Within the darkness, the light shone upon Judge Dredd, who was standing at the center of the Arena.

"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for coming to the Semifinals of the Lionheart Tournament!"

Cheers and applause resounded all over the Coliseum as Judge Dredd announced the start of the Semifinals.

They had all witnessed the amazing battles so far, and, among all of the battles, they wanted to watch Nero fight against My Daddy in the arena.

Now that their wish was realized, everyone's mood was at its peak as they waited for Judge Dredd to call out the two teenagers who would fight each other for the right to enter the Final Match.

"Our first contender is someone who hails from Wildgarde Stronghold," Judge Dredd stated. "He is someone born from humble origins, and, yet, he has shown everyone that he can stand on this stage today because of his hard work and perseverance."

"An amazing young man, who had earned enough merits to turn his Bronze-Ranked Guild into a Silver-Ranked Guild just a few months ago. Ladies and gentlemen, let's welcome the Guild Master of the Silver-Ranked Guild in Elysium, Storm Dragon."

"Please, give a round of applause to Nero!"

Several spotlights landed on the left side of the arena where the path which led to the arena could be seen. A moment later, a young man appeared with a confident smile on his face.

A thunderous applause and cheering broke out inside the Coliseum as Nero walked towards the center of the arena with his right fist raised high in the air.

His steps were steady, and his stance was quite obvious for everyone to see.

'I will win!'

That was how everyone who saw Nero that day interpreted his confident entrance in the arena under the ever watchful stares of countless pairs of eyes.

"""Nero!"""

"""Nero!"""

"""Nero!"""

"""Nero!"""

The crowd chanted his name, as they looked at the young man who was one of the crowd favorites to win the tournament.

Nero's guild officers and guild members had also come to support their Guild Master in his fight. Although he and Lux were like oil and water, the brown-haired teenager was well loved by his Guild because of his competent management as well as his outstanding leadership qualities.

Even the Elders of Wildgarde Stronghold, including Vera, had no complaints about his way of managing things. Through him, the young members of Wildgarde Stronghold had achieved many things, and this pushed the Storm Dragon Guilds to become one of the highly respected guilds in Elysium.

This was similar to how Aina's Guild, Eternal, was treated in the Gweliven Kingdom, who even gained the trust of the Royal Family in the Kingdom where their Guild Headquarters were stationed.

"Nero, would you like to say a few words to everyone before your match starts?" Judge Dredd asked as he handed the artifact that magnified a person's voice to the brown-haired teenager whose presence had wowed everyone in the coliseum.

Accepting the artifact, Nero's gaze landed on the platform where Iris was seated.

"Everyone, thank you for coming here today to watch the Semifinal Matches of the Lionheart Tournament," Nero said. "I feel very privileged and happy, being able to stand on this stage today and show everyone a good fight. To everyone that supported me, especially my Guild Members, thank you. I will do my best to not let everyone down."

Right after Nero finished his speech, another round of cheers and applause reverberated inside the arena. He didn't mention Iris in his speech, but it was clear to everyone who knew him that the young man had decided to let his actions speak for themselves, rather than saying anything. As long as he became the Champion, everything he wanted to say would be conveyed in full.

"""Nero!"""

"""Nero!"""

"""Nero!"""

"""Nero!"""

Nero's Guild Officers, and Members, shouted with all of their might as they cheered for their Guildmaster.

Judge Dredd smiled and allowed the chanting to continue for half a minute before he raised his hand and asked for everyone to calm their tits.

"Now, let me introduce to you the other contestant that will be fighting here today," Judge Dredd said. "We don't know much about him, and his background is shrouded in mystery. When I first saw him, I even thought that he was just a harmless individual, but, in this case, I was proved wrong."

"He has fought his way up from the Qualifying Matches to the Semifinals and performed well in all of them. All of you have seen him, and I'm sure that no one here today would dare say that he doesn't have the right to stand on this stage today."

"No matter how high the mountains or how deep the sea, this man will cross it and gain victory! Everyone, please welcome, the one and only! My Daddy!"

Suddenly, the song, Natural Playboy, from Bust a Groove! played in the background as the spotlights landed on the right side of the arena.

