I took another deep breath, preparing myself mentally. Then I looked directly at the camera, focusing on the viewers.
"I am the same game show host you saw during the broadcast two weeks ago in Eldoria. I'm responsible for bringing a new show—the Mystic Mayhem Tournament—here, and I'm also in charge of making sure every contestant has fun and feels welcome. I hope you can all relax and enjoy yourselves."
[Views: 2,420,698,000]
As soon as I finished giving my introduction, everyone burst into applause.
The cheers made me smile, but I immediately turned serious once again.
"Now, I'd like to talk about the rules for this week's tournament. First, we have three rounds that span for three weeks, starting today. Each team consists of five people, including a team leader who must stay behind the scenes after the first round.
Only those who reach each mark will advance in the single-elimination style of matches. After the third and final round, the winning team will receive an exclusive prize along with a monetary award of three hundred million gold. In addition, the winner of the entire event will receive a special prize of five million gold."
I paused for a moment, thinking carefully about my words. Then, I continued.
Additionally, this tournament will adhere to another rule. The 'Rule of Two' states that if two or more teams achieve the same rank, both teams will split the reward. This is to avoid any unfair advantages between the teams. We believe this is fair enough.
To sum it all up, I ask you to look forward to these three weeks. And I promise that the prizes and rewards will exceed your expectations.
On behalf of the crew of Dare to Dream, I thank you for coming, and best of luck!"
They were all going to need it.
With that, I ended my brief explanation, and the crowd erupted into cheers again.
Once the cheering died down, I took my place back behind the podium, and the audience began chanting: "Dream Master Dare!"
I could hear them clearly through the microphone. They sounded so enthusiastic.
I looked out across the audience, taking in each contestant's face. They seemed eager to start competing, but I had other plans for them.
From where I stood, I could see Ravus typing quickly on a holographic keyboard that had materialized below his fingers. He made a hand gesture as he changed the information displaced on the multi-faced computer screen hovering above us.
"...Ah ha ha! How awesome is this new development?" He mouthed the words, maintaining eye contact with me and grinning widely.
He smiled happily while Wyn rolled her eyes.
[Ding!]
The names of the twenty-four team leaders appeared on the screen, drawing everyone's attention.
Ravus raised an eyebrow as he scanned their profiles once more.
"It looks like we've got quite the variety here... Let's go ahead and announce the names of our esteemed team leaders," I said casually as I pointed at the holographic screens floating above our heads.
Ravus nodded.
The holograms projected the team leaders' names, which the spectators then heard.
Each name appeared in large font, accompanied by a short description from their profile.
[Here are the names of the 24 team leaders.]
"Emily Matherns."
"Sasha Kerensky."
"Nina Avila."
"Cyrus Eris."
"Takashi Fumino."
"Gianna Shaver."
"Marianne Nava."
"Katsuhiro Watanabe."
"Shiro Yagiri."
"Alma Hesse."
"Kamal Khoury."
"Julie Llamas."
"Erika Yamamoto."
"Hideo Kuroda."
"Ryuichi Ichikawa."
"Tanya Sakaki."
"Alexandra Gaffney."
"Zachary Blackwood."
"Luciano De Luca."
"Vera Stolz."
"Kazuhiko Saito."
"Tomo Tsurugi."
"Diana Chang."
"And last but not least..."
A loud cheer came from the crowd as the next team leader was revealed.
"Virgil Belmont!"
This time, they went wild. The audience seemed to love Virgil.
Ravus grinned proudly, holding his hands high in the air as if he'd won something. He smiled happily while Wyn rolled her eyes at how easy it is to bring the kid out of Ravus when he uses his technomancy.
Then he quickly typed a few more commands before looking back at me.
After announcing all the team leaders, I stepped away from the podium and addressed the crowd.
"Well, now that all the hard work is done, let's get started! Team leaders, please come up to the stage and join me."
My voice boomed across the stadium.
"Yes, sir!" All of the team leaders shouted together, and they immediately rushed up the stairs onto the stage.
I waited patiently for them to arrive in front of me. They all stood tall, feeling proud of their selection as team leaders.
I greeted them one by one, offering them my most sincere congratulations.
Ahem!
And an unspoken condolence.
"Welcome to the first round of the tournament, team leaders. Please enjoy the rest of this week's activities."
I turned around and waved at the cheering audience as I exited the stage.
