Chapter 8 - Spectation
A vast majority of merchants and travelers alike journeyed from distant lands to visit the Olympus Empire within a short notice, setting their immediate attention to the Olympic Stadium upon arrival.
—BUSTLING!
With how renowned the stadium is, it wasn't a surprise when people started packing their bags the moment words got out.
People of all ranks and regions are seated within the audience as they will watch the Olympus Empire's fate be sealed by one of the participants.
The clamour erupted, and it led the crowd to be heard from the outer walls of the stadium, prompting bystanders to hear it all!
—CHEEEERRRR!
Hermes' insight was correct. She had anticipated the crowd's size to be within a reasonable number, but her calculation of numerous visitors from afar was exceeded further when the audience grew as minutes passed by, surpassing the previous year's Olympic Games alongside the Stadium's limited seats!
Sooner or later, the Imperial Knights assembled themselves into their rightful positions before the tournament commenced. That being the case, there were a dozen who were entrusted to the Emperor, accompanying him.
Once the Emperor made his appearance, his presence caused quite a stir in the crowd, causing them to exclaim loudly and proudly!
—BUSTLE!
"Thank you for everything that you have done! Your Majesty!"
"Heaven will choose the best representative for our Empire, Your Majesty!"
"Woohoo!"
"Please continue to be like this forever!"
"I wish for your eternal life, Your Majesty!!!!"
—CHEERRRRINNNGG!!
As marvelous as it was to many, the civilians continued to chant their praises for all to hear, expressing their utmost admiration for the Emperor who was currently taking a seat.
—BLAREEE!
Minutes later, once deafening trumpets ensued, it followed up with the clamor of the people alongside the projections formed by an artifact to showcase the close-up of the stadium, presenting the audience with an easier spectation.
Not long afterwards, the commentators approached their seating area with a grand entrance where their appearances were being displayed on the projections, waving and gesturing to everyone!
"Woah~ It's such an honor to meet all the people from across the empire! I am Evelyn Vita Houston! And I'm one of the commentators for this Chess Tournament!" Wearing casual yet formal clothing, this lady spoke with excitement through the megaphone.
"My name is Nathan Andreas, and I'm interested in witnessing every contestant's strategic plays, seeing how they must prove to be confident in their abilities to tread their path into this tournament." The man who's in a luxurious and dignified outfit, stands up with exhilarated expectancy.
"And last but not least, I'm Hermes Cyllenian, one of the commentators who'll be overseeing this tournament." With a wave of her hand to the audience, Hermes smiles confidently before she carries on with her speech.
"Before we proceed, you can rest assured that this event won't have any issues as I've taken measures for it to remain safe and sound to the end. Moreover, there also won't be inconveniences such as schemes and irking ploys within the matches."
"That said.. There are 20,000 contestants who'll join us in this wonderful event. It'll definitely be lively in the days to come."
"That's a huge amount!" Evelyn comments with a gasp.
"It certainly is. That's the reason why there are thousands of tables and chairs in the center of the stadium."
"Lady Hermes, I thought we were going to have plenty of days for the Chess Tournament. So why does it seem like we'll be finishing it in a few days?"
"That's generally the case. However, this Chess Tournament isn't the usual program in the Olympic Games. This was made to decide who'd be the Olympus Empire's Representative in the chess match against The Underworld."
"In order to assist our soon-to-be representative, we must conclude this event swiftly and provide them with additional guidance to solidify our victory."
"We don't know what the Underworld has under their sleeves, which is why we must be prepared for what's to come."
"As I heard, the notorious organization named 'Underworld' has pardoned themselves into the throne room with an unusual demand." Nathan added.
"That's the gist of things, isn't it?" Evenly assumed.
"Then we must find a qualified person who'll compete with the Empire's glory against the Underworld's petty schemes! So, without further ado.."
"Bring in the contestants!"
When Evelyn's voice gave the participants their cue, the entrance was soon overflowing to the brim! Before long, they were immediately guided towards their seats with their opponents already facing them head-on.
