When Raymond and company got off the T-Pods, it was as if they stepped into a different world. They were greeted by hundreds of flashes as several people as well as drones swarmed them. Pretty soon questions were thrown at them as the clicks continued. The place became chaotic from all the commotion.
Ray was startled, he knew the Contest was popular, but he never truly realized just how popular it was until now. Charles took that moment to rub it in.
"Let me guess again, you thought this was some no-name Contest that no one gives a damn about?" Ray just flipped him off.
Ignoring the constant flash of cameras, Ray stood in front of one of the biggest buildings he'd ever seen that wasn't skyscraper-tall, but what it lacked in height it more than made up for with length. The building was also curved inwards, giving it a crescent shape.
In the middle, there was a large fountain that depicted a young female warrior on one knee while pulling back her bow with an arrow already nocked. The head of the arrow had water coming out of it. Next to the massive building, was a colosseum. Raymond could only stare at its massive walls.
As they were led into the Reception for registration. That was where Ray, Emma, and Charles parted as he was led straight to the Registering Hall. Only Contestants were allowed past this point.
There were four lines of Contestant when Ray got into the hall. From what Ray had gathered, the Contestants were separated into two; Mystics and Brutes. Mystics as the name suggests, were magic users while the Brutes relied purely on their brute strength.
Mystics were well balanced as they had both long-range and melee capabilities but usually lacked the physical strength of the Brutes. The Brutes on the other hand had all the physicals they needed to win but lacked the range.
That was where weapons and armor came in, to bridge the gap. It allowed the Mystics to use armor in order to overcome their glaring weakness while the Brutes could opt for long-range weapons.
Raymond's ability to use magic was still in the novice tier at best so he opted for the Brute entry and registered himself as a Demigod. While Olympians weren't necessarily banned from participation as no one in their right mind would want to do that, Ray just didn't want to draw in too much attention. He was there to test and push himself to his limits.
In the end, hundreds of contestants signed up and were taken to the next stage of the contest, Sponsors. This is the part Ray was unfamiliar with and as Charles put it, he had heavily underestimated the Contest. As they exited the registration, they were escorted to a fairly large hall that was filled with well-dressed individuals that went about mingling with the Contestants.
The hall was a bit darker but not too dark and Ray could hear faint music playing in the background. There was a mixture of booze—the brown-colored kind—and expensive perfume that filled the entire hall as all around him several conversations were going on.
As Ray took in the room, he even spotted a few flashes going off as some of the Contestants took pictures with some of the Guests. When they were escorted to the hall, Ray overheard one of the Contestants mentioning something about Sponsors.
"Forgive me for intruding, you seemed spaced out. Are you new to this?" A feminine voice spoke from Ray's right. He whipped his head to the side and was rewarded by the sight of an elderly woman with deep blue eyes.
"You guessed right…"
"Oh, where are my manners, I'm Evangeline. I noticed you look a little bit lost," she added before offering him a hand.
"Raymond." He shook her hand. "Is it that obvious?"
"Well…Yes and no. This is my fifth attendance and you could say that I'm well familiar with most of the Contestants here. You and a few others are the new faces."
"Well, I am here to test myself," Raymond said. Having nothing else to add. It was his first time here and it wasn't until now did he realize he had no idea how to even get a Sponsor. Not that he needed one, unlike most of the contestants who were in it for the glory, Ray was here because he took a bet.
How the contest went would determine if he would get to learn from Athena herself.
"Aren't you going to hook me with your battle prowess?" Evangeline asked after she noticed Ray's bashful silence.
"I don't think, I'm going to win it," Ray replied automatically. Then he realized what he just said. "Not that I don't believe in myself. I happened to have sparred with the previous winner and he beat me soundly."
"You know Bob?" Evangeline became curious. Ray's honesty took her off-guard at first but then she became delighted.
It was a refreshing thing to see in a fighter. Almost all the fighters she had ever met and bet on were the overconfident types, believing they had all it took to not only win but make a name for themselves by making all the Sponsors drool over them.
In the end, most of them never even make it past the Preliminaries let alone the Knock-Out stage. The worst of them never even show up and are found wasted in their dorms after a night of partying.
"Sort of. I was introduced by a friend." Ray answered honestly.
"Is Bob the one who convinced you to join?" Evangeline probed further.
"No. That was another friend. I sort of made a bet," Ray replied.
"So, what do you plan to lose after you lose?"
"Honestly, I haven't thought about that at all. But I doubt she would ask for anything I couldn't give or do." Ray replied after giving it some thought. He didn't think Athena would make him do something he wasn't ready for or wouldn't do. Which got him to thinking, what exactly would Athena ask of him. He just admitted he wouldn't win to the first person who asked him about the Contest, which meant he had to prepare for the worst.
'Master!'
Ray frowned and look about for the source of the voice throughout the entire hall but found nothing.
"What's wrong?" Evangeline noticed and asked.
"Nothing. I just thought I heard something." Ray replied as his frown disappeared.
Evangeline didn't dwell on the issue. "How about I make a bet with you then?"
Ray thought it over before replying. "Sure. What do you have in mind?"
On one hand, the prospect of taking on a challenge stirred something in him but on the other hand not knowing what she'll ask of him made him hesitate—only for a moment.
"I just want you to get past the Preliminaries," Evangeline said after giving it a thought.
"That's it?" Ray was a little surprised. While Ray did believe the Preliminaries weren't going to be easy, he felt that he could at the very least get through to the Knockout stage.
"Remember what I told you about the overconfident contestants? Besides, if I am to gamble on you, you can at least pass the proving stage."
"So that's how all this works?"
"Pretty much. Sponsors here typically find the best Fighters and place bets against each other. The winner takes all. The better the Fighter the more money they make. Of course, a portion of it goes to the Fighter.
"While a lot of Sponsors and Contestants are in it for the money, some look for glory, while others are hoping to gain the favor of the Olympians. After all, they love this sort of thing."
Ray nodded, the more he learned about Olympians, the more he realized just how high other Races placed them. They were on top of the food chain and other Races would always defer to them.
Ray and Evangeline talked for a while longer before they parted leaving Raymond to talk to two other prospects, each offering him the same deal; get past the Preliminaries then they will consider him. After about a couple of hours the 'meet the Sponsors session ended and they were taken to the next part of the Contest; orientation.
They were taken through the Dormitory, Refreshment Area, Interview Hall, and the Entertainment. After that, each one of them was issued a tablet that had their details, rosters as well as both the Island's rules and the Contest's rules.
When all was done, their final stop was the training room. That's where Ray and Charles reunited, Emma had gone to meet up with some of her friends. Unlike him, Charles and Emma had to pay for their accommodation which was located away from the Fighter's Dorms. However, they could access the Training Facilities, Entertainment, and the Interview Hall.