Chapter 456: The Grand First-Year Combat Festival: Debates & Anticipation

The next rounds of the Combat Festival passed during the second week of the month, bringing one exciting fight after another between the First-Years of the Royal Academy.

The first day of the Second Round was already enough to draw more attention toward the Arena.

And because of this... more guests began arriving in the Royal Academy.

Some were nobles who had come after hearing about the impressive performances of the First-Years, while others were simply wealthy citizens and Non-Nobles who had decided that the Combat Festival was worth watching in person rather than through a Holographic Screen.

The guests who had already arrived also remained within the Royal Academy.

Most stayed inside the Guest Houses prepared for them, only leaving for the Arena when it was time for the matches to begin.

The Second Round continued for two whole days.

A total of one hundred and eighty-eight fights took place during those two days, with students entering the fighting platform one after another as they fought for the chance to advance.

Some of the well-known names continued forward.

Others were eliminated.

Even a few students who had entered the competition with considerable attention surrounding their names were forced to leave after encountering opponents who were stronger than they had expected.

By the time the Second Round and the following matches had passed...

The number of students remaining had dropped greatly.

The upcoming Sixth Round now held the remaining students who had managed to survive the earlier battles.

And among them were many of the names that the people of Britannia had already begun discussing as possible winners.

***

The morning sun of Saturday during the second week shone brightly over the Royal Academy.

Its light passed through the tall windows of the Main Administrative Center, spreading across the polished floors and the large halls where students, guests, and their families moved around.

Today was one of the breaks.

The students who had advanced into the Sixth Round had been given time to relax their minds and rethink their paths toward the championship.

For those who had fought several matches already, the break was more than simply a chance to rest.

It gave them time to think.

To review the fights they had already experienced.

To consider the opponents they might face next.

And, most importantly, to decide whether the methods they had been using were still enough to carry them toward the final.

The Broadcasting Groups were also making use of the break.

Across the Main Administrative Center, Holographic Screens displayed different programs analyzing the previous rounds of the competition.

The commentators went through the battles that had already taken place, discussing the students who had impressed them the most and naming the candidates they believed had the highest chance of winning the entire Combat Festival.

Inside one of the restaurants in the Administrative Center, a Holographic Screen was displayed above a well-presented section of the wall.

The screen showed a female commentator seated behind a desk.

Her voice filled the restaurant as she discussed the current favorites.

"And in first place, we have the Young Lord of Burnwick to win the whole tournament."

Several people sitting inside the restaurant turned their attention toward the screen.

Many students of different years of the Academy were eating with their parents.

Some also had younger siblings sitting beside them.

Plates, cups, and cutlery occupied the tables as conversations continued throughout the restaurant, though the discussions about the Combat Festival had become much louder than the usual conversations.

The moment the commentator named the Young Lord of Burnwick as the current favorite...

A debate immediately started at one of the nearby tables.

"Lady Diane Bergwyn could come out number one, though."

A Non-Noble First-Year student said as he pointed his fork lightly toward the Holographic Screen.

The fork stopped halfway between his plate and the screen before he lowered it again.

The program was currently showing several clips from the previous rounds while the commentators broke down the performances of the remaining students.

"Both she and the Young Lord of Burnwick haven’t fought each other yet, so we can’t just assume who would come out stronger."

He continued calmly.

"Plus, both of them haven’t shown their full strength."

His father sat across from him.

The older man listened carefully before replying with a serious expression.

"It’s actually most of the well-known students who haven’t shown their true strength."

He replied.

Both father and son were taking the analysis seriously.

Their eyes remained on the screen as the commentator continued explaining the different candidates.

"Hmmm..."

The First-Year’s younger sister suddenly pouted.

Her arms folded tightly across her chest.

She had been listening to her father and elder brother talk for several minutes, but there was one name they had continued leaving out.

"I believe Lady Vera Ashenlocke will win this."

She said, her voice carriing a clear annoyance.

It wasn’t the kind of annoyance that came from genuinely being angry with her family.

She simply couldn’t understand how her brother and father could continue discussing the possible winners while completely omitting Vera’s name.

Her father, mother, and elder brother all turned toward her.

Their expressions showed genuine surprise.

Then...

"Hahahaha..."

They laughed lightly.

The little girl frowned even more.

"Don’t laugh."

She said angrily.

"Lady Vera is so cool, and she’s going to win."

She looked toward the Holographic Screen as if her statement should have been obvious from the beginning.

"No way..."

The youngest child of the family immediately protested.

"It will be Mr. Ezra Ashenlocke that will win."

He raised both hands.

"With his amazing gadgets that went boom, bam, boosh!"

The little boy moved his hands while imitating the explosions he remembered from Ezra’s fight against Fatima.

His hands swung from one side to another as he recreated the movements he had seen in the slowed-down version of the fight.

That particular battle had been played repeatedly throughout Britannia, allowing people who had missed it or couldn’t even watch it to watch the fight from different angles and at different speeds.

The boy clearly had watched it more than once.

"And his gadgets!"

He continued excitedly.

"They went boom!"

His parents laughed again.

The family wasn’t the only group fascinated by Ezra’s equipment.

