Improvement” chamber. While he wasn’t going to make any rash decisions, he couldn’t help but revisit the possibility of grabbing a composite affinity-changing treasure from the shelf. A few of those had found their way into the prize pool after their most recent match. Unfortunately – or perhaps fortunately – a metal affinity wasn’t among them. It wouldn’t have been suitable for Elaine anyway, and the rest weren’t ideal for him or Nesha. Besides, he still had no idea what affinity his wasp familiar would awaken, so common mana types were a safer bet for everyone involved.

Other than that, the composite treasures offered by the tournament had much stricter expiration dates thanks to their rarity and the harsher conditions they required to appear. Even among the common resources, Percy couldn’t see any that would last indefinitely, but he did find a lightning-affinity treasure that would survive for another three years and could be used by multiple people. That was probably the one he’d choose if he and Kassorith made it through the next battle.

For now, it was his host’s turn to claim a prize, however.

Kassorith grabbed another of the new rewards that had only appeared on the shelves after the semi-final. It was a complete set of ritual ingredients! Percy fought the urge to swear after realizing he could have claimed two additional rewards if he’d just waited.

‘Well, not exactly,’ he corrected himself with a mental sigh.

The other options hadn’t been great during the earlier rounds, so he would have had to make the same choices. Besides, getting this far into the tournament hadn’t been a guarantee, nor would he have had any spare ingredients to bet against the woman if he hadn’t claimed them. All things considered, he didn’t regret any of his decisions, though he did briefly consider grabbing a third set of ingredients later, instead of the lightning treasure. In the end, he decided against it, thinking it would be overkill.

‘What are you going to do with your spares anyway?’ he asked his host.

As a Thess’kalan, Kassorith had already received most of the benefits from the first bath, so Percy hadn’t expected him to claim more ingredients. He’d really thought his host would have grabbed one of those enslaved towns he’d been ogling, or a fancy weapon forged by a demigod.

The man shrugged. ‘I’ll probably hold on to it for now. I don’t think I’m strong enough to participate in the tournament again, but I might be able to trade my ingredients for next year’s exclusives.’

Okay, Percy had to admit that was a brilliant idea – one that he would have loved to copy. Sadly, he wasn’t planning to wait on Thess’kala for another year. He’d already earned way too many valuable things and learned a lot of key information that he had to bring back at all costs. Every additional day here was a risk – especially after exposing the Vault’s runecrafting. He wouldn’t be surprised if multiple organizations were already planning to reach out to Kassorith.

Of course, Percy could try asking last year’s winners for a trade, but that wasn’t a great idea either. Most of them must’ve used their rewards or traded them away already. Percy didn’t have time to go around asking people, nor did the thirty-year alchemy scholarship or the demigod enchanting his scales sound like things he could bring back to Remior.

‘Oh well. Let’s not be too greedy. Two ritual baths and a lightning-granting treasure are more than I could have hoped for,’ he consoled himself before giving his host a dire warning. ‘I suggest you don’t get any funny ideas of throwing the next fight now that you got your last prize.’

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‘I’m not suicidal,’ Kassorith spat. ‘Besides, there’s still something in it for me – if we win the whole tournament.’

Percy perked up, prompting his host to elaborate.

‘The winners of the regional tournaments earn a ticket to an even grander competition. The rewards there can’t even be compared to the things you’ve seen so far.’

Percy’s borrowed brow lifted at the sound of that, a ripple of misguided anticipation running through him. Truth be told, he’d long suspected that Thess’kala hosted some kind of world tournament – a competition to decide the best of the regional champions. Not doing that would have been quite the missed opportunity. However, Kassorith’s next words suggested that Percy was still underestimating the scope of this follow-up tournament.

‘I know what you’re thinking, but your guess is a little off,’ Kassorith replied with a chuckle. ‘There’s no global competition on Thess’kala. Rather, our regional champions have a chance to participate in the void tournament – along with prodigies from the entire alliance.’

The revelation caused a stir in Percy’s wisp. The whole alliance? So, this was a tournament held between dozens of greater springs, many of them even more advanced than Thess’kala! He could hardly imagine the kinds of prizes offered to the winners.

Still, something didn’t add up.

‘Why would you care about that, though? You said you’re not feeling confident signing up for the regional tournament again, let alone this.’

Kassorith laughed.

‘Of course not. At least, not anytime soon. The thing is, you don’t have to join the void tournament immediately. The ticket is more like an open invitation with no expiration date. I’m free to redeem it a thousand years from now – or ten. I can even use it to join the Violet or White division after I advance, if I feel better about my odds. Even if I never do, I can always trade the ticket away. Our regional champions would never say no to an extra chance, since nobody can win the local tournaments every single year. No matter how you slice it, the ticket is far more precious than my spare set of ritual ingredients.’

Listening to his host’s explanation, Percy felt cheated. Kassorith hadn’t even mentioned the ticket when they made their agreement, and he had no idea how they could split it in half, nor could he use it himself. At least, it was a good thing that his host was motivated to keep trying until the very end, but Percy was absolutely going to demand additional compensation in case they won.

‘How do your people compare with the geniuses of the alliance?’ he asked, changing the topic slightly.

‘Not favourably.’ Kassorith sighed. ‘Even our strongest regional champions struggle to get through the first round – though the participation prizes are still worthwhile. The Void Hand’s founding members often produce mages talented enough to fight opponents two grades above their own.’

Percy drew a sharp breath. Two grades higher? That was the same as him! Evidently, his situation wasn’t unprecedented in the entire universe as he’d initially thought – just rare on Thess’kala.

‘What about three grades? Has there ever been a mortal that powerful?’ he asked again, unable to suppress his curiosity.

‘People like that do appear from time to time. But only once every several millennia. They’re rarer than titans, and no less valuable. After all, those who make it to the Clear grade are powerful enough to hold their own against some of the weaker gods, as mere mortals. That might not sound like much, but it’s extremely important, since it allows their factions to deploy them to lesser springs.’

‘Lesser springs? Why does that matter? Can’t a faction like the Moirai or the Void Hand obliterate a lesser spring in an instant?’ Percy asked, somewhat confused.

‘They can, but it’s not so simple. If they send their strongest gods, they can break through the hostile planet’s natural defences with raw power. But those people are typically busy with more important matters. Alternatively, they can send lots of regular demigods to overwhelm the local deities, yet many of them will die in the process. In both cases, it comes down to weighing risk against reward. The presence of a powerful demigod flips the cost-benefit curve on its head, rendering many otherwise-wasteful missions worthwhile. Besides, mortals like that tend to become extremely powerful gods sooner or later. No matter what, they’re among the most valuable assets a faction could ask for.’

Percy mentally nodded in understanding, itching for the opportunity to participate in this void tournament. Not only would he love to test his strength against such talented people, but the prizes there sounded even more alluring than those he’d earned on Thess’kala. He might even find that first-generation leaf he needed, or a treasure capable of granting him a rare affinity.

Even so, he knew he wouldn’t be able to do this while borrowing Kassorith’s body. His host was already at his limits fighting against his fellow Thess’kalans – let alone the monsters standing at the very top of the Void Hand. As for joining the interplanetary competition with his main body – that was even more ridiculous. Remior wasn’t a greater spring, nor was it a member of the alliance. Revealing his identity would be idiotic.

Besides, he doubted the competition even had a division for Yellows. Percy would need to advance a couple more times just to be eligible. Either that, or he would have to find a better host. Regardless, the chamber around him suddenly felt a lot smaller, the walls leaning closer, pressing the weight of possibility against his non-existent shoulders.

‘The void tournament… maybe one day.’

For now, he and Kassorith had one last opponent to beat.