The festival and celebration of the tournament continued.
Shion Lan was walking around with Solan Neumann because he had promised her that they would tour the festival together.
He attracted a great deal of attention wherever he went, but he did not care.
He decided to spend an enjoyable time with Solan.
However, because she was currently in her spiritual form, Shion could not help her truly enjoy the festival.
"Well... I don't think it will be that easy."
Solan said in disappointment,
"If I simply didn't attract attention, I could have appeared with my actual body, but..."
Shion interrupted her.
"Don't worry. In the future, we will have many opportunities to enjoy ourselves."
While Solan floated beside him, holding onto his arm, another girl suddenly stopped them.
"Shion! Where is Sol?! I want to talk to her about something important!"
Pearl Jewel was moving around searching for Sol.
Solan replied indifferently,
"You can communicate with Sol Hart through me, and I will personally deliver the message."
Pearl hurriedly said,
"Alright. Tell her that the Magic Tower wishes to contact her and sponsor her after graduation. They want her to join them."
Shion was surprised by this offer and asked,
"I believe Sol is under your sponsorship. Will you continue sponsoring her after the tournament, or will it end?"
Solan looked confused.
"Isn't the sponsorship only extended until the end of the tournament?"
Pearl answered,
"No. Shion's contract is different. I made it extend to any event until the end of his academy period. Our guild will sponsor him throughout this time."
Solan looked at Pearl with dissatisfaction, remembering Shion's mother's joke.
"It seems you will be seeing him a lot during this period."
Pearl replied without concern,
"He is under my direct sponsorship, and I am responsible for him. Therefore, I need to be with him."
"What?!"
Solan became furious.
However, Shion quickly calmed the situation.
"Solan, don't you trust me?"
The murderous atmosphere immediately disappeared.
Solan looked at Shion innocently and said,
"I know you won't betray me because you love me... but I can't stand the idea of you being with another girl."
Pearl ignored the matter and said,
"It's not as if we are going on an outing like you are doing. I will only be with him to explain his work path, nothing more. Besides, I am not in a position to have a relationship in the first place."
She looked toward Shion.
"Inform Sol about this and prepare yourself well for the opponents. They will be difficult."
Shion smiled in response.
Pearl stepped back while thinking,
'I only need to bring Shion into my side later so I can begin the plan. Perhaps things would be better if I also brought Solan Neumann together with Sol Hart...'
She paused.
"No... only Shion Lan!"
Shion looked toward Solan and said,
"Go prepare yourself so we don't become late."
Solan nodded obediently and disappeared from before him.
She appeared elsewhere as Sol.
As Shion was leaving, he noticed a noble beauty surrounded by royal guards.
She also noticed him.
Seeing that he was alone, she approached.
'Damn... if Solan finds out, this situation will become difficult.'
Shion bowed respectfully.
However, Crown Princess Jina Joul said,
"Stand!"
Shion considered her words and smiled inwardly.
'I think she is now acting according to her position. That's actually more comfortable.'
But his moment of relief was interrupted when Jina said,
"I want you to show me around this place."
Shion was stunned as he looked at her.
She was smiling calmly with a bright expression.
Shion apologized,
"I'm sorry, but there is a tournament I need to prepare for."
Jina replied,
"It's fine. We can move around for a short time and return together."
'Together?! Solan will kill me! My mother will kill me! What should I do?!'
However, he was saved when he heard the voice of a young boy behind him.
"Brother Shion!"
Shion quickly turned around and found Forite and her children.
Forite said,
"Your Highness, forgive me. I was taking care of the children yesterday and couldn't come. I hope you understand."
Jina replied,
"It's alright. However, Shion's siblings are somewhat different."
Forite answered,
"It isn't like that. Shion is simply special."
She looked at Shion.
"I would like to see Lady Lan because there is something I want to discuss with her."
Shion immediately took this opportunity.
"Please allow me to leave, Your Highness."
Jina pressed her lips together and thought,
'I can't even stay with him using my authority? It doesn't matter.'
She said,
"Alright. You may leave."
She left with a gloomy expression.
Shion carried his little brother and asked,
"What is the matter? Did something urgent happen?"
Forite replied,
"I saw that you were in a difficult situation, so I only interfered."
Shion was stunned by her words.
He answered nervously,
"I don't know what you're talking about. No one dislikes being in the company of Her Highness and..."
"It's alright."
