The presentation concluded, and hundreds of people surrounded the Vina workers, eager to place more bets. Some took risks and wagered on the tournament's overall winner, while almost everyone bet at least one gold coin on the entire tournament grid.
As I walked down the corridor between the royal boxes, I noticed a couple of merchants offering bets. At first, King Henry dismissed them, refusing to listen. However, when Severin Eileran, upon hearing about the bets, pulled out a large purse of money and placed wagers on everything at once, the King of Verania changed his mind. Following the King of Leran, all the other rulers also decided to subscribe to the totalizator. Ignis took the longest to respond, contemplating her decision, but eventually, she wrote down all the names on her ticket and handed it over to the bookmaker, with at least two hundred gold coins in her purse.
"Hey, Vina, can't we place bets too?" I knew that thanks to Kurone, she could hear me.
"Yes, I forgot to mention, none of the contenders can bet on themselves or their victory. Otherwise, all the intrigue is lost. And, by the way, I can't do it either, to avoid suspicion of fraud. However, other participants here can do so," the screen at the top of the dome showed the commentators' room, where Werner, Kurone, Rector, Levris, Rumy, and Vina were sitting. "Would you like to hear the opinion of authoritative figures?"
"YES!!!" the stands unanimously responded to the girl.
"But won't that affect people's opinions?" Levris nervously bit her lip.
"That's the most interesting part! Besides, it's your personal opinion, and no one knows what might happen. Tournaments are unpredictable, and the weak may defeat the strong if all the cards are in their favor."
"But do you want us to identify the strongest among the contenders?" Rector pondered, stroking his beard thoughtfully. "I, for example, know who the strongest participant is, but I also know that he can be outsmarted. It's a genuinely challenging choice."
"Well, then go ahead and bet on the strong one, what's the problem?"
"Ah, alright," Rector took writing implements and quickly filled out the table. "Based purely on strength, Katrina has the best chances, but I believe there might be opponents she can't handle. So, I'll place only one gold coin."
Rector handed the paper to Vina and tossed in a coin.
"Pff, greedy! You won't influence anything this way. If you had bet all your money on the victory, that I would understand," the merchant took out an odd-looking stamp from her pocket and swiftly imprinted all the fields, the paint seeping into the paper with a faint hiss. "This, by the way, prevents you from feeling tempted to alter anything. It's a magical seal, and if someone tries to write a new name over it, the parchment will burn."
Vina demonstratively covered all the lower fields and showed Rector's sheet with Katrina's name at the top.
"Alright, now let's hear the experts' opinions on magic and martial arts."
"I won't participate in this!" Levris turned away, feeling offended.
"Don't you even want to support someone, even with just one coin, so they know you're rooting for them?" Vina expertly ensnared the innocent rabbit with flattery, leading him into the den of gambling.
Levris turned away from the screen, blushing rapidly, as evidenced by her burning ears. After a few seconds of contemplation, she grabbed a sheet from the table, quickly filled it out, and handed it to the merchant with a small purse containing ten coins. Vina neatly accepted the sheet and winked, displaying Grain's name on the screen.
"Now, it's your turn," Vina looked at Rumy.
"Hmm, let's see, three and two, and another five," Golem counted something intently on her fingers, then handed Vina the paper and two stacks of three and two coins. "I'll place two coins on everything and three on the first match's victory. I won't go any higher."
"Huh? What does that mean?"
"I'm confident she'll win the first match, and I simply want her to win the tournament. However, I'm not that certain about the latter. So, I'm placing two coins on the championship, which I'll most likely lose, but I'll recoup the loss with the victory bet in the first match."
"Hey! People usually bet to earn more, not to avoid losing anything!"
"Let me put it this way: there are too many uncertainties on this list. Wanna bet that at least three matches in the first round will end differently than most laypeople expect?"
"Whoa, is that a challenge?"
"Take it as you will, but I'm sure a dark horse will win, and hardly anyone will bet on them."
"But isn't the strongest fighter known?"
"Ha! Do you believe that crazy old man? I have twice his experience, and trust me, the winner will surprise you and everyone else!"
"I like your spirit. Wanna bet on that?"
"Alright, if I win, you'll have to fulfill all my wishes."
"Sure, as you wish." And finally, the last guests, who happened to be present, and still had the right to make legitimate bets. "Werner, don't you want to place a bet on someone?"
"Hmm, I'd like to bet on Lady Asura, although I don't think she'll be able to win if she continues to remain in her current state. But I want her to know she won't be alone, without support!" Werner quickly filled out the columns and handed them over to the hostess with a handful of coins.
"Nice job, but you didn't need to mention her possible defeat. Alright then, Kuro, who will you bet on? There are so many worthy candidates."
Kurone nervously toyed with the sheet with the table in her hands.
"Well, I'd like to bet on Lord Krito."
The stands fell silent for a moment and then erupted in laughter.
