Reincarnated as a Supernatural Horror Entity

It wasn't a mere scuffle. This was a full-blown, chaotic melee. Dozens of individuals, clearly transcendent beings of various classes and affiliations, were involved. Locked in a furious, no-holds-barred skirmish.

Sparks flew as blades clashed. Bursts of arcane energy exploded in the crowd. Shimmering with different colors.

Jack noticed various transcendent powers were used in the clash. There were robust steamrune engineers in heavy, mechanical armor; agile arcane rogues darting through the fray; mystic scholars slinging spells; and even some shapeshifter sorcerers who transformed into their beast forms.

The battle got more and more heated. A hulking, furry were-elephant swung a massive club, scattering everyone around him. A slender woman moved with incredible speed, leaving trails of afterimages as she weaved through the combatants. A burly dwarven-looking man slammed his pair of mechanical shields into the ground.

Jack narrowed his eyes. The fight was chaotic. It seemed to have no clear sides, no unified objective beyond raw aggression. It was a chaotic scramble. An explosion the volatile mix of powerful individuals converging on the city.

He could feel the air crackled with raw power and the shouts of combatants. Spectators quickly formed a wide perimeter. Some were cheering while others were aghast. But all were captivated by the spontaneous display of transcendent prowess.

"That's... quite an introduction to the tournament." Reina observed.

Her hands had instinctively moved to the handles of her handguns. And they never strayed far from them. Her eyes were wary. Assessing the various power signatures radiating from the brawl.

Aella was initially wide-eyed. But now, she seemed more fascinated than scared. Her piercing sky-blue eyes were tracking the bursts of energy from behind her glasses.

Rune pulsed a vibrant pink and faint red. Indicating great excitement and slight danger.

Jack kept watching. Unblinking. His analytical mind cataloged the fighting styles, power levels, and potential weaknesses.

This wasn't just a street fight done by random pedestrians. These people involved were transcendent combatants. Likely eager to prove themselves. Or perhaps simply prone to violence. Or... someone provoked them to act.

The tournament hadn't even officially begun yet. But the intensity was already boiling over. It either underscored the competitive, dangerous nature of the event, or indicated potential troublemakers in action.

Jack kept observing. His [Eyes of Judgement] were completely activated.

The brawl continued to escalate. Even threatening to spill further into the general spectators that watched the chaos. The combatants seemed to be fueled by adrenaline and perhaps a touch of pre-tournament anxiety. They showed no signs of letting up.

Then, a new force entered the scene. A large contingent of figures, clad in sturdy, dark uniforms bearing the emblem of Sweetmoon City. The members of the City Watch.

They surged forward. These were no ordinary guards. Their gear hummed with faint enchantments. And their movements were coordinated. Disciplined.

They were clearly transcendent people. And they seemed to be trained specifically to handle such volatile situations.

They didn't engage directly in individual combat. Instead, a wave of them were acting in unison. Producing mystic scrolls. With a collective shout, they unfurled them, the... [Scrolls of Paralysis].

A shimmering, invisible wave of energy erupted from the scrolls. It washed over the brawling combatants.

One by one, then in clusters, the fighters stiffened. Their muscles were locked. Their movements froze mid-strike, mid-spell. The roaring shapeshifters collapsed, rigid. The agile rogues became a statue. The mechanical armored combatants stood perfectly still. Unmoving.

Within moments, the entire chaotic brawl was reduced to a tableau of frozen figures. The silence, after the chaos, was extremely strange.

The City Watch members then moved in. Efficiently cuffing the paralyzed brawlers with binding runes. And then, they began the laborious process of carting them away. The swiftness and effectiveness of their response indicated that this was not... an uncommon occurrence.

"Well..." Jack stated dryly. "The tournament seems adequately heated even before it starts, doesn't it?"

The display was a clear warning. Indicating a taste of the aggressive, high-stakes environment the Battle Moon Tournamant will be about.

...

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The tension of Sweetmoon City continued to increase. Especially near the Grand Arena. By the time the final group of their crew arrived, the city had already been vibrating with the frantic pulse of many desperate, ambitious souls. People who could explode with violence at any moment.

On the day before the tournament, the Silent Mermaid crew decided to gather near the lake. It was still morning and the lakeside should be cool and calming. However, the heat of the tension in the city seemed to affect even that place. Warming the lakeside significantly.

Jack sat on a huge rock. Rune hovered near his shoulder. Her tiny body was pulsing with a soft, cautious amber glow.

Reina sat close. With Aella beside her. The little girl was toying with a small, flickering ember of void fire that danced between her knuckles.

When the last of the crew finally reached the place, the atmosphere shifted to something more clinical. They were serious. And their eyes were sharp. Affected by the increased tension within the city.

"The intelligence we got from the nobles in Crownrest are as expected." Baroness Artheim began. "The Battle Moon Spatial Realm is the centerpiece of the tournament. The Great Game of Glory happens inside the realm. It's a localized dimension activated by the Battle Moon Pearl, once every five years. It was tethered to the kingdom’s reservoirs."

