The Ashen Dominion

"They added [Organizations VS Organizations] in the events."

Leo said, cutting off Kaiser mid sentence. And at his words—

"..."

"..."

"..."

Kaiser, Viktor, and Edmar got all silent. They looked at each other, then looked back at Leo. They were trying to see if he was joking or not. But judging from his expression—he was dead serious.

"What...?"

Kaiser muttered that, disbelief could be heard in his voice.

The place fell into another wave of silence.

The three of them were caught really off guard.

*****

So apparently, earlier—a servant had arrived, walking up to the guard posted outside the Silver Place's gate. He was wearing a brown cloak and looked like any ordinary errand boy, but his steps were rushed.

The servant leaned closer, whispered something quickly to the bored-looking guard, then immediately turned around and left, without saying anything else.

The guard didn't even bother reacting right away.

He just stood there lazily for a few minutes. Then, sometime later, he called out for anyone inside.

At the time, Leo, Niko, and Yuwa were the only ones there.

Kaiser, Viktor, and Edmar were still out doing their own stuff in the training ground.

So the guard just waved them over, gave them a short explanation—and casually told them to relay the message to the rest once they came back.

He even yawned while doing it.

Leo got irritated by that. But he didn't argue. It wasn't like they had any real authority around here anyway.

And the message?

"All Organizations must register themselves officially... or else they would face punishment."

That was the first part.

And the second part—the part that really caught everyone off guard—was that a new event was being added:

[Organizations VS Organizations]

An official new type of event that would have its own rankings and reward structure.

According to Leo, the first of these events could happen as early as next month. That was the estimated schedule passed down.

The reaction of the three?

Kaiser, Edmar, and Viktor frowned immediately.

They knew exactly what this was about.

It was rushed. Clearly rushed. Probably because Jeff, the owner of this place, was getting greedy again. The man wanted blood, spectacle—and fast money.

But no matter how obvious the greed was, they couldn't do anything about it.

They were just fighter slaves here. Gladiators.

In the eyes of the higher-ups like nobles and knights, they were nothing but products.

Before that—most of the spectators in events are nobles with their knight in the first place!

Im this world, gladiators are treated like a livestock.

'Even animals get treated better back in my world.'

Kaiser thought to himself.

Anyway , because of that—they just sighed and kept their thoughts to themselves.

Leo explained everything else he could remember, although his info was limited. He hadn't been told anything specific about rules, formats, or how it would actually work.

Still, it was enough to piss off Edmar.

"How the hell are we supposed to register then?"

He asked that sharply, scowling at the ground.

Leo could only scratch his head.

"The guard didn't say anything else. He just told us to pass it on. That's all."

"Tsk..."

Edmar clicked his tongue.

But Kaiser?

He placed a hand on Edmar's shoulder and gave him a reassuring smile.

"It's fine. I already got it."

Edmar blinked, a little surprised.

He turned to face Kaiser directly, narrowing his eyes.

"You already got it...? What do you mean?"

He asked, doubt in his tone.

Kaiser shrugged his shoulders.

"Just leave it to me."

It was vague. But firm.

Then Viktor, who had been listening quietly, opened his mouth casually—

"He'll make Rai do it."

The way he said it was so matter-of-fact, Edmar paused.

Then after a beat—

"Oh, right."

He muttered that like it finally clicked.

Rai.

He was the one who handled all the outside stuff for their group. He even helps in recruiting along with assisting them for their needs.

He also gathers information for the group.

To be honest, Rai is like the mother of the group.

Kaiser relies on him a lot, Viktor and Edmar turned to trust him too because he always gets the job done on time!

And funny enough—Rai was the youngest among them all in the organization.

(Rai is one year younger than Kaiser.)

Anyway, with that little problem pushed aside for now, the four of them sat together and discussed the new event in more detail. They didn't have much to go on, but that didn't stop them from speculating.

They talked about possible formats—would it be 5v5s? Big brawls? Tournaments between Organizations?

They also discussed what kind of rewards might be at stake.

And more importantly—

How to prepare for it.

Because no matter how bullshit this was, they couldn't ignore it.

Edmar was already thinking about who among their members could represent them if the format required teams.

Viktor, on the other hand, was just thinking about who he wanted to beat up the most.

And Kaiser?

He was thinking of the bad that could happen.

After all, he already knows the other organizations are going to go after them— [Ashborn]!

