Top 32 to Top 16.
The matches would be held over two days, with eight matches each day—four in the morning and four in the afternoon.
After Historia appeared as the president of the Magical Creature Association and finished her speech,
magical fireworks, brilliantly visible even in broad daylight, bloomed above the venue.
In an instant, they whipped the atmosphere into a fever pitch.
Whether at the venue or in front of screens, the audience eagerly awaited the start of the first match.
At this point, the previous thirty-two contestants had already left the field, with most returning to their respective lounges.
Only the two opponents remained, standing on opposite sides of the arena and staring at each other from afar.
The former looked extremely calm and confident, while the latter appeared nervous and restrained, seemingly lacking much confidence.
"Now, let me introduce the two competitors in the first match of the Top 16!"
Hozumi's bright, sweet voice rang through the entire venue once more.
"Contestant Boa Hancock and contestant Kohaku!"
"Contestant Hancock has just turned seventeen this year. She comes from Amazon Lily in the Calm Belt and is also a fifth-year student in the middle school division of War Military Academy!"
"In the qualifiers, she easily defeated three magical creatures belonging to two opponents with just one beast from the Zero Magic World—the Basilisk!"
"So I'm very curious. In this team battle of the main tournament, what will her other two be?"
"They'll definitely be snakes too, right?"
"But what kind of snakes will they be? Let's wait and see!"
Inside the staff-only lounge backstage,
Ikoma, who was sitting on the sofa with his daughter in his arms, listened to the lengthy introduction from the virtual screen.
He could not help lowering his head with a smile. "What