The MC went on to introduce more superstar contestants. Cheers rippled through the arena with each introduction.
The audience’s enthusiasm took a nosedive when the MC moved on to the lower-ranking countries.
The MC picked up the pace in response. One of the smaller sections in the arena cheered enthusiastically as Keller was introduced and a dark brown-haired young man stepped forward. Although they couldn’t exactly shake the arena with their cheering, they certainly gave it their all, loudly screaming his name.
“Ressa! Ressa!”
Keller was introduced just a little while before Grantz, indicating their ranking was less than ideal. First time participants were all placed at the very end, after all.
Lakely looked over from the Grantz platform and sighed. “Looks like Kernan’s old captain’s still here.”
Ressa’s managed to make a bit of a name for himself in the tournament. He was one of Kernan’s brightest stars. Someone with his talent would definitely be a key player on any other team. You could say that staying with his home country was actually hindering his growth. He certainly received no small amount of invitations each year.
Still, he chose to remain with Kernan.
Even if Kernan was a shadow of its former self, forced to set dignity aside in order to garner attention through various means during the tournament. Even if he and his team were ridiculed by their opponents in the tournament. Even if it seemed like things would never get better.
In the face of this hopeless situation, Ressa’s former comrades and friends all eventually left. Even the Kernan government expressed their understanding.
Death was always a possibility in the resource tournament. Violence was officially condoned here, after all. What right did Kernan have to demand their lives if they couldn’t even offer these contestants dignity or glory?
Ressa had no shortage of haters waiting for him to leave as well. Still, he had a few true fans that always cheered him on.
The brunet young man had a gentle air about him. He didn’t show much reaction to those fervent cheers, striking a pose with one hand on his mech release button for a few seconds before rejoining his team.
Yet those cheers only grew louder.
Lakely’s expression was sombre as he briefly introduced Kernan, “Kernan once quarreled with Xiboen back in the day. As a result, they have had a target painted on their backs in the tournament for years.”
“…After that incident, they’ve almost never advanced into the second round. The team members from back then have all either died or left for greener pastures. Now, only Ressa remains from the old guard. Take note of the current team’s above average looks. This was a deliberate decision Kernan was forced to make.”
“I would like to acknowledge the fact that they will probably be eliminated in the first round this time as well. Even so, Kernan’s casualty rate is higher than the average among all participating countries. In other words, their team members were chosen for their looks, not their ability. However, these young adults came here ready to lay their lives on the line if needed. I hope my chat can refrain from making any overly crass jokes at their expense. They deserve at least that much respect.”
[Lakely is as dedicated as ever. I’ve never even heard of Kernan before. They do seem pitiful as well. It make me think a bit less of Xiboen. I had no idea…]
[Shh. Didn’t you catch how roundabout Lakely was being? Those guys are infamous for being underhanded. I’m afraid for Lakely’s life if word gets out. Surely there are no fans of them in Lakely’s chat, right?]
[Probably not. Their fanbase tends to be on the more aggressive side. They favour those age-restricted livestreams instead of ones like Lakely’s.]
The MC was already moving on to the next country.
Lakely turned away. “Kernan is lucky to have a team captain like Ressa. If that incident hadn’t happened, they would have been much better off by now.”
At least they wouldn’t have become a laughingstock with an ever-rotating team roster.
[That’s putting it lightly. With a well-rounded Level S psychic that refuses to be scouted, Kernan should at least be able to make it to the middle-lower half of the rankings if they shell out enought to buy him a decent mech.]
[Hardly anyone even knows his name these days and Kernan is generally wrote off as a joke. Ressa once ranked number one among the newcomers in the individual bracket, you know? Now he can’t even participate in that bracket.]
[It’s such a shame what happened to Ressa. He had the potential to make it as a superstar contestant that year. Just look at him now. He was humiliated in the first round last year as well. I didn’t even have the heart to watch.]
[Ressa’s also getting some attention with how much exposure Kernan gets. What happened to him was downright tragic, after all. It’s hard not to pity him if you know the full story.]
[He seems to be coping well with all that’s happened to him. He doesn’t even flinch when faced with ridicule and humiliation.]
[His mask only cracks when his teammates are sacrificed. (whispering) Those newbies looks really young, ah. Ressa has to send off a bunch of them in every tournament. I’m surprised he hasn’t lost it yet.]
Lakely wasn’t paying attention to his chat anymore. The MC was about to introduce the newcomers in the tournament.
The Grantz audience section was the standard size and rather empty at that. Just like those of the other newcomer or lower-ranking countries.
