Blacksmith of the Apocalypse

"Hello! Are you new members of the Oathguard?" a young woman with bright blue hair greeted them as they appeared in a wide-open room with marble floors.

"Yes! We were told to come here!" Jess answered excitedly. She and James had broken all bridges behind them and were looking forward to their new workplace.

"Great! I'm Evee. Follow me, I will show you your accommodations"

The couple followed the young girl along luxurious corridors and down a wide regal spiral staircase. Slack-jawed the two simply followed, their eyes big with wonder. It was as if they entered some antique mansion or a palace.

" I'm a witch working in the alchemist laboratories. My hairs turned blue when a potion went wrong." Evee suddenly explained when she noticed Jess's gaze. The magician had marveled at the mysterious blue and was a little jealous.

"Wow, do you think you could do the same with red?" she asked interestedly. She had always been bored by her normal brown hair. But dying one's hair was a pain, especially since the world went downhill. The woman laughed with an innocent smile.

"I will try. Maybe we could sell it as hair dye at the shop?" she mused. Jess was nodding enthusiastically. James couldn't really follow their conversation and concentrated on their surroundings.

They entered the wide entrance hall and came to a halt.

"The place you arrived at was the Greeting room for newcomers. In the future, you can teleport to Delta from the entrance hall, and you will also arrive here when you return. Make sure to wear your rings at all times. It's the only thing that stops the tower's traps from activating."

A cold shower ran down their backs. Traps? Nothing here looked like anything but an overly decorated palace! Hearing that there were traps here shocked them.

Evee left through the big gate and the two followed. There was a wide stair leading down to a plaza. A weak but consistent light allowed them to see a giant cavern. Behind the plaza was a gorge with a beautiful bridge crossing it.

Looking back, they saw the facade of a giant tower that was half merged into the rock wall. It was like an iceberg with just a small piece of the tower and its wide base being visible from the outside.

"It's just over the bridge." She said and led them across the bottomless gorge.

"Is this safe?" James muttered unsurely.

"It's completely safe, as long as you wear your rings," Evee answered with a mischievous smile.

Past the bridge appeared a gatehouse built into the walls of the cavern. It guarded a wide tunnel with enough space for two cars to pass each other. Warm lights that imitated daylight illuminated the place.

"This is the Gatehouse. It functions as Gatehouse, Guardhouse, and the barracks of the Oathguard."

Jess and James were led inside. The interior was not as luxurious as the tower, but it was to be expected from a militaristic building. But the barracks surprised them. They got a full apartment with a living room, bedroom, bathroom, and a small kitchen. This was several times better than their old place.

"If you don't like cooking, there is also a cafeteria with a Chef where you can go to eat."

After showing them around the place, Evee explained their duties and the peculiarities of the Oatharmor. Their main task would be to work as part of the Field service and farm Materials for the crafters in the tower. Or to guard this main entrance to Minas Mar from possible invaders.

The latter was just in case anything really ever happened.

Finally, they entered the armory of the Guardhouse. Rows and rows of plate, chain mail, and leather armor on racks filled the room. Another room was filled with just as many weapons of all kinds.

"Choose your gear. They are all labeled so you know their effects.

-------------------------------- Delta

It was time for the duels. The participants of the PVP event were assembled in the arena. They were split into 2 groups. The party fights and the single duels.

The party tournament would be held first with the single duels as the final event. This was possible thanks to the lower number of participants above lv.35.

"Anyone interesting among them?"

Seth asked Mike as he returned to the private booth.

"They are all not bad but... Well, the gems already belong to others or have already built their own nest. The interesting ones only took part for the prizes."

"On my side, too. Although their pride is somewhat justified, they are mostly lacking or taken. Especially this self-proclaimed King is a pain in the ass."

There were 32 parties participating. Following traditional tournament style, parties of 5 fought and the winner would proceed to the next round.

The makeshift and lower-level parties were instantly eliminated within the first round, leaving only those with actual power like the ones from stronger guilds. Unfortunately, this included the Adventurer King.

His personality was trash, but his skills were not. With his party of lackeys behind him, he was a hard nut to crack. Even in the second round when his party met the leading of a famous guild called the "North Wind Brigade" they somehow managed to defeat the guild master and her party.

Seth grimaced. In the party section was only one prize. Each party member of the winning party would be able to request one epic item. Even if he could be mean and give them one of the rejects made from <Bones of Seth>, he really didn't want to give them anything.

It wasn't just the leader; his cronies also had a terrible personality, and they were bad winners through and through. They didn't just curse their opponents, but even killed after the other surrendered.

The participants could revive as if they died in a dungeon, but it was still death. Humiliation and a loss of experience were not nice either.

The party of scumbags made it up to the semifinals where Marcel, the leader of the Volcano Guild, finally made them bow their head with the power of teamwork and superior equipment. The leader of scumbags showed a terrifying strength but could not fight back once the rest of his party fell one by one.

On that note, Elza, the Ice Queen of the Mountain Guild, was defeated by Brock of the Boulder Guild. Marcel and Brock met in the final. Watching these parties fight gave Seth inspiration for a poem he called "The Song of Fire and Earth".

It was the fight of the two vanguards, Marcel and Brock, a Magic Swordsman focused on fire and an Earth something Seth would call an elemental Monk. Brock fought like an earth bender moving the earth at his will and summoning mounds, boulders, and spikes while fighting in close quarters with the enemy guild master.

The final Winner was the Boulder Guild and Seth had no problem with handing over some of his better practice pieces to Brock and his people. Second place, the Volcano Guild, each member got a coupon to choose a free rare weapon at the Turquoise Anvil.

And so, the Party Tournament ended on the evening of the first day. Although some of the fights were thrilling, this part resembled more of a break in between the highlights. It was a good advertisement for the smaller and bigger guild to get their name known.

Next would be the single duels between adventurers. The participants were more numerous and there were even some famous adventurers that had come from the outside. There were not just people stationed in Delta, but even otherworlders had joined to get their hands on the fame and an epic item.