The announcement was so loud that the people in the nearby houses could also hear that.
"Ladies and Gentlemen. We found our champion. The winner of the 8th Blood Legacy Competition is none other than Sylas Zyair from Northwood"
People erupted in cheer. Screaming, jumping around.
This was a match beyond their expectations.
This was, no doubt, one of the best matches they saw. Or will ever see.
But still... they had the same question in their minds. P
"What... just happened?"
The whole stadium couldn't believe their eyes. They believed that Marcel Mistmer still had some fight left in him but this was not something they expected.
Although he lost, he completely turned the whole situation at the last minute. He could have actually won if not for Sylas' last decision.
"H-hey Timmy... Did you see his last move?"
Marcel Mistmer disappeared and appeared right behind Sylas. Even though the Guild Master who had been proudly boasting of Marcel's techniques since earlier had a look of disbelief in her eyes.
"He was too fast. Neither Mitty nor I was able to follow him."
The Guild Master replied while petting the owl on her shoulder.
"No, it's not that he was fast"
Both of them turned their heads to Duke Aeris who started sharing his opinion.
"... He travelled through space itself."
"..."
"..."
Travelling through space.
It was an unbelievable concept. Was it even possible? There were always some people able to teleport from one place to another. Some had the the ability to create portals and connect to places while others were fast enough to make it seem like a teleportation skill.
But this was not like any of those.
Marcel Mistmer did something that was supposed to be impossible.
"I am sure his stigmata doesn't allow him to use Fighting Spirit"
"You are right, Duke Aeris. From what I can imagine he learned it after fighting with Ava Edenheart, who used that skill against him"
"Marcel Mistmer. Although he didn't win this, he is going to be a celebrity now. Every nobel will try to invite him to their household and establish a good relationship with him. Some may even give him their daughters to bring him to their side." Duke Aeris commented.
"Yes, it would be the same for Sylas. But I don't know if that's a good thing."
"It's definitely not a good thing.They are not old enough to enter the bitter war of politics. I just hope they don't give in to all those offers and follow their own path."
Erica made a slightly worried face at Duke Aeris' words.
The two kids who passed out after the battle were carried by the healers. One may enjoy his victory while the other may suffer a bitter loss. Still, this was nothing compared to what was about to come in the future.
'This is how the world works...'
***
In another VIP room, close to the one that were used by the Duke's now, the three girls didn't speak a single word. Since they couldn't out into the public, the Princess along with Penelope and Isabelle had no choice but watch from the VIP box.
They liked to watch and cheer with other audience but they didn't have a choice now. They were grateful for being even allowed to stay in Springbell till the festival.
"H-he lost... "
Slowly Penelope opened her mouth in an attempt to end the awkward situation, only to make it even more awkward.
"Yes. But still... he was strong. I don't know if I can ever be like him." Princess Violet chimed in.
"Of course you can, Your Highness. You just need to train diligently."
"You always say that, Isaac."
"Because it's the truth"
"Whatever... "
Meanwhile Isabelle was in her own world of thoughts.
'T-that last skill. Did he travelled through space? I-I knew it. I wasn't wrong when I told him about my stigmata. He is also special.'
Isabelle saw Marcel's every move from first to last. His ability to think, his knowledge of various equipments, his mastery over the skills to use them to their full potential made her feel respect him even more.
But what really shocked her was his adaptability. She couldn't believe how can someone grow so much in just a single match.
Moreover, she wholeheartedly wanted him to win. She even couldn't contain her nervousness many times Marcel was about to lose. Her heart was beating so fast in some cases that she felt it was not Marcel, but her who was fighting down there.
"Belle"
"..."
"Belle!!"
Isabelle jumped out at Penelope's sudden scream.
"Ahh! W-what? Don't shout like that. You scared me."
"Well, I was calling you since like forever but you were in your own world. Don't tell me you really fell for Mr.Mysterious Mistmer"
"Wh-wha... D-don't say weird things"
Both Penelope and Violet looked at Isabelle in disbelief, their mouths agape.
Penelope always teased her with many guys because it was really fun to watch Isabelle's cute face reacting and pouting to her words. Even now too, Penelope just teased her again out of habit.
But she never expected her best friend to make that face.
"No way... It has to be a lie. Right?"
"Uhh... well, her face tells otherwise"
Gulp!
Both of them swallowed their saliva at the same time looking at Isabelle who ignored them with a completely red face.
***
I suddenly found myself in an oddly familiar place.
'Is it... the Market?'
