The notice for the third round of the tournament went live while the infested area was still being cleared out. Because the space requirements for the individual bracket weren’t as stringent as the command battles, it would be held on the originally scheduled date.
Secretary-General Lin immediately informed Norton, “Your Majesty, we’ve received word that the third round will be held on the previously announced date. We are to send out 5-10 participants. Points will be allocated based on the final ranking.”
The minimum number of participants was mainly for show. Countries generally filled out their roster because placing at any rank would result in some points. However, Secretary-General Lin has calculated that even if they didn’t send 10 participants, the points from the top rankings would still be enough to secure Grantz the win. 70% of the points were concentrated in the Top 20, and the number of points for first place was even more considerable.
This format was probably meant to screen out powerful countries and give them as much support as possible.
Norton raised his eyes. Ano also stood up and looked at Norton. “So Ye Muo has to go too?”
Ano confirmed once more that Ye Muo wasn’t in the room. He still lowered his voice with a hint of guilt, “Is he going?”
“Ye Muo isn’t around now.” He hinted.
Norton’s finger twitched. There was no reason to keep Ye Muo back. Te turned to Secretary-General Lin.
Secretary-General Lin nodded in understanding. “I’ll arrange for the list to be submitted.”
He adjusted his glasses. “You won’t be able to participate, Your Majesty.
However, Princess Helene and Dylan have already fulfilled their obligations to the Keller Federation. They can therefore represent Grantz in the next round. The other princes and princess have already been included in the list.”
Secretary-General Lin paused for a moment, “Including His Little Highness. Is this…alright?”
Norton made a sound of acknowledgement.
Ano grew anxious, “But Big Brother, that means…”
Norton interrupted Ano, turning to meet his eyes, “I’ll keep an eye on him.”
The restless emotions churning inside Ano gradually settled. Although he was still worried, he had calmed down quite a bit. That’s right. There was still Big Brother. His infallible big brother.
Secretary-General Lin continued, “Also, the results of the second round have also been officially processed. They will be rendered null just like the first round.”
Secretary-General Lin breathed a sigh of relief when the notice went out. This meant that they didn’t have to redo the command battles again.
He thought that the Alliance would shamelessly pile on additional terms to supplement the second round. Grantz would be at a significant disadvantage if the final points tally before the tournament suspension was taken into account. Thank goodness the second round had barely begun at that point.
However, not everyone felt this way.
Grantz’s legions were somewhat disappointed.
A group of soldiers had gathered in the public training room. One said, “There goes our chances of doing anything. It doesn’t feel right to rely on the princes and princesses so much for the entire tournament.”
“I literally didn’t get to do anything. The command battle ended before I received any orders, which is a bit regrettable. Hopefully I’ll get to show off my skills next time…”
“Although it’s called a command battle, there wasn’t much command involved. I was curious about the tactics other countries would use.”
“They should be similar to Grantz’s, no?”
Someone who had been silent until now turned and said, “You’re talking about the legion commanders? They do issue order during combat, but to be honest they seem more like fellow soldiers than commanders. I saw Legion Commander Vera right next to me while we were fighting. She charged even more fiercely than the rest of us…”
“You’ve been under her command for some time, right? As expected of the renowned legion of violence. Try being under Legion Commander Gu Yixiao for once. You just need to listen to his orders and boom, the fight’s over. I was a part of his vanguard unit once, carrying out order after order. It was all over before I knew what was going on.”
“In any case, it’s still a bit regrettable.”
Ye He did not join the discussions. He was undertaking shooting practice in an orderly manner like every other day.
The training room AI reminded him on his visor display, [Training completed. Calculating performance…]
Ye He put down his gun, retracting his visor with a tilt of his head and heading to his next training session.
He walk up to the group of people talking and started doing a set of sit ups.
“What about Commander He? Don’t you think it’s a pity?”
Ye He was now a well-known commander within the Grantz legions. Many people had high hopes for him forming a legion of his own someday.
Ye He paused in the middle of a sit up. The muscles in his waist and abdomen were clearly visible through his training vest from this position. He remarked while remaining in sit-up form, “You guys are about to run out of time for the morning exercises.”
Grantz didn’t mandate collective training, but there was a list of daily training tasks that would be submitted to each soldier’s superior.
The soldiers glanced at each other before dispersing in a panic to start training around the room.
“Crap, crap! There’s not enough time…!”
Ye He continued to train as his surroundings suddenly quieted down. He already had an answer in mind. There was nothing to regret about not having the opportunity to appear as a commander. He too was a normal person who did not like to see meaningless sacrifices, even though he found his subordinates noisy and annoying.
When Ye He finished training and returned to his residence near lunchtime, he spotted a familiar figure hovering by the window facing his door.
Ye Muo also noticed Ye He’s arrival. He ran towards Ye He, “Big Brother”
“What’s that plant outside your window? I’ve never seen leaves like that before.”
