A few hours before Rias stepped onto the arena, he was doing something completely different.
He was sleeping peacefully.
His face was buried deep in his soft pillows, and a quiet, exhausted snore escaped his lips. He looked completely dead to the world.
The past few days leading up to the Imperial Tournament had been an absolute nightmare. But it wasn't a nightmare of assassins, poison, or deadly combat. It was a nightmare of politics.
Before the grand tournament officially began, the Velmer Royal Family hosted several small, high-society banquets. As the official fiancé of the Princess, Rias was forced to attend every single one of them.
He hated it.
In his past life, Rias was a writer. He was used to sitting in a quiet, dark room in front of a glowing monitor, drinking cheap coffee and eating instant noodles. He was not used to standing in a crowded ballroom for six hours straight, wearing a tight, uncomfortable suit.
He had to smile at Dukes who wanted him dead. He had to politely answer fake questions from Counts who openly mocked his family. He had to sip fancy wine and pretend he didn't notice the maids glaring at him.
He finally realized a harsh truth. Even a Gold-tier foundation had its limits. His muscles didn't ache, and his mana was full, but his social battery was completely drained. Several days of late-night banquets had completely exhausted him mentally.
To add oil to the fire, there was Amyra.
His lovely fiancée was completely ignoring him. During the banquets, they were required to enter the grand halls together, arm in arm, smiling for the crowds. But the exact second they were away from the Emperor's watchful eyes, she would drop his arm and walk to the opposite side of the room.
It should have been a good thing. Rias wanted to keep his distance anyway.
But it still felt incredibly uncomfortable. Because even from across the massive ballrooms, he could feel her eyes on him.
Whenever he looked up, she was glaring at him with pure, concentrated murderous intent. She hadn't forgotten the "accident" by the river. Not even close. If looks could actually kill, Rias would have been sliced into a million pieces and fed to the royal hounds.
So, he kept his distance, survived the parties, and finally managed to crash into his bed late at night.
*Knock* *Knock*
The heavy wooden door of his bedroom rang loudly.
Rias didn't wake up. He groaned, pulling a thick silk pillow over his head to block out the noise. He was floating in a peaceful dreamworld, far away from angry princesses and political death traps.
*Knock!* *Knock!* *Knock!*
The knocking grew louder and much more aggressive.
"Lord Leonhart!" a gruff voice barked from the hallway.
"Wake up! The royal carriages are preparing to leave for the grand stadium!"
Rias slowly opened one crimson eye. He glared at the heavy door. He slowly sat up, the thick blankets falling off his shoulders. He rubbed his messy blonde hair and looked at the magical clock resting on his bedside table.
It was 7:00 AM.
Rias stared at the clock, his eye twitching.
'Seven in the morning?' Rias thought, entirely annoyed.
'The tournament matches don't officially start until noon. Why in the world are they leaving five hours early? Do they just want to sit in the VIP box and stare at an empty dirt ring all morning?'
He let out a heavy, irritated sigh. He walked over to the door and pulled it open just a crack.
A fully armored Royal Guard stood in the hallway, looking incredibly impatient.
"You need to get dressed, Leonhart," the guard ordered bluntly, skipping all the polite honorifics.
"Princess Amyra requested that you escort her to the carriages."
Rias stared at the guard with a deadpan expression.
'Escort her? Yeah, right,' Rias scoffed internally.
'She just wants to drag me out of bed early so she can scowl at me for five hours in the carriage. I am not playing this game today.'
"Tell Her Highness that I am sleeping in," Rias said smoothly, rubbing his tired eyes.
"I will come to the stadium before the tournament starts. Get lost."
Before the guard could even open his mouth to argue, Rias slammed the heavy white door shut and locked it with a loud click.
"Hey!" the guard shouted, banging his fist against the wood.
"You cannot ignore a direct order from the Princess!"
Rias completely ignored him. He walked straight back to his massive bed, collapsed onto the soft mattress, and pulled the heavy blankets all the way up to his chin.
"Ah... much better," Rias muttered.
Sleep claimed him instantly. He drifted right back into the peaceful, quiet dreamworld. Time slipped by like a rocket. The morning turned into the late forenoon, and the forenoon slowly faded into the baking heat of the afternoon.
Rias lay on the bed without moving a single muscle.
Suddenly, a warm ray of sunlight pierced through the gap in the curtains and hit him directly in the face.
Rias groaned, slowly opening his eyes. He stretched his arms, feeling completely refreshed and fully rested.
He sat up and lazily looked at the magical clock on the table.
It was 12:15 PM.
Rias blinked. He stared at the glowing numbers.
"Wait," Rias whispered into the quiet room.
His brain slowly processed the time. The Imperial Tournament started at exactly 12:00 PM.
"Oh, no."
Rias snapped fully awake. His relaxed expression vanished instantly, replaced by a look of absolute panic.
"I overslept!" Rias yelled, scrambling out of bed. His feet tangled in the silk sheets, and he almost crashed face-first into the floor.
He kicked the blankets away and sprinted into the bathroom. He didn't have time for a hot bath. He turned on the copper faucet, splashed freezing cold water onto his face, and aggressively scrubbed his teeth.
He ran back into the bedroom and threw his wardrobe open. He completely ignored the expensive, heavy noble suits Lily had picked out for him. They took too long to put on, and they were too tight to fight in anyway.
He grabbed a simple dark grey shirt, a pair of flexible combat trousers, and his favorite dark blue coat. He threw them on in record time, grabbed his leather boots, and didn't even bother tying his messy blonde hair back.
He sprinted out of his bedroom and dashed down the royal hallway.