Lakely paid attention to the Grantz side as he prepared to record. He added the official livestream to his interface so he could monitor other people’s reactions.
He wasn’t even this nervous about the Keller Federation’s entrance earlier.
“I hope they prepared a pose for the team leader. At least imitate the team before them…”
Most teams without a signature pose reused a set of poses. After all, there were only so many places one could place their mech button and so many ways to activate it.
Bert was serving as captain this time. Lakely nervously glanced at him to try and see where his mech button was. He reeled back in shock.
There was not a mech button to be seen on the assembled Grantz.
“This can’t be…the tournament is about to begin.” Lakely murmured.
It was finally Grantz’s turn to be introduced.
Lakely switched to the official livestream without a second thought and watched attentively. The camera panned down, first showing Grantz’s flag and then Norton.
[Oh! I know, I know! That’s the Grantz Emperor! Pictures of him spread across the galactic network a few days ago. It took netizen quite some time to figure out who he was.]
[An empire? You don’t see one of those every day. What kind of strange little nation is this? Are they another Kernan?]
[This emperor sure is hot. Why is the entire team including him so young? Their uniform looks cool too. I wouldn’t mind buying a replica.]
[I wouldn’t recommend it. I’ve bought a similar style before and it’s hard to pull off. With legs as long as theirs and those looks, they can pull off wearing just potato sacks.]
Norton raised his hand.
Bert stepped forward from the team behind him. His gaze casually aligned on the solitary drone in the air.
For a better viewing experience, the feed for the official livestream was captured by this drone instead of being taken directly from a holographic instance.
The viewers suddenly felt like it was them Bert was staring at.
Bert casually drew his sword as he approached, pointing it at an angle to the ground. He suddenly accelerated without warning, lunging like a big cat that had spotted prey.
Bert shifted to a dual-handed stance as he rapidly closed the distance. His gaze and blade aimed straight for the camera.
Lakely had set the official livestream to a first person PoV. The disorientingly realistic perspective made him instinctively jolt back in alarm.
Yet just before the tip of the blade made contact, Bert swerved out of sight. The camera feed bobbed up and down like something had landed on it. Then, Bert backflipped back into view and lightly landed where he was just moments ago.
His smile deepened as he tilted his head at the drone. It was almost like he was asking ‘were you scared?‘.
Lakely back out of the official livestream, his heart still pounding wildly due to recent events. Upon replaying a different perspective, he saw Bert divert his sword at the last moment, land on top of the drone, and turn back.
The viewers began to come to their senses.
[That scared the shit out of me. Was that supposed to be a joke? There’s going to be a fine if that drone was damaged.]
[So cool, ah! Replicating this sequence in a mech would definitely be 5/5 for difficulty!]
[Don’t even think about it. Moving so gracefully in a mech would require an staggering degree of psychic power and physical fitness.]
[I think some geniuses should be able to do this, save the last part where he sheathed his sword and whirled around in one motion. Mecha can’t achieve this degree of speed and finess just yet. Hopefully that will change in the near future.]
[He’s pretty good for someone not using a mech. There would be a greater degree of skill expression in combat if more people followed his example. However, isn’t his choice of weapon a little too old-fashioned? I thought the sword was just there as a decoration. Can’t believe he actually knows how to use it.]
Most people dismissed Bert’s actions as a joke or an attention-grabbing skit.
Only Team Sonan, Team Allurya and those who witnessed the incident involving Ye Muo knew better.
This was a complete replication of Ye Muo’s movements from back then.
Abigail was especially affected. His face went pale as memories overwhelmed him. Examinations after the fact showed that his psychic power had experienced a shock that would take some time to recover.
He looked down as his teammate frowned in concern. “Are you sure you can continue in the tournament?”
“En. I’ll be fine.”
Abigail straightened up again.
The viewers following them immediately picked up on the conversation.
[What happened? Did he get hurt? Don’t force yourself if you’re injured, ah.]
[I don’t see anything wrong, but his complexion suddenly became pale a while ago. I hope nothing goes wrong just before the tournament starts.]
Bert rejoined the rest of the team with a smile on his face.
Ano shuddered. “How is your smile even more disgusting than usual–”
Bert cut him off by patting him on the back. “Don’t mind me. I’m just a little excited.”
Ano fell silent. Although Bert was still smiling, there was a malicious, beast-like gleam in his eyes. The sight took him aback.
It was best to stay away from Bert when he was like this. Ano’s plethora of survival experience made him grab Ye Muo and switch places with Helene. “Help us out, Big Sis.”
Helene dutifully took a half step the other way.
