After passing the line of soldiers and the city gates, the Master and Ryo entered an area that Ryo had never seen before. The city was very large and bustling, with tall and magnificent buildings whose enormous shadows fell onto the streets and stretched as far as the eye could see. Horse-drawn carriages moved through the streets, and people were busily trading with loud noise. A cool wind passed through the alleys, and the smell of food and spices spread in the air.
Merchants shouted to attract customers:
"Come here! Top-quality silk at the best price!"
Ryo and the Master's eyes fell on a restaurant from which the smell of delicious food was rising. Smoke from the grills danced in the sunlight, creating flickering shadows on the ground.
"Come here! The best food you'll ever eat is right here! Fresh beef, delicious fish, all kinds of special kebabs!"
The Master smiled and said:
"Ah… kebab! My mouth watered. But we don't have money. I wish we could find a way to get some."
At that moment, a piece of paper fell from the sky and hit the Master's face hard.
"What the hell is this? Where did it come from…"
The Master picked up the paper and began reading:
"Let me see…"
"Hmm… Combat Tournament… the rest is nonsense…"
(Prize: 500 gold coins)
"Whaaat??? 500 gold coins?"
Seeing the Master's reaction, Ryo got curious and took the paper and read it.
(The biggest competition!!
Here, use your powers to win and prove your talent and receive 500 gold coins as a prize.
Age limit: only people between 15 and 20 years old can participate.)
"Master, the prize is really good, but I don't think your age qualifies."
Ryo, reading the paper, lifted his eyes from it and looked at the Master, whose eyes were shining and standing excitedly in front of him.
"Master, don't tell me…"
"Yes, my dear student, you're going to fight! And win the 500 gold coins!"
Ryo looked at the Master innocently and said:
"I don't know much, only the few basic moves you taught me."
The Master replied:
"No problem, my dear student, you can do it."
The Master dragged him to the registration area. There, a person was sitting behind a desk registering incoming participants.
There was a very long line, and the Master couldn't wait, so he went to the front.
He pushed the first two people in line in a way that they didn't collide, and the two fell to the ground, got up, and started fighting.
The fight escalated, and everyone watched. The Master used the opportunity and sent Ryo to the front of the line.
Ryo quickly went to the person who was registering and said:
"Hello, I came to register, may I?"
The person said, "Sorry, but registration is full. You cannot sign up."
Ryo, disappointed, went back to the Master and asked what had happened.
The Master looked around and saw someone laughing loudly and saying, "Can I go to the tournament, losers?" while mocking others.
At that moment, a carriage passed by. The Master scared the horse, sending the carriage toward the boy, and after the collision, everything went chaotic, and the boy fainted.
People gathered around the boy to see how he was doing.
A corner of the paper had fallen from his hand, and the Master used the opportunity to pick it up and hand it to Ryo.
"Well, problem solved. Let's go."
Ryo was surprised by the Master's actions:
"B-but Master, isn't it a problem if I go with someone else's name?"
The Master said:
"No, of course not. Read and see what it says."
"Name: Kai
Age: 18
Uses martial arts."
Ryo was reading when he noticed the time of the tournament.
"Ah, the tournament starts today, in just two hours."
He hurried to the Master and said:
"Master, it seems the tournament is today. We have to hurry and go!"
They moved quickly and arrived at the tournament venue.
A person was standing there, checking the papers.
The Master told Ryo: "I'm going to the spectators' area. You go give the paper to that person, and you can enter the tournament."
Ryo went to the person.
"Hello, here's my entry paper."
The person started checking:
"Your name is Kai, you are 18 years old, and you use martial arts."
Ryo said, "Yes, yes."
"Alright, you can go inside."
After seeing that he was allowed to enter, Ryo breathed a sigh of relief and entered the hall.
The Master also went to the spectators' area.
Slowly, the stands filled, and the pre-tournament ceremonies began.
A person using magic had amplified his voice like a loudspeaker so that everyone could hear.
"Hello everyone!!
Welcome to the combat tournament to discover new talents!"
"We thank the Mayor of the city, Mr. Wilson, for organizing these tournaments!"
Wilson, a middle-aged and somewhat chubby man, wore a suit and sat on the mayor's special chair. He seemed calm but at the same time excited.
"And we thank the honorable guests who have honored us by attending the tournament, such as
the great elf of the forest, Lady Ellaris,
the head of the vampire clan, Mr. Mordrin,
and the head of the dragon clan, Mr. Pyrath Flameheart."
Lady Ellaris, the elf, had white hair, green eyes, and long ears, her face very beautiful, almost everyone was captivated by her beauty.
The vampire Mordrin was pale, with large fangs and black hairs and golden eyes.
The dragon Pyrath Flameheart had eyes like a serpent dragon, a masculine and battle-worn face, long red hair, and a red beard. His aura of power captivated all the spectators.
All three of them were seated in the VIP area next to the Mayor.
The Announcer continued speaking:
"In this tournament, we have 64 participants, divided into 16 four-person teams."
"Each group's members fight one-on-one, and two matches are held."
"The two winners fight each other the next day, and the winner from them advances to the next round."
"This way, the number of participants decreases until finally two remain, and the winner of the tournament is determined from those two!"
"The tournament rules are that the opponent must either be knocked out or injured to the point where they cannot continue fighting!"
The Announcer continued talking:
"Well, the groups were pre-selected."
And the battles would start soon.
"The participants entered the arena in four-person teams."
The selections were made so that in the first groups, noble and powerful individuals would fight weaker participants.
Each of the three non-human races was placed in different groups to make the battles more exciting.
Then, the city nobles were placed against participants of lower rank.
Ryo was placed in the first group with a noble from the Stone Mage family, and coincidentally, his fight with the noble was the first match.
Ryo, being an unknown and seemingly poor person with a small frame, was intended to be defeated in the first match to favor the noble so that battles would only be between strong individuals.
The Announcer said:
"Well, the first match will start between Jeffrey of the Stone Mage family and uhm… Kai…"
"Please come to the fighting arena to start the first match."
It was Ryo's first time walking in front of a crowd, so he was nervous. It was also his first time fighting someone who was a mage, which added to his stress. His heartbeat was fast, his hands slightly shook, and cold sweat ran down his forehead. Sunlight shone on him, and his shadow stretched across the ground.
On the other side, his opponent showed no signs of stress and stood completely confident.
He was a young man, about 19 years old, tall and thin, with black hair and brown eyes, his face full of arrogance and disdain toward Ryo.
Both of them stood in a corner of the arena, and the referee said that according to the rules, they must fight.
Use of demonic powers or stimulants is forbidden; any violation will result in immediate disqualification.
Now, by my announcement, the match begins.
Three
Two
One
"Start!!!"
End of Chapter 25