Jack leaned forward. "And the incentive?" He asked. "Why would the Grandmoon Island go through the trouble of hosting the tournament?"

Baroness Artheim smiled. "The demonic monsters within aren't just for sport. In the realm, when anyone die, they will disappear. However, their corpses and souls don't actually dissipate into the ether."

Jack narrowed his eyes. "They are harvested, aren't they?"

"Correct!" The baroness replied. "The Grandmoon Kingdom has linked the realm with an artifact that that extracts the dead bodies and converts them into raw materials and refined soul-crystals."

"They are literally mining the monsters for profit." She concluded. "The prizes for the tournament are merely a fraction of what they harvest from the participants' kills."

"Now it makes sense." Jack remarked. His voice was devoid of surprise. "It'll be hard to believe otherwise. No way a kingdom will be willing to hold a regular event with such great prizes without earning profits."

"Efficient." Reina commented.

Serene, one of the healers, chimed in. "While in the Battle Moon Realm, keep an eye out for Twilight Mushrooms. They grow in the deepest pockets of the shadow-wreathed zones. They glow a distinct, pulsing orange. According to the information we gained in Eldscript Library, the mushrooms are practically the super efficient version of healing potions."

"Noted." Jack said. Making a mental note to search for them later.

Leon Drake cleared his throat to shift the topic to the individual events. "I've learned about the tournament in more details. The first event will always be the Marksmanship Mastery."

"This is a test of precision under five stages." He explained. "Any ranged weapon is allowed in the event. And, the first test is always the standard static targets. Then, it will be followed with extreme super-long-range target, usually with wind affecting accuracy. Then, it will be the moving targets next."

He paused for a second and continued. "The fourth stage is a chaotic 'crowd' simulation where hitting the wrong mark incurs a penalty. As for the final stage, it is the nightmare stage... the blink fireflies as the targets. They teleport a few meters away every second. It requires anticipation, not just aim."

"Got anything about the duel?" Bell asked.

Leon grinned. "For the Battle King Duel, there will be two rounds. First is a 'last man standing' brawl in a closed arena. There will be eight of these arenas. Anyone killing other participants or falling out of the arenas will be disqualified. Only eight contestants could go the the next round."

"The second round?" Bell asked again.

"It will be formal duels in standard tournament format. The rule is absolute though... no killing. The moment a life force of a contestant terminates, the opponent will instantly be disqualified. It is a contest of control as much as power."

Jack leaned back. Folding his arms. He had no interest in the duel or the test of marksmanship. He preferred watching to competing in those events. But, the team-based Great Game of Glory was different. They needed one of the prizes after all.

"I'm sitting out the individual events." Jack announced. His tone left no room for debate.

The room fell into a thoughtful silence. The crew began to weigh their own strengths against the requirements laid out by the tournament organizers.

"I'll take a shot at the Marksmanship event, then." Reina said. "My accuracy, perception, and reflex should be good enough for the event, shouldn't they?"

"Me too." Aella joined in. "I'll join with Big Sis Reina."

"Then, I'll compete as well." Baroness Artheim decided. "I'm not confident enough I can ensure my opponent stays alive if I join the Battle King Duel. This event is more suitable for me."

"So, who will join the Battle King Duel?" Reina asked.

Leon, Bell, and Moby immediately raised their hands. Other than Jack, Reina, and the baroness, they were the most combat-experienced in the group. Ned was also at their level, but he wasn't that interested in joining a duel watched by thousands of people.

"That leaves the main event, then." Jack said. "The Great Game of Glory. It's for five-person team, isn't it? My plan is... we're going to register as two distinct teams to maximize our chances of securing the top slots."

"Who will be participating?" Baroness Artheim asked.

"Team One... let's call it the Silent Mermaid. That will be me, Reina, Aella, Ned, and Barnaby. Team Two will be... Ocean Wanderer. The members, in my idea, will be you, Baroness, along with Bell, Moby, Leon, and Chloe. How is it?"

"Me?" Barnaby asked. "I'm fighting? Come on, Captain. I'm a bard, not a fighter."

"Reina, Aella, and I will do the direct battle." Jack explained. "Ned will be the stealth specialist. And you just need to support us."

"Or become the bait." Aella added mischievously.

"I'm too awesome to be the bait, Girl." Barnaby immediately shot back. "It's you, the tiny one, who will be targeted by the monsters in there."

"Not a chance." Aella grinned. "I'm too small to be a satisfying food to them. And I can teleport. They will target you instead... the plump, slow one."

"Who's plump? It's you the scrawny one!"

While Aella and Barnaby was bickering playfully, Jack looked at the other crew members. None seemed to be against the arrangement. So, it was settled. The plan was set.

Now, they just needed to move to the Grand Arena’s registration desk to register their participation...

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