The weapons I forge are absolutely flawless.

"I advanced! I advanced!"

The person who got the spot for free was overjoyed, whether from excitement at advancing or relief at being able to leave the arena as soon as possible.

A figure suddenly appeared beside him, a slender hand patted his shoulder, and the next second, the three of them appeared together in front of the medical team waiting at the edge of the arena.

Jessica removed the weapon from Dillon's chest, and her right hand, glowing with a holy white light, gently brushed across the wound, instantly controlling the bleeding.

However, Dillon's complexion showed no improvement whatsoever.

"Take him to the infirmary immediately," Jessica ordered simply, her gaze returning to Sigurd, her expression serious, lost in thought.

-----------------

The players who advance to the knockout stage have a separate rest area, which is the best spot in the arena to watch the matches.

"What a cruel attack."

Upon discovering that Sigurd was in the same half of the zone as him, Wiener naturally made him a key subject of observation.

To be honest, Wiener didn't understand the significance of the other party's actions.

Even if Sigurd sends fifteen Imperial players up from the second division, they'll still have to fight it out among themselves in the knockout stage.

However, what happened next was even more unexpected for Wiener. One second Sigurd was preparing to rebuild the glory of the empire, and the next second he severely injured his own people, not even giving them a chance to surrender.

Although Wiener couldn't hear what they were saying, he could see the fear on the faces of the remaining people when they faced Sigurd.

Moreover, that armor didn't look right.

Wiener pondered to himself.

No one knows where he got this full-body armor, which exudes an unusual aura from top to bottom.

Judging by its appearance alone, it bears a striking resemblance to the Thief's Armor, and in terms of quality, it far surpasses Sigurd's spear.

The fact that someone as arrogant as Sigurd prioritized upgrading his protective gear over his weapons gave Vina an inexplicable sense of unease.

“Vina, are you sure you’re okay with meeting Sigurd later?” Lisette asked worriedly.

"Defeated opponents are not worth mentioning."

In front of Lisette, Vina naturally had to appear confident.

"I just don't understand why he would do something so self-destructive?"

If it's a team battle between the three major universities that follows, then a shared sense of righteous indignation is understandable.

The problem is that this is an individual competition. Even if he turns all the other fifteen spots in the second division into Imperial players, he cannot receive any further assistance.

On the contrary, as long as Sigurd's goal is still to win the championship, he will eliminate all the players he sent up in the knockout stage.

Do you think those who are defeated by him will remember the good deed of helping him advance?

The change in the audience's reaction after he dealt a heavy blow to Dillon, a fellow Empire player, reveals the public's dissatisfaction with his domineering behavior.

“Sigurd is considered a representative figure of the Empire among the first-year students. This move probably has some special mission behind it,” Listy guessed.

Last night, her father reminded her that not only had the Kingdom placed a heavy bet on the outcome of this battle between the new students, but the Empire also seemed to have offered an equal stake.

Neither side would willingly let the prize fall into his hands, and they were very likely to have informed their own players in advance to win the championship at all costs, and to warn Lisette to be extremely careful.

"Then our allies wouldn't also...?"

"Anyone who dares to make my precious daughter do such a dangerous thing, I'll kill him!"

Chapter 285 A thousand pieces of gold

Deep within the academy, in an elegantly decorated reception room, three distinguished representatives from different factions sat in reverence.

Before them was a huge screen embedded in the wall, engraved with intricate magical runes.

However, the qualifying rounds have not yet reached the point where they need to be present to watch the games.

The three of them sipped tea while watching the situation on the arena through the screen.

"Tsk tsk, exuding domineering aura. Such ruthlessness, no wonder he was chosen by your empire."

The voice of the kingdom's envoy, Rogurd, echoed in the room.

His hair was meticulously styled into an elegant look, with a few silver strands falling across his forehead.

Behind him, in an exquisite wooden box, lay the prize brought by the Empire—"Ademra".

Everyone knows that the kingdom values ​​martial prowess, and even when attending important events, they wear armor to demonstrate their martial virtue.

"I hope that when he wins the championship and you hand over Admira to him, you'll still be smiling this happily."

Arlandri stroked the jeweled ring on his hand, a glint of light flashing in his eyes.

He wore a well-tailored black robe, the surface of which was embroidered with family crests symbolizing the glory of the empire in gold thread.

"It's still early. Besides, I think there are a few promising talents in this batch. We might both end up empty-handed."

Rogurd's gaze swept across the screen, which was currently showing Felix's advancement.

"Heh, if you don't have confidence in your own people, don't drag me into it," Alandri sneered.

“It’s not a matter of confidence or not. As long as Adramra isn’t taken back by you, I can accept it.”

Rogurd directly revealed his bottom line.

Although Ademura's spoils were reclaimed by the Kingdom of Fagas from the demons.

However, the original owner of this weapon was a powerful emblem wielder of the Aster Empire.

Although he perished at the hands of the demons, his family descendants were able to continue under the protection of the empire, and are now a branch of the imperial nobility.

“Then I am the same.” Alandri took a sip of tea.

