"..."
"Warriors who have come from all corners of the Lands Between, welcome!"
"Welcome!"
At that moment, Annie had just entered the festival grounds. She hadn't yet had a chance to see what delicious food was laid out on the long tables or on the stands beside the bonfires when...
"Woo... woo..."
"Hoo-woo..."
Suddenly!
As the mournful music grew louder and more melodious, a figure appeared atop the towering gatehouse ahead, which resembled a barbican. He wore a pointed hood stitched together from scraps of ragged cloth and a mask depicting an old man with a beard, making it impossible to see what he really looked like. He stepped behind the battlements and began his speech:
"I am Jerren, a knight of the Redmane Legion!"
"Many of you may not know me, but that doesn't matter. What you do need to know is this: I, Jerren, am the one who issued the call to heroes and invited you here to Redmane Castle for the Combat Festival. I am the one who asks you to grant the great and mightiest Demigod, Radahn, an honorable death!"
When the man atop the wall said this, the people at the festival banquet below—those from within and beyond the Lands Between who called themselves heroes or considered themselves strong—couldn't help but stir. They began whispering and discussing it among themselves.
Seeing the guests' reaction, the man atop the wall, who called himself Jerren, didn't rush to speak. He simply continued standing there, as though giving the guests below plenty of time to take in his words.
After a long while.
Once the guests who had come to the Combat Festival had quieted down and turned their attention back to him, he continued:
"Countless years ago..."
"I still remember how, in the early days of the