Claimed (Bloodline, #2)

Chapter 14

14 : My Retainers Went Wild

Passions were skyrocketing in the coliseum after my opening remarks. The cheers felt fulfilling but seeing the number of people in the audience revering me made me wonder if I deserved it.

"That was quite a speech, Your Highness," commented Kei from behind, with a crooked smile on his face.

I narrowed my eyes at him. With Kei, one wouldn't know if he were telling a compliment or spouting sardonic remarks. These days, his personality was getting more and more twisted.

My attention was pulled back to the arena when Baldric announced the qualifiers for the lower-tier matches.

To save time and filter the quality of the matches to be shown in public, the chieftains held a qualifier among the participants who wanted to join. For the lower tier, which was composed of human competitors, sixty-four were selected from about three hundred hopefuls. Meanwhile, one hundred twenty-eight qualifiers were chosen from a pool of whooping thousand undead who wished to participate in the high-tier matches.

From the magical screen right on top of the arena, random pair would be shown for each round. The tournament, was of course, single-elimination and each winner would play another in the next round until eight quarterfinalists were decided.

All low-tier participants were standing on a platform at the side of the arena. Most of them were big, muscular men dressed in gladiator outfits. There were also well-built women who looked more intimidating than some men. Others weren't particularly stalwart but passing the qualifier tests meant they could hold a candle against the brawny ones.

"Now, for our first match of the day!" announced Baldric as everyone excitedly looked at the screen.

Nabalot ng malakas na sigaw ang buong coliseum nang ipakita ang unang laban. Two men marched toward the center, both wielding a sword on their right hand and a shield on the left.

The two looked evenly matched after fighting for a few minutes, but honestly, it was quite boring. Maybe because I had seen undead fight each other that mortal battles felt dull and cautious.

Only humans were cheering for them, too, and the undead present in the coliseum were barely paying attention. But I had to admit, two or three matches were a bit interesting, especially the fight of a petite woman against a man who was twice as big and tall as her.

Everyone was in awe as she outmaneuvered the guy and used his momentum to run onto his bulky arms. Landing on his back, she made a swift kick on the pressure point on her enemy's neck, causing the latter to lose consciousness. The fight only lasted for a minute and the crowd went wild when the guy's body collapsed on the ground.

Kei whistled in astonishment. He seemed impressed, too, after watching several uninteresting fights.

The sun had already set when the eight quarterfinalists were announced. They were met with cheers and applause, mostly from the humans, but as expected, it was only when the high-tier tournament was announced that the coliseum erupted in thunderous hollers.

"And for tonight!" Baldric roared as the anticipation rose to its highest. "From the powerful warriors of Vrivarya, there will only a few who can stand at the top!"

The coliseum drowned in excitement as the competitors entered the arena. Trackers, assassins, mages, and even royal and noble knights were present. I also shifted in my seat upon seeing familiar faces: three of my retainers waving in my direction, and Olga who looked bored for some reason.