âFor⊠for the first round, Sir Ulabis and Akshuler are startingâŠâ Princess Sonna stared at numbers 11 and 21 on the bracket.
The two most exciting participants in the Master Battle would be facing each other.
âGroup A is a wizardâs battle? Terraâs Force Magicians and the Seven MagiciansâŠâ
âInsaneâthis is really insane!â
Babel ignored the clamor around him and intently examined the board.
âWhere is he⊠Group A, number one. His opponent isâŠ?â
âSomeone young like us became the opening act,â Sonna noted.
âHis opponentâThatâs not a good sign. The Iron Warrior, Baylon.â Shrek sighed.
The Iron Knight Babylon, commonly known as the âRed Heart,â represented the Kingdom of Hearts.
âThat cocky brat is gonna be humiliated before the competition even begins,â Test sneered.
âThe Iron Knight is one of the few non-imperial knights with real skill. It doesnât matter how hard the bastard runs, he doesnât stand a chance,â Estra added.
Masters from outside the three imperial powers were held to a much lower standard than those from the empires. Most were merely A-Class, just able to wield an aura blade; in contrast, the A-Class knights of the empires were held to rigorous standards. National pride and the sheer number of other knights demanded that the imperial representatives distinguish themselves from their peers through a series of fierce competitions.
âI canât understand Avalon. To ignore so many talented knights in favor of this child.â
âItâs a disgrace to the entire nation. âIron Knightâ or not, he isnât of imperial originsâhow hilarious would it be if he took out Avalonâs representative in the first round?â
âNon-imperial this, non-imperial that,â Sonna fumed. âDonât you ever get tired of saying that? You donât know anything for sure until you see it.â
âI donât need to see it.â
âDo you need to cut an apple open to find out if itâs red? No, of course not.â
âUgh!â Sonna trembled while she watched the Logen brothers laugh.
The other non-imperial participants refrained from speaking up, but their expressions were similar.
âHow can you openly discuss your roots in public? Just how conceited and impolite can you be? I donât want to meddle, but that is a deceptive metaphor.â
âWhat?â The Logen brothers turned.
The speaker was the silver-haired, silver-eyed Holy Knight.
âLilith, thereâs no need to mediate,â her flustered companion said.
âNo. Not all imperials think that way. In my opinion, youâd be better off abandoning such biases.â
âWellâŠâ The other paladin sighed. âDo what you want. Considering how often you talk to Seiren, I doubt I can get past your stubbornness.â
Lilith, one of Seirenâs fellow saints, then turned to the Logen brothers.
âLilith Aphrodite, goddess of Hermes. What did you just say?â Test demanded.
Lilithâs lovely face twitched. Like most swordswomen, Lilith abhorred being judged by her beauty rather than her blade. Her hands were marred by callouses, just like any other knight.
âYou said you donât need to cut an apple to determine if itâs red?â
âJust so.â Test nodded firmly. âThere are such unchanging laws of the world. The kind of things that we can take for grantedâthe laws of nature.â
âThe laws of nature?â Lilith smirked. âNothing in this world can be taken for granted. Thatâs just your prejudice speaking. Your little metaphor, well,â she paused. âThe apple could be green, no?â
âWhat?â
ââUnchanging laws of the worldâ? Restricting your mind like this likewise restricts your ability to grow. Like you.â Lilith offered the brothers a warm smile, but her eyes were freezing cold. âAs such, you brothers will never be able to defeat him until the day you die.â
The Logens sprang from their chairs.
âListen to this girlâ!â
âWe were going to let it go because weâre imperials. Whatâs your deal?!â
âThe drawing has ended! The first match of each group will take place in two days, so please be prepared.â
Test and Estra froze.
âFinally, if your countryâs representative has yet to appear, I hope you will convey the relevant information to them. Participants will forfeit their match if they fail to appear.â
Surprisingly, Test turned around.
âLetâs go, Estra. Thereâs no sense in listening to her drivel.â
He marched away.
âOnly say things if youâre prepared to take responsibility for them, Lilith Aphrodite.â
âI could say the same.â
Estra glared at Lilith for a moment and then followed after his brother. Eventually, the twins vanished from view.
âSheâs so awesome,â Sonna whispered.
âTrue.â Even Shrek was impressed.
While Sonna and Shrek were ogling, Babel rose from his seat. By sheer coincidence, he happened to lock eyes with Joshua. They stared at each other for a long moment.
âIn the end, it will be mine. Youâll be chasing me until the end⊠and thatâs a fact,â he mumbled. Then he turned around, unable to meet Joshuaâs gaze any longer.
âBabel von AgnusâŠâ Joshua watched his once-brother disappear.
Someone laughed. âJoshua Sanders, monster of Avalon. I canât wait for two days.â
âSo it was you who called me pretentious, Iron Knight.â
The middle-aged man stopped walking and tossed Joshua a backwards glance.
âWas I really that loud?â Babylon smiled charmingly. âYou know, I thought everyone from the Empire was excellent. The feeling gets stronger the younger the person is.â
He returned Joshuaâs perplexed look with a yet-wider grin.
âOh! I hope you donât mind if I talk about my age. If I did well in battle, my mother would cook me something delicious, but now⊠I feel bad. Itâs like stealing a childâs toy. Youâre young, though, so donât worry about it. Merely participating in the Master Battle brings great honor to your family.â
Joshuaâs lips began to curl. He knew these kinds of peopleâan iron fist hidden in a velvet glove. They were always the most insidious. If this was his first opponent, Joshua had no reason to hesitate.
âDidnât you hear what I said?â
âHmm?â Babylon tilted his head.
âThe outcome doesnât change.â
âAre you certain you arenât just talking nonsense?â Babylon slowly turned around.
âWell,â Joshua laughed, âYouâll see for yourself soon.â
The other manâs feet slowly stopped.
âIâm looking forward to it,â he spat.
For the key players in the Master Battle, the fight had already begun.