The day of the Festival has finally arrived.
The morning sun rose lazily from the horizon, and its light was scattered all around by the perpetual fog of the morning.
It was clear that winter was approaching fast, as the morning was quite cold despite the warm sun rising in the sky.
"Are we supposed to come early?"
Arthur voiced out everyone's thoughts as they stood in the empty arena in their combat uniforms. His breath came out as a visible mist.
It was a good thing that their uniforms have enchantments that regulate temperature, otherwise, all of them, except Flare and the ones with ice attributes would be shivering in the early morning air inside the stadium of Cardinal Academy.
It is a colossal structure, circular and spiraling upwards into multiple floors. It is capable of holding about a hundred thousand spectators.
A glass roof embedded with millions of minute light crystals bathes the interior with sunlight during clear days and turns night into day during the late hours or when dark clouds cover the sun
It is also very sturdy, capable of withstanding a battle between all five Cardinals. This massive stadium is considered one of the most expensive building projects in Crystalia.
It also has hundreds of VIP rooms and advanced huge magia screens enchanted to appear during an event for the ones sitting far from the action.
And the entire Special Class A is standing in the center of the massive arena in the early morning hours.
Everyone, including Ruth and even Selene, looked at Seventeen, who woke them up and brought them to this place in the cold morning.
The instructor looked pretty confused himself, "That's odd. The Headmaster did tell all participants from the academy to report early."
"How early?", Ruth asked.
"What do you mean by that?", looking more confused, Seventeen looked at her, "The Headmaster said early."
There was a brief silence as everyone stared at him. It was Vanessa who understood.
Being a machine, Seventeen doesn't sleep, so he doesn't know when the time is too early.
"Um, sir? It appears that we came very early.", raising a hand she spoke and projected her thoughts to Seventeen through telepathy.
Seventeen's puzzled face slowly changed into realization.
"Oh. I screwed up.", he said.
There was a collective groan from everyone along with Ruth glaring at him.
"You absolute moron! Now what are we going to do?", she asked. Selene screeched and hit him on the forehead with her beak.
Seventeen rubbed his head sheepishly, unable to come up with an answer. That was when Gray spoke up.
"Perhaps we can take a look around the arena? Familiarize ourselves with the battlefield?", she suggested.
Seventeen's face lit up and he gave her a bright smile.
Ruth thought about it, "Not a bad idea. Knowing the layout and terrain of the place you will be fighting in will be advantageous after the preliminaries."
"Preliminaries?", Claire looked at her with a puzzled expression.
"Yep.", Seventeen nodded, finally speaking after his close shave with what would've been an uncomfortably cold and spiky morning.
"This year has the highest number of participants ever recorded in the history of the Battle Festival. Doing every single battle in a one-on-one tournament form will take a lot of time.", he explained.
"Indeed.", Ruth continued the explanation, "So the organizers decided to conduct a preliminary round for both the students and the outside warlocks."
She shook her head, "That's all I can divulge. The Headmaster will tell you the rest soon."
"Awwww.", Flare pouted.
"Academy rules, Flare.", Ruth sighed and waved her hand around the arena, "Alright guys, start your stakeout."
Everyone except Jason and Kate dispersed and went on to explore the huge arena and the rest of the stadium.
"Man. The others are missing out on a lot. This year's Festival will be an unforgettable one. I can feel it in my toes.", Jason remarked.
"If your toes feel it, then I can't deny it.", Kate nodded and looked at Seventeen, "Sir, how long will it be until the others return?"
She, of course, was talking about the rest of the second years.
Seventeen placed a hand on his chin, "From the recent reports, they have almost reached the eastern end of the Elder Mountains. Depending on their current progress, they will most likely take another month."
Kate pouted, "Those jerks up and left when I and this moron were away subduing a middle dragon.", she nodded to Jason.
"Hey!", the young Kain frowned, "It wasn't easy defeating that wyvern! Besides, those guys are on a journey to prove a bloody myth! Like, how can the Elder Mountains be on the back of an elder dragon?"
"That's ridiculous!", he exclaimed, "Do you know how massive those mountains are? If an elder dragon is underneath them, it will probably be the largest and oldest one ever."
"And that will be a remarkable discovery, Jason.", Seventeen nodded, "It will redefine how big those magnificent creatures can become."
"Hmph!", Jason was unconvinced.
After the matter had settled down he looked at Seventeen, "Do you know why there is a high number of outside participants this year?"
"Could it be...", Jason nodded at Arthur who stood a few distance from them, examining the ground, "That his awakening has attracted attention?"
"I doubt it.", Seventeen replied, "The number was already pretty high even before Arthur awakened with a bang."
"There is another reason. There has to be. But what is it?", Ruth wondered aloud.
"I can answer that for you.", a familiar voice spoke behind them.
They turned around and were surprised to see Jade Aria and Cardinal Zephyrus approaching them.
"Headmaster, Jade. What are you guys doing here this early?", Seventeen asked.
"I am the head organizer of the Battle Festival.", Zephyrus replied with a shrug.
"And I am the head of the ruling family of Crystalia, essentially a guest of honor.", Jade replied after him.
She cocked her head with a smile, "I believe those are pretty self-explanatory. But what are you guys doing here?"
"This idiot didn't know the meaning of the words 'too early'.", Ruth jabbed a thumb at Seventeen who gave a sheepish smile.
