Chapter 163: Unusual Bet

I looked at Lysander, who was still standing there with a smug, expectant grin, waiting for me to either panic or accept his challenge.

"So?" Lysander sneered, folding his arms. "Do you accept my challenge, human, or are you going to run away?"

I looked him up and down, keeping my arms crossed, and let out a small, amused chuckle.

"Why should I say yes?" I asked smoothly, my voice calm and crystal clear across the plaza. "Just because a random dog barks at me on the street doesn’t mean I’m going to lower myself to fight a dog."

Lysander’s face twitched violently. For a second, I thought the elf was going to burst a blood vessel right there on the paved walkway. Comparing a high noble scion to a barking dog was clearly a massive blow to his pride, but he took a deep, forced breath, clenched his fists, and managed to pull his composure back together.

"Fine," Lysander said, his voice tight and strained. "Say what you want. But a Sovereign Game without any stakes is completely boring. If we’re going to do this, we need to put something actual on the line."

That actually caught my attention. A faint smirk touched my lips as I looked at him. "What kind of bet are you talking about?"

Lysander shrugged, restoring that arrogant smirk onto his face as he adjusted his high-collared blazer. "Honestly, I don’t care if I get anything out of it. I just want a challenge. Testing my deck against another Sovereign is gain enough for me."

"Fair enough,’ I said, reaching into my pocket and tapping my identity card. "Tell you what. If I lose, I’ll pay you ten thousand credits. I like keeping bets fair."

Lysander let out a loud laugh, shaking his head as he looked at his followers. "Ten thousand credits? You’re remarkably eager to throw away your money, human."

I ignored his laughter, looking at him with a completely straight face. "Do you have a sister?"

Lysander choked mid-laugh. He sputtered violently, coughing into his fist before snapping his eyes onto me with total outrage. "What?! What kind of ill intentions do you have toward my sister?"

I shrugged, keeping my posture relaxed. "No ill intentions at all. I’m just trying to make connections. You’re a High Elf of high noble status, which means your sister is high status too. It just makes practical sense."

Lysander stared at me like I had just lost my mind. "If you want high-status connections, why didn’t you just ask to be my friend?"

I stopped, looking him up and down. I let out a dry scoff, rolling my eyes. "Why would I stand here staring at your ugly face when I could talk to a beauty instead?"

"You arrogant bastard!" Lysander cursed, his face turning bright red. "Fine! If you manage to win, I’ll introduce you to my sister! But that is the best I can do! If she refuses to meet you or or doesn’t like you, I can’t force her."

"Works for me," I said with a nod, extending my hand. "Condition accepted. Let’s do this."

Lysander grabbed my hand, giving it a sharp, aggressive shake. The second our bet was finalized, the surrounding crowd of students erupted into excited whispers.

"He actually accepted!"

"A Sovereign Game so early in the semester?"

"Wait, isn’t that guy Seth Fernando? The transfer student who arrived in President Yoona’s private jet?"

"I heard rumors about his physical scores during the entrance tests earlier today! This is going to be insane!"

"How did you hear so quickly? Didn’t he just come to the academy?"

"I have my ways. I even spied once on Zeus. He’s freaky as hell. All holes are goal guy."

"... I’ll stay away from you. Just in case a lighting strikes you."

Lysander turned on his heel, gesturing for his team to move. "Follow me, Fernando. Let’s head to the stadium before a crowd blocks the main gates."

He led the way down the central avenue, his four elven retainers falling into formation around him. Val and I walked smoothly behind them.

[Fufufu~] Paige’s voice giggled inside my head. [Host, you really are shameless! You haven’t even met the guy’s sister and you’re already setting up a meeting.]

’Hey, I’m just keeping my options open,’ I replied mentally with a dry smirk. ’Besides, he wanted a bet. I just chose a reward that interested me.’

[Fair enough, boss!] Paige laughed. [Let’s see how long this elven scion lasts.]