Forite spoke calmly and continued,
"I believe that Her Highness possesses a Guardian Spirit from her heritage, doesn't she?"
Shion nodded.
Forite continued,
"I don't know the reason, but I believe she doesn't like you... and she might harm you."
Shion was surprised.
He thought,
'Is this related to how I disrespected her at the beginning of the academic year? But I don't think I insulted her during the Kito Family mission.'
He decided to ask about something else.
"I thought you didn't possess any talent, Auntie. But have you awakened an ability related to spirits or something similar?"
Forite smiled.
"It is a woman's intuition. I consider you my son, and I simply felt unsafe around that girl."
Shion looked at her in surprise.
"You mean Her Highness?!"
Forite replied,
"No one can hear us anyway... unless you decide to report me."
Shion looked at her.
"Are you saying that I don't favor Her Highness? Do you want us to be executed?"
She could do nothing but laugh.
When Shion saw her laughing, he also chuckled lightly.
Then a passerby spoke,
"Even mothers don't leave him alone!"
"..."
"..."
Shion and Fury looked toward the speaker.
The person immediately felt a strange weight descend on his shoulders and fell silent.
...
In the battle arena's stands, Rita Lan was happily talking with Forite.
"Do you know how difficult it was to sit there and remain silent for such a long time yesterday?!"
Forite asked,
"Wasn't Shion with you after his match?"
Rita answered,
"Yes, but he was busy calming down his jealous girl."
Forite warned,
"You need to choose your words carefully. She will find out, and you will only make things difficult for your son."
Rita looked at her.
"I don't know how she knows all of this."
Forite replied,
"Because she is a pure spirit. There are spirits everywhere trying to gain her favor, so we might even be watched right now without her intending it."
Rita was surprised.
"But why?!"
Forite explained,
"Because Solan is Shion's lover, she and those around her are constantly being watched."
At that moment, the announcer began speaking.
Everyone became silent.
"Greetings to His Majesty, Her Highness, the Great Mage, the Six Great Families, the noble families, and all spectators!"
The time for the contestants had arrived.
The announcer continued,
"As you saw yesterday, sixteen students qualified for the final elimination round. The matches will be determined through a lottery."
In the center of the arena stood a woman holding a box containing numbers from one to sixteen.
Another woman carried the names of the students.
The announcer announced,
"Let the qualified contestants enter!"
The gates opened.
The students entered, beginning with the first-year students.
"First, Baro Ferrer, the Light Spear!"
Baro appeared under the eyes of countless spectators and nobles.
However, he remained composed and continued walking with steady steps.
The announcer continued,
"Next, Fiore Tai, the Fierce Wind!"
Fiore entered with a powerful aura, as if proving his own strength.
"And now, Cole Leon, the Dark Swordsman!"
Cole moved forward with an elegant aura surrounding him.
The announcer said,
"All of them are commoners who have proven themselves. However, the final first-year student entering today is Sterai Shine, the Purifying Flame!"
Sterai entered with the dignity befitting a future member of one of the Six Great Families, receiving everyone's attention.
The turn of the second-year students arrived.
"From the second year, we have Harry Gill, the Raging Hurricane!"
Harry entered with an aura of anger that seemed ready to explode at any moment.
"And the noble head of the Lan Family, Shion Lan, the Apex Star!"
Shion entered.
He immediately attracted everyone's attention.
Whether because of his elegance, his dignity, his appearance, or his overwhelming strength...
Everyone's eyes were drawn toward him.
Harry wanted to swing his sword toward him, but he suppressed his emotions.
"And we have Kin Light, the Moon Swordsman!"
Kin entered with an atmosphere of beauty and charm that attracted the girls' attention.
He greeted Shion and stood beside him.
"And now, the miracle of the noble families... Glass Sano, the Winter King!"
Glass moved forward with a cold expression.
His face carried both beauty and elegance, though unlike Kin, his appearance was not as captivating.
He stood beside his friends, creating the perfect scene of the second-year students...
Except for Harry.
The announcer continued with the third-year students.
"And we have the Spirit Mage, Sol Hart, the Crimson Spirit!"
Solan was surprised by this title.
However, she remembered that in her disguise she had red eyes, so she sighed while glancing toward Shion.
'It would be much easier if I appeared as his fiancée... But I think the Magic Tower is watching me now.
Aaaaaahhh! I shouldn't have listened to that red-haired cursed woman!'
