"We did it!"

Kasandra shouted happily and threw her hands up in the air in celebration.

There was little doubt that this had been the most difficult event in the competition so far, and they were the ones that managed to claim victory.

"I almost still don't believe it, but you're right, we won." Avery said, slumping back in his chair.

All of the tension that had been holding him up during the free-for-all battle vanished all at once.

Even when his life had been on the line in many battles of the past, he did not think that any of them were quite as harrowing as this one.

Going up against so many capable pilots that had comparable ships and decades of experience on him had been a true challenge.

Of course, he knew if it was not for teaming up with Liesel that he never would have made it this far in the event.

In a true duel against either Atlas or Cerise, he was uncertain if he could win again.

Now that the first event of the day was over, Avery received directions to return to a nearby hangar that had been set up for the competitors to rest and refuel at.

Since the speed at which the competition needed to go had been sped up, there were still two more events of the day that everyone needed to prepare for.

"I really wish that we could celebrate, but I suppose that opening up bottles of our expensive alcohol and bring out our premium food now would be a bit premature." Avery said with a sigh.

"Yeah, that does sound good, but we do need to remain sharp for what's coming next. We've only got a three-hour break until the next event."

The two of them would like nothing more than to lay back and relax in the afterglow of victory. Regrettably, there was still quite a bit that required their attention.

There was no doubt that the first event was going to be the most difficult an intensive of the day, since the two test pilots in rank eight and seven had chosen easier events that did not rely heavily on combat.

The other two events would be more focused on testing each vessel's performance with maneuvering and their pilot's skill.

"Oh, looks like you're really blowing up on the dedicated mercenary channel in the capital system." Kasandra said, scrolling through a series of message rooms accessible only to three star or higher mercenaries.

It seemed that Avery trouncing Atlas was making some wave through the community.

A veteran six star mercenary had just been beaten by a recently promoted five star mercenary, and someone that had only joined the Mercenary Association a relatively short time ago.

Naturally, an upset like this was going to get people talking, and a lot of it was positive towards Avery. Though, there were plenty of people praising Atlas as well and claiming that Avery only one because of dirty tricks, and that if Atlas had been using his own vessel instead of the one provided by Stifur, that he definitely would have been the one to win instead.

"Well, it's not like what the naysayers are saying is exactly wrong." Avery said with a shrug of his shoulders.

When he had first realized that he was losing against Atlas, he had dragged the man into a more chaotic fight with the others and then retreated to the edge of the battlefield.

And he did not know much about Atlas' main ship other than that it had been custom made for him. No doubt he would have been stronger piloting it than what he was currently using in the competition.

"Sure, but we can't undersell your achievements. Today you beat not only a six star mercenary, but the Cerise Gunvald. There's no doubt that you're going to be getting a lot more famous now."

Avery could not deny this claim.

Just a glance at the news coverage right now was enough for him to see his name being spread far and wide.

Some were calling it a major upset, while others were talking about how crafty he must have been to make a deal with Lisel Kizer.

Naturally, his temporary teammate was receiving a great deal of attention as well.

She already came from probably the most famous line of mercenaries in the Dramid Alliance, and she was now part of a duo that managed to defeat that current greatest hero of the Alliance, Cerise Gunvald.

"I bet that her family's going to be happy about this. Their prestige is already pretty good, but having one of their own receiving so much attention should see a boost in their reputation." Kasandra said, nodding knowingly.

Whether she was here of her own accord or because of her family's wishes was unclear to Avery and Kasandra.

Still, they had obviously looked Liesel up once it was revealed that she was one of the competitors.

What they had found out while looking into her was that any direct descendants of the Kaizer lineage were forced to go on out on their own to become mercenaries once their reached the age of majority in the Dramid Alliance.

They then needed to become five star mercenaries in their own right before returning. It seemed almost certain that this was what Liesel was currently working towards.

"Oh, looks like someone is working fast. You didn't happen to do this, did you?"

Kasandra held up her tablet and showed it to Avery.

What he saw displayed there was a new thread going to a webpage where people could apply to join his team.

He had advertised that he was looking for crew members during the interview on the third day of the competition but not much had come of that yet since there was no point in focusing on heavily recruiting people yet.

The carrier ship he had ordered was still just barely beginning to be built, and he needed to earn more funds to finish paying it off.

It was still going to be a while before it became necessary to focus on bringing people in.

"No, I didn't make this. We'll need to ask the others about it, and if none of them thought this up, it's probably just a phishing scam to collect people's information." Avery said, a hint of annoyance on his face.

With how much information and data that was moving around the Dramid Alliance every day, things like this became inevitable.

Anyone with even a bit of notoriety could have their names attached to a scam of some kind, and for every one that got taken down, a dozen more would rise up in their place. Some people just had nothing better to do with their time.

After looking at the coverage of the event and some other interesting news articles, Avery and Kasandra began discussing strategies for the next two events.

Thanks to taking first place in the free-for-all battle, Avery, and Storren Corp. who he was representing, had now taken second place overall.

Since he had ended up only ranking fifth in the last event, Atlas had dropped down to third, with Liesel now in fourth place and not too far behind him.

Of course, Cerise was still holding onto her top spot and dethroning her was not going to be easy. Especially since the next two events were going to be advantageous for her faster vessel.

'Though, it might not matter even if we somehow do take first place away from her. The bigwigs in the Alliance Police are the ones that will ultimately be picking which corporation's ship they like best. And considering Cerise's position, I bet most of them will go with her.'

Still, Avery was not going to stop trying just because the odds were stacked against him.

Giving his best effort was only going to benefit him.

Not only in spreading his name around, but also helping to strengthen his relationship with Storren Corp.

Even if he did not win, it was clear that his showing in the competition had served as impeccable advertisement for the company.

The three hours in between the first and second event went by quickly.

Avery and Kasandra had managed to calm down and relax a bit, but they were still a bit wired from the first event.

When they received a message stating that it was time to head out, Avery activated the Dauntless' engine and slowly rose off the ground.

Following the instructions that had been transmitted to him, he flew towards where the next event would be taking place.

Along the way, he noticed that some of the lower ranked competitors were giving him a wide berth, while the others seemed more interested in him than before.

'I figured Liesel might have been a bit sour since she lost, but she's flying pretty close. As if we're still partners.' Avery thought, observing the other competitor's movements.

Soon enough they all reached the destination of the next event, and a screen shuffling all of the competitors' names appeared on everyone's viewscreens.

A randomizer was going to decide which one of them went first.