"Well, it has been fun, but it's kinda apparent that your participants are dominating the competition," Responded Agatha with a wry smile. 

  　　"I do not think that is a bad thing, we can see the room for improvement here," Chimed in Cusana with a nod. 

  　　"At least two of your participants progressed to the quarter-final round……only one of Idyll's participants made it to the second round, but no further than that," Sighed Siterra wistfully. 

  　　"The two of ours that made it to the quarter-finals are matched up against each other though," Pointed out Agatha. 

  　　"Yeah, I don't see how that's a bad thing, it basically guarantees that one of your participants will make it to the semi-final round," Countered Sylvar slyly. 

  　　"Oh, you're right, I didn't think of it that way."

  　　"On another note, it looks like the concession stands have been really popular, most of the audience seem to have visited some of the stands and gotten themselves snacks and stuff. Making this tournament an annual event is gonna be a really good thing for this world," I remarked optimistically. 

  　　"I must agree, such an event will generate steady streams of income for each nation, particularly the one hosting the tournament……rotating hosts each year is an excellent idea," Nodded Cusana in agreement. 

  　　"We can make it even more profitable with the right additions……for example, a betting pool on the results of the tournament, guess the outcomes and win a ton of money!" Suggested Agatha with a gleam in her eyes. 

  　　"Gambling, huh……sure, sounds good to me!" Said Sylvar with interest, "We could also sell merchandise related to the tournament, stuff like figures or posters of the most popular competitors and stuff like that!" 

  　　"Good idea, that'll also provide work for those with artistic talents. We've got a lot of options," I agreed with interest……you know, this tournament might end up being a more profitable event than I thought. 

  　　Hm, in what other ways did sports tournaments back in my old world make money? I wasn't really that interested in sports, so I never really watched any, but……huh? 

  　　What was that? For a brief, split second, I could've sworn that I saw a dim ball of light touch me……am I just seeing things? It seemed to disappear as soon as I noticed it…… 

  　　"What the……? Hey, did anyone else just see that?" Suddenly spoke up Sylvar with a confused look on his face. 

  　　Wait, did he just see it too? 

  　　"See what? What are you talking ab……huh? What was that light?" Said Bell in surprise. 

  　　"You two saw it too? I thought I was just imagining it……but if three of us saw it, then……," I frowned in bewilderment. 

  　　"Hold on a sec, it seems like we each saw it at different times. How's that possible?" Responded Sylvar with a look of concern. 

  　　"Uh, I'm kinda lost here. I don't see any light or anything like that," Chimed in Agatha, while Cusana and Siterra also looked confused. 

  　　"It was just for an instant, and it disappeared the moment I noticed it, or at least, that's how it felt……," I muttered uncertainly. 

  　　"Yeah, same here!" Added Sylvar with a nod. 

  　　"Yes, my experience was similar," Bell scratched her chin in bemusement. 

  　　"I'm not seeing it anymore, so maybe it was nothing?" I remarked doubtfully. 

  　　"Maybe……," Replied Sylvar, looking a bit unconvinced. 

  　　"Well, let's worry about this hypothetical light later……the quarter-final round is about to start," Pointed out Agatha. 

  　　Yeah, she's got a point, I guess. Belia's already announcing the start of the quarter-final round…… 

  　　"Alright, we're into the quarter-finals, and not far from the conclusion of this tournament! The first quarter-final is……huh? A light……?" She suddenly trailing off with a confused tone, before shaking her head and adding, "Sorry about that! Anyway, as I was saying……"

  　　She saw it too? I don't like this……just what the hell was that ball of light, anyway……?

  　　———————————————————————————
　　Point-of-View: Cusnai Bronztan 

  　　———————————————————————————
　　"As I was saying, it's time for the first quarter-final, and it's a clash between two participants from the Rustlands, Minise versus Cusnai!" 

  　　This should be fun……I definitely don't stand a chance without using my power boosting serums, so I'll have to use one of those as soon as the fight begins, or at least as soon as she enters her Undead Mode. 