Suddenly, Pearl felt a chill.
"What is happening?!"
However, she could not determine the reason.
She stopped and looked toward the arena, where the next contestant was announced.
"And now, the most prideful individual among the Six Great Families... Braj Torano, the Silent Wind!"
Braj entered with his usual proud expression.
But Shion felt something strange while looking at him.
'The most prideful... and the Silent Wind? I think those words don't fit together.'
The person who felt the greatest embarrassment was actually the Head of the Torano Family.
He thought angrily,
'This bastard must be the one who requested this title! I will punish him severely when we return!'
The announcer continued,
"And the member of the royal family, Remo Joul, the Flame of Law!"
Remo entered and confidently looked toward Jina.
She immediately covered her face with an annoyed expression.
"Now, the member of the Jura Family... Misa Jura, the Heavy Sword!"
That girl entered.
Her weapon was unexpected...
Or perhaps expected, considering she was a sword user.
It was a thin sword that did not appear heavy at all.
However, the contestants already knew the reason behind it.
The announcer continued with the fourth-year students.
"And among the fourth years, we begin with Violet Night, the Night Flower!"
Violet entered brilliantly, surrounded by a dark aura.
Jina looked at her sadly.
However, Violet did not notice her.
"And from a second-class family, Mowait Stroman, the Calm Wave!"
A man entered.
His movements carried the same tranquility as a calm wave approaching the shore.
He seemed peaceful and not dangerous.
However, that did not represent someone who had qualified for this tournament.
"And from a third-class family, perhaps someone everyone already knows... Hope Desi, the Mountain's Will!"
A girl entered.
Her gaze carried an extraordinary strength that attracted everyone's attention.
Even the Head of the Jura Family noticed her.
However, she stared at Shion with an unreadable expression.
Shion thought,
'The Desi Family was the only family that gained benefits during the trial of the Ranus Family. Yet there were still people who accused their family of betrayal, driven only by jealousy.'
The final announcement came.
"And from the Flair Family... Lav Flair, the Burning Heart!"
Another girl entered.
She possessed a beautiful and charming appearance.
However, she was not as impressive as the Fire Mage Rona Flair.
Nevertheless, she was still quite remarkable.
The referee began speaking again,
"Each contestant shall step forward after their name is called, draw a paper, and see their assigned position."
The qualified contestants began stepping forward one by one to draw their numbers.
The atmosphere in the arena became increasingly tense.
The spectators watched carefully, waiting to see who would face whom in the first elimination round.
Each student approached the box, drew a paper, and revealed their number.
The announcer announced each result.
The nobles, families, and spectators all paid close attention, analyzing the possible matchups.
Shion stood calmly among the contestants.
His expression remained unchanged, but his eyes carefully observed everyone present.
He knew that from this point onward, every battle would become much more difficult.
The sixteen contestants who had survived the qualification round were no longer ordinary competitors.
Each one represented the strongest talents of their generation.
Some had inherited the power of ancient families.
Some had gained support from powerful organizations.
Some had proven themselves despite having no noble background.
But all of them had one goal:
To win the Academy Tournament.
As the drawing continued, the atmosphere around the arena grew heavier.
The opponents were finally beginning to be decided.
Shion looked at the names being announced and thought,
'The elimination rounds are different from the qualification rounds. There will be no room for mistakes anymore.'
He glanced toward his opponents.
Kin Light stood confidently, his moon-like aura calm and beautiful.
Glass Sano remained expressionless, his icy blue eyes revealing nothing.
Sterai Shine carried the dignity of someone who had awakened a powerful inheritance.
Baro Ferrer looked determined, clearly wanting to prove the value of his training.
Violet Knight held her whip silently, her dark aura hidden beneath her calm appearance.
Every single one of them possessed a unique path.
And tomorrow...
Those paths would collide.
The commentator raised his voice,
"The lottery has been completed!"
The arena became silent.
Everyone waited for the announcement.
"The first match of the elimination round will be announced shortly!"
The contestants returned to their positions.
Shion looked toward the sky.
Thinking of the stars that disappeared because of the day and the sun but Shion will brighten up in the day.
He remembered the countless hours he had spent training.
The techniques he had created.
The battles he had survived.
Everything had led him to this moment.
He clenched his hand slightly.
"I will not stop here.
I will reach the top."
At that moment...
He took the first step to reach his goal.