People were enjoying various events and delicacies in the stalls. The streets were so crowded that it was hard for me to even walk. It was a scene that I saw everyday when I came to Lumina Town.
Crash!
"H-help me!!"
Suddenly, I heard a loud noise, like a huge house just broke into pieces. I looked back and saw the whole Market in fire. The shops were burning, people were killed by monsters and road was slowly dyeing itself in red.
'What!? This... What happened?'
I tried to help them but no matter how much I tried, my sword didn't appear from my ring. Neither did my spears or bow. I helplessly looked around to find a weapon I could use. Anything would be fine as long as it would help me a little.
But suddenly, I saw someone familiar among the crowd.
"Sylas!"
"..."
"W-what is happening here?"
"This is what I warned you about, Marcel. I told you this was going to happen. Don't think you are not at fault."
"What the hell?"
Right now, the Sylas in front of me was so unfamiliar to me. He looked distant and scary... and sad.
"We both are sinners, Marcel."
"I-I don't know what are you talking about. But we need to help them. I need a weap-"
"We can't help them! "
"...What?"
"You can't help them, Marcel. Because this... this..."
"What are you saying? I-I can't hear you."
I couldn't hear him. His voice slowly faded away amidst the 'beep' sound that hammered violently in my ears.
"Sylas! Sylas!!!"
I realised he was walking far and far away with the crowd. No, it wasn't him.
It was me.
I couldn't control my body. I was walking away from there to an unknown source. I didn't know where I was going but I never felt this afraid looking towards the darkness my body was walking into.
'No, no no! No!'
I tried crying for help, but no words came out of my mouth.
'Some...body hel-'
Gasp!!
'Hah.. Huff! What... Again?'
This time I was inside a room that somewhat looked like a medical room. There were first aid boxes lying around too. I guessed it should be around evening looking at the darkness outside.
'Yeah... I lost'
"Oh! You're awake."
"Ah! Yes... Thank you for treating me, sir."
It was a young man around his thirties, wearing a blue uniform belonging to the medical staff.
"It's okay. It was my job. Do you want to know about the current situation?"
With a nod I requested him to inform me. I wasn't even sure how many days I slept.
"Well, I think you already know that you lost in your final match. The prize ceremony was held two hours ago and despite the fact that you were almost healed except some minor injuries, you still showed no signs of waking up. So we had to conduct the ceremony with you."
'I see... Is it because of those dreams? Even the healers couldn't wake me up'
"The winners were already awarded. Including the consolation prizes to Ava Edenheart and Victoria Chauvet. You are the only one that's left so I guess you need to collect them. I am sorry that you missed the ceremony. But I think everyone already know how great you were in this tournament."
"It's no problem."
I never cared about all those in the first place. It was good to have some prizes, of course, but does it even matter now? I didn't know. I didn't even know what to do next.
Should I go back to the forest?
I collected my awards and prizes and left there.
At first I thought they gave me a cheap storage ring which got very little capacity, but then I realised that the real rewards were actually inside the ring.
It was just like a wrapper to contain the prizes.
I didn't check what they gave me. I wasn't in a mood. I sat in one of the benches in an open park near the stadium.
'I heard they got a festival today. Is that why everyone looks so flashy'
I could see lots of women wearing their traditional gown. It was the same red dress with long sleeves and embroidered flowers that I sometimes saw in the Market. The men were also neatly dressed in their clean outfits.
I might have been happy to see them but right now, I envied them. They were laughing and walking happily with their families.
Why do I have to go through all this?
I felt it was really unfair that I lost. I was scared of losing and made mistakes in my desperation.
The fact that I was not the only one to train and sacrifice everything didn't even cross my mind. I trained for only four years but what if Sylas trained his whole life unlike me?
I felt sad and angry at myself. I felt sad for not winning. I felt sad for not being able to go home. But deep within that sadness, there was also a slight... relief.
I was having mixed feelings about whether to meet my family right now. After Isabelle's incident, I had many questions I needed to find answers of.
I didn't know if it was just me coping my loss. No matter what I think now, the fact that I lost didn't change.
'Ah... This feeling really sucks.'
I had my hopes up till yesterday and right now, I was looking pathetic, thinking about whether it was a good or bad decision to come here.
"What? Are going to give up after you lost once?"
He was a man totally unfamiliar to me. He had black hair and a slight moustache with an average look. His brown eyes also looked unfamiliar to me. But his voice, there was no way I didn't know that voice.
"... Rowan?"