Chapter 726 - INTRODUCTION (1ST MATCH)
THE sun was shining brightly above the Floating Coliseum. But none of the people in the audience area could feel its heat. In fact, they felt more heated in their hearts. Why? Because in just a few minutes, the semi-final round would start.
From hundreds of participants, only four were remained. They were the crème of the crop of this year's rookies. If the four continued to play the game, they would definitely enter the game rankings. This Carnival would be like a stepping stone to them. And as the audience who would witness their first step into the big leagues, of course, they would feel excited.
They had already seen the process of how the next two matches would be conducted. They were only waiting now for the semi-finals to officially begin.
As if hearing their prayers, a red smoke appeared at the middle of the rink and as it dispersed, it showed the Duke of Hearts figure. He was holding a mic as if a real emcee. But no one cared. Because the duke appearing only meant one thing – the semi-finals was finally about to begin!
"My dear lowly peasants, this lord welcomes you back to the Floating Coliseum!" the duke said, full of energy. "We finally reach the semi-final round of this Carnival. Are your bets still in the running for the championship?"
The duke raised the mic towards the audience as if wanting to hear their answer. Of course, the crowd didn't disappoint him. There were those who shouted 'yes' and those who shouted 'no'. But no matter what their answer was, everything combined just turned into a loud cheer.
Satisfied by this reaction, the duke continued, "Then, let this lord introduce the two valiant warriors who would fight to the death to gain the highest glory of this Carnival." He then gestured his hand to the right. "On the right corner, the crowd favorite of this year, one of the few dragons still living, and someone who received my heart – Dragnar!"
The crowd cheered once again. Their voices were very loud, showing just how much they're supporting the golden dragon.
Xia Lei, who walked out from the right corner of the rink, felt very embarrassed. Seriously, what kind of introduction was that? He thought that it was over after that, but the duke still continued while he was walking towards the rink.
"He arrived at Olkdale Town March of this year. Since then, he had been proving himself by doing tasks and raiding dungeons. He even managed to enter the Swordsman PvP ranking. And now, participating in this year's Rookie Carnival, he had reached the semi-finals and is one of the players expected to win. Could he live up to this hype? Or would he fall at this stage? This lord is very interested to find the answer to that."
Xia Lei almost cringed at what the duke was saying. It almost felt like the other was narrating some cheesy show on TV. He quickened his steps, hoping that the duke would stop once he was on the rink. Facts proved that his decision was correct. Because the moment he stepped on the rink, the eccentric duke finally stopped with his cringed-worthy introduction of him.
"Now, let's welcome the brave warrior who will fight against Dragnar," the duke said, gesturing to the left side of the rink. "On the left corner, belonging to the special race of gnomes, the self-proclaimed amazing young master, and one whose name is so annoyingly long to say – AmazingYoungMasterJin!"
If Xia Lei was embarrassed, then, Luo Jin's level of embarrassment was greater. At least what the duke said about the other was almost equivalent to a praise. He couldn't exactly say the same with what the other said about him.
Luo Jin almost didn't step out. But he had a feeling that this duke would say something worse if he continued to dally. So, he walked out from the left corner and started walking towards the rink. As he did, he was startled by the cheer of the crowd. He could even hear some calling him 'young master'.
Just like what he did for Dragnar, the duke continued his introduction of Luo Jin.
"He arrived at Olkdale Town in the middle of July. With his tenacious spirit, he started to conquer a lot of dungeons. He steadily leveled up and became stronger. Now, in this Carnival, he is constantly proving that he deserved to be called 'amazing'. Will he be the dark horse in this tournament and defeat the fan favorite? Or will he proved to be not-so amazing after all? This lord is very excited to know which one it will be."
The first part was pretty okay. But the second part made Luo Jin want to punch the duke. If the other wasn't an important NPC, he might really just consider doing that. He took a deep breath, decided to ignore the other and just continued walking.
Once he reached the rink, the duke continued on with his tirade.
"The two players who will fight it out until the end are here. Let's give them a warm of applause to cheer them up, shall we?"
After the duke said that, the audience complied and clapped as hard as they could. Calling out to the two as they did.
"Now, let the first round of the semi-final round begin!"
The duke disappeared in a puff of red smoke. The only ones who remained on the rink were the golden dragon and the black-haired gnome.
The two didn't dawdle and both started to attack one another the moment the duke disappeared. Luo Jin took out his guns while the other unsheathed his sword.
While Dragnar was trying to close their distance, Luo Jin quickly jumped back to retain it. And as he did, he didn't forget to shoot at the other. He didn't know what kind of handicap he received. He really didn't feel any different from normal. But it didn't matter.
Because with or without handicap, he would still do his best to win.