The partic.i.p.ants, together with the accompanying persons, hastened to leave the training room. An audience of two thousand people erupted in applause as they reached the arena. An electric atmosphere of excitement and uncompromising rivalry reigned here. The spectators were breathless with excitement. Everyone had already placed their bets and stocked up on food and drinks for the whole day.

Fifty platforms rose up from the ground all around the colossal arena. They were adorned with heraldic emblems and colorful flags of n.o.ble families. That's where the partic.i.p.ants and their family members went.

A high railing surrounded the platforms, protecting the stands behind them. The most luxurious seats in the front row were reserved for a few VIPs: the elders of the Grand family, the sects and the schools envoys, the distinguished guests from the other kingdoms, and the representatives of imperial power. The royal box was situated in the heart of the grandstand.

The stands were specially designed so that the platforms and the partic.i.p.ants on them were visible to everyone in the audience.

Juno looked up and saw Queen Vlada in the royal box, a beautiful busty woman with bright, bewitching eyes. She had a peculiar, elusive charm that made her dangerously seductive. She was wearing an elegant black custom-made dress in honor of the deceased king.

This beautiful woman had an undeniable talent and an outstanding intellect. Her invisible introduction into the human race and exhausting the kingdom's resources was a case in point. People made no complaints against her as everyone honored with her audience returned enchanted. Small wonder, she was a supreme demon, a charismatic, competent manipulator.

Juno noticed Vlada's slight frown and intent gaze at the representatives of the sects, who were too powerful by the standards of the Iron Throne. They must be high-ranking members of their vile sects.

Like any other representative of the demon race, Vlada felt an aversion towards human sects that poked their curious noses into almost every brewing conflict. She despised Yevga and Lana, the terrible women at the head of the Virgo and Dance sects. They had long gone beyond ordinary limits. Yevga and Lana alone could change the outcome of any battle, even if they have to fight with the generals of the empire. Their intervention in the latest world battle was a real tragedy for demons who lost a patriarch of one of the seven great families.

Kara, who was sitting next to her mother, didn't care about such things. She didn't follow her mother's example, choosing a s.e.xy burgundy dress as her outfit. The spectators would fall from the stands in admiration if she only spread her legs. It was like her.

Prince Charles was absent.

Juno turned away from the insidious demoness and noticed a stately man clad in a smart suit in the front row. It was Fernand, the representative of the highest echelons of imperial power. Something about him seemed strange and frightening. He looked straight at the young lady Stone.

Juno turned her eyes away, but then she was even more confused: the representatives of the sects were also looking at her!

In fact, nearly two hundred thousand people present in the arena took a glance at Juno. She attracted ordinary people with her unusually charming looks and tight-fitting combat outfit, but those who could see her stage of cultivation through the concealing bracelet admired her talent.

Seva's mind travelled in the same direction.

Both women looked at each other from different sides of the arena and immediately understood each other's intentions. A storm was coming...

Meanwhile, FatTso grunted his disapproval. The girl was too thin for his liking.

XiaoBai and Cornelia were sitting sat a few rows above the Fat sect employ. XiaoBai wanted to sit closer to the Stone platform, but for some reason, his "sweetheart" insisted on these seats. He had no desire to argue with her. The fat guy hadn't had any sleep recently, taking bets from all the solvent families in Boston. With pouchy bags under his red eyes, he looked like a restless spirit of the miser, pining away over gold.

Some patriarchs, being confident in the Stones' imminent defeat, made a deal with the Fat sect (and XiaoBai) at a leverage ratio of 50x and more. No one had any second thoughts, but they felt apprehensive and couldn't relax because the future of their families was at stake. They would be on the brink of poverty or even broke if the Stones somehow managed to take first place. If they heard that Juno was as talented as Elsa at her age, they wouldn't find it funny.

The rest of the families turned out to be smarter. They agreed to make a deal but kept the leverage to around 3x-10x. Now the patriarchs were rubbing their hairy hands in greedy antic.i.p.ation. They decided to undermine the morale in the Stone family to boost their chances of winning. All their family members were to get into the young Stones' heads, taunting and mocking them.

Kyon's intention to rip off all the families in the kingdom turned the Stones into a subject of ridicule. Their newly revived optimism was rapidly dying away. All Bostoners seemed to consider them a piece of garbage.

«Stephanie, can you see it too? What is going on here? Why are they messing with us? Are they taking us for clowns or what ?! Stephanie, tell me!» – Lee was getting more and more nervous, watching the people around him in panic.

«Don't be such a disappointment, Lee. I told you again and again no one else's opinion matters. Our family is everything. Remember this.» – Boe patted his grandson on the shoulder, encouraging him. The boy had become a total emotional wreck.

«Maybe it's all because we have only eight... that is, nine partic.i.p.ants.» – Stephanie said.

Juno snorted. They underestimated her, but it was even better so. She couldn't wait for the tournament to start to prove to them that she wasn't just a pretty face. It would be a nice surprise for grandpa and mom.

Timothy Brown turned his empty eyes away from Juno, who was standing on the platform on the opposite side of the arena. – «By the look of things, the Stones are going to lose even before we get to them. The Romanovs will mash their guts out. I expected more from a first ranking family... They are wusses and wimps. None of them deserves my attention.»

