(Heartfelt thanks to Yunqi Qinggu, Erciyuan de Shuangxiezuo, lads4017, Lewd Soul, Seven Sins Shattered, pokémo n, and Xiongxiong no Baobao for their tips!)
Clang—clang—clang—clang—
As Wu Yan led Ikaros and Astrea out of the Central Auditorium, the light yet solemn chimes of the clock tower rang out.
The moment those bells sounded, it meant that the first battle of the Night Party had been underway for exactly one hour.
In other words, if the first battle of the Night Party had still not produced a victor by the time the bells rang—if Frey and Raishin had yet to determine a winner—then Raishin, ranked one hundredth, would have fulfilled his standby obligation and could apply to withdraw.
Given Raishin's cautious nature, if he had been unable to decide the match with Frey within an hour, he would probably choose to withdraw, return to think of a solution, and deal with Frey again tomorrow night, wouldn't he?...
However, tomorrow night, the ninety-eighth-ranked participant would also take the field, making the battlefield more chaotic and potentially causing unpredictable developments.
Therefore, Raishin might also continue fighting and strive to take down Frey tonight. That was possible too.
No matter what, now that the first battle of the Night Party had reached this point, things should calm down a little.
At the very least, the enthusiasm of those spectators who had expected the Night Party to erupt into a frenzy on its first night should fade considerably. For a while, things would not be as noisy as they had been tonight.
After all, the Night Party lasted a full hundred nights—more than three months.
Over such a long period, even the Gauntlet holders would have to stay on edge. There was no way the spectators could sustain their enthusiasm for that long, so it was