A noble with a cascade of golden hair and emerald eyes shivers ablaze with simmering anger as he grasps his hair. He sent an assassin to the Krist family but received no news. "Fuck! Because of House Gregor and Albert, most attention was diverted away. I had to do things myself." the noble mumbles.

"But why?! Why is that bastard so damn persistent! Loi...a mere dog dares..."

The man is the patriarch of the Igniz household. Baron Henry Igniz.

Isolated in a dark room lit by only a candle, opposite Henry is his son, Kelsey Igniz, a prominent gem of the family.

Henry firmly grips Kelsey's shoulder. "Son, in the tournament, you must utterly crush Loi, do you understand? You must remember what those despicable commoners did to your mother ten years ago!"

"Yes...father," Kelsey replies. His face contorted with rage.

=============

At the top row of one section, everyone can sense one formidable presence. Cloaked in a black regal suit tailored with intricate silver embroidery, the air around him quivers and shrinks. His raven-black hair, impeccably styled, framed the void gaze set beneath a furrowed brow. The juxtaposition of elegance and threatening danger sets his enigmatic shadow.

"That's Roate Kreera."

His presence sends a perilous warning to all ploys.

Other than my family, I don't see anyone else of importance, a high likelihood of figures in other lounges.

"Without further ado, let the clash of arms signal the advent of the first battle!" The MC says. "First, entering from the west gate, we welcome Madam Mina Yvelle, the esteemed fiancee of the noble Prince Julius! Indeed, an air of dignified grace dances around her presence."

Mina walks into the battleground with her sword behind her arm.

"And on the east gate, joining her is Sir Kil Jamie, the son of influential Golden Merchant! Clad in a determined aura that mirrors his opulence, his presence speaks of his ambition! We are witnessing the battle between the thread that weaves our grand kingdom! May the battle be a spectacle of skill and testament, let the duel begin!"

Mina's opponent seems to be a small boy, with a mane of fiery red hair, holding a giant shield contradictory to his constitution. The bizarre choice of weapon baffles many people.

Kil takes the lead and charges towards Mina. His explosive leap propels him rapidly across the field. Mina solidifies her stance, bringing the sword up.

He responds with a destructive bash.

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*BANG!!*

Mina jumps back lithely a mere breath ahead of the crash. Not a single scratch is seen. She then writes haphazard symbols of runes on her sword. The runes melt into the weapon and resonate.

Unaware of what Mina did, Kil presses on to overwhelm her.

*CHING!!!*

Surprisingly, her weapon rivals the shield, colliding with great endurance. Kil parries the sword away but leaves a gap for Mina to throw a roundhouse kick to his neck.

Kil holds on with pure grit and swings his shield. Yet, Mina twirls her body in motion with the shield to evade it. Her fluid and elegant footwork gathering enough momentum to swing at him.

Many thought that was the end until Kil blocks the strike with his arm. Turns out, the superior armour beneath made up for it.

Mina steps back as Kil attempts to grab her. He begins employing full defence and slowly advancing towards Mina. In response, she throws light slashes and begins writing more runes.

Her cuts do not affect Kil. Close enough, Kil leaps towards her and slams the shield but is met with a powerful strike behind.

?!

He looks back and sees nothing.

Another cut bombards in his blind spot.

"Wha-"

And another one and another one.

Relying simply on his gears' defence, he becomes a training dummy for Mina's phantom attacks with speed that exceeds human capability.

As a last resort, he expels all aura, creating an artificial domain.

"Ugh?!"

Mina, unfazed by the rampaging mana, stands her ground and places her sword at his neck, her gaze fixated with leisure.

...

Kil drops his shield and surrenders, erupting the crowd's cries of awe. He realised Mina had gone easy on him.

"What a magnificent display of fortitude and wealth by Kil! Unfortunately, Mina's graceful footwork was enough to topple the defence!" The MC says.

Mina sheathes her sword and bows to respect and leaves.

"What a pity, Kil had the potential to reach the third round. Too bad he met Mina." one spectator says.

...

Every moment of that battle was etched into my mind. I close my eyes and imagine myself with Mina on the field.

Four seconds and it's my victory. But that wasn't Mina's best, probably a tenth of her true power.

I didn't pay much attention to the remaining battles as I attempted to figure out Mina's power by cross-referencing my future knowledge. I never talked to her in my previous life or seen her fight except on a few occasions.

Mina uses impressive fire magic and will implement different runes for creative effects. Runes are essentially a quicker and more versatile version of modern magic but are incredibly difficult and use too much mana.

I...severely lack knowledge and experience in magic, a core weakness.

Considering one can only become a mage after a certain threshold of mana control is reached, the number of mages is very small compared to the populace.

*knock knock*

Knocks at the door interrupt my train of thought.

"Cadet Loi Krist, your match is next. Please prepare yourself."

I get up and answer the door. "Noted."

"Moving on to our fourth match of the day, we will witness a clash of destinies as we welcome two warriors from disparate worlds. On one side, a prominent star of nobility, adorned in the regalia of privilege and prestige, graces us with his presence, Sir Kelsey Igniz!!" The MC announces.

The crowd cheers at the entrance of a handsome aristocrat. With blonde hair neatly gelled up and penetrating emerald eyes, every gesture exudes an air of refined grace.

"And on the other side, we have the most anticipated warrior, emerging from the humble roots of the common soil, an unaffiliated warrior that echoes the untold tales of resilience. A commoner embodying the undaunted spirit that knows no royal pedigree, Sir Loi Krist!!"

To my amusement, the crowd's thunderous support forms their esprit de crops for a challenger of similar origin.

I lock eye contact with Kelsey and see deep resentment in him.