ALL NOVEL Preliminaries
It was the day of the preliminaries. I already know who my opponents are but everyone else does not. This will take the whole day. There are places everywhere to see who your next opponent is. A stage number and the name of your opponent will be displayed. For those who are not participating, they have access to all the stages and can watch whoever they wish to. Emilia put me on the farthest stage. Only the people who are interested in watching me will be here. All of my opponents are also set to be here so I do not have to leave at all.
“Mistress. I will be ready for anything.”
“Good.”
If Sylvia does interfere, it would be a disqualification and that is fine for me. This event does not have anything special. It is just a normal tournament. Of course, Lyn is still being bullied but that is not my concern. In her own way, she will win her matches. Though my participation may change things.
“Mistress, your opponent is here.”
I enter the stage. The person across from me is a commoner. They are shaking and look scared. I look around and there was no one. No audience. I figured as such. My stage is the farthest and knowing I am here will deter most people from coming. Maybe Juliet may arrive but she is with Lyn. The only other person who would be remotely interested is the prince but he also has his own matches.
“Surrender.”
A simple word. I did not even bother to smile.
“I surrender!”
My opponent quickly surrenders and runs away. The one officiating is Emilia.
“Athena Eterna wins!”
“Now we must wait. How about a chat, Emilia?”
“Yes, mistress.”
Emilia approaches me.
“You have truly outdone yourself. By the end of the day, everyone with a working head will realize that it was truly rigged.”
“When you told me that it would be fine, I decided that hiding it will not work. As such, I have decided to make it as obvious as possible. Do you have any complaints, mistress?”
“No. You have done wonderfully. Whatever they all think matters not, the only one who can and will complain is the prince.”
“What shall I do if the prince pays me a visit?”
“You decide. Whatever you tell him is not my concern. I will only react accordingly to what he says.”
“Understood, mistress.”
The next round was here but my opponent did not show. I was given the win.
“They did not arrive. A pity.”
“From the reports, they were injured in the previous match and chose to concede.”
That is 2 wins now.
“Melanie, are you not interested in other matches?”
“Huh? Oh, not really. Besides, look over here.”
I look over to where she is and I was surprised.
“Why?”
“I made my own fort! I brought pillows, food, drinks, and my books!”
She made her own fort with blankets.
“You are truly making yourself comfortable.”
“I really have nothing to do. So, I brought along some books. You want to read while you wait? I have some snacks too.”
“No thank you, Melanie. I am fine. Feel free to enjoy yourself.”
“Okay!”
I am not sure if it is a good thing that she is feeling very relaxed and comfortable around me.
“Mistress, they have arrived.”
It was a noble this time.
“We have no audience. Do not waste my time with your petty pride. Surrender now.”
“I surrender.”
That is 3 wins. A noble’s pride is troublesome. But within this stage it means nothing as there is no one else watching.
“Sylvia, what about you?”
“I am fine, mistress.”
“Feel free to relax. There is still time before the next match.”
“Understood, mistress.”
She continues to stand beside me with a more relaxed posture. Not exactly what I was thinking of but it is an improvement.
“Surrender.”
The 4th person surrenders as well. That is 4 wins now.
“People should have noticed by now.”
“What do you mean, mistress?”
“Matches are updated in real time. Most people now know that my matches are ending too fast. There are people wondering what is happening. Isn’t that right, Emilia?”
“Yes, mistress. The other staff are also asking me what is going on. No need to be alarmed, I have informed them of the situation.”
“Go ahead. You can choose how you wish to approach this.”
The next 3 did not appear. That is 3 more wins for me. There are 8 matches for today. The top 8 will be entered in the tournament tomorrow. So, the next match will be the last.
“7 wins now. Emilia, who are the others eligible for top 8?”
Emilia gave me a list. Of course, the prince and Lyn were there. There were others who I know of but they do not matter to me yet. Maybe I will consider them if I feel like it.
“Mistress, they are here.”
The last one is a noble as well. A male who I do not care for.
“Miss Eterna, there are talks about how you have won all of your battles.”
“So? Are you here to complain?”
“Not at all. I have prepared myself. Please fight me.”
“I refuse.”
The man looked shocked.
“Feel free to try attack me. You know the consequence.”
The man hesitates.
“Surrender. That is your only choice.”
The man surrenders and walks away. That is 8 wins for me.
“Emilia, I do not need to stay here, correct?”
“You are free to go, mistress. The results will be sent to all students.”
“Good. Melanie, pack your things. We are going.”
“Okay! Just give me a minute!”
Melanie rushes to clean up. We all leave and I could see the other stages had a lot of people. In the end, not a single person came to my stage to watch.
“Mistress, the results have been posted.”
“How interesting.”
Out of the 8, the prince and I had 8 wins and 0 losses. For Lyn, she had 7 wins and 1 loss.