A group of maids carrying fresh laundry were walking past the corner. Rias blew past them like a gust of wind.
"Whoa!" one of the maids yelped, dropping a pile of white towels onto the marble floor.
She turned around, her eyes wide with shock as she watched the Leonhart envoy sprinting away.
"Wasn't he supposed to be at the arena with the Royal Family?" another maid whispered in total confusion.
"What is he still doing here?"
Rias completely ignored them. He bolted down the grand staircase, pushed past a pair of completely baffled Royal Guards at the main doors, and burst out into the bright afternoon sun of the capital city.
He hit the bustling streets of Erzel at full speed.
'I just need to find the stadium,' Rias thought, dodging a slow-moving merchant cart.
'It is a massive arena that holds a million people. It should be impossible to miss.'
But reality quickly crashed down on him.
The capital city of Erzel was not a flat, open plain. It was a dense, sprawling metropolis. The buildings were incredibly tall, crafted from pristine white marble and glowing magical crystals. Massive towers blocked the skyline in every single direction.
Rias stopped in the middle of a busy intersection, looking left, right, and center. He couldn't see the stadium anywhere.
"Excuse me!" Rias shouted, grabbing the shoulder of a passing merchant carrying a crate of apples.
"Which way to the Erzel Stadium?"
The merchant yanked his shoulder away with an annoyed scowl.
"I'm busy, kid! If you aren't buying apples, get out of my way! The matches already started, I have to deliver this stock!"
The merchant hurried down the street, completely ignoring him.
Rias groaned in frustration.
'I am a Gold-tier fighter with a Mythic sword, and I am going to miss the plot because I don't have a map,' Rias thought miserably.
'If I had a flying skill, I wouldn't have to worry about this. I could just jump over the buildings and spot the arena. But no, I have to run on foot like a commoner.'
He picked a direction that looked promising and started running again.
He dashed down a wide, paved street lined with fancy boutiques. He thought he was heading toward the center of the city, but the street suddenly curved sharply to the right.
Rias skidded to a halt.
He was staring at a massive, solid brick wall. It was the back of a large guild building. It was a complete dead end.
"You have got to be kidding me," Rias muttered.
He spun around and sprinted back the way he came. He took a sharp left turn down a narrow alleyway, hoping it was a shortcut. He jumped over a pile of wooden crates and dodged a stray cat, only to find himself standing in the dumping ground of a smelly tavern. Another dead end.
"Damn this city's layout!" Rias cursed, turning around again.
He ran back to the main road, his frustration growing with every passing second. He was already incredibly late. Amyra was probably plotting his murder right now. The Emperor was probably ready to declare him a coward and order his execution.
He took one final, desperate turn down a massive avenue.
The tall marble buildings finally began to clear out. The street widened, opening up into a massive, paved plaza.
And there it was.
Rising high into the sky, surrounded by enormous magical banners, was the Erzel Stadium.
Rias let out a massive sigh of relief. He quickly started running across the plaza.
The outskirts of the arena were completely devoid of people. The usually busy ticket booths and merchant stalls were entirely abandoned. Every single citizen, guard, and noble was already inside the stadium, watching the first matches.
Rias hurried his pace, aiming straight for the massive, heavy iron gates at the bottom of the stadium walls. This was the entrance leading directly to the arena floor.
As he got closer, he slowed down, catching his breath so he wouldn't look completely exhausted.
Two heavily armored guards stood in front of the iron gates, holding long spears. They saw the boy approaching and immediately crossed their weapons, blocking his path.
"Halt!" the guard on the left shouted. "The arena is closed! The first elimination batches have already been called. No spectators are allowed down here. Go find a seat in the upper tiers!"
Rias stopped a few feet away from the crossed spears.
He was still wearing the dark hood of his cloak, hiding his face from the bright sun. He took a slow, deep breath, letting his heart rate settle down. The frantic, lost teenager who had just been running through alleyways vanished in an instant.
The two guards instantly stiffened. They felt the heavy, dangerous pressure pressing against their armor.
Rias slowly reached up and pulled his dark hood back.
His messy blonde hair fell over his forehead. He looked up, his sharp crimson eyes locking directly onto the guard on the left.
"I am not a spectator," Rias said. His voice was incredibly smooth, calm, and completely devoid of emotion.
"I am a participant. My name is Rias von Leonhart. Open the gates."
The guard's eyes went wide. The color completely drained from his face.
He recognized those red eyes. Everyone in the empire knew the rumors about the son of the devil.
"L-Lord Leonhart," the guard stammered, his hands shaking as he quickly pulled his spear back.
"W-We apologize! We didn't realize it was you! But... you are very late!"
"I am aware," Rias replied softly.
He unclasped his dark cloak and let it slide off his shoulders. With a quick thought, the System swallowed the fabric, sending it directly into his [Inventory].
He stood there in his simple dark blue coat, looking completely relaxed. The roaring sound of the massive crowd inside the stadium echoed through the thick iron gates, shaking the ground beneath his boots.
He could hear the referee shouting the rules. He knew exactly what was waiting for him on the other side of those doors.
"Open the gates," Rias ordered again.
The two terrified guards quickly grabbed the heavy iron handles and pulled with all their strength. The massive doors let out a loud, heavy creak as they slowly swung open, revealing the bright, sunlit dirt of the arena floor.
The deafening noise of a million screaming people hit Rias like a physical wave.
He didn't hesitate. He slipped his hands casually into his pockets, put a lazy, relaxed smile on his face, and walked forward.
He stepped out of the dark tunnel and onto the dirt, ready to face the entire Velmer Empire.