A few days later…
The stadium was packed once more. People rushed to their seats, pushing other aside. Food and drinks from branded companies were of course being handed out by servers. In the middle of the Rush, Janus calmy squeezed through and arrived at the front row. He tucked his hands into the pockets of his jacket and searched for a particular seat. After a few seconds of searching, he found it. Beside it, Taylor – who wore a cap was scrolling through her phone.
"Yo." Janus said, sitting in his seat.
Taylor flinched and dropped her phone. Then, he picked it up and sat straight.
"Sup." Taylor replied, wiping her nose.
"When is the match starting?" Janus smiled.
"In a minute" Taylor titled her head.
"Ah, Okay – Okay." Janus nodded. "But aren't you worried about Cain?"
"Hm!" Taylor pouted. "I'm not worried. I can beat him."
"Are ya sure…? Your match doesn't say anything like that…"
"Come on! It was a one-time thing! I didn't know he had an attribute like that."
"Because you were doom-scrolling till February…you didn't research his attri-"
"No need to bring it up! That was the past. Now, let's focus on the present."
Janus chuckled. "Fine – Fine…"
Suddenly, the next match was displayed on the screen. The crowd turned their heads toward this stadium as Dante voice rippled through the arena.
"Welcome back, ladies and gentlemen. It's great to see your amazing faces once again~"
"The group matches rounded up two days ago. Today is February 7th and the start of the round of sixteen!" Mack announced.
"This means only 32 participants remain in total from both the Armed and Unarmed league and…Mack, you say it." Dante tapped his hands on the table.
"That means all these youngsters are going to Stratos University – full scholarship, no cost"
"That feels unfair somehow." Dante commented.
"Not on your wavelength now, Dante." Mack replied.
"I'm joking. I'm joking." Dante laughed. "I've got first-hand experience. I'm not going to say anything about but…"
Dante looked towards the audience and tugged at his mic.
"Dear participants, here's a word from the supreme commander of the REOC. Congrats on getting to Stratos University. You've all worked hard for this moment. Be proud – be happy but don't think this is where you stop. This is only the beginning. I wish you all the best of luck from this moment onwards."
The crowd applauded Dante's congrats with cheers. Dante leaned back as Mack prepared to speak.
"Thank you 'supreme commander of the REOC' for giving such a wonderful congratulations to our dear participants. Now, let's get to the matches."
"That was mildly sarcastic." Dante muttered, waving his hand.
As he spoke, the holographic screen showed the next match. The two chaos incarnates began walking out of their lockers as the Mack was announcing their names.
"On one side we've got the favorite to win the Unarmed league – Yuri Akito. On the other side, we've got…Priscus Clades."
The two stepped into the ring, staring each other down.
"Let's get the match started! Ref!" Dante screamed.
Janus leaned forward, focusing intently on Yuri's match. The referee approached them, raised his hand and pinched his whistle. Then…he blew the whistle and ran away. Yuri went into a fighting stance. The stadium held its breath. Yuri rushed forward, activating his attribute. He swung his leg at his opponent but just then…
"I forfeit."
Yuri froze and missed his attack. As he landed, he turned around with a confused expression.
"What?" He blurted.
"I said…" Priscus turned around. "I forfeit."
The air in the stadium became awkward. The referee slowly came back to the arena. Mack tugged at his mic once again.
"Well – Well, guys, looks like we have another one."
Dante sighed, rubbing his head. "A forfeiter who gives up once he's confirmed his entry ticket to Stratos. We've had these kinds of contestants since the 21st century."
Back in the arena, the referee talked with the fighters. Then, he declared a verdict. He drew a deep breath and spoke through his headset mic.
"Since Priscus forfeited when the match started. The forfeit is valid. The winner of the fight is Yuri Akito."
Janus leaned back – annoyed.
"These bitches…"
"There annoying as hell. They achieve their goal and go out just like that. Like, they don't have any spirit." Taylor sneered.
Then, Dante voiced resounded again.
"Well…let's move on I guess?"
As Mack announced th next fighters, Janus heaved a sigh and stood up.
"Hey, where are you going?" Taylor asked, resting her chin on her palm.
"Someplace else. I was only here for Yuri's match." Janus replied, heading off.
"Well…" Taylor turned back to the arena. "Have it your way."
Janus climbed the stairs. Pushing past the people, he arrived at the exit. He stepped through, stepping onto a marble flooring. The room was quiet and empty with no one sight. He didn't pay it much mind and treaded forward, towards the elevator. He entered and pushed the button to the ground floor. The metallic doors closed as a ting sounded. The elevator shifted and began climbing down.
Janus waited in silence – patiently. After a few minutes, the ting sounded again and the doors opened. He exited. He gazed the ground floor, it was filled with staff – nothing more but even they were mesmerized by the fights. He glanced upward at the large screen playing the fight in real time. The fighters clashed as Dante and Mack screamed through their mics. Janus smirked
'This tournament is really the highlight of the year…'
He spun around, heading outside.
'Well…now, that I'm in Stratos. I've really got nothing to do.'
The glass door opened automatically, letting him stride forward into the city.
'But now…I've got this urge…urge to defeat that Yuri…'
He paused for a moment as the sun hit him. He closed one eye and looked at the sky. As he peered into the beautiful sky, he saw four massive over-arching pillars which were connected via a gigantic circle and joined them all. He smiled and lowered his head.
"Yes…that's it…my new goal…is to defeat Yuri…" Janus muttered under his breath.
Then, he stepped back into the shade. Feeling the calm breeze, he heaved sigh of relief. Then, he caught the sound of someone approaching. He tilted his head and tucked his hands in his pockets. The man had an all-grey outfit with grey hair and green eyes – Cain. He halted near Janus and opened his mouth.
"Why are you outside the stadium?" Cain asked, titling his head.