Chapter 248: Start of the Dragon Ring (1)
It was early in the morning, but Eventide Academy was wide awake.
Not too far away from the main square, to the west, there was a special circular open stadium that had become the center of attention. Professors, students, workers, and servants were now crowding the stadium as today was a special day.
One of the most important days, if not the most important, for new Angels.
The Dragon Ring.
A tournament that was set to determine the strongest and most capable student.
One who would be appointed as the Red Prince.
For the first time in a long time, the Angels broke their regular routine. No morning exercise. No vicious sparring. No classes. And no hunting or mining. Today—the academy will pardon any responsibilities in exchange for attending the Dragon Ring.
People walked through the main entrance in a heated debate on who would be the winner.
Dragon statues coiled along the archways; their gem eyes caught the first ray of sunlight. Flags bearing the crest of the Eventide Academy flanked the main entrance—fluttering dominantly in bright red with black and gold trims.
Grey-masked Angels stood motionless underneath each flag with a spear in hand.
Had it not been for their moving eyes, many would believe that they were real statues.
Inside—the workers were making final checks on the equipment. Servants were helping all of the professors and students to their assigned seats. And a couple of professors were down on the arena, checking the Grade-3 enchanted shield that would protect the viewers from all the heated exchanges that would happen on the arena.
Even with the masks on, the students could smell the old stones in the air.
Cold mana and something metallic like blood also lingered.
From the founding day of Eventide Academy, this stadium had been used to host tournaments like the Dragon Ring and many more. Sweat, pain, and blood—the stadium had seen it all. It’s used to violence and desperation.
And today, the stadium will see another tournament.
Students streamed to the hallways branching left and right from the main entrance, climbing toward the second tier of seats and beyond. The Dragon Ring tournament was nothing new—especially for the seniors—but this one was different.
Special, even.
"Did the Lesser Angel actually qualify to become a participant?"
"Yeah—I heard he’s the leader of the Ambrosia Pact."
"By the Gods... How did he make a group?"
"Forget about making a group. Are there even students who’d want to be in his group?"
"Haven’t you heard? His group has four members aside from him, and two are High Angels. I even overheard a few freshmen earlier on the main entrance—saying that the Lesser Angel has a chance to actually win the Dragon Ring."
"Pfft—! Fuck off. How does that make any sense?"
On the other side of the stadium, a group of female students sat on their assigned seats.
But their eyes were pulled towards the first tier of seats.
"I want to sit down there..."
"Yeah, it’s fun to be closer. Why is the first tier empty anyway? It’s not like sitting there would block the view for the others behind."
"Where’s Professor Bradic? He’s a pervert, so I’m sure he would let us sit on the first tier if we coo him a bit."
On the seats directly across from the main entrance, another group sat.
Five students—two were sitting with a manspread while soaking in the morning sun, another was praying, and the remaining were looking around.
"I wonder what the Star Beast the academy is going to use this time."
"I don’t know, and I don’t care."
"Come on, bro. Be a little more enthusiastic. It’s always fun to see heated and bloody battles."
"I’m more excited that I don’t need to do anything today."
Soon, the seats began to be filled with more—and more students until at least five hundred of them gathered. Most of them were seniors—who had completed their mandatory training. As for the freshmen, they were placed at the highest tier of seats.
Furthest from the arena, but it was to be expected.
"I’m so nervous right now..." Bryan rubbed his own arms as the moment was getting to him.
"Relax," Dorian said, trying to be reassuring, but his shaky voice and shuddering breaths gave him away. Like Bryan, he was also extremely nervous—as this tournament is really important for them. "Nothing to worry about. Hm. Nothing to worry about."
"Kai will win," Matilda intervened firmly. "I believe in him."
Regardless of what happened to Kai, she fervently believed that he would win.
Like back in the Blood Rite, he would find a way to survive.
Even though she really believed that in her heart, her hands betrayed her.
Her fingers dug into her own arms as if to hold herself together. Just a couple of days ago, Dorian had told her Kai was being tortured by High Angel Hensen inside a secret room in the garden, and that his suffering would likely continue until the tournament began.
Out of sheer luck, Dorian and Bryan found Kai and talked with him.
Matilda wanted to rescue him, but Dorian dissuaded her from doing anything.
He told her about what Kai said, told her that he was right where he wanted to be.
As much as she struggled to believe Kai would willingly endure torture, she had no reason to doubt Dorian. He would not lie to her—not about this. And so, with no other choice, she stood down and waited for the tournament day to arrive.