Ye He leisurely patted Ye Muo on the head. “It’s a shrub species native to this planet. You can dig some up later to take back.”
He open the door as he spoke. Ye Muo waited patiently beside him. “Are you sure? I wonder if it will bear any fruit.”
“Yes. It does bear fruit that’s edible too.”
Ye Muo walked in behind him. “Then I’ll plant some in the garden.”
Ye He squatted down to retrieve Ye Muo’s slippers from the shoe cabinet. “En. What do you want for lunch?”
“I don’t know yet. Let me tell Adlet I’m eating here first.”
Ye Muo said as he sent a message to the butler, “But not nutrient solution for sure.”
Big Brother Ye He always had rows of nutrient solutions in his house.
Ye He turned to give him a look.
“I guess I won’t mind that much.” Ye Muo corrected himself.
Ye He gently pressed down on Ye Muo’s head as his lips quirked up a fraction. Ye Muo was a little more lively lately, perhaps becoming less afraid of him. “Don’t be too picky then. I only know how to make a few things.”
The Alliance treated them well. Even though there was a cafeteria, robots delivered fresh ingredients to their door everyday. They could also order room service, but Ye He glossed over that option.
Ye Muo obediently lowered his head. “Then let me cook for you. I learned how from Mom, Dad and Adlet.”
Ye He knew that they all learned from Lady Ye and Ye Zhiyuan. Ye Muo knew a bit more and even how to knit a scarf. He set up Ye Muo’s workstation. “Then you can help.”
Ye Muo made a sound of acknowledgement. He pushed back on Ye He’s hand to raise his head. “Big Brother, Father said he would consider sending me to the third round of the competition for the individual bracket.”
He looked at Ye He nervously.
But Ye He’s expression didn’t change much. “En. That’s to be expected.”
Ye Muo quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
Ye He pulled out an apron and put it on while calmly stating, “I would do the same if it were up to me. Grantz stands to benefit from your participation.”
Ye He gestured for him to go sit on the sofa. “Do you need help practicing? I’m free this afternoon.”
Ye Muo placed a hand on the back of the sofa. “Okay, sounds good!”
Ye He rummaged around for the seasonings he never used. “Send your latest data over then. I’ll help you create a new training regimen. Come over when you’re free.”
Ye Muo made a satisfied sound of acknowledgement.
As children, Ye He always helped him train whenever there was a combat class exam coming up.
Ye Muo kept failing in that class back then. His grades improved only because the entire Ye family pitched in to help after a parent-teacher conference. However, progress was slow at first.
Lady Ye couldn’t bear to push Ye Muo too hard, and Ye Zhiyuan also held back against Ye Muo. It was hard for adults like them to lay hands on a small child. Ye Yun was the most suitable in terms of size, but he was too impatient and started crashing out if Ye Muo didn’t learn something in a timely manner.
In the end, the responsibility fell to Ye He. Ye Muo passed for the first time after completing the training regiment Ye He designed for him.
Even now, Ye Muo still felt like Ye He was the one to go to for combat-related matters.
Ye He glanced at him before continuing with his work. He was actually very familiar with Ye Muo’s data. In his opinion, Ye Muo did not need more training. Since returning to the Grantz family and receiving psychic soothing on a regular basis, his physical condition and psychic power improved significantly. After the cocooning period, Ye Muo’s data had skyrocketed to intimidating values and only continued to improve. He probably had no real opponents aside from the other Grantz at this point.
Besides, that arena was not a place anyone could step into after some short-term training.
Yet if the little lion came over to act coquettishly, there was no need for Ye He to push him away.
……
The Alliance released a series of announcements in quick succession, including the dates for the individual bracket and an official list of participants.
[It’s finally happening! I’m looking forward to Orca’s performance!]
[Grantz didn’t fill out their roster? Just eight participants…are they that confident?]
[Haven’t you noticed that all the participants are surnamed Grantz? They’ve got half of the Top 10 in the bag already, including first place. After all, the previous #1, Orca, was defeated by Bert last time.]
[That’s a bit of an exaggeration, no? Bert is one thing, but the other barely had any screen time. Maybe the high point total during the first round is because they went after weaker teams exclusively.]
[Why even bother arguing? We’ll find out once the individual bracket starts soon. I’m more surprised that their heir has participated in the entire tournament. Especially Round 3, where there are no teammates to look after him.]
Lakely also checked the list at once. He was happy for Ye Muo, but also a little worried. “You could make an argument for keeping him back due to his age, but Xavier has the strength to succeed. It won’t do for him to make it onto the superstar contestant rankings only to have no results in the individual bracket.”
Lakely hesitated for a moment, “Forget it. It’s not up to me anyways. I’m better off checking out the venue and choosing a good angle to watch.”
It’s been difficult for him to follow Ye Muo around recently, even since the Alliance issued new regulations that allowed countries to close their bases to observers. Many countries remained public or only closed some parts, but Grantz was the first to privatize their entire base.
