Chapter 129 The Tournament Ladder
'Why does it looks like I've seen her somewhere?' Kye thought while Tarica continued explaining the rules of the exam. 'But I can't remember where at all. Was it when I was young and my parents were still around? No, I don't think it's possible. Not that I would remember that time in the first place. It's been so long.'
Even though he knew he would be able to remember anything about that time, the warm feeling inside of him didn't go away. It was as if he had just seen someone he had long ago forgotten, and thus couldn't remember this person.
But he couldn't focus on this feeling for long because Tarica once again gathered everyone's attention.
"Now, this is the most interesting part. In a few moments, a giant screen will appear with all the teams that you'll have to fight for the first round. Do not forget that multiple fights will happen at the same time, for the attention-seeker, don't be mad if there are not too many people who are watching you. Don't forget either that fatal injuries are prohibited, as well as any type of torture. Such action can disqualify you and only you. It will also give you a complete 0 on your grades. So be careful, alright?" She clapped her hands with a smile before a giant screen appeared behind her as she mentioned earlier.
This screen displayed the usual competition-like rounds with the teams' names written at the foremost left and right of the screen
Chatter started to spread over the room, making it extremely loud. Each member talked with the other, trying to find some strategies to use against their opponents once they saw who they were fighting against.
'Seems like the only way to fight against Maria will be to go to the last round, considering she'll be able to go this far as well. As for John, he's not far away from my team, so there's a chance that we can fight him soon.'
"Hey Kye, did you see who's in our pool?" Ven's finger pointed toward John's name.
"Yeah, we can fight him if we got the chance. But we still need to win for that."
"You don't have to worry about that, Kye," Elisa said with a big smile. "I'll do my best to protect you."
"Me too. I'll make you win for sure."
"Hehe, thank you, guys," Kye chuckled and smiled at all his teammates. "Still, we'll have to win our first fight to get a good score on the exam."
"Yeah, you're right," Ven said. "Does any of you knows what ability the opposite team has?"
Everyone looked at who they will fight later. They were at the very end of their pool, so it will take some time before their turn could come.
Their opponents were all level 5. Sara Jikas. The second member was Sokus Hufnan. Then there was Urin Jori and last but not least, Trieul Sas. They were all girls who seemed to be a very balanced team.
All in all, their team was very balanced. But compared to them, they were nowhere near enough. Kye's team could even be classified as overpowered. They were all high levels, except for Kye. But since he was quite the anomaly, no one on the team thought that he was low-level. Not that they would in the first place. Ven was his friend, while the other two thought of him as someone incredible.
"I'm sorry, I don't know any of them," Elisa said. There were so many students that it was impossible to know everyone, even those who were at high levels.
"Me neither. But I don't think we need to know their ability," Leo said with confidence. "I know it's not the smartest thing to judge people based on their levels, but we're not the usual high levels either. Ven is one of the strongest, while I know I can hold my ground easily, same for Elisa. As for Kye..."
"I'm just weak, right?" Kye asked as Ven sent a deadly glare to Leo who felt like a bodyguard was looking at him. The demon-like bodyguard. Those who he knew well.
"N-no, you're high-... I mean Kye," Leo almost kneeled in front of him. He almost disrespected him with his earlier statement. "You're considered low-level, but I don't understand why in the slightest. You're so strong that even though you'll lose against Ven, you'll still hold your ground and maybe even hurt him. You're probably one of the strongest people I've seen, and it's only a matter of time until you get stronger. You even got such a strong ability, and you only took your baby steps with it. So no, you're not anywhere near being weak. You are strong, Kye. I'm sorry if you misunderstood me."
"Pfft, hahaha" Elisa chuckled as this time, it was Leo who glared at her with killing intent. "I didn't expect you to make a presentation of Kye's potential."
"It's not a presentation. I only said the truth, that's all."
"Haha, you're funny guys," Kye chuckled with them as everyone was looking at them. While they were all worried about who they would fight, Kye's group was all laughing. "And thank you for saying that, Leo. I'll try to do my best to not deceive you in the future."
'Well, it's not like I'll be able to say anything even if you do bad. I'll get my head off my body if I do so. Still, I'm sure you'll do well in the future, your highness.' Leo thought with a smile, making Elisa wonder if he went nuts.
"Now now everyone, please head toward the arena and wait inside your room," Tarica said with a smile. "You'll be called once your turn will come, so wait patiently. And no, you can't stay outside of your room, so no need to ask. Our schedule will be tight, so we can't lose time finding you.
"Now, please let's go."