"Please follow the arbiters' directions and instructions to engage with your first opponent." Hermes informs, bringing out a familiar ticket before resuming her talk.
"While the contestants are being guided towards their opponents, I'll explain to the audience how the ticket I'm holding functions."
"Tickets are given in each round of the tournament. Due to the fact that 20,000 participants can result in an uneven number later on, these tickets have a major role to play."
"You can use these tickets to bet on which contestants will win, and depending on who can accumulate the most tickets, the fortunate participant will earn a short break from the tournament's next round."
"Moreover, to prevent analysis of their future opponents' strategies, this contestant will be relaxing inside a room where no contact can be made for fairness of the game until the next round begins."
"Enough of that already, Lady Cyllenian! It's time for us to bet on multiple contestants since each person gets 10 tickets!" Evelyn seems to be very thrilled about this.
"Please quiet down, Miss Evelyn. You're not thinking of wasting the tickets in the beginning now, are you? It's preferable to save it for the final round until you take a liking to someone." Nathan let out a sigh.
"Oh, now that I think about it.. Yes, maybe you're right, Lord Andreas."
"Perhaps, you'll unknowingly lend that particular contestant a much needed opportunity to catch a break too."
"How about we begin the match, Miss Evelyn and Lord Andreas? To all of the participants, I wish you all good luck." Hermes exclaims.
"Let the tournament begin!!" Evelyn follows suit!
—BLAAARRREEE!
—-------
"Ehhhh…!?"
One, two and three minutes passed into the game, yet it only took a blink of an eye for someone to emerge with the very first victory of the day! Not only did they manage to catch everyone off guard, the crowd was in awe of this spectacular individual!
"What a familiar face to see." Hermes spoke with an amiable tone towards a supposed friend.
"Yes, Lady Constance's appearance is truly a surprise. I have never heard of her hobby being chess, nor a mention of chess. Have you, Lady Cyllenian?" Nathan rubs his chin as if aroused.
"No, this is a side to her that I haven't seen yet. On a different note, the opening Lady Constance performed in her match was quite a breeze."
"Not only did Lady Constance secure the center with her pawn and knight, she shockingly made a dangerous move with the Bishop at the center as well! From then onwards, things kept falling into place for Lady Constance!" Evelyn comments with her repetitive clapping.
—CHEEERRR!
"What's this? Another victory!?" Evelyn gasps.
"While we were preoccupied with Lady Constance, Lord Wilhelm Oscar finished his match! What a stunning performance from him!" Nathan applauds elegantly.
"It looks like the rest are starting to get serious! I can see people exiting the stadium and joining the audience now! Usually, chess can take over 5 minutes to complete, but this was unexpected for me to see this happening so fast!"
Because time was passing by while the game continued onward without any disruption, participants were expected to decrease by the end of the session, prompting some people to feel the sense of pressure in anticipation for their upcoming opponent!
—Cheering~!
Due to their anxious spirits, some have resorted to taking their time by playing a slow game to buy themselves enough moments of rest to collect their thoughts carefully, albeit sparingly.
Aside from that, a hundred or more have thought of a trick up their sleeves. Rather than gathering attention as a grandmaster-like chess player from the audience, they've chosen to lay low in order to catch their opponents off guard.
While the rest focus on breezing through their games as fast as possible to take a breather, the tournament appears to be going swimmingly!
"Miss Caissa Thea Skaki, Lord Anthony has ended his turn, please continue once you flip the hourglass." The arbiter, who's placed in front of two contestants to monitor their moveset as well as the hourglasses, alerted the female teenager.
"Yes."
—Fwoosh…
Dawning the platinum blonde hair, her irides reflect with varieties under the rays of sunlight, glimmering with its lustrous silvery gray hue!
And at the current moment, Caissa is facing a nobleman who has a fairly decent start to the game; almost to say it's smooth sailing for him to have confidence in his next move!
As a consequence, it looks like this teenage commoner is about to lose the opportunity to earn a lifetime of cash for her prosperous future!