"Well, judging by the audience's reaction, I'd say no one believes in his victory. Knowing him, I'd say he doesn't even believe in himself and has no plans to try," someone remarked.
"No! He will win!! Even though he's not an outstanding mage, he's a good fighter and very clever, and... well, he'll come up with something!!" another voice defended Krito.
"Hmm, your right, but I wouldn't advise it," the first person replied.
"That's precisely it! It's my right!" The girl practically thrust the filled-out paper and an impressive purse of coins into the merchant's hands.
"Wow, at least a hundred gold coins. Let me clarify. Do you think Krito will defeat Algo, then Hilda from Nordrun, who is supposed to be the strongest mage in the north? After that, he'll tear Alfred apart, whose name you wrote with special malice, and in the final, he'll simply crush Katrina, who is currently the tournament's favorite?"
"YES!"
"Wow, love is blind," Vina playfully pursed her lips.
"SHUT UP! Just accept the bet, that's all!"
"Alright, the most original bet is accepted. And it seems that if Rumy wants to win, then it's Kurone she should bet on."
"Great, I'll bet on her then," Rumy nonchalantly leaned back in her chair.
"Okay, some are betting on the tournament winner, while others are already predicting who will rise in the rankings and who will go bankrupt."
"It seems like it will be an interesting tournament this year," Rector happily stroked his beard. "But it looks like it's time to start the battles!"
"You're right, all the bets are in, and it's time to begin!"
"By the way, who's fighting first?" Vina looked at the schedule on the board. "Will the battles be in order?"
"No, in the first round, the order will be determined by a draw. In the subsequent rounds, we'll follow the schedule. And, ooh, " Rector pulled out a bag of balls from under the table, "the first number is... number four!"
The commentators turned in unison to look at the board behind them, where the pair number four was Grain against Katrina.
"Oooh, it seems we're about to find out if our professor's support will help the young earth mage in battle," Vina playfully glanced at Levris, who turned away in embarrassment.
"Participants, please proceed to the arena!" Rector's announcement served as a signal for the contenders.
Down the stairs, right behind our box, the mages headed towards the arena.
"I hope you won't hold back just because I'm a girl," Vina said to Krito.
"I've got a chance to showcase the results of my training, and in a battle against such a strong opponent, you shouldn't expect any leniency!"
Warming up with sly remarks towards each other, the opponents stepped into the center of the arena. Grain placed his hand on the ground and immediately looked around suspiciously. The arena was covered with smooth fertile soil and low-cut grass for most of its area, but Grain clearly noticed something unusual in the structure of the arena.
"Is something wrong?" Vina asked.
"For some reason, I can't see beyond the walls, as if we've been cut off from the rest of the world," Grain looked with suspicion towards the commentator's booth, visible only from the arena in the uppermost part of the stands.
"Ho-hoo, Rector, how do you comment on this? We can clearly see the participants, why would Grain have such an impression?" one of the commentators inquired.
"It's a precautionary measure. Don't you think we wouldn't plant so many high-ranking individuals so close to the place where powerful spells are being cast?" Rector replied.
"Is it some kind of barrier?"
"Even more than that! It's a powerful defensive screen known as Сhrysalis. It's impenetrable."
"Hmm, I've never heard of such magic," Levris pondered deeply. "It's not described in any magic textbook."
"That's because no ordinary mage can set it up," Rumy said, leaning back in her chair and munching on a cookie. "Isn't that right, Mr. Rector?"
"I knew you had heard of it. Yes, you're right, no regular mage can set it up. To create such a barrier, one needs a connection to the four-dimensional spirits."
"In other words," Rumy added another cookie to her mouth, "it can only be erected by a summoner or direct contractors of the four dimensions. However, due to some discrepancies in age, I haven't heard of anyone building something like this."
"You're correct, but many talented mages were involved in the construction of the Academy, which made the barrier possible. It is directly connected to the spirit world and, as a result, any magic directed towards it passes into the spirit world, making it stronger from the inside."
"Wow, quite an elaborate answer, but how large is the whole shield?"
"The barrier has a diameter of two hundred meters, covering the entire arena and forming a dome above and below it. Thus, it completely isolates this area of land from the rest of the world. However, air can pass through, otherwise our participants could suffocate during an extended battle. The only breach in the barrier is the gate to the arena, which opens only to let the participants in and to release the winner and defeated."
"In other words, no one else can get onto the arena besides the participants."
"Exactly, and they won't be able to get out without my intervention."
"Cruel. But it's time to start the battle. Let's welcome our fighters, the heroes who will open this great tournament! The earth mage who endured insane training to sharpen his skills, and the lightning sorceress capable of demolishing a building with a single strike." Scenes of Grain lifting a huge rock into the air to construct a bridge and Katrina demolishing half of the polygon with a single attack appeared on the screen. "Let's see what's stronger, creation or destruction!"
"Let the battle begin!"