"Ah. I see.", Zephyrus said with a chuckle. Like Vanessa, he understood what had happened.
"But scouting out the arena before the Festival's commencement is a good method to spend excess time.", he remarked with a nod.
"At first glance, this arena may seem pretty normal with a uniform terrain. But it is actually a myriad of different strong and weak sections. Prior knowledge of these can provide an edge in battle."
"That's good advice, Headmaster.", Jason replied.
Jade looked at him, "Jason Kain, one of the great enigmas of Cardinal Academy. Your power is on par with Aaron Cadis yet you chose to be in Special Class A."
The young man smiled, "I am honored to have garnered the attention of the amazing Sword Princess. Your mastery over the sword and your flawless movements truly elevate your beauty."
"You're quite the smooth talker.", Jade laughed, "Squad 22 always has a spot for talented individuals like you."
Jason chuckled, "Already scouting, I see. Is this even allowed?", he looked at Zephyrus.
The Cardinal shrugged, "Higher-ups from all the squads will be present during the Festival to scout out students with high potential. I don't see any problem with Jade offering you a spot in her squad, although she is doing this a bit early.", he gave Jade a meaningful look.
She grinned, "Can't hurt to try."
"But seriously, Jason. Squad 22 has its doors open for you.", she quickly turned to him.
"Jade.", Zephyrus warned.
"Alright. I'll stop.", she stuck out her tongue.
Seventeen, Ruth and Kate were watching this exchange with amusement.
"So do you know the reason for the high number of participants?", Seventeen asked Jade.
"Of course. It's all because of one guy.", she turned to him.
"Who?", he looked puzzled.
"The Phantom Cardinal."
At first, Seventeen looked very confused.
'What a weird name. I wonder who that guy is.', he wondered when he noticed Zephyrus giving him a meaningful look.
"Oh."
(Looks like your antics finally caught up to you.)
Jade Aria was talking about him.
"Phantom who?", Jason asked.
"An unknown warlock whose power is on the same level as a Cardinal.", Zephyrus said. Immediately Jade, Ruth, and the second years looked at Seventeen.
He frowned, "Hey. What part of me screams 'unknown'?", he held out his hands.
"Yeah. You're too obnoxious and annoying to remain unknown.", Ruth replied with a deadpan expression. She turned to Alice, "So. What about this Phantom Cardinal?"
(She didn't even doubt your words. Wow. So much for keeping a good impression.)
'Oh Shut up.', Seventeen rolled his eyes.
Jade gave a small smile at Ruth's question and began to speak.
"A few months ago, about a week before the commencement of this academic year, a powerful presence was felt in the Elder Mountains up north."
"A few hours after that, at a tavern in the foothills, there was a case where a mysterious young man stopped a local criminal from harming the tavern owner. The criminal and his gang were later found unconscious and in unimaginable pain without any visible injuries."
Seventeen gulped non-existent saliva. He didn't expect such a thorough investigation. He glanced at Zephyrus who smiled reassuringly.
"Then later that day, as you all know, a powerful presence was felt in Crytalis city, bringing most of the unaware populace to their knees. No one knows what caused it."
"Many say it was a founder dragon passing by but the dragon lords said that no dragon was found flying above Crystalis at that time. Many say it was a Cardinal but the only one in the vicinity was the Headmaster."
Jade glanced at Zephyrus, "And I doubt he will do something like that, no matter how mischievous and airheaded he may be."
"Hehe. You flatter me, Jade.", the Cardinal said with a chuckle.
Rolling her eyes, she continued, "One interesting thing is that in a later investigation, the presence in Crystalis was found to be very similar to the presence felt in the north."
"Oh. That is interesting.", Ruth remarked.
Jade nodded, "Indeed. And a week later, the Earth Cardinal faced a masked warlock when she snuck out to investigate Mt Raviel."
"It was a tough battle, according to her, she was overwhelmed by the sheer power of the masked warlock."
(My. That purple cat girl can twist words to her liking.)
'Glad she didn't reveal my identity.', Seventeen sighed internally.
(But it won't be long before it is revealed.)
'The Headmaster said that he has a plan for revealing my existence without incurring any problems.', he glanced at Zephyrus, 'I wonder what that is?'
His mental conversation with Prime was interrupted by Ruth's question.
"So what does this Phantom Cardinal have to do with the high number of participants for the Battle Festival?"
Jade grinned, "There is a rather interesting rumor going around that the Phantom Cardinal will be appearing for the Festival."
"Every warlock wants to know how strong they are. It doesn't matter if they lose. They crave a chance to fight a strong being and the Phantom Cardinal is a good candidate for that."
Jason whistled, "This year's Festival is going to be a blast. I can feel it in my toes."
Kate groaned, "Not your toes again."
Seventeen laughed and then noticed the disturbing smiles of Alice and Jade.
"I can't wait to face the Phantom Cardinal.", Ruth said.
"Same. Maybe we can team up against him?". Jade suggested.
"Is that even allowed?"
"Don't worry. I'll make the Headmaster do it."
Zephyrus cleared his throat, "Please don't expect that from me."
The two young ladies looked at Seventeen with sparkling eyes, "What do you think, Seventeen? Wanna face against that guy?", Ruth asked enthusiastically.
Seventeen gave a calm smile, "Why not?"
Inside, he gulped nervously. He can feel Zephyrus giving him a look of sympathy
'Ah. I'm screwed.'