Inside the arena, the crowd roared as four individuals were coming forward. Three of which were males, and the other was a female. These were the four great family heads approaching the royal stand in the Flavian Amphitheatre,the arena.
A commentator from the box recording room grabbed the mic and spoke, recognizing the strong figures that had just entered into the arena to observe the new souls that had made it this far.
"And now, bearing witness to the Tournament Realm… the four Great Family Heads!"
"To the right, we have the Great Cross Family and its leader, Liam, The Royal Head of the Crimson Line, deliverer of judgment, enforcer of silence"
The crowd erupted in applause.
"And we have Liora of the Great Slothwell Family, The slumbering flame of fury"
Liora stepped forward. She wore a long black coat with bronze trim over a loosely draped white shirt and dark pants. Large gold hoop earrings hung from her ears, and a circular medallion necklace rested against her chest. Her short dark hair was styled in a messy bob with wispy strands framing her face. She held a smoking cigarette between her fingers with a confident, and a detached expression.
The crowd cheered louder.
"And standing beside her, the sword of sorrow, we have Silas, the Royal Head of the Great Heart Family!"
Silas walked forward with calm confidence. He wore a dark navy high collared jacket with a small gold pin on the chest, paired with matching dark pants. A katana with a red wrapped handle hung at his waist, with crimson fabric tied to its sheath. His spiky white hair jutted out in wild, angular directions, making him instantly recognizable.
The crowd roared even louder.
"And here we have the Prestige Royal Head of the Makaveli Family and the greatest scientist Kodesh has ever known,the brilliance of the royal kingdom,The prodigy,The mind of minds Lucian Makaveli!"
The entire stand erupted. Everyone clapped back to back, wave after wave of applause filling the arena. The sound was overwhelming.
Every participant could see these four powerful heads appear one after the other and take their seats at the royal stand. Their presence alone radiated authority and power. These were not people to be taken lightly.
Aldrich could clearly see them too. His eyes moved from one to the next, taking in their appearances and the way the crowd reacted to them.
Then his system notified him.
[System Alert:Identity Scan completed,The Four Royal Heads of the Great Families]
[Scanning… Processing… Completed]
[Target Identified: Liora Slothwell]
[Family: Great Slothwell Family]
[Rank: Royal]
[Essence Level: S-Rank]
[Target Identified: Silas Heartveil]
[Family: Great Heart Family]
[Rank: Royal]
[Essence Level: S-Rank]
[Target Identified: Liam Cross]
[Family: Great Cross Family]
[Rank: Royal]
[Essence Level: S-Rank]
[Target Identified: Lucian Makaveli]
[ Family: Great Makaveli Family]
[Rank: S-Rank Scientist]
[Essence Level: ABNORMAL]
Since only Aldrich could see this, he muttered to himself, "Lucian's essence says abnormal? What does that mean?,What kind of scale breaks the system itself?"
But before another thought came through his mind, the whole arena rose to their feet. Everyone stood at once, clapping and clapping. The sound was deafening.
Then a thousand voices from the crowd began chanting in unison. "ALL HAIL THE KING! ALL HAIL THE KING! KING AUGUSTUS!"
The chant echoed through the entire arena, bouncing off the stone walls and growing louder with each repetition.
While this happened, in front where the four royals had sat, there was a chair bigger than all the others. It was designed for a king. Carved from gold and decorated with intricate patterns. The armrests were shaped like lion heads, their mouths open in eternal roars.
He walked forward slowly. His presence commanded attention. Everyone watched in silence as he raised one hand.
The chanting stopped immediately. Complete silence.
He sat down on the throne, which enabled him to oversee everything from his view.
He wore a regal deep red military-style uniform with gold embroidered collar and shoulder details. A flowing crimson cape cascaded over one shoulder, draping down to the ground. He wore black fitted pants and dark boots. His striking red hair framed his sharp features perfectly. Golden earrings glinted in the light as he rested a silver sword against the ornate throne.
It was King Augustus, The King of the Royal Kingdom. A place Aldrich was yet to reach. But the king usually visited during the Tournament Realm to see the fights. To them, this was like a game it was an Entertainment.
Down in the block where the participants stood, the Chrono wristband on everyone's wrist suddenly beeped.
