There was no delay to be had, although the battle royales would take place simultaneously, it was impossible to expect full coverage of a thousand different battles. That said, space was not an issue. In an arena that could house tens of millions of spectators, it was not lacking in any areas.
The first round of battle royales consisted of 1000 separate groups of fifty. They were split into ten, thus allowing for 100 separate battle royales to happen simultaneously.
The monitors allowed for each one of these to be parsed, allowing the viewers to decide which battles were most interesting to them and which ones to focus on.
The groups themselves were divided with rankings in mind. It would of course be unsatisfactory for powerful experts to have early exits due to tough groupings, so that was kept in mind. However, Ri didn’t very much like this rule. Because she was top 30, she wasn’t grouped with any other high-ranking members, meaning she never laid eyes on her enemies, but that only fueled her anger more.
The crowd watched in awe as ten black tails whipped out from Ri, she showed absolutely no mercy as she tore her way through her competition. The commentator for her group was at a loss for words. There were supposed to be ten remaining in the group, so why was there only one standing? And even worse, she didn’t seem happy with the result?
Because of this, the ref had no choice but to guess who had happened to be the last nine Ri took out before she leaped off of the stage.
Ri’s performance caused many eyes to land on her.
Her beast form had a primal and savage aura to it that attracted people. But, at the same time, she was an otherworldly beauty. It didn’t take the audience long to figure out that Ri was the sixth beauty the elder had alluded to.
People clamoured to learn what her name was but were bricked walled by a simple number: 68279. And this 68279 became as dear to their hearts as five other numbers.
Much like Ri, Madeleine was filled to the brim with anger. She couldn’t speak or access her music will, but her celestial intent ended the battle in a near instant.
The moment Madeleine unleashed her intent level will, even her master shot up from her seat. Ester had no idea when Madeleine had learned an intent. And, worst yet? She had no idea what that will was! When had Madeleine not only learned a will she had no knowledge of, but also leveled said will to an intent?! This was too ridiculous!
Madeleine’s performance shook many to the core. Her parents had no idea how to feel.
This was their child, and yet she hadn’t spoken to them in months. It was clear that something was different about Madeleine right now… But, they couldn’t even bring themselves to even attempt to approach her.
All of this said, those who were perceptive immediately noticed something else. Madeleine and Ri had without a doubt been holding back. None of the people in their bracket had died despite their overwhelming victories. But, more interestingly, Madeleine had faint purple flames wrapping around her the permeated a heat that everyone had to pay attention to. And Ri? A dense blackness had layered her every step and yet she had only used ice and sword will to finish off her opponents. Just what were they holding back?…
It was suffice to say that the images of Madeleine and Ri were burned into the hearts and minds of everyone. But, there were other outstanding performances to take note of.
Prince Elwing Belmont, Lionel’s younger brother and the first Belmont that Dyon had ever come into contact with performed well. He, as a prince, had to maintain an air of cordiality, and as such, wasn’t as domineering with his victory as Madeleine and Ri. He remained standing along with ten other participants, but it was clear that he was a cut above the rest. His red and blue flames that showed faint signs of combining were a much too domineering dichotomy of heat and cold for his opponents to handle.
Those members of the top twenty were particularly dominant, though. Experts like Iris Ipsum and Clarice Grimbold didn’t even have to lift a finger. They sat in the skies as elegant beauties, waiting to see if anyone would attack them. But, of course, no one did.
The second round of the battle royales was entered into smoothly. The crowd was excited to see whether or not these rounds would be just as easy for those unprecedented geniuses. And, in the end, they weren’t disappointed. It seemed like those who were meant to win, always did.
However, with less people and battles to focus on, the crowd began to pick up on some diamonds in the rough they had missed out on during the first few rounds.
For one, there was the beautiful olive-skinned girl who seemed to glide through her competition. Her fighting style was odd and non-confrontational, which is likely why she had been missed in the first stages. But, with less people, she was becoming more and more prominent a figure.
Seeing this olive-skinned girl, a woman that looked very much like her in the Planet Naiad section tried her best to refrain from trembling. She had spent the past years learning to hide her emotions, but seeing her daughter right in front of her, narrowly escaping the stabs of swords and swings of maces, it snapped a dam in her that she had been holding back for just as long.
But then a cold voice came in to pour a bucket of ice water over her as though this was exactly what it was waiting for.
“So that’s your bastard child, hm?” The voice entered directly into her mind, causing her face to pale and blood to flow from her nostrils.
Then out loud, the voice said words that Delia’s mom dreaded to hear. “It’s her. I want her dead by the end of the third round.”