The young announcer girl stood at the centre of the arena, her voice booming through the speakers. Her blonde hair whipped in the wind as she raised the microphone to her lips.
Her cheerful aura was contagious as her gestures were enough for people to shout some cheeky words at her.
"Ladies and gentlemen! Welcome to the first battle of our tournament! Today, we have a free-for-all battle, as our first challenge, where only the strongest will survive! The rules are simple: fight until you can fight no more! The last ones standing after ten minutes will be chosen for the second round!"
"But don't forget, killing is not allowed, see have medics and if you feel like you're about to die, we highly recommend running to escape, and also we don't claim any complaints about deaths that happen when the tournament and the killer will have to face the law and jail time if something like that happens, so let's enjoy this without spelling the mood,"
As soon as she said those words, the gates opened and all the competitors came out with huge smiles plastered on their faces.
The crowd erupted in cheers as the competitors entered the arena, weapons at the ready. The sound of clashing swords and battle cries was about to fill the air as the fight will beginning in a few minutes.
"Looks like we've got some fierce competition today!" The announcer exclaimed, her eyes sparkling with excitement.
"Who will come out on top? Will it be the brave knight with his trusty sword? Or perhaps the nimble assassin, darting in and out of the fray? Or maybe the powerful mage, with their devastating spells? Or one of our fellow adventurers or the person that has the highest bet on, who is also the blood-sister of our new king,"
As soon as she said those words, the crowd started chanting different names, but most of the names got overpowered by Delviny's supporters.
The biggest supporter of her being her own brother, who forgot about the dignified persona of a king and started shouting at her like an idol fan.
The arena erupted in a deafening roar as Delviny strode confidently towards the centre stage.
Her fiery red hair blazed like a beacon in the sea of competitors, drawing every eye in the arena. The crowd's cheers were overwhelming, drowning out all other sounds, as they hailed her as their queen.
As the noise subsided, Delviny's competitors cast wary glances her way, sizing her up with a mix of fear and admiration. One of them, a tall and muscular man with a thick beard, muttered under his breath,
"Bloody hell, is she that good? And with that hair, she's practically a walking target."
Another competitor, a petite woman with sharp eyes and a quick tongue scoffed at the man's words.
"Don't be ridiculous," she retorted.
"Delviny's hair might make her stand out, but it's her skill with a blade that makes her a threat. And believe me, she knows it."
The man grunted, unconvinced.
"I still think it's a liability. It's like painting a target on your back."
The woman rolled her eyes. "Well, maybe for someone with less skill than Delviny. But she's got the speed and agility to make up for it. And don't forget, she's got that crowd behind her. They'll do anything to protect their queen."
"Isn't that really unfair, I'm sure this new king is favouring his own sister," The man said hoping that all of this cheering was because of the king, but he really misunderstood and underestimated Delviny.
As if on cue, the cheers rose again, drowning out their conversation. Delviny had unsheathed her sword and was spinning it effortlessly in her hand, her red hair whipping around her face like flames. The other competitors exchanged nervous glances, knowing that they were up against a formidable opponent.
"She's the biggest threat in this competition,"
the woman murmured, her eyes fixed on Delviny.
"But we can't let that stop us. We've got to be just as good, if not better if we want to win."
While they were planning how to beat Delviny, Amos and Kyla were also their looking at their target.
"Are we going to face her? To be honest, she looks strong, I don't think people are bluffing when they say she might be the strongest," Kyla asked her teammate Amos, who was still looking at the leader of the Blazing Sun party.
"Amos!" Kyla stepped on Amos' leg and brought him back to his world and asked about their plan.
"Ah yes! We will play it safe, our objective is to survive, so we shouldn't really aim for anyone, we should just confront people that are trying to attack us and escape if they overpower us," Amos said and looked at the battleground to search for the ideal place to stay safe.
Kyla nodded at his words because he is the one who always comes up with the tactics for their adventure team.
"Also, we should try to make King's sister eliminate by telling others to attack her, If we can send a rumour that everyone is trying to attack her, we can easily manipulate all of these competitors, but we should be mindful not to get caught by her fellow knights,"
Amos said and looked at everyone, then he slowly got close to a woman and whispered something to her.
The woman's eyes widened and after a few seconds, she did the same thing to another woman and without breaking this chain, Amos' plan started working.
"Amos! You're a little devil," Kyla said with a smile to which he reacted with a sigh and they heard the voice of the organiser of this event.
With a deep breath, Velian raised his hand, causing everyone across the arena to go silent.
"The time has come, I wish good luck to each and every one of you, Abide by the rules and win this round," he declared, his voice echoing through the arena.
"Let the tournament begin!"
As his words resounded through the air, the contestants sprang into action, their eyes fixed on the prize that awaited the victor.
And some of the even having other goals besides the prize.