We walked for about five minutes down the southern academic avenue. Situated right beside the primary training grounds was a massive, colosseum-style structure built from dark obsidian stone and glowing runic barriers, the Sovereign Arena.

Lysander led us through the participant tunnel and straight out onto the main arena floor. The moment we stepped out of the tunnel, a massive wall of noise hit my ears.

The stadium was huge. Ten thousands of seats circled the vast stone battlefield below, and to my disbelief, more than one third seats were already packed with cheering students, senior Awakened, and even a few faculty members. Massive holographic broadcast screens hovered high above the center of the arena, displaying live camera angles of the floor.

I stopped near the tunnel exit, staring up at the packed stands in complete speechlessness.

’Seriously?’ I muttered to Paige in my head. ’How unemployed are these bums?! We made the bet like ten minutes ago! How are there already thousands of people sitting in the stands?’

[AHAHAHA!] Paige cackled inside my mind. [Boss, Sovereigns are extremely rare even among the supernatural world! And Sovereign Games are literally the single most popular broadcasted sport in the universe! Word travels at lightning speed on campus when a match is announced.]

I let out a heavy sigh, rubbing the back of my neck. ’Great. So much for keeping things low-key.’

Lysander walked out onto the eastern side of the central arena floor, his posture radiating total confidence. Two more elven retainers rushed out from the sidelines to join his group, bringing his total count to six followers. Each of them wore high-grade battle armor and held enchanted weapons, their mana channels aligned directly with Lysander’s Sovereign Deck.

I walked out onto the western side of the arena, stopping in the middle of the open stone floor.

Standing beside me was just Val. Just one person in a dark, tailored suit, holding her hands behind her back with her usual stoic, unreadable expression.

Lysander looked across the field at us, taking in my side of the arena before bursting into a loud, mocking laugh.

"Is that it, Fernando?!" Lysander yelled across the field, pointing at Val. "You brought a single deck member to an official match?! Where is the rest of your deck?"

I stood there with my hands in my pockets, offering him a dry, unbothered shrug.

"I have more," I called back smoothly, my voice carrying clearly across the stone floor. "But honestly... Val is more than enough to handle this little circus."

Lysander’s laughter snapped shut. His jaw tightened, his eyes narrowing in sharp irritation. "Arrogant till the very end."

Behind me, Val didn’t say a single word. But the dark shadow beneath her shoes subtly shifted, her violet eyes locking onto Lysander’s six followers like a predator staring at helpless prey.

Before the tension could escalate any further, a tall, professional man wearing the official white-and-gold robes of an Academy Overseer descended from the upper observation box, floating down to the center of the arena on a small platform.

The Overseer landed between both sides, pulling out an official administrative tablet.

"Quiet on the floor!" the Overseer commanded, his voice amplified across the entire stadium through the floor arrays. The cheering crowd in the stands gradually settled down into an eager hush.

The Overseer turned his head, looking first at Lysander, then at me.

"Sovereign Lysander of the High Elf Scions and Sovereign Seth Fernando of the Fernando Family," the Overseer declared formally. "Do both parties freely consent to this Sovereign Game?"

"I consent!" Lysander called out sharply, drawing a slender golden rapier from his hip.

"I consent," I said with a nod, keeping my hands in my pockets.

"The registered stakes for this match are as follows," the Overseer read from his tablet. "If Sovereign Lysander wins, Sovereign Seth shall forfeit ten thousand academic credits. If Sovereign Seth wins, Sovereign Lysander shall personally facilitate a formal introduction between Sovereign Seth and his sister."

A wave of laughter and whispers flared up in the stands at the unusual bet, but the Overseer tapped his tablet to restore order.

The Overseer then turned his full attention toward me, his expression becoming more serious. "Sovereign Seth, as this is your first registered Sovereign Game on campus, I am required to brief you on the fundamental arena parameters."

"Go ahead," I said.

I didn’t know much about Sovereign Games. Actually, I knew nothing about them so I was quite happy that the Overseer was willing to explain everything to me.