The Royal Land had never been busier than today. There were only joyful faces as they headed toward the arena for the greatest tournament for warriors in Elon, music filled the air as the people felt chock full of adrenaline-pumping happiness. The vibrancy of the event, the energy of the dancing dragons, the fireworks that made an artistic canvas of the early morning sky, was looked forward to by all. The people flowed like rivers, never stopping for obstacles but swirling around them.

On those wide avenues of Royal land with wilted trees, their leaves curled and blackened in the gentle morning heat, the buildings towered on each side. The crowd had a life of its own, their vibrant clothes shone in the morning light and the people moved like enchanting shoals of fish. There was chatter between sellers and buyers, old friends catching up, new friends making. It's busy for sure, but the hustle and bustle brought life to this city one wouldn't want to be without.

Among the crowd of people, half of them had their faces painted in various colors. They showed support for their star by this gesture. Even the little kids comfortably sitting on their fathers' shoulders had their faces painted.

Life might be hard for some but today, there wasn't a face that did not show a wide grin.

Excitement, adrenaline, fans, and a perfectly manicured turf, were all things that came to Ethan's mind when he entered the arena through the VIP entrance. The Ataxia was one of the most impressive arenas he has ever been to. If anyone visited this arena for the first time, they would be overwhelmed by the size, and beauty of its massive structure. The majestic arena stood almost 600 feet high and could seat 130,000 roaring fans.

The first thing Ethan noticed when entering the stadium was the ocean of crowd, he thought it would be more suitable to call them fans as there were so many of them, wearing the various colors of clothes, painted faces, and carrying boards that had their heartfelt message written on them. For people like Ethan, it was just a board but for the die-hard fans, they were like bridges that connected them with their stars. They waved the boards up in the air, hoping their stars would take notice.

The entire arena filled with people was so beautiful, it was like a painting painted by the happiest painter in the world. There was excitement and anticipation in the air as the thousands of fans started singing, and chanting for the sects and the stars they support. The noise kept getting louder and louder as other fans arrived and joined in. There were thousands of fans, cramming their way into every available seat. The seats for anyone except VIPs were made of cold, hardwood, and painted white and yellow, the two colors that represented the Royal land. Although the wooden seats were not really comfortable to sit on as they were built so close together so one had to squeeze into them, the excitement in their hearts overshadowed the discomfort felt by their bodies.

The arena had loads of smells. Ethan could smell the gentle morning breeze. The aromas from different foods were so strong he could actually taste them in his mouth. There was also a smell of freshly brewed ale that had been spilled time and time again. The sunlight reflecting on the gigantic mirrors set all around the arena was blinding, it shone down on the field, the crowd and made everything look so bright and dazzling. In addition to the mirror, there were lights set on massive metallic structures, which held them high above the arena; they could be seen from miles as they lit up the night sky. Below the set of lights on the west side of the arena was a scoreboard. It was magnificently lit up, at the moment, the scoreboard was empty, void of names.

After looking at the accommodation for the normal people, he was glad he was able to buy VIP tickets. The VIP accommodations were located on the east side of the arena, closer to the battle area, built on an elevated stage to give them a clear view of the fights. Moreover, their seats were not wooden chairs, they were recliner cushions. On top of better seating and view, the VIP balcony also had Ruby Cuisine stalls set up so the VIPs could get better and tastier foods and merchant stalls that sell opera glasses for children and for those who have problems with their eyesight.

Ethan was carrying buckets of snacks which include honey popcorns, roasted chicken legs, fruit juices, and some other snacks he had never even heard of before to his neck. Yet he was being pushed by his wife who had nothing in her hands. The only thing Ethan took pleasure in was, every man in his family had the same fate as him.

"Walk faster Ethan, you have glue stuck up your feet or something"

"For crying out loud, I'm a lord of this family and carrying all these things like a servant."

"Well, you were the one who said it's a waste of money to buy tickets for the servants" Diana retorted with a chuckle.

Ever since she made the promise she won't cry anymore after reading the interview of Ghost, she had become the joyous person she used to be.

"If I knew you people would spend that money on these snacks, I would have bought tickets for everyone. At Least, I would have been spared from being a mule" Ethan rolled his eyes while navigating through the seats.

"Stop bickering you two, these are our seats" Emelda reminded both Diana and Ethan. She first let the kids take their seats while supervising the men to their seats.

In the Winston family, after Ethan's parents and Diana, Emelda held the highest authority. All the family members looked up to her leadership when Ethan was stuck, she was a natural-born leader. Among the three hunt sisters, Diana was the rebel, Natalia was the silent child and Emelda was the opposite of both of them. She was a disciplined, outspoken child.

More than anything in the world, she loved her sisters. That was the reason that even after running away from Awor Continent, she refused to get married as she had seen marriages tear apart a family. She never wanted to be put in a situation where she had to choose between her family and her sisters. To this day, Emelda never regretted her decision not to get married, everyone in the Winston family loved and adored Emelda. The children loved just as much as they loved their mothers or even more.

"Mariam, don't fight with your brother"

"Bernie, you take that seat over there"

"Uncle Fedor, don't you dare stick that gum under that chair"

She was the last person to take her seat after scolding, diffusing fights, and disciplining everyone. The entire Winston family was here except for Rowena, Natalia, and her husband who refused to see their son getting beaten.

"What would we do without you?" Diana squeezed Emelda's hand when she took her seat beside Diana.

"You guys will be like headless chickens without me" Emelda chuckled while playfully pinching Diana's cheeks.

Suddenly Emelda's smile became a frown,

"You look different Dian"

Diana hoped she wouldn't notice the difference even though she deep down knew Emalda would. Diana shared everything with her two sisters however, this time, she wasn't going to. No one must know about her leaving the house to kill the reapers. Michael met only four reapers but in reality, more than fifty reapers had picked up the contract for his head. It was Diana who kept the reapers from swarming Michael.

Of course, she knew she couldn't keep track of every single one of them. That was why she shadowed Ghost from a distance. Even when Michael killed the four reapers in a forest and killed a reaper on his way to Royal land, she was always there for him in case something went wrong. Seeing her son battle people ahead of his cultivation stage reminded herself of her. She was proud, but at the same time, she was also worried.

"You know I'm just excited to see him again"

Emelda knew by him, Dian meant Ghost. Diana hid her secret life by telling Emelda the truth instead of a lie.

"I hope Andrews dont get on the stage with him," Emelda sighed. They spoke in whispers so the others couldn't hear them, not that anyone could in the cheers of the fans.

"Where are they anyway?" Emelda looked around to locate Noah and his group.

"With Maisy's family I think," Diana said,

"Maisy's family here?!" Emelda grinned with excitement. Ever since she met the cute little girl, she wanted to meet her family.

"Do you know Maisy hates him?" Suddenly Ethan came into the conversation. He emphasized the word him. The two ladies turned their heads at the same time to look at Ethan.

"Now that you said it, I did notice the little girl frown when something comes up about him"

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

Just as Ethan was about to tell them what happened inside the Nether Realm, three loud bell sounds reverberated the arena. Immediately the crowd went silent.

"Welcome to the Championship tournaments" A cheerful male voice sounded after the bell sounds. With this, the tournament has finally started.

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