That night was different from the rest. Sunrise City, the city that never sleeps, seemed to have calmed down and seemed less active than usual. It was a weird sight to see the city so calm, but the next day would be crucial not only for the participating espers but also for the whole city. That's why that night the majority of the city went to sleep early, especially the participants of the tournament since they had to be in top condition the next day.
Somewhere in the city, on top of a skyscraper, two figures could be seen, a tall young woman that was wearing sunglasses even though it was night already and a white-haired boy who had some of his fingers and his right hand bandaged.
"Tomorrow is the day," said Miss Leywin and Seth nodded, "you got everything I gave you?" she asked.
Seth did a mental check of the few things that Miss Leywin had given him. Then he nodded.
"Remember, try to hide your identity as long as possible, it will make everything easier," she said as she pointed to the mask that was attached to Seth's belt. "It doesn't matter if you finish the tournament as an anonymous, and you don't have to win either. Remember that your only objective is to awaken your ability. Got it?"
"Yes, Miss Leywin," Seth said with a nod. Then he took the mask and put it on. "How do I look?" he asked.
Miss Leywin chuckled then she patted Seth's head.
"I would recommend that you also put your hoodie on since your hair color is quite unique," she said as she pulled Seth's hoodie up, then she took a step back.
'Now it depends only on you, Seth,' she thought as she looked at Seth.
"Don't forget anything I told you and always keep your guard up. With that said, let's get you home, you need to rest," she said.
The night passed in the blink of an eye, and soon it was already morning. On the sky, the characteristic airship from Sunrise City could be seen flying through the sky while showcasing the news on both of his sides.
"-Good morning Sunrise City! This is New World News, and today is a special day in the city of never-ending progress.
-It is indeed Leon, the whole city has been looking up to this day and finally, today is the first day of the Rising Espers Tournament.
-We are all excited to see the performance of these promising espers, however, we are sorry to tell you that we have been informed that the first phase of the tournament will not be broadcasted.
-However don't worry, in the meantime, the city has put in place a lot of activities in celebration of the tournament. To all the city residents as well as to all our visitors from fellow nearby cities please feel free to enjoy these days of celebration at Sunrise City.
-As for the participants, don't forget that the mandatory inscription confirmation will take place at the HSA stadium up until 12 pm. Any esper who does not show up will be automatically disqualified.
-Before moving up to other news, to all participants, on behalf of New World News, we wish you all good luck!"
Meanwhile, in the HSA stadium, hundreds of people could be seen getting to the stadium walking, by car, and even on different buses. However, even though there were so many people arriving at the stadium, the traffic was still fluid. All the espers that got to the stadium would shortly after be able to enter by the main gates, however, only participants were allowed in the stadium.
In the middle of the crowd, a masked and hooded boy carrying a duff bag could be seen walking toward the stadium's entrance. He was wearing some kind of black tactical joggers as well as a white hoodie, he had a katana sheathed on one side, and his mask was white with black patterns painted on it.
In the crowd, all espers could be seen wearing different kinds of clothing, since they chose to wear what they felt more comfortable with. Some of the also were wearing different kinds of masks. A lot of espers chose to wear masks, mostly for aesthetic purposes, however, some others wore them for a specific reason.
The boy continued moving along with the crowd until he got to the stadium's entrance where a man with the HSA uniform could be seen sending the incoming espers in different directions.
"Please, everyone enter in an orderly manner and wait for the guides to tell you which way to go," said another uniformed man through a megaphone from one of the watchtowers that were placed on the sides of the entrance. Besides him could be seen a masked man wearing a completely black uniform, and on the other watchtower another man uniformed the same way could also be seen.
'Black Guard operators,' thought Seth as he saw this.
"Hey, did you hear the rumors?" a boy said from one side.
"What rumors?" another boy asked.
"The first phase of the tournament will not even take place in the city."
"Seriously?"
"Yeah, they even say that we will go to some kind of secret HSA base."
"Nah dude, I don't think so."
"But it would be cool right?"
"Did you hear that there seems to be an Executor in the city?" said a girl from another side to a boy.
"Really?" asked the boy.
"And it seems that they will be supervising the tournament as well."
During the last few days, different rumors about the tournament had been going around, mainly about the locations and the phases of the tournament, but also about other topics. The specifics of the tournament always remained a mystery, and since the people were so excited about it, it was to be expected that they would begin to theorize about it.