Blacksmiths and Craftsmen from across Britannia had already begun discussing the devices he used during the fight.

The Broadcasting Groups had even brought in top Blacksmiths specialized in Circuit creation to explain the gadgets Ezra had created and discuss how he could have come up with such designs.

The experts had broken down the functions of the devices one by one.

They discussed the gloves with their Magnetic Functions.

The exploding daggers.

And the way he had combined those inventions with his movements during the battle.

Yet again...

Ezra had become one of the main topics of discussion throughout the kingdom.

Among the bigger names of the Combat Festival, his reputation had grown even further after his fight with Fatima.

The family continued arguing over who they believed would eventually come out as the winner.

The father believed in one student.

The mother had her own opinion.

The elder brother continued supporting his choice.

The younger children argued for Vera and Ezra.

Their discussion eventually became less like an analysis and more like a family argument where everyone was determined to prove that their favorite would win.

And it was the same in many other places.

Families sitting inside restaurants.

Guests staying within the Academy.

Students gathering with their friends.

Parents discussing their children’s performances.

Almost everyone seemed to have a candidate they believed would win.

The Combat Festival had reached the point where even people who had never cared much about the Royal Academy were now discussing the remaining First-Years.

***

In the luxurious Guest House reserved specifically for Duke House Ashenlocke...

All the First-Years and students from the other years of the family were present within the halls.

The Elders were there.

The Duchesses were there.

The High-Board members were there.

The parents of some of the participating students were also present.

The atmosphere was much more relaxed compared to the Arena.

There were conversations happening throughout the hall, with some people discussing the upcoming matches while others were simply enjoying the break.

Then...

"You all..."

Elder Paul spread both hands.

A very pleased smile appeared on his face.

"You all are the best."

He spoke as though he was so proud that he might shed a tear of joy.

His eyes moved across the First-Years of the family.

The First-Years had performed well during the Combat Festival, and Elder Paul’s pride in them was impossible to miss.

However...

A few of the Second- and Third-Year Ashenlockes narrowed their eyes on Elder Paul.

He never showed us this kind of love.

Not even once.

They all seemed to have the same thought.

"I’m so proud of my siblings."

Bella Ashenlocke said.

She wrapped both arms around Veda and hugged her with a pleased smile.

Veda allowed himself to be hugged, though his expression carried a small amount of embarrassment from the sudden affection.

Bella then glanced toward Vera.

Vera was sitting nearby.

Her arms were folded.

One leg was crossed over the other.

Her dull black eyes looked toward her elder step-sister.

Bella’s smile became slightly awkward.

She wanted to hug Vera too.

After all, Vera had also performed well.

But...

Vera’s usual expression made Bella hesitate.

The girl simply stared at her.

She didn’t say anything.

She didn’t move.

She only tilted her head slightly.

Bella’s smile stiffened.

"Come, my step-sister."

Vera suddenly spoke.

She lazily spread her arms.

"Show me the love I deserve."

Her voice remained calm.

There was no exaggerated excitement in it.

Instead, there was a faint sense of dry amusement, as though Vera had already noticed Bella’s hesitation and decided to make it difficult for her.

Bella immediately smiled.

"You did really good, Vera."

She walked quickly toward her.

Then she wrapped her arms around Vera and hugged her.

Her hand moved over Vera’s hair, rubbing it affectionately.

Vera’s head shifted slightly under the movement.

She didn’t complain.

She simply allowed Bella to continue.

Nina watched the scene from nearby.

She bit her nails.

There was a faint look of envy in her eyes.

But the person she was jealous of was her lady’s elder sister, which only made the feeling more awkward.

Zack noticed her expression.

He looked at Nina, then he looked toward Bella and Vera.

He simply shook his head helplessly, with no intention of getting involved.

On the other side of the hall...

"Ezra-boy."

Elder Ivanhoe walked toward Ezra.

Ezra was calmly standing with several senior members of Ashcraft who had come to watch the Combat Festival.

The senior members had been discussing Ezra’s inventions when Elder Ivanhoe approached.

Ezra turned toward him.

"Elder."

He bowed respectfully.

Elder Ivanhoe smiled.

"Those gadgets were amazing."

He placed a hand against Ezra’s shoulder.

"They really added to your strength while you took on that monster of the Drakes."

There was clear pride in his voice.

Ezra simply nodded.

"I just did my best, Elder."

He replied calmly.

"You did more than just your best, Ezra."

A young Noble member of the Ashcraft Department said with a proud smile.

Ezra turned toward him.

His eyes rested on the young man for a moment.

He remembered who the young nobleman was.

He was the person who had welcomed Ezra first when he visited the Ashcraft Research and Development Base.

That had been during the time Ezra introduced the Colt 1911 and the E-V 26 MK.II.

The young nobleman had been among the first people from the Ashcraft Department to greet him during that visit.

Ezra gave him a small nod.

The young man smiled in return.

Around them, the conversation continued as several members of Ashcraft began discussing the inventions again, clearly interested in the devices Ezra had used and the way he had combined them with his Gun Alchemy.

For Ezra...

The Combat Festival had already produced more attention as expected.

And judging from the discussions happening throughout the Royal Academy...

That attention wasn’t going away anytime soon.