To appease the feelings of the descendant of the herald family, the empire, knowing full well that this was bait deliberately thrown out by the kingdom, had no choice but to take the bait.

They brought things that could have been negotiated privately to the forefront and publicized them, clearly intending to embarrass the empire.

But Randley came prepared this time.

As long as the final winner isn't one of the kingdom's own people, he can offer a price the other party can't refuse to take back the sacred object.

"Speaking of which, where is Fadevi? Why haven't we seen him yet?" Rogurd suddenly asked.

The three parties currently present inside are the Empire, the Kingdom, and the St. Freya Academy.

The representatives of the allied nations, who should share the same name as the two countries, are nowhere to be found.

“Countess Cordelia is currently watching the game,” Tilissa informed the Allied representatives of their whereabouts, “and will meet us there later.”

“It’s not like you can’t look here!” Rogurd said with slight dissatisfaction.

"They probably just want to see their precious daughter more. Unlike some people, who don't understand the value of family at all," Alandre said sarcastically.

The screen in front of me simply played a rotating display of footage from the ring.

It wasn't even the four arenas for first graders, but a rotation of twelve arenas across three grades.

This held no appeal for Fadvi, who only cared about his beloved daughter.

"What I mean is that the academy kindly arranged a place for us to rest, and even had Lady Tilisa personally host us. And then he just disappeared without even showing his face. Isn't that a bit too much?"

Rogurd feigned indignation on Tissalis's behalf and continued, "Even if he cherishes his own daughter, he can't—"

“Lisette von Cordelia is my new disciple.”

Seeing Rogurd getting more and more excited, Tilissa casually offered a reminder.

"You can't just hide it from us and not bring it over to show us, can you?"

Upon hearing that he was Tilissa's disciple, Rogurd's expression changed swiftly.

"The last time I saw her, she was just a little girl who had just learned to walk. Now she's so big."

What a joke! Even if you offend Arios, you can't afford to offend this guy in front of you.

No one dislikes a hero.

As the strongest individuals among human beings, they are the subject of standard procedures in various countries.

Since they don't threaten their rule anyway, as long as they are fed and clothed well and given enough face and respect, the heroes are the perfect fire-fighting tools.

But no one dared to underestimate the academy.

Perhaps in the eyes of the public, the brave are the greatest people.

Once they reach that position, everyone knows perfectly well that St. Freya Academy is the real behemoth.

After hundreds of years of development, St. Freya Academy is no longer just a school that can only stand on the reputation of heroes.

At least one-third of the powerful nobles and junior officers who were the backbone of the army during the Three Kingdoms period had connections to this academy.

This alone is enough to arouse the apprehension of empires and kingdoms.

To put it bluntly, if the academy hadn't been mediating and maintaining the balance, it would have been a disaster.

Even if the empire and the kingdoms maintain restraint and do not start a war, the allied states would have been devoured by them long ago.

A hero's greatest reliance is his strength.

Behind Tilisa, however, are two powerful backers: the Hero and St. Freya Academy.

Moreover, she is so young, and her strength is only slightly inferior to that of the hero Arios.

Who knows, she might become like Rhea, a legend who helped three generations of heroes seal away the demon god.

The fact that the academy sent Tilisa to receive the representatives from the three countries was not only a great honor, but also a form of deterrence.

"Since you are a disciple chosen by Lady Tilisa, I should naturally prepare a small gift."

Alandri naturally wouldn't let this opportunity to do someone a favor slip by.

“Thank you for your kindness, Lord Alandre, but one cup is probably not enough.” Tissalis shook her head slightly, then helped Alandre refill his cup of tea. “Among this year’s freshmen, I have more than just Listy as my disciple.”

"...The tea poured by Lady Tilisa herself is truly expensive." Alandri looked at the tea in his cup and couldn't help but smile wryly.

Tilisa studied for three years and chose an heir who later became a hero.

After graduating, he took on another disciple, Jessica, who is now also capable of handling things on her own.

Now that he's taking on another disciple, Alandri naturally wouldn't dare to underestimate him.

"Never mind, I just hope that after the competition, the master will give us a chance to see what kind of talented people will be fortunate enough to be appreciated by the master."

"Yes, Lady Tilisa, at worst, this guy and I can each pay for one portion," Rogurd said, desperately trying to salvage the situation.

"Hehe, I'm afraid ordinary gifts won't catch the eye of my disciple." Tissa smiled meaningfully.

-----------------

On the other side, inside the rest area.

"Vina, Lisette, you came out so quickly."

Felix, who had just advanced, naturally sat down to the right of Venus.

This was a seat that the two of them had reserved for him.

“Vina and I were the first to go on stage, so naturally we had to be faster,” Listy explained.

The qualifying rounds are not yet halfway through.

Felix, holding number 250, was only the third wrestler to advance from ring number four.

They had a long time to observe these potential rivals who were still in power.

"I understand!"

Viner suddenly slapped his thigh, almost startling Felix who had just sat down.

"What are you doing! You're yelling so loudly, it's scary!"

"I know what he's trying to do. This guy is deliberately stalling for time!"

Wiener pointed to ring number two.

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