--

"All the people everywhere,

Everybody wants to hear My Daddy philosophy

'Cause I look like a star when I'm smoking' my cigar

They wanna be just like me.'

---

A chubby teenager moonwalked out of the waiting area as the music played in the background.

When he was still living on Earth, Lux had a knack with playing musical instruments, so he decided to do a recording, and sang one of the songs from one of the games he played in the past.

The upbeat rhythm, and groovy music, as well as the chubby teenager's moonwalking made the crowd laugh, and cheer for him.

Iris, on the other hand, covered her face in embarrassment upon seeing her step-brother's antics, while Vera, on the other hand, simply shook her head. She knew that Lux had the tendency to do the unexpected, so she easily accepted the fact that the Half-Elf had done what he felt like doing.

Eiko, who was perched on top of Iris' head, giggled as she swayed from side to side, feeling giddy due to the upbeat music that was playing in the background.

--

"In the Taverns or on the streets, everybody that I meet

wants to learn and play my game

And they watch the way I move, from my head to my shoes

And all the girls know my name~"

--

"""My Daddy!"""

"""My Daddy!"""

"""My Daddy!"""

"""My Daddy!"""

The girls who were listening to the song cheered louder, so the chubby teenager waved in their direction. Even the men in the audience couldn't stop themselves from laughing as they watched My Daddy's unusual entrance before his match.

-

"I know in their hearts they wish and dream

That they could be like me

But if they want to know the truth, it's true!"

--

The spotlights changed color and several colorful fireworks exploded in the arena, making Bruno's and Judge Dredd's lips twitch. Clearly, this wasn't part of the script, but they had no choice but to bear with it and watch the chubby teenager point upwards, hyping everyone before the match.

--

"I'm the natural My Daddy of town,

And I'm blowin' every mind

'Cause I'm one of a kind.

And I'm the coolest daddy around.

The lights are shining down on me

So everyone can see

Their natural My Daddy."

--

Lux finished his performance with a dabbing pose, as several fireworks exploded around him.

The crowd went wild and chanted his name over, and over again, resounding all over the coliseum, and beyond its walls.

"... Dafuk is this sh*t?" Judge Dredd muttered as he looked at the chubby teenager who was still in a dabbing pose, and being bathed by the loud cheering of the audience, making him scratch his head in helplessness.

Even Nero had no words to say, and he only looked at My Daddy with a calm gaze. Just like everyone, he didn't know that his opponent would make such a grand entrance before the two of them fought against each other.

High above the main seat of honor, the Headmaster of Barbatos Academy, Alexander, sighed before pinching the bridge of his nose.

"You brat. To think that you would create a scene like this," Alexander said softly.

Alicia, who was standing beside him, felt beads of sweat start to form on her forehead.

Although she hadn't said anything to Alexander in respect to Vera's request, she had a feeling that the Headmaster had discovered who "My Daddy" really was after observing his matches over the past few days.

The moment Lux stepped into the arena, he felt as if he had lost several years of his life due to shame and embarrassment. Fortunately, he was using a different face to hide his real identity, so no one could judge him.

Just a day ago, he decided to do one of the things that he hadn't been able to do in his past life, and that was to sing and dance in front of an audience.

Thinking that today was a good opportunity to fulfill that life-long wish, he decided to give it a try, which led to what had just transpired.

'I'm never doing this sh*t again,' Lux thought as he gazed at Nero with a calm expression on his face, but deep inside, he wanted to dig a hole and bury himself inside it. 'Still, that felt good.'

Bruno, who was still trying to get over Lux's performance, glanced at the two fighters, and asked if they were ready to start the match.

Nero and Lux simply nodded their heads before both of their bodies were covered with the sets of armor that they would be using in today's battle.

Nero held a blue blade, which crackled with tendrils of lightning, as he took a fighting stance, pointing the sword in Lux's direction.

Orion stood behind Lux with his arms spread wide in a protective stance. The chubby teenager, on the other hand, had also taken a fighting stance as he waited for Judge Dredd's signal to start the battle.

Seeing that both fighters were finally ready, he raised his hand and shouted.

"Battle Start!"