As the high-noon sun toned down its scorching rays a bit, people once more converged from all directions.
They were all headed to the Gaora Public Square to watch the latter half of day one of the Arcana Primis Cup Main Tournament.
There were thirty-two more matches, and each was expected to be far spicier than any of the earlier sixty-four.
After all, it would be winners versus winners, and only the strongest and most competent among the youngsters would continue advancing.
Both Hal and Ennya were also back to their designated seats beside the minor stages.
Soon, Akari ascended the main stage, causing everyone’s enthusiasm to skyrocket once more.
She scanned the crowd with a smile.
"It seems everyone had quite a nice lunch and is full of energy for thirty-two more exciting matches, so let’s get round two of the tournament underway!"
Her announcement was met with the thundering roars and applause of the audience, hyping up even the high-profile youngsters.
Wasn’t this the moment of glory they had all been waiting for?
Most of them, including Hal, glanced around, eyeing who they thought would be their toughest opponent yet, and a majority of the gazes landed on one individual: Felix Dargon, the third young master of the Grand Aristocratic Wizardry Clan of Dargon.
His display earlier had been the most dominant.
Although most participants were still not using their full power, Felix might have been the same. The seasoned look in his eyes told tales of dangerous situations he had survived and that had made him stronger mentally.
He was no simple, spoon-fed young master.
At least not as much as others with a similar profile to him.
The other common recipients of such competitive gazes were Ennya; Vyse, the other Magna Prospect; Pierro, the sophomore five-star student who wielded dark magic; and Donner Rakurai, the only disciple chosen by the infamous former Thunder Magna, Rajra Thunderclap, who raged like a demon on the battlefield in his prime, took the lives of countless Fellkins, and had never taken a disciple in the past due to the lack of both talent and fearless attitude.
Only one such gaze was directed toward Hal, and it was from none other than his fake childhood friend, Korren Neidisch.
He caught a glimpse of someone facing him and then finally sensed the gaze, prompting Hal to turn and look back, locking eyes with the bastard.
Almost instantly, upon realizing what was happening, Hal sneered and shook his head before turning away.
It was truly hard for him not to laugh at Korren’s antics.
The guy was so invested in him to the point he was practically living in the idiot’s head rent-free.
Fortunately, the fake didn’t have to wait much to obtain what was coming for him, as Akari began calling names the next moment.
The order was randomized this time, and Liora was among those who were up first. Surprisingly, she and her opponent, Fashur, a fellow freshman and five-star student of the Grand Magic Academy who wielded ice elemental magic, were assigned to the main stage, despite their rather low seedings of thirty-fifth and thirty-third, respectively.
It couldn’t be denied, though, that they were among the spiciest matchups, as they were perceived to be closely matched in both raw power and the number of spells.
Perhaps it was even a request from the higher-ups to allow them to fight on the main stage.
"Liora! Lightwork, lightwork!" Hal cheered with a smile.
He had grown quite close to her during their time in the runeforest, and it wouldn’t even be a stretch to call them close friends now.
Of course he wanted Liora to win.
The mood of the young maiden, already quite high heading into the match, lifted even further after hearing Hal’s cheers.
Naturally, her opponent noticed.
"Oh, the lady seems to be in a good mood?" greeted Fashur. "I’m not going to hold back, so let’s fight to our best without taking things too personal, fair?"
While they were all five-star students, there had always been a divide between the poor and the aristocracy, so Liora couldn’t say she was on good terms with Fashur.
All she could claim was that they knew each other.
Fashur was among those who often antagonized the other two diamonds in the rough, after all, which made it difficult for Liora to develop a good impression of him, despite the fact that he acted quite decent around her and even invited her to meals from time to time, though she always rejected the invitations.
"Oh, I have an idea," the tanner-skinned young man suddenly added. "How about I treat you to a meal if I win?"
Liora didn’t respond, simply taking out her newly purchased light elemental wand.
"Then I’ll take that as a yes."
The next moment, Fashur pulled out the ice elemental staff strapped to his back, the timer above them counting down:
Almost immediately, both wizards began firing sharp projectiles.
Liora shot five Glow Needles, while Fashur countered with five Glacial Shards.
To the ice elemental mage’s horror, his spells were outclassed—shattered into smaller pieces as his opponent’s needles continued flying toward him.
"What?!" he roared in disbelief, aiming his staff at the ground.
An ice wall emerged and finally stopped the needles, though not before it gained a few cracks.
Unfortunately for Fashur, Liora had been through some horrifying situations, and she had long shed the naivety of staying idle to see whose spells were superior.
Before Fashur even realized what had happened, a blur of light stopped just to his right.
And it was the last thing he saw before his vision went black.
Liora took a deep breath and smiled subtly in satisfaction, immediately looking Hal’s way afterward.
Just his simple gesture of a wide smile and a thumbs up was enough to make her skies feel a little bluer.
And so, with a lethally charming smile that even her classmates had never seen from her, Liora descended the main stage triumphantly.