  　　We've been best friends for a while, and we have sparred together several times, but it's been a while since we fought each other in a proper duel. And I plan to win…… 

  　　"You ready to get your ass kicked, Cus?" Grinned Minise, as she cracked her knuckles. 

  　　"Keep talking, let's see if you can back it up, Minise," I smirked in response. 

  　　She's got a ton of tricks up her sleeve, and while my arsenal is a lot smaller than hers, I still have a fair number of options to fall back on. Here's hoping I've got enough to pull this off……

  　　"Let's kick off the first quarter-final match, time to……BEGIN!"

  　　Minise shot towards me while entering her Undead Mode immediately, extending several woody vines in my direction as she closed the gap. I see, so she plans to force me to use my serum right away, does she? 

  　　If she's going all out right from the start, I don't exactly have a choice……I'll have to end this within two minutes, or I'm screwed. As she began to close in on me, I sprang back to avoid her vines and injected the contents of my Berserker Serum into my bloodstream, before firing out a powerful lightning blast at her as it took effect. 

  　　She blocked the blast with her vines and then countered with a barrage of ice projectiles, which I deflected with my short spear, knocking them away. 

  　　I then flung one of my spears straight at her like a javelin, before activating a Spell Card in my pocket as she dodged it, one that I'd borrowed from Niski after the previous round. 

  　　The moment I activated it, I swapped places with the spear I'd flung, finding myself right behind Minise. As I began to drive my other spear towards her back, she burst out an intense wave of heat, causing me to stiffen for a brief instant. 

  　　"Gotcha now!" She exclaimed with a grin. 

  　　In that instant, she spun around and grabbed the handle of my spear, before driving her fist towards my midsection……I evaded it at the last possible moment by leaping up and balancing my weight on the spear that she'd grabbed, before bracing myself as one of her vines came rapidly whipping towards me. 

  　　I stiffened my midsection as it struck my left side, dropping an explosive vial by her feet as I got sent flying across and my right shoulder slammed onto the wall of the barrier, right as she sprang back in alarm to evade my vial. 

  　　It exploded as she jumped back, the force of the blast pushing her back several meters and nearly knocking her down, but she just about managed to keep her balance. 

  　　Ow, I think she fractured some of my ribs, and my shoulder is aching like crazy……but this isn't over yet, I'm not done here! 

  　　I flung a vial of adhesive fluid at her, which she deflected with an ice shard projectile before it got too close, the vial exploding into a large, sticky mass while still a few meters away from her. 

  　　Suddenly, one of her vines came rapidly zipping towards me while burning with intense flames, which I just barely ducked under and shot towards her at top speed, charging lightning into my spears as I picked up the one that I'd switched places with. 

  　　As I closed in on her, I slashed at her head with one of the spears, she ducked under it and swung a rising kick up at my midsection. I spun out of the way, her foot clipping my left side and sending a twinge of pain through my body as I felt an excruciating jarring against my fractured ribs. 

  　　I then gritted my teeth and drove my second spear towards her throat, but my thrust was abruptly halted as she grabbed the handle using her vines, and then swiftly swung her arm across, pulling me up and slamming me onto my back as she swung me over her shoulder. 

  　　I let out a sharp gasp of pain as my back hit the ground, before firing out a lightning bolt from my mouth as she began to attempt another attack, forcing her to spring back. 

  　　I quickly got back onto my feet and rushed at her, unleashing a relentless barrage of thrusts and slashes with my spears, grazing her a few times as she evaded my attacked. I'm running out of time with my serum, I need to hurry and finish this already! 

  　　Suddenly, she seemed to lose her balance as her foot bumped against a broken part of the arena, and as I swung both my spears inwards towards her, she smirked as she caught the handle of one of my spears with her right hand and blocked the second one with her foot, right as an immense wave of pain erupted throughout my body…… 

  　　"Looks like your two minutes are up, Cus……I win!" She declared triumphantly, as her vines wrapped around my torso and she drove her sharp, icy knuckles towards my throat……before the safety barrier kicked in and teleported me out.

  　　"The winner is……Minise of the Rustlands!" 

  　　_____________________________________________

  　　Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Don't forget to vote, and feel free to leave a comment, I appreciate any and all feedback and criticism!

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