At the higher-ups' direction, word soon spread.
Roland and the others were greatly encouraged and saw it as a victory.
It was a sign of the school's growing prestige and influence.
When Gallo heard the news, however, he snorted coldly.
"I knew this would happen!
But even if the contest involves Phantom Magic Cards, we won't necessarily lose!"
Oksaya hesitated, wanting to speak.
This was no time to voice discouraging thoughts and undermine their own morale.
"Gallo, we can't decide what events the competition will feature, but there should still be room to negotiate the finer details.
To make sure we win, we should establish some rules that favor us."
The other school members chimed in.
"Of course."
Gallo immediately contacted people at every level and lobbied far and wide on this particular issue.
As the two Mage Towers made their respective preparations and news promoting the competition spread, more and more mages, adventurers, and even ordinary citizens paid it close attention.
Meanwhile, Roland received a visitor from another plane.
It was Tiluowei of the Card Association.
In the reception room, Princess Rosa served Roland and his guest black tea and pastries. Host and guest took their seats and began to talk.
"Master Roland, do you know why the God of Light chose to support Phantom Magic Cards?"
"I do know something about that. Card competitions can attract a great deal of attention and gather the power of faith."
"Correct. The earliest Phantom Magic Cards were connected, to varying degrees, with sacrificial worship.
This was reflected in certain summoning rituals, as well as the evil secret arts used in 'dark games' to draw out the souls of defeated players..."
(Note: Some elements were inspired by "Yu-Gi-Oh!," but their origins differ.)
Selad had mentioned this to Roland before. It was common