Standing on the hall leading to the insides of the stadium where the Hyperion trees stood stall, Veritas along with 98 others walked slowly and steadily.
Their groups were going to be distributed to various parts of the forest in order for it to be fairer in terms of matchups.
It was a battle royale, a free for all where everything goes.
Veritas looked around and saw familiar faces.
There was Bello, who was partnered with a brown-haired boy. Leo, partnered with Hana, pestering each other and annoying themselves.
Then, there was Morgan, teamed up with another member from another region.
There was an odd number of participants from Central City due to their elimination on the first stage. But that dilemma was easily fixed by grouping those that have still not partnered yet into randoms.
As such, Alice, who was supposed to be grouped with a classmate of theirs, was now paired with another person. It seemed that he was from Alfar based on his unique sense of clothing.
He wore a vibrant yellow bodysuit which was then covered by a glittery blue and pink steel armor, which for some reason.. was styled and bended.
'How does one even bend steel and would that help in battle?'
Veritas was confused but paid it no heed.
Instead, he overheard their conversation.
"Name's Pea, it is a pleasure to be acquianted to you, my Lady.."
"Likewise, I'm Alice."
Met with a rather monotonous response, Pea almost seemed offended by her lack of flamboyance.
Alice was, after all, wearing an all black attire which consisted of an obsidian breastplate, dark onyx greaves, and a couple more paired with something related to black.
Quite the contrary to Pea's extravagant appeal.
Still, Veritas felt a sort of chemistry between them.
He looked away after a few seconds and focused on the greater task at hand. Veritas was grouped with Mercury, who was walking alongside him.
But the problem was.. the blonde-haired boy was as antisocial or even more antisocial than Alice!
His replies consisted of one-word only, and usually did not contain any gist!
Communication was quite hard between the two. Only Leo could really understand the man beside him.
'Guess we'll talk with our blades then.'
After a few minutes passed, the announcer spoke out once more. Veritas stared at the light device showing the announcer and watched carefully.
"Ladies and Gentlemen! It has been a long wait but now.. the second stage of the FHT shall begin! Buckle your seats, enjoy your food, and watch as the spectacle unfold in our unique terrain!"
He then turned back and raised his hands to gesture something to be revealed.
"Show em!"
Suddenly, a dark veil covering the middle of the stadium dissipated, revealing a forest of tall trees that stretched all the way to the sky!
Everyone was in awe, clearly surprised by the efforts of the people that made this possible!
Kids, mothers, fathers, and more people alike cheered loudly and the crowd uproared inside the stadium.
"Are you all ready!?"
The announcer's enthusiasm spoke out and asked the audience, sharing his mic with them.
With a collective "Yes, the announcer used his charismatic skills in order to captivate the audience longer.
"Before we start! The rules of the second stage shall be explained by our dearest Professor, Shin Morteza!"
A man immediately appeared beside the announcer, donning a bright orange outfit.
He brought out a handbook from within his orange coat and then read it.
"The first rule of the Second Stage."
A momentary pause echoed in the horizon, making the crowd go wild in excitement!
"There are no rules! It is a free for all! And only those that reach the top 8 teams would be eligible to participate in the final and best round of all, the third stage or otherwise known as the Duels!"
The crowd erupted in cheers, the stadium was filled with the joy and excitement of every individual inside. It was unusual for an FHT to be enthralled with a new type of competition!
This year, they went all out and even conjured up 3 stages for the events! The record sales and population are at their highest!
It could be said that there are hundred thousands of people inside the stadium. It could fit that well, but there would be some crowding involved.
Veritas continued watching and watched as his Professor spoke out!
"As you may all know, I think it is common sense by now to have no killing within the Tournament. The same applies with the second stage. Once a participant had been discovered to have committed a serious crime. Not only would they be kicked out immediately, but also thrown into the dungeons!"
"Just kidding, I don't know anything about dungeons, but you get my point."
With that said, he reiterated his words and made a more comprehensible statement.
"The gist of a battle royale is as simple as a petty piece of knowledge. I'm sure that everyone already knows what it is but apparently, I still need to discuss it."
He brought the mic closer to his mouth and let out his fine voice.
"A fight to the death! With no restrictions nor rules, no crappy excuse or what not! And most importantly, only those that survive until the end would win! But wait.. one could not just wait out the time until all the participants have all wiped out each other. Staying still could be quite crucial because..."
He paused, and then smiled widely.
"An ominous wind is brewing! I'll leave that for interpretation."
The time of the second stage was imminent, Professor Shin left the stage and the Announcer named Mike was now back on it.
"Now everyone! It is time for you to meet our participants!"
The doorway that led to the stadium opened and Veritas, along with the others, walked towards the blinding light in front of them!
"Please welcome the dear Pathbearers of Elrod!"
Many people screamed, yelled, and cheered for their favorite participant.
Veritas heard screams that were directed to him, screams that called out to Bello, and screams that cheered for many other people that he didn't know.
He walked first in line, slowly and elegantly, further improving his status as the Prince and making him look even better!
He waved his hands to greet the crowd, appeasing with a warm smile.
"Prince Veritas!"
"Great Prince, we are rooting for you!"
"Please win this competition, Prince Veritas!"
The cheers compelled him to do better, it gave him a feeling of satisfaction and love. He suddenly realized what he was fighting for, even after all the revelations that he had just witnessed.
Veritas had to prevent the Puppeteer disaster from happening, or else.. many lives would be lost.
He bit his lips and continued satisfying the audience.
His handsome face was shown on the big screen, enveloping the entire stadium with cheers and celebratory yells.
Then, Announcer Mike spoke out once more, "The time is nigh! Merely 20 seconds are left before we start! Participants will be placed in their positions once the timer runs out!"
A timer appeared atop the big screen of the stadium. It counted down the timer, passing each second like a grueling heartbeat.
Veritas and the others pleased the public for a couple more seconds until finally, Announcer Mike screamed out in joy.
"Everyone count down with us! 10!"
The crowd unitedly said, "9! 8! 7! 6! 5!..."
Even the participants started to join in.
"4!"
"3!"
"2!"
Veritas smiled warmly and felt excited, feeling it envelop his body fully.
"1!"
As if space itself had been erased, Veritas felt himself warp towards a place unknown. However.. Veritas expected to be met with a woodland, a forest that consisted of tall trees!
But instead, he was warped to a dark room. Using his enhanced vision to see in the dark, he squinted his eyes and saw a figure appear right in front of him.
It was a man with light-orange hair, wearing a bright orange outfit that made him look like a Professor.
Well, he was.. but his face was nothing like Veritas had ever seen.
Usually, this man was bubbly and energetic, his eyes were always closed as if he were relaxed all the time.
But now.. he stared at Veritas with his deep purplish eyes.
He uttered:
"You are in grave danger. Prince Veritas."
His tone was deep and serious.
"Purposefully lose this stage in the tournament and stay out of it.."