Each team leader had a mobile device drop into their waiting hands. Throughout the tournament, the devices would serve as their primary source of communication.
They also received a small pouch containing the necessary supplies, such as food rations, water bottles, and basic medical kits.
Finally, an attendant handed each of them a set of golden tags engraved with the word 'TEAM LEADER'.
They would be competing against each other, and those who managed to collect the highest number of points before the time ran out would win the competition.
The briefing covered all the items in detail, leaving me with just one final piece of advice.
"Your performance determines which team progresses to the next round. If you want your team to make it far, you'll need to stay alert every step of the way. Good luck, and may the best man or woman win."
[Theme Hunt 1: "100 Drut Discovery" begins now! Round 1: "Preliminary search and discovery" starts in 180 seconds!]
Gasp!
As the information appeared on the screen, everyone in the arena gasped.
All the team leaders looked in my direction with wide eyes. They were expecting me to tell them it was merely a joke, but no...
It wasn't. This was reality.
For some reason, they believed they had already lost, despite still being alive.
The real battle hadn't even begun yet.
Now, all they could do was wait for the timer to reach zero.
At this point, their murmurs reached an ear-piercing volume, echoing through the stadium.
Their reactions only served to increase my confidence in my plan.
'Wyn, you sly little fox!'
"Umm... Dream Master Dare?" Nina Avila called out timidly, her face full of doubt. She couldn't hide her nervousness.
"Yes? What's wrong?" I asked politely. "What can I help you with? You look like you've got something on your mind."
"Um, we're pretty sure everyone knows where the Druts are hiding, but..."
Despite knowing the direction of this conversation, I continued to pretend to misunderstand her words.
"Isn't their location a little unsettling, sir?"
She sounded so unsure of herself. That was why I chose to play along.
"Yes, it really is. But don't worry," I assured her. "You'll find them eventually. All of you need to collaborate and think outside the box. That should solve everything."
'That won't solve shit! Literally!'
"They live in the sewers!!!" Kamal Khoury exclaimed loudly. He was standing right behind Nina, and he seemed quite upset about the situation.
He was probably trying to comfort himself by taking his anger out on someone else.
"They aren't a threat to anyone, and did I mention it's the sewers? We shouldn't be wasting any more time searching for something that helps our ecosystem!! We're warriors, and we should be fighting monsters, not playing around with gadgets, looking for some stupid Drut!!"
This guy must have thought the world revolved around him.
If there was one thing I hated, it was people who acted superior because they had a higher position. It was pure arrogance, plain and simple.
"That's enough, Kamal," I snapped, interrupting him. "If you wish to drop out of the tournament, please return your tags and follow the exit signs."
"Boooooooo!!!"
The audience booed at Kamal's suggestion.
"But Sir!"
"No buts, Kamal. No matter how many times you repeat yourself or anyone else, there will never be another opportunity to get back in my show once one of you quits."
Kamal sighed deeply and hung his head low. His shoulders slumped forward, and his expression turned from angry to sullen.
His mood changed almost instantly once I spoke to him. It was almost as if I'd cast a spell over him.
"Sir, I'm sorry."
"Don't apologize. You have nothing to be ashamed of. As long as you stay loyal to the cause, we're good here."
I didn't mean anything bad with what I said; I simply meant to encourage him.
My words, however, obviously touched him. The tension disappeared from his face, and he stood up tall again.
"Thank you, sir. I'm going to stick with you guys until the end."
I think he meant the reward that comes with it, but I get the point.
[Views: 3,580,330,416]
Yes!
That's it! Reel more viewers in with some drama!
I smiled at Kamal and gave him a thumbs-up.
"All that's needed for your first task is to take a hundred photographs of the Druts from different angles," I continued. "But since the Druts themselves are too small to see with the naked eye, you must use a high-powered lens on your mobile devices to clearly capture their images. You should then upload those photos to the forum."
There were several screens scattered throughout the stadium. They would allow us to view the photos in real time.
[00:03:00]
[00:02:00]
[00:01:00]
[Beep Beep]
[Begin]
A portal opened in front of the participants, and every one of them started to file inside.
"Good luck," I told them. "And remember, only when you've completed the quest or quit can you exit the underground tunnels and come back into the arena aboveground. You have six days to complete this challenge, so make sure you leave no stone unturned. Good luck!"
As soon as they left through the portal, I activated the next phase of the event.
"Alright, folks," I announced, "let's make some magic happen!"