364 The Cowardly Demon 4 (1/2)

The crowd cheered loudly. The Belmonts and the Sicarius were in a lot of ways their heroes. The other clans had come here by negotiation and some were old enough to remember times where no one had ever heard of the Ragnor or the Pakal, or at the very least old enough to have elders who reminded them of this fact in their youth. But, the Belmonts and Sicarius were examples of clans that used to be weaker that rose themselves up to the great heights they were at today. They were the hope of everyone there and the people they were the most loyal to. In fact, many had been in these very seats when they watched the epic final battle between Big Red and King Belmont all those years ago.

That battle had lasted for days, and yet no one had left their seats. In the end, King Belmont won, pushing Big Red to second place. But, what made that battle so memorable wasn't the length or the entertainment. It was rather the sportsmanship they showed at the end. They were close friends even to this day!

At that time, Big Red had been a no name from a backwater Sicarius clan near the edge of the continent and King Belmont had been the first prince of the already established Belmont. But, they had come together anyway. This was why King Belmont was loved so dearly. He was a king that truly placed what was important first. He didn't care about Big Red's background, he only cared about his character.

After waiting patiently for the Belmonts and Sicarius to situate themselves, the elder turned his attention to the crowd as the blimp floated away.

This elder was actually a true elder of a God Clan. He was known as Elder Er Cavositas, and one would be right to think he was at least a mid level saint. This was because, in reality, he was a peak level saint with faint hopes of becoming a celestial. But, that hope was exactly that. Faint.

”As you all know,” The elder began, ”The world tournament isn't just about making a powerful display. We're also here to entertain – if we weren't, you all wouldn't be here!”

The elder lightly chuckled to himself as the crowd quietened down.

”The privilege of planning this grand event has been past onto us Cavositas. With our rich history of arena and fight clubs in Arena City, you can bet that we have great things planned for the following weeks!

Not only will we be providing food and side entertainment for all of you, we'll also be organizing evening events that give you all more opportunities to see your favorite warriors from afar!”

Cheering filled the stadium again, the booming voices really made it sound as though the entire planet was shaking. The impact of tens of millions in just one space was too great.

”Please, please! If you all get so excited about just that, I fear the planet might tear in half before events are through!

This year we have grand competitors. The top ten are more lethal than they have ever been, and the five beauties are unmatched through generations! In fact, between you and me.” The elder leaned in as though he was speaking to someone privately, ”I hear there's the appearance of a sixth beauty to match them!”

The elder stopped himself from saying Ri's name, remembering the demands of the person who had paid him handsomely.

”Better yet, there have been the rise of unprecedented young geniuses. It's best to not solely focus your eyes on the top ten to win the essence gathering awards this year, or else you'll miss out on all the young talents who simply haven't had the time to participate in enough campaigns yet!

In fact, this year we'll be adding a new rule to make sure you're all paying attention! The competitors will no longer be known by their names, they will from now on be referred to by their numbers!”

The elder spread his arms out causing hundreds of thousands of array tracking plates to appear in the air before they set off to their designated person. In the end, every registered participant received a plate. There was only a single one left with the elder, but, having expected this, he twirled it in his finger, a sinister smile playing on his face.

”With this new rule change, there will be less forfeits and more action! Not just that, but lower tier clans have a higher chance of succeeding because more prepared clans won't be able to prepare for them in advance! This makes the matches much more fair and will make the entertainment just that much more great!”

The crowd didn't need much convincing, they erupted into cheers, nearly bringing the stadium down again before Elder Er continued.

”Unfortunately, though. As you all can see, there's just one plate that hasn't been accounted for.” The elder continued to twirl it in his fingers, allowing the monitors to focus in on his hands.

Ri froze at these words, 'This was planned!' Anger began rising in her heart as she felt Primrose's hand slip into hers, trying to reassure her.