[Chrono Gauge: Syncing…]
[ Collecting Participant Data…]
[Name: Registered]
[Rank: Registered]
[Essence Level: Registered]
[ HP: Registered]
[Data Upload: Complete]
[Transmitting to Tournament Registry…]
[Transmission Complete]
Everyone's name was collected and reported back to the commentators who now had the full roster.
The commentator's voice boomed through the arena again. "The Tournament Realm will begin now!"
In the open space above the arena, a feature appeared. A screen-like display materialized out of thin air, floating high enough for everyone to see. It was massive, easily fifty feet wide.
It showed a VS matchup format. And below it were two match ups already displayed.
KAI VS CASSIAN
KIRA VS EZRA
People in the stands who came to watch the fight immediately began betting. Voices rang out everywhere.
"I'll bet ten essence points on Kai!"
"Twenty on Cassian!"
"Kira looks strong. Fifteen on her!"
The energy in the arena was electric. Everyone was excited. This was what they came to see.
In the block where the souls who had arrived stayed, one of them turned to the kid standing in the corner. His dressing was completely different from everyone else.
He wore an oversized white hoodie with wide, flowing sleeves trimmed with pastel pink and blue ethereal wisps. Multiple thin gold bangles were stacked on both forearms. His messy white hair fell over bandages wrapped across his eyes, covering them completely.
He was the kid with an essence level of 200 on his wristband earlier. The abnormal one.
His name was Kai.
"You're Kai, right?" the person asked. "Your fight is next."
Kai didn't respond. He just stood there, silent and still. His face showed no emotion, No fear, No excitement, Nothing made any sense to him.
Two guards came in to direct the fighters out.
Aldrich sighed and said, "I'm happy Kira isn't facing that guy. He looks dangerous and evil."
Kai began walking toward the tunnel. His footsteps were slow and deliberate. He didn't rush he didn't hesitate, he just walked.
On the other side of the block, Cassian also began walking out. He was much larger than Kai he was Muscular and also confident in his strength. He cracked his knuckles as he walked, a grin spreading across his face.
The crowd roared as the two fighters entered the arena. The sound was overwhelming. Thousands of voices screaming at once Cheering and Chanting some where even Betting more and more.
Kai and Cassian walked to opposite ends of the circular platform in the center of the arena. They stopped and turned to face each other.
The commentator's voice rang out again. "Our first match! Kai versus Cassian! Place your final bets now!"
The betting intensified,People were shouting numbers, Waving their hands Making deals on the life of others.
Aldrich watched from the block, his eyes locked on Kai. Something about that kid felt wrong it was Dangerous, Like he was hiding something terrible beneath that calm exterior.
Kira stood nearby, her arms crossed. She was watching too, her expression unreadable.
The Chrono wristband on both fighters' wrists beeped again.
[Chrono Gauge: Battle Mode Activated]
[Tracking HP]100/100
[Tracking Essence Usage]100/200 not used
[Real-Time Battle Statistics: Online]
[Match Timer: Ready]
A holographic timer appeared above the arena, floating in the air for everyone to see. It was set to zero, waiting to begin.
King Augustus leaned forward in his throne, his eyes locked on the two fighters. A small smile played at the corner of his lips.
Liam, Liora, Silas, and Lucian all watched with interest. This was the first match. The first test. The first glimpse at what these new souls were capable of.
The commentator raised his hand high. "Fighters! Are you ready?"
Kai said nothing. He just stood there, his bandaged eyes facing forward. His hands hung loosely at his sides.
Cassian grinned wider. He cracked his neck from side to side. "Let's do this."
The commentator's hand dropped and said "First you need to know the rules of the tournament " the while roared chanted and then the commentator said "There are no rules at fight to death ahahahhhahahaha" the whole crowd roared this was what they enjoyed the most no rules at all in a fight.
The timer started counting up. The match had officially begun.
Cassian immediately charged forward, his feet pounding against the dirt. He was fast for his size. His fist pulled back, ready to strike.
But Kai didn't move. He just stood there, completely still. Waiting.
The crowd held their breath. Everyone was watching. Waiting to see what would happen.This was it, The tournament had begun.