Chapter 58 |
Apart from a small number like Dean, who were fortunate enough to come with their elders or teachers to broaden their horizons, there were basically no professionals here below Elite rank.
Oh, exceptions like President Mills were also considered rather rare.
At this moment, the Underground City’s guards, dressed in uniform standard gear and thoroughly well-trained, were efficiently and orderly guiding every entrant to their seats.
The spectator area formed a huge ring and was divided into five levels.
O’Brien and Dean were guided to a private viewing room at the very front of the third level. This was the area with the best view of the matches, exclusive to the major forces of Coral Thorn City. Only invited guests were qualified to sit here.
Except for the Artisans’ Association.
Mm, and now the Shadow Guild was gone too.
Mills had already been waiting there. The moment he saw master and disciple arrive, he immediately came forward to greet them warmly.
“Master Ryan, you’ve finally arrived. Please, take a seat.”
Mills had not forgotten Dean either. This was a promising prospect he had his eye on, an important future connection.
“Little Brother Dean, it’s only been a few months, and you’ve grown this sturdy already! Master Ryan’s training really is extraordinary.” He enthusiastically patted Dean on the shoulder.
Dean bowed politely, somewhat restrained, and greeted him. “Thank you for your concern, President. Teacher has been very attentive in his instruction.”
“I heard you’re already an Apprentice warrior? Truly remarkable! How long has it even been…”
“…Once the auction is over, that batch of dwarven forging diagrams from my family collection should have arrived too. At that time, do come with Master and appraise them together…”
“…Oh right, did the ‘Silver Mist’ tea leaves I sent over last time suit your taste? That batch was the first picking of the year······”
Dean, who had only learned half a day of noble etiquette from his sister Caitlin, still felt somewhat at a loss in the face of Mills’s machine-gun-like enthusiasm. He could only try his best to maintain a polite smile and answer briefly.
Mills was far too shrewd. Seeing that Dean did not seem especially talkative either, he stopped at the right moment and did not continue the small talk.
“Study well under Master Ryan. Maybe in the next gladiatorial tournament, we’ll get to see you on stage!”
He winked at Dean, ended the conversation, then turned to instruct the attendants to serve the distinguished guests the various exquisite refreshments and fine wines that had already been prepared.
After about another quarter of an hour had passed.
Buzz——！
The illumination array above the center of the arena suddenly lit up, turning the entire space as bright as daylight. The noise in the stands gradually died down, and everyone’s gaze focused on the host platform slowly rising in the center of the field.
An old man wearing a silver-blue robe inscribed with arcane runes, with a steady bearing, appeared atop the host platform.
Baruk, who was seated with Mick in another VIP viewing room on the opposite side, lit up at the sight of the host. It turned out to be an acquaintance, none other than Elder Kent, who had received him when he went to the Silver Moon Chamber of Commerce.
Elder Kent cast an amplification spell, and his clear, steady voice rang throughout the entire arena:
“In the name of the Duke’s Mansion of Coral Thorn City, the Silver Moon Chamber of Commerce, the Adventurers and Mercenaries Guild, the Blackthorn family, the Haines family, and all organizers······”
“The rules of this tournament are as follows……”
“……The use of equipment and items above Grandmaster rank is prohibited. The total number of equipment and items may not exceed five……consumable items are prohibited……”
“If one side voluntarily concedes, loses consciousness, or clearly loses the ability to fight, the battle may be judged ended……Match-fixing is strictly forbidden, and malicious killing after the opponent has lost the ability to resist is strictly forbidden. Violators will be hunted down by all forces of Coral Thorn City!”
“During the tournament, all medical treatment, food, and lodging expenses for all participants will be jointly covered by the organizers!”
“There are a total of 67 participants in this tournament, namely……”
“……I hereby announce that the Fifth Dark Gladiatorial Tournament has officially begun!”
As Elder Kent’s voice fell, the host platform rapidly descended, and his figure also quietly disappeared.
