Hero of Darkness

A loud cheer echoed in the Thamur colosseum as soon as the judges declared the winner of the first round. Billions of people varying from different races had victorious expressions on their faces as if this was their own win. 

What caused this great reaction? It was obviously due to their lingering hatred towards the humans of the empire. Helsi may be a dwarf but the majority still abhorred humans and thus, his victory represented their notions of being superior to this species. 

The humans of the Vulcan empire however felt an invisible sense of pressure as the majority of the populace cheered and laughed. There were many scornful gazes towards humans among the audience whether it was the colosseum or any city in the empire. 

'Humans should know their place.' 

This was the type of contemptuous look they received from everyone else even though no one openly spoke those words because of the fear of going against the imperial decree in public. 

As for the winner of the round… Helsi raised both his hands, making a victorious pose as he strolled around the arena with an elated expression. The loud cheers and words full of praise became music to his ears as he reveled in his victory. 

Not just him but his new master, Bifur Tawerik was loudly applauding his disciple as so were the people from his company. 

The members of High Elders from the dwarven council as well as the six fireborne clans also shared the same enthusiasm and did not hold back while uttering flowery words. 

Kahn, the loser of the first round had a solemn expression as if he wasn't slightly surprised or bothered by his loss at all. 

However, Throk and other skilled dwarven blacksmiths, including the 3 judges of the duel had a somber expression on their faces at the same time. 

Although Helsi won, it was because of certain conditions the judges stated based on the usability of the shield he made. His shield won because it was preferable in a battle as the judges concluded. 

But this did not null the fact that Kahn was already on the same level as Helsi. And he was someone who only started training in Blacksmithing Craft one and half years ago. 

At best, he should've made a decent shield that lacked compared to one made by Helsi in many aspects. But the fact that the three judges couldn't find any major flaw despite his inexperience also symbolized that Kahn possessed a tremendous talent as well. 

To normal people, a win was a win… but to the experts of the trade, they saw too many possibilities instead of just a win-loss situation. 

[That kid isn't simple. Even I'm amazed by his growth.] said master Druvagar as he conversed with the other saint blacksmith judges. 

Druvagar hated humans… but when it came to blacksmithing; he had his own honor and respect for his craft. Thus he did not shy away from admitting Kahn's talent. 

[Indeed. And I didn't see any signs of cheating either. For someone under the age of 30 years and exceeding our expectations by this much even though he barely trained for a year and half…

This human is indeed not someone who should be looked down upon.] spoke master Ivaldi. 

[To reach this level in such a short time… How great was his talent? 

Even though I'm not familiar with Throk Oakenshield, I must say he found a diamond in the rough.] praised master Fili without restraint. 

Hundreds of dwarven blacksmiths also shared the same opinion as they discussed among themselves. They had their pride as members of the dwarven race so they were happy for Helsi. 

But they were also loyal to their craft. And would never shy away from giving credit where it was due. 

At this moment, Kahn did not show any expression on his face which caused Helsi to stop celebrating. To him, it felt like Kahn was already aware of losing. 

The opposite challenger however, was inwardly happy that despite the bad materials, he could make a good shield that was on par with Helsi's who had more than 3 decades of experience. 

And all of it happened because of his doppelgangers which greatly raised his experience. And in the past 1 month, all 15 of them were at work instead of just 5. So his shield being on the same level as one made by Helsi meant that all that hard effort during his tireless training wasn't in vain. 

And Kahn was able to bridge the gap between himself and his opponent by a huge margin. 

But the result also raised some suspicions in his mind. 

Mainly because of the reason the judges gave to declare Helsi as the victor. Obviously, the situations to use both shields were different. 

Helsi made a shield for Tanks while Kahn made for Knights. So of course it lacked defense compared to the one made by the former.

And Knights don't directly face and defend against the enemies. They're the 2nd line of defense who protect the middle part such as healers and mages and fight alongside the swordsman or other melee class during a battle. 

It was made for a war of attrition. Helsi's was made for quickly ending battle while his shield would increase defense over time in a long war. 

But the judges still chose Helsi as the winner. And because of this… A complicated feeling arose in Kahn's heart. 

[Were the judges also part of this ploy?] wondered Kahn. 

Still, he couldn't reach a conclusion because of two reasons. One, because although the decision didn't go in his favor, their reasoning was also sound. 

Two, Ivaldi supported Throk while Druvagar supported Tawerik. But master Fili was neutral. And during the evaluation, none of them spoke ill of his shield either. 

The first round Kahn fought didn't give him any desirable evidence or hints to find the real truth about who the real culprit was. 

----------------

Finally, after one hour break, the 2nd round officially started but soon, Kahn's face turned constricted. 

[Again? These guys are too unscrupulous!] 

Because for this round too, the materials were of trash quality. It felt like the culprits weren't even trying to hide it. 

[Since they're being too shameless. Looks like I too need to use the same method as well.] spoke Kahn as he firmed his resolution. 

From the results of the first round, Kahn knew that he was already a capable blacksmith on his own. 

Since the playing field was already rigged and Kahn was no saint either who would simply take it down when someone was punching him in the face... So it was time for him to play this biggest card as well. 

At this moment, Kahn decided to do what he was best at. And that was… 

Cheating!