Chapter 981 (1/2)
“Today, we have an extremely special guest participating in our monthly lottery,” The tall bearded man said with a confident smile. As the MC of the event, there was some onus on him to inject life into the process of the Lottery. But it was clear that at the moment, his excitement was genuine. “Let me introduce you to… Naffur Suite, Knight-Errant of the Order Ducis and acting leader of the most influential Order on Earth!”
Around Vye, people broke out into thunderous applause. Some of the mild-mannered competitors that she had been standing next to looked up with burning eyes. She cast her gaze around slowly while bringing her hands together as one more inconspicuous fish joining the sea of applause.
From there, the noise rose to an even higher volume. Besides the thirty or so people who were on the ground level to participate in the Lottery, there were almost two hundred individuals in the upper level, looking down toward the participants. Even if these people were there for the same reason as Naffur Suite, they still perked up when the Order Ducis was present.
These prestigious individuals were the representatives of companies and governments from across the Earth. A particularly large delegation from Franksburg were all wearing sharp grey uniforms with gold trim. Conspicuously absent was any group from Donnyton.
Other Orders were here, but even they applauded for the Ducis. After all, they all wished to curry favor with the Order Ducis in order to strengthen their own position amongst the lesser Orders.
To Vye, it seemed… oddly sad. Whereas Randidly basically went wherever he wanted, Naffur had to stand as representative of the Order Ducis and handle all of the attention that the true leader of the Order Ducis brought. The flood of positive emotion must be suffocating. Honestly, if Vye was standing in Naffur’s shoes, she might have preferred that the recently burned delegation of Donnyton was present. The fact that Donnyton had pulled out for the first time since the genesis of the Lottery was rather telling.
It seems that whatever challenge occurred between Randidly and Donnyton… wasn’t exaggerated. How powerful does one have to be in order to cow an entire town…? Vye wondered.
Her gaze shifted to the extremely young man who stepped forward during the introduction. As soon as she saw him, Vye clenched her fists and stopped trying to mimic the applause surrounding her.
Because Naffur, to Vye, was a bridge to a life that she had craved for too long. A life where she could control her destiny. If Vye wanted to pay back all the heavy debts she owed to the people who had helped her get here, there wasn’t a better way than joining the Order Ducis. And as the Order Ducis wasn’t commanded directly by Randidly, it would be a way to truly feel free.
Of all the Orders, the Order Ducis was all the most mysterious. But when the monster village was discovered, the Order Ducis was the first to intervene. When the Danger Zone cleared by Randidly began to spew out ogres, the Order Ducis was at the frontlines, pushing the monsters away from the vulnerable cities of civilization.
The first impression that Vye had of Naffur was that he was young and tired. But his eyes gleamed visibly from this distance. At his side stood a tall inhuman cockroach, coolly regarding the barely disguised disgust on the faces of other groups. At his other side was a pre-teen boy, smiling widely at everyone in the arena.
Vye’s determination receded slowly as she looked at the lonely silhouettes of these three figures. Her lip curled upward. What is with everyone and possessing glowing eyes?!? The pupil should only reflect-
“And now…” The bearded MC for the lottery turned back to the assembled people. “Remember, do your best! There’s no punishment for failure-”
Except being stuck in this city for your whole life, bound by chains of relationships and expectation tighter than any physical jail-
“-and the rewards for success are unimaginable! Let’s commence the Lottery! I am positive that you all will find Paths to your dreams today. There are forms on the table to fill out, should you be willing to reveal your Skills and Stats. These will be distributed to the representatives during the following cocktail hour. Feel free to mingle and introduce yourself as much as you want. After the talking is done, there will be a series of duels to demonstrate your abilities.”
The bearded man’s face twisted into a sardonic smile. “Although it is not a pretty truth, our world has been transformed by the presence of the System. Without strength, we can accomplish very little. Still, for those of you who aren’t gifted currently in martial might, the point of the duels is not to see how much you can accomplish now. It is to show these influential organizations that you would be an individual worth cultivating. To that end-”
“If I may?”
A mild voice cut through the bubbling excitement of the arena. The bearded man turned in surprise to look at Naffur. It was the young man’s cool voice that had cut across him, right as he was heading toward the crescendo of his speech. If it wasn’t for Vye’s experience reading people, she would have missed the subtle tightening of the lines around the bearded MC’s eyes. Then the bearded man nodded and gestured for Naffur to go ahead.
The young man was thin and pale, but he raised his head and spoke confidently to the room. As he spoke, his spine straightened and his shoulders seemed to spread out behind him like extending wings. Vye almost couldn’t believe her eyes. How did his physicality change so drastically in such a short amount of time…? It was like he was a different person.
When he spoke now, Naffur’s voice was low and persuasive. “Nothing is as important as spirit and dedication. Nothing is as important as that precious inner drive that propels you forward. That image you hold in your chest for your own future… that’s what I hope you show us in your duels. Give us a hint of the ideal you present in your heart. The You that has succeeded. The stronger that feeling you can project is… the more we, the Order Ducis, will be moved.
“We intend to allow ten individuals into the selection for the Order Ducis. Nine of those spots will be filled, but for one of you… perhaps your fate will change today. Good luck.”
After a short nod, Naffur Suite turned around and stiffly marched back to his companions. Some of his solemn air was completely dispersed when the young boy who had accompanied him enthusiastically grinned at him and pounded on his shoulder in a ‘job-well-done’ kind of way. Blushing, Naffur coughed into his hand.
But Vye stood frozen. The image I hold in my chest for my future…?
Her gaze sank toward the ground. Around her, the participants began to whisper to each other in excitement.
I just… I just want… to be free… I want the sky to stretch endlessly above me. I want to never need to be in someone else’s debt. I…
Without waiting for Vye, the people around her surged toward the table, prepared to reveal their Stats and Skills in order to catch the eye of someone in power.