Herman roared with laughter. – «I completely agree with you, son. Two decades ago, they were worth nothing until Yurich, the brilliant patriarch and d.a.m.ned manipulator, arrived. The whole kingdom danced to his tune, so it is not surprising that they rose. But now that he's dead, it's time for this family to return to their rightful place of residence, the stinky garbage dump!» – The patriarch said spitefully. He sincerely rejoiced at the miserable prospects of the Stone family and Bai's fatal illness. He was hoping that patriarch Stone would die of a heart attack when the Stones lost their mines and plantations, and his beloved granddaughter was sold into slavery.

By the way, if the Browns beat the Romanovs after they defeated the Stones, they would get lion's share of the points, which guaranteed them the 1st rank in the kingdom.

Finally, the third bell rang.

The royal representative came to the center of the arena and delivered a five-minute opening speech through the formation of sound reinforcement. He reminded of the tournament rules and added that the first forty families were going to have 1-3 battles at a time. The protective barriers would be provided if necessary.

In other words, the families of the 50th -10th rank were unworthy to take the arena every time they got summoned.

Vlada solenmnly announced the beginning of the start of the tournament.

The buzz of voices and applause from hundreds of thousands of people filled the air. Some praised the queen, others supported their favorites, and some cheered in antic.i.p.ation of upcoming battles.

As soon as Vlada waved her hand, high up above the waterproof barrier appeared a bright screen with the list of the families. It nearly covered the whole sky. The emblem and the 50th ranking family name showed up in the middle of the screen, as well as the number of available summons.

The Patriarch Zhvanetsky (50) was given the formation of sound reinforcement to announce the names, fight format, and the family they were summoning.

To screams and shouts and loud applause, partic.i.p.ants Zhvanetsky entered the arena.

The patriarch of the summoning family conferred with the elder, nodded several times, and gave orders to his partic.i.p.ants. Three of them valiantly jumped off the platform. The moment they stepped into the arena meant the the choice of the partic.i.p.ants couldn't be changed (just like in chess when a piece has been released on a square, it cannot be moved to another square on this move).

The judges activated the formations, isolating the six opponents with three transparent domed protective barriers, and gave an audible signal to start the battle.

Six people clashed head-on...

Ten hours raced by in a blur, full of heart-rending, thrilling battles.

The partic.i.p.ants used a variety of weapons: swords, hammers, axes, clubs, throwing knives, needles, bows, crossbows... Many preferred to fight with their bare fists, with the help of the elements. Some were wearing sharp or heavy bra.s.s knuckles, gloves, s.h.i.+elds, or plate armor. Each partic.i.p.ant had an individual battle style. Their techniques captured the imagination of the audience, and their unique bodies features surprised even experienced masters...

The spectators hollered, screaming loud enough to tear their throats; they would do anything to support their favorite star performers. The battles between the 50th-10th ranking families worked the audience up into a frenzy. And yet, each spectator understood that it was only the beginning. The fights would be getting even more breathtaking between the higher-ranking families where the fighters were more powerful, the compet.i.tion was greater, and the stakes were higher.

The sects envoys' reaction was radically different. Nargise and Seva watched the partic.i.p.ants without any interest, looking over them with blank eyes. By their standards, these kids were mediocre sc.u.m. At some point, FatTso was so bored that he dozed off.

Unlike them, Queen Vlada was watching the battles with undisguised excitement in her eyes, something Princess Kara had yet to master: the fine art of pretense and playing to the crowd. Instead, Kara chose to admire her dear innocent flower, a ray of light in the darkness of ugliness. To her disappointment, Juno didn't look back at her. She was completely ignoring the princess. However, it didn't prevent Kara from imagining hot seducing scenes with this cold unapproachable girl.

When the emblem of the 9th ranking family appeared on the screen, the royal representative stepped into the center of the arena and announced a one-hour break.

n.o.body was going to leave the arena. Outside, the rain was coming down in sheets. Thunder rolled loud over the protective barrier in the lightning-pierced sky. No umbrella could help in this storm.

The break ended before it even started.

The royal representative announced that from now on, each battle would take the whole arena.

The audience was all for it, they no longer had to tear between the partic.i.p.ants.

The battles continued, the suspense was rising, the most exciting was still ahead.

About an hour later, it was the 7th ranking family turn. Patriarch Leontiev gave a 2a 2 summon to the Stones, impressing the audience with their courage.

«What a nerve?!» – Elder Boe exclaimed indignantly. No one below the third rank had ever attacked a first ranking family. The others were afraid to even look at their platform!

«Lee, Stephanie, turn them to dust! They will pay for their insolence!»

«We will, grandpa!» … «I am ready!» – The young Stones replied in unison and jumped down from the platform, radiating self-confidence. They were eager to wipe thousands of evil grins off the faces that had been mocking them for no reason. The first victory would raise the fighting spirit of the Stones. Boe had chosen them for a good reason! They wouldn't fail him!

Bai wanted to stop the young people, but he did not have time. They had already jumped (touched the surface of the arena). He sighed heavily and closed his eyes. Only Diana noticed his strange behavior.

As soon as there was a signal to start the battle, both opponents yelled in chorus. – «We give up!»