The big organizations will probably stop laying low soon and would start actively provoking them into a fight.

That thought alone made Kaiser frown really hard.

And it was not just him—Leo, Edmar, and Viktor were also thinking the same thing as him.

...

...

Anyway, later—

Their little conversation started to die down.

Kaiser, Viktor, and Edmar were tired. Training, fighting, and now this—it drained them more than they cared to admit. And right now, they just wanted to lie down and not think for a while.

"Alright... let's just talk about it later."

Kaiser said as he stood up from the bench, stretching a little.

The others nodded in agreement.

Viktor cracked his neck once, then walked straight to his door. No goodbyes or anything.

Edmar followed next. He gave Kaiser a small nod, then yawned and dragged his feet to his own room.

Kaiser was last.

Before heading to his own room, he looked around briefly.

Leo had already gone back too. The lights were dimmer now. It was quiet again.

And for some reason... that silence felt heavier than usual.

Not in a bad way.

Just...

The kind of silence you feel before something big starts.

Like the deep breath right before the fight begins.

Kaiser stepped into his room and closed the door behind him.

All of them just want to rest for now.

*****

Kaiser, Viktor, and Edmar rested in their rooms... Or not really.

Kaiser was sitting in a lotus position at the center of his dimly lit room. His back was straight, hands resting on his knees, and his eyes—closed.

He was meditating.

Not just for the sake of calm. But to strengthen his skill, [Intimidation].

He focused on the pressure. The surge of invisible energy running through his body. He was trying to control it, suppress it, master it.

It's not the kind of skill that improves with brute force training. It demands presence... intent. A sense of mental clarity.

And so—he sat there. Quiet. Focused. Breathing in and out.

Meanwhile...

Edmar was on the floor in his room.

He had pushed his small bed to the corner of the room to make space. His arms were planted firmly behind his back while his legs were split apart, toes pointed outward, stretching to the sides.

A deep front split.

And after that, he leaned sideways, then twisted, then flipped into a back bridge before rolling out again.

His body was covered in sweat. But his face—relaxed.

Flexibility meant control. And Edmar wanted his movements to be sharper than ever. His weapon was fast—but what use was speed if his body lagged behind?

So he stretched, this was his routine now.

Then Viktor.

He's sitting in front of a low stool, back leaned slightly forward, axes in hand.

He held a whetstone on his lap. His strokes were long. Precise. Gentle.

The sound...

Shkk~

Shkk~

With every stroke, the blade gleamed a little more. Sharp enough to cut through metal—yet what Viktor aimed for wasn't just sharpness.

It was focus.

He liked sharpening his blades.

It made him feel grounded.

Stable.

The three of them had different ideas of rest.

But to them—this was enough. As long as they weren't training like madmen or sparring nonstop... it counts as rest.

Anyway...

They kept that up for about an hour. Maybe a bit more.

Then—

...

...

"DINNER!"

A guard outside yelled that.

And as if perfectly timed, all three of them opened their doors at once.

Kaiser, Edmar, and Viktor.

They glanced at each other.

No words.

Just a single nod each.

That was enough.

They were too lazy to talk anyway. They just wanted food.

So they walked. Side by side.

Dinner tonight was simple as usual.

A bowl of warm soup.

Sliced fish meat, boiled eggs, and a handful of herbs thrown in for flavor.

Alongside that—a piece of flat bread, and filled with a thin slice of meat that barely counted as filling.

Still—food is food.

So the three of them ate it all.

Fast.

No talking. No chewing slowly. Just stuffing it down.

Barely over a minute.

They were that hungry.

And once done, they placed their empty bowls and plates on the trays.

Then—Edmar and Viktor turned back.

Didn't even say goodbye.

Just a nod. Then walked back toward their rooms without a word.

Meanwhile—

Kaiser stayed behind.

He stood near the metal bars, arms crossed, leaning slightly against the cold wall, eyes fixed on the hallway.

He was waiting for someone...

And that someone didn't make him wait long.

"Hello!"

A cheerful voice came from outside the metal bars.

Kaiser's head turned. His expression immediately softened.

"Yo."

He greeted back, a slight smile tugging on his lips.

It was Rai.

He was carrying a small brown paper bag filled to the brim, and if Kaiser's nose was right—it was his usual.

Chicken breasts.

For his daily protein.