At the same time, the ground on both sides of the arena facing the audience slowly split open, and two lifting platforms carried the first combatants of this tournament, slowly rising to the surface of the arena under the gaze of the entire crowd.
Elder Kent’s voice rang out from the spectator stands once more:
“The first match! The two sides are——”
“On the left! A Blood Lizard clan warrior from the Black Sea Forest, the Scimitar Hunter——Ia·Zakarias!”
“On the right! A blue-spotted merfolk priestess from the Greenfield Deep Sea, the Tide Whisperer——Alyxia·Nash!”
Inside the VIP viewing room.
“The very first match is already this explosive?”
Looking at the two people on the arena, related information about them rapidly flashed through Mick’s mind.
“You know them?”
Baruk’s head, which was half the size of Mick’s body, curiously leaned over, almost completely blocking Mick’s view.
“It’s just that the intelligence I collected happened to include information on them.”
With a palm even smaller than one of Baruk’s ears, Mick pushed aside the obstructive bear head.
“They’ve participated before? Wasn’t it said that after participating once, they aren’t allowed to participate again within three tournaments?”
“That restriction is for the top three. You have to leave some chances for other people.” Mick explained, his gaze still fixed on the arena.
“Oh, are those two very strong?”
“That Blood Lizard warrior participated in the previous two tournaments, and in the last one, he got an excellent result of seventh place. Judging by his age, this should be his last chance to participate, so he’ll definitely go all out.”
“As for that merfolk priestess, her strength is unknown. She also participated last time, but midway through, something urgent seemed to come up and she withdrew directly from the tournament. But by then, she had already entered the battle for the top twelve. Judging from the gambling odds from the last tournament, she was also one of the strong contenders for the top five.”
“Hiss——！That strong?! Then how were they arranged against each other? Don’t tell me the organizers did it on purpose?”
“That part isn’t clear, but it’s probably unlikely. Strong contenders often clashed early in previous tournaments too. After all, at this level, who doesn’t have some trump card hidden away? If it really came down to a fight to the death, no one would dare say they’d definitely win.”
“That’s true!”
Baruk nodded in strong agreement. If old bear him really went mad and staked everything, he was confident that among those of the same level, he could absolutely drag someone down with him one-for-one.
Of course, that was on the premise that the other side fought him instead of running away!
As the lifting platforms rose completely, all the light from the illumination array gathered onto the massive arena.
As a warrior, Ia·Zakarias was naturally the one to launch the first offensive.
The instant the referee’s “Begin!” fell—
Whoosh!
Without any prior motion or preparation, in the blink of an eye, a blood-red streak of light crossed the thousand-meter distance and appeared in front of Alyxia·Nash.
The scimitar in his hand drew a cold curved blade-light, slashing straight across the graceful, slender neck of the merfolk priestess!
Yet Alyxia, whom the scimitar had passed through, only dissipated like a bubble phantom, leaving behind nothing but a faint layer of water mist where she had stood.
Ia’s attack did not stop because it had missed. Instead, he turned into a series of blood-colored afterimages, darting across the arena at extreme speed!
The continuous sonic booms rolled like thunder. Even through the powerful protective array, they still struck every spectator’s eardrums with a heavy force, bringing the most direct impact of violent aesthetics!
Inside the viewing room, Dean could not help holding his breath, his hands unconsciously clenching tightly.
This was the first time he had ever formally watched a battle between professionals at close range.
And it was directly a battle between Grandmaster-level powerhouses!
This was completely different from listening to a bard tell stories in a tavern!
The arena’s protective array did not isolate the momentum of the two fighters on the battlefield. The terrifying pressure and killing intent of the two Grandmasters passed directly through the protective array into every corner of the viewing area.
That immersive feeling made him feel as though he had been placed within a blizzard over an icy plain, causing wave after wave of uncontrollable fear and awe to rise from the depths of his soul.