It was hard to do, but Kai must’ve had it harder.
Since he said he wanted this, then she had to stand down and put her trust in him.
"Where is Kai, anyway? Has anyone seen him being escorted here?’
"No, I haven’t seen him. Either he’s already been transported last night, or he’s still preparing."
Sitting on the far right near the staircase, Bree scanned the stadium, her gaze swept across the crowd in search of someone. ’She’s not here. Where did she go?’ Her eyes settled on the seats for the professors. ’She looked like she was panicking that night. She even said goodbye... like it was the last time we could meet her.’
Professor Hera seemed to be distressed that night.
And Bree thought it was simply because Kai had fallen into the enemy’s trap.
But it didn’t seem to be only that.
Bree also recalled Professor Hera telling her that passing the message to Kai was doing a good thing. But the more Bree turned those words over, the more she suspected the professor knew far more about the situation.
About the powerful figure who wanted Kai dead.
Due to that, Bree had been searching for Professor Hera for the last couple of days.
And yet, she found nothing.
Even another professor replaced Professor Hera in teaching the classes.
Now, when all professors gathered to spectate this year’s Dragon Ring tournament, Professor Hera wasn’t among them. It was almost like she never existed—from the start. Vanished from the academy.
Soon enough, the Dragon Ring tournament started.
Students watched as the enchanted shield engraved on the wall right on the professor’s section side began to hum with mana. A translucent white barrier began to climb from the base of the arena, creating a bubble that encompassed it entirely.
And then, the stadium trembled slightly as a bigger barrier climbed.
It encompassed the entire stadium, a cylindrical wall of reddish light that climbed skyward as opposed to curving into a dome like the barrier from the enchanted shield. It surrounded the structure completely—no one would be able to leave until the Dragon Ring tournament came to an end.
Just then, clouds began to seep from the arena floor.
Gentle wisps at first, then thickened rapidly, swelling into a dense mist.
It swallowed the entirety of the arena whole, but then gathered in front of the enchanted shield embedded on the wall, creating a small tornado of clouds. Then—it surged outward strongly and dispersed.
And in its wake, figures stood where there had been none.
Most wore green owl-shaped masks, but the figure in the center was dark gold.
One look was enough for the students to realize the Deans and the Chancellor had arrived.
Everyone was present to watch this year’s Dragon Ring tournament.
Slowly, the Chancellor floated without the use of winged boots, which made the students and others present clap their hands out of politeness. He then hovered in the sky, looking down at the gathered students like an eagle looking down from the sky.
For a moment, the Chancellor remained silent.
He waited for the clap to stop, and silence reigned in the stadium once again.
Only then did he finally speak.
"Students and faculty—once again, the Dragon Ring opens, and once again, we gather in this sacred stadium to witness the forging of something greater." He paused—and swept his gaze to let the words sink in. "We now stand at the threshold of a moment that will shape not only one student’s destiny, but the character of our academy.
"By day’s end, a Red Prince will be appointed. Chosen. A champion—who has demonstrated unmatched strength and capability. A champion who will henceforth serve as the living voice of our beloved academy to the sky beyond. That is the honour, and the responsibility, awaiting the victor.
"Fight well. Fight honourably. Impress the Gods. May the worthy student win."
Once finished, the Chancellor pointed his index finger at the enchanted shield.
He fired a beam of mana, and upon impact, the shield rang and flickered with a reddish glow.
From its core—a dragon forged entirely of red mana burst forth and spiraled skyward. It wove through the air in sweeping, sinuous arcs, as if revelling in its own swelling size and majesty. Once it reached the sky, it wheeled around and unleashed a thunderous roar that shook the stands.
And then, beautifully, the dragon exploded into fragments of red that fell like glinting snow.
Cheers erupted almost instantly.
Students clapped, whistled, and cheered as this was the sign that the tournament had started.
Ragnar, who was sitting on the second tier, clapped modestly, but his eyes weren’t marvelling at the spectacle happening above. Instead, his eyes were fixed on a particular area of the wall on the other side of the stadium.
He fixed on a small symbol on the wall.
It was the symbol that he placed earlier that marked the fabricated wall.
Behind it, the reporter and his crew worked in near silence—their presence unnoticed by the roaring crowd. They moved among cables and connection ports, making sure the livestream to the surface remained stable.
Every second of the Dragon Ring tournament was being fed to the world below.
People that he smuggled in to broadcast this tournament live.
"Now it’s up to you, Chester," Ragnar murmured inwardly. "Don’t waste this chance."