"All battles will take place in the arena beneath my feet."
"Alright, enough nonsense. I wish you all the best of luck in earning your qualifications."
"I hereby declare the qualifying matches officially open."
With that, he handed the microphone to a beautiful woman beside him. Taking it with a smile, she pointed at the electronic screen and said, "Hello, everyone. I'll be your host from here on out, Nai Nai."
"Next comes the drawing lots everyone has been waiting for."
"This qualifying tournament will be held in three time slots each day: morning, noon, and evening."
"There will be two matches in each time slot. When you draw lots later, your match time will be included as well."
"Please be ready. The drawing will now begin."
As soon as she finished speaking, the electronic screen began to change.
The portraits of all 120 participants instantly appeared on the screen. It seemed the pairings had been arranged in advance.
Eichi focused his gaze and began searching for his name.
Before long, he found it.
Third day, afternoon
Eichi VS Hideyoshi
His match was scheduled fairly early. Unlike Silver Academy's selection, which was held simultaneously across eight different areas, this tournament would be fought one match at a time in this single arena. With 120 people competing for twenty spots, it would take at least a month.
Since he was scheduled near the front, he would have time to handle his own affairs after his match.
Seeing the match list, the crowd began whispering among themselves as they considered the upcoming battles.
"Will the first group of contestants please prepare for battle. Everyone else, please proceed to the spectator stands to watch."
Saito said, "Let's go. We should watch from the stands."
The group headed to the spectator stands together and