Chapter 66 - The Prelude of the Tournament

It was snowing. Frost that had looked like it had been crafted by the Gods himself swayed gently, landing on the rooftops, streetlamps, on the ground, and at wherever it felt best. 

Despite the cold weather, no one had actually thought of forsaking the highly anticipated tournament and instead, their hearts thrumped with excitement. As of today, it had finally begun. 

Even though the stadium wasn't as grand as the one in the Capital City where the Queen resided, this large stadium was only close to second. It counted as the largest already in Zariya. 

The stadium could house almost all of the people in town and Zariya wasn't exactly small either. While the one in the Capital City could hold more than ten thousand, the one in Zariya followed close in second with seven thousand. 

The tournament had attracted a lot of participants as well as spectators. Seats were arranged according to hierarchy, the commoners seat at the lower deck while the aristocrats were at the upper deck overlooking the stadium, allowing them to have a better view. 

Every person in the stadium couldn't stay calm, everyone was buzzing with excitement. Some couldn't even sit still and were restless. The stadium was filled with different kinds of noises, some hoots, another cheered loudly, a few more whistles. 

All of them were looking down at the arena with eyes filled with excitement. And this included Rei and Inspector Han. Rei's sharp eyes managed to pick out Jian Yu among the ȧssembly of students that participated in the tournament. 

When he first heard that his brother was participating, his heart was filled with worry. Could he withstand the pressure? What if he got hurt during the game? There were tons of questions and worries inside his head that he couldn't help but pout. 'Brother Yu…' 

The tournament was particularly harsh. It didn't just consist of a duel between two individuals. There were actually two more stages before the duel. The first round was marksmanship, more preferably archery. 

Not many would be eliminated during the first round, much unlike the second. The second round was hunting. This round usually eliminated almost half of the participants. Not only was it difficult, but also hazardous, especially during the winter like now. And for some reason, it was held especially only during the cold weather. 

The hunting was held in the spacious area, a training ground just right behind the school. The place was said to be carefully supervised for events like this. Looking from afar, the training ground looked more like a dark forest. Even though it was in broad daylight, it gave off an eerie feeling. 

The rule was simple. There were a lot of wild animals there. The bigger it was, the higher the points. However, things were never as simple as how it was. Instead of worrying over how to move freely among the heavy snow and searching for the largest animal like a headless chicken to kill, there were various traps and obstacles laid out that could cause serious injury. 

Winter was a season for a high incidence of asthma and bronchitis. Participating in the hunting game was just like another dangerous survival game. 

The only advantages given was that the participants wouldn't be acting alone. In this round, they were given the chance to find an ally among the participants and formed a group of two. Work together and strive for the best. 

However, don't be fooled. 

It was just a facade. On the surface, it might have looked like the tournament just gave a leeway to win, but on the inside, it was just another mass elimination. If only one of the two was injured and unable to continue, the other teammate would also be eliminated as well. 

This way, it was much easier for them to cut down the participants and only the best could join the last round of the tournament, the final duel. 

Some used extreme measures to win. Some just had bad blood with the others and used this opportunity to attack as in the training ground that was surrounded with tall and big trees, no one could exactly see what happened and any injuries could pass as accidents. 

Strangely, Jian Yu showed unusual signs of calmness and no sign of nervousness. If more, he actually looked like he wanted to take a bite off someone. Rei sighed and could only cheer for him inwardly. 

It was then the tournament host's voice echoed loudly in the air. 

Taking a deep breath, the host's loud booming voice came out rapidly like he was rapping a song. He introduced the tournament a little too excitedly and sweet talk as he mentioned a bunch of sponsors like he was dipping himself in honey. 

His mouth was moving so fast like a train in a rush. Any normal person would have their tongue twisted if they tried. 

"Now! Let's not waste more time and begin the first round, Archery!" 

Rei wanted to say, 'You are the one wasting too much time.' 

"Please, all of you stand in your designated position!" 

As the host announced the start of the tournament, all the spectators that were previously chatting with each other as to wait for the host to finish his long speech, finally turned their attention back to the arena. 

And of course, points would be given depending on how close their arrows landed towards the center.. Hitting bullseye would be rewarded with even more extra points.