Elder Kian stood tall at the center of the grand arena, his sharp eyes sweeping across the thousands of spectators and the exhausted but hopeful participants below.
His voice, calm yet authoritative, rang out clearly through the arena's amplification formation. "These are the fifteen participants who have made it into the final round," he declared, raising a scroll and unrolling it slowly as silence fell upon the arena. All eyes locked onto him with burning anticipation.
He began to read aloud, each name echoing like a drumbeat. "Jay Rider. Steph Carry. Lena Ashcroft. Rian Velor. Dregan Yue. Sorin Talon. Iris Lorn. Viktor Grae. Niko Elsen. Mira Quin. Haden Tor. Cassel Brine. Veron Shard. Quinlan Drex. Felice Yorn."
As the names fell from his lips one after another, cheers erupted from the stands—some loud, some small, as families, friends, and guild members heard the names of their chosen ones being called.
