Michael and Melody soon arrived at the meeting area for the first-years participating in the combat tournament, but not before the latter stopped off at the girls bathroom to clean herself up.

After doing her business, she seemed fine. Besides her eyes being a little on the puffier side, there was nothing out of the ordinary.

The meeting place was one of the classrooms in the eastern wing of the castle, by the exit which led to the arena. Quinn had yet to arrive, but the tension in the room was already sky-high.

There was an oppressive and anxious atmosphere within the classroom, one that added even more pressure.

Rudy stood up from his seat and waved towards them, getting Michael's attention. After walking through the solemn students, they sat down next to the guy, only to feel a pair of eyes staring into the side of his head expectantly.

"Read the room dude…" Michael muttered to his friend, already understanding he wanted an update of what he had walked in on earlier.

"Fine… But you're telling me later." He stated matter-of-factly.

Thankfully, Quinn walked into the room before Michael had to respond, causing the first-years to instantly quieten down and give her their attention.

Like usual, the woman was garbed in her tight-fitting bodysuit, her brown hair tied up in a tight bun atop her head. Quinn wore a wide smile, exposing her sparkling teeth. It was clear she had been looking forward to the tournament for quite a while now.

"The day is finally here soldiers." She stated, her tone dripping with expectation. "In thirty minutes we will officially begin the combat tournament in front of many spectators. This is your chance to show your might and cement yourselves as geniuses in front of the powers that be."

"As you know, the tournament will be done in a single elimination format with a total of eight rounds taking place before a winner is crowned. The first four rounds will take place today—then two tomorrow, with the final day being reserved for the semifinals and finals." She explained patiently.

"Based on your rankings throughout the year, all one hundred of you were given a rank. Using this rank, I've taken the liberty of seeding you all—ensuring that all of our exciting matches will be towards the end of the tournament."

Quinn wore a self-satisfied expression, as if patting herself on the back.

"The first round will be byes for the higher seeds, but please do not be discouraged. You will have your chance to fight soon after."

Michael wore a pained smile. With the way she worded it, one might think having a bye in the first round was a bad thing.

Quinn waved her hand towards the blackboard at the front of the class, revealing a large single elimination bracket. The names began to populate on their own, causing the class to squint in order to look for their names.

Michael quickly spotted his own name on the right side, followed by the number six. After seeing that he indeed had a bye in the first round, he let out a small sigh of relief.

With his own fate sealed, he looked for his friend's names.

Melody was ranked ten, a couple of spots below him, while Rudy… Rudy was ranked number one.

"Ah man, my first match is a bye…" The guy muttered a complaint.

The few students sitting in front of him turned almost instantly, sending him a glare, yet Rudy just ignored them. He often went against conventional thinking, something that had become one of his defining traits.

"Three matches will take place at a time on the first day since we have many fights to get through across all the students. As first-years, you're up first—so don't disappoint me, okay?" Quinn said, her eyes roaming over the teens.

Her glare had much less of an effect than usual thanks to the circumstances. Perhaps if this was their usual combat class she might have received a "Yes ma'am," in response, but not today.

"Let's head out to the arena now. Once the headmaster has his speech, it'll be your turn to showcase your abilities." She announced, gesturing towards the door. "Get into line soldiers!"

The atmosphere seemed to have plummeted at her words as the students got up from their chairs and began to file out of the class after her with nervous expressions. Perhaps only Rudy seemed truly carefree in that moment—if even a little disappointed he wouldn't be fighting in the first round.

The group were led out through the eastern doors of the castle and along the trail towards the arena. The familiar stadium was hard to miss, its colossal figure standing tall.

They saw streams of people making their way towards the arena, clearly intending to spectate the matches. Even from outside the arena, they could still hear the chatter and energy of many people inside.

"Is your father coming today?" Michael turned to ask Melody beside him. Besides today, they had not had that many conversations recently, but he was genuinely curious.

The man had not attended the entrance exam like all the other parents of the noble scions, so he was interested to know.

"Yes, mother and father will be here, but I think they'll only be here tomorrow." She replied with a small nod.

"I see…" Michael replied a little distractedly.

"Well, you better not lose before then. It would be embarrassing if they came all this way to watch you and you were eliminated." He added with a chuckle, only to receive a short jab to his ribs with very little power.

"Don't even joke about that," she quipped with a grin, "just so you know, if we match up I won't go easy on you…"

"Likewise."

They soon arrived at the entrance of the arena and were let into the place with ease. The air seemed to crackle with excitement as they walked in, stunning Michael into silence.

There were at least a thousand people present, many wearing the formal robes and outfits that gave away their identity as nobles. Despite this, there were still quite a few empty seats—likely because it was only the first day of the tournament.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.