Emperor's Reckoning

"You're right," said Porealus as he nodded.

The host smiled wryly before he continued, "Right, let's commence the first round of the tournament!"

The audience roared harder than before the last top ten came to the arena. Some chanted their heroes some chanted their heroines, however, none of them chanted the ones from the Mortal World.

"I must say, our reservation is really lacking," snorted Lyon as he shook his head with a smile.

"It's a given, but can't you hear the cheers from our world? Chanting our names?" said Porealus.

Lyon smirked as he looked at Porealus, "Not bad, you are a natural leader."

"I'm honored to hear your praise, big brother," said Porealus as he placed his palm on his chest.

"Now! Contestants! Please proceed to the designated table. There are fifty-two of you. You each will take one pouch, and two Returning Jade Stones."

"Returning Jade Stones?" muttered Lyon before he furrowed his eyebrows. His nose slightly twitched as he could smell problems even before they occurred.

"Our designated place will be randomized, big brother," said Zet.

"But will it be in the same region?"

"Most likely, that's what happen last time," nodded Zet.

"I see, then it's all too simple, we just have to work together, all four of us," said Lyon with a smile before he raised his eyebrows twice against the cold beauty.

Ivy only squinted her eyes before she replied, "It will be hard, we are too randomized."

She agreed that working together was the best option. In the last tournament, they did the same thing but they soon faced the issue of their distance being too far apart from each other. 

"It will be the same as last time, sadly," said Porealus before he sighed with his head shaking in defeat.

"Heh, don't worry, I will make sure that you guys pass this round," said Lyon before his eyes caught two people approaching him. He smiled as he recognized the siblings.

"Lyon!" said Altre.

"You seem to be in a good mood, but I still haven't punched you for insulting me earlier," said Lyon as he crossed his arms.

"You!"

"Brute! Where is our guard captain?" said Felicia.

Lyon squinted his eyes before he let out a sigh, "I've told you already, he is dead, along with the other ten, or was it nine? I forgot."

"Stop lying!" said Felicia as she pointed at him. "If you kill the guard, then you have made a great offense against our family!"

"Then what do you want me to do?" said Lyon as he shrugged. "He is already dead, or do you want me to summon his ghost?"

"You!" Felicia glared at the nonchalant attitude of the young man. "Then our family will hunt you down, don't mock the heaven mortal. You will soon kno—"

Her eyes bulged in disbelief as her entire figure made an arch. The whole crowd froze at this moment, even the trio from the Mortal World couldn't believe what they saw. Lyon's right foot was embedded right at her stomach.

"Gwah!" She plunged to the air before rolling down a few meters.

"Feli! You bastard!" Altre shouted before he leaped.

"Stop!" the host shouted. 

"Huh?" Altre looked at the host but Lyon was smirking before he made a roundhouse kick against Altre's face.

"Guha!" Altre rolled in mid-air with his spit tarnishing the sky before dropping to the ground.

The host stared in disbelief as well as the crowd. It was common for a tournament like this to be heating up before the actual event started, but never did it cross their mind that Lyon would waste the famous siblings in a simple manner.

"Fighting outside of the round is prohibited and can result in disqualification!" said the host with a demeaning smile against Lyon.

"Sorry," said Lyon. "I tried keeping my hands crossed, but it seems like my legs won't have any. It won't happen again, dear host."

(Damn!) thought Porealus as he gulped. (I thought he was the type of guy that won't hit a beautiful woman).

The host gulped against the nonchalant attitude. He still remembered vividly how it was back in the preliminary. "G-Good."

He knew very well that this man came from a Mortal World but he also caught the glimpse of how maddening he was. The young man was sitting next to the one that planned his death the whole time.

Hezar snorted. "That cocky kid is lucky to be alive, but he won't survive the Hellboars round hahaha! He had offended two prominent figures, he won't be—"

"You're so naive, Hezar, hohoho~" Tael chuckled.

"What?" Hezar furrowed his eyebrows.

"Don't you know the word implication?" muttered the matriarch with a smile.

"What are you talking about?" Hezar furrowed.

"You seem intelligence but when your opponent is way younger than you, you underestimate them, pathetic," said Carius as he shook his head as if he was Hezar's father.

"Heh, you can keep babbling for now, but you will serve your purpose later, or maybe not at all, hahaha."

"The fact that he could sit beside you without you noticing him at all, means that he could sever your head at any time he wishes to, also, if he could do that, do you think they had a chance against him, or are you weaker than them," said Tael.

Hezar had his eyes opened wide.

"Just like you play with the mortal world, he is playing with you," said Carius as he smirked. (That brat is too good to exist, but I'm thankful that he is).

"Heh, that's just a flux," said Hezar even though the drop of sweat on his temple proved otherwise.

"Oh? I don't see his guardians anywhere though, I wonder where they are?" said the matriarch as she innocently rest her index finger on her veil with her eyes wandering the sky.

Suddenly, ominous feelings clenched Hezar's soul as he couldn't blink his eyes. His breathing was slightly out uneven. His eyes were fixated on the young man who was in the line to grab the Returning Jade Stone and a pouch.

"Oi," Hezar called out one of his subordinate before he whispered something to him after the latter came to his call.