By Zephyria 
<Who is this! Ryan appears!>
Waaaaaaah―
Leonardo’s spine tingled at the distant roar of cheers. He had certainly heard the cheering before the start of the first preliminary match, but this time the atmosphere was different.
It felt as if all the attention in the world was focused solely on him. It had been a long time since he had felt this way.
<The team name is Joker, so I wondered, and it was! Ryan is with Joker.>
<The scattered gazes of the audience are gathering in one place―! I think we can look forward to an exciting game!>
The last send-off ceremony he had attended a few years ago came to mind. However, Leonardo tried to remind himself that their cheers were directed at ‘Lion,’ not him.
‘Don’t get excited, unnecessarily.’
He calmed his rising heart rate, straightened his clothes, and lightly stepped onto the Floating Stone in front of the entrance. Then, the platform carrying all his teammates slowly moved, transporting them to the center ground.
<Is that Orca next to Ryan? He helped them escape from Nefertiti’s trap. It’s unexpected, but an exciting combination!>
<The opposing team must be quite nervous, as they have watched all their performances in the previous matches.>
<The security guards seem to be nervous as well. The barrier protecting the audience is being doubled!>
Staring ahead, the stadium, which he had only seen through the transparent window, was quickly being disassembled and reassembled like a stage set.
He didn’t know where they had gotten them, but huge Boulders were intricately pieced together like a puzzle, creating a landscape like a heavily guarded fortress. Transparent barriers surrounded the beams of light coming down in cylindrical shapes, and five or six bridges sparsely crossed over them. Floating Stones, which had served as platforms in the first match, were also scattered throughout.
Stone stairs hidden in the gaps of the Boulder pillars, thorny bushes, hundreds of bars, etc. Two Floating Stones, gracefully passing through various obstacles, narrowed the distance and met on the bridge at the top.
In the middle of the bridge, two staff members and the leaders of each team were already waiting. A black box was placed between them.
“Now that both teams have gathered, we will proceed with the draw to determine offense and defense. Please put your hands in the box and take out one ball each.”
As soon as the guide finished speaking, Ero, who had been stiff, reached out and put his hand into the box. The leader of the opposing team, standing opposite him, did the same. Their fingertips seemed to brush inside, and they briefly exchanged a sharp glance.
“Whatever you pick, I’ll crush it, so keep that in mind.”
“What are you talking about? You’re just a snack for my brother.”
While the friendly trash talk was exchanged, the staff, having identified the participants, displayed each team’s roster on the board. It was meaningless to look at it since there weren’t many opponents they could recognize just by their identification numbers and aliases.
Perhaps it was fortunate that Asher wasn’t on the opposing team for this match.
‘Team Big Boss?’
Leonardo quickly scanned the lineup on the board and lowered his eyes to the bridge. Just then, the leaders of the two teams, who had been rummaging through the box, each took out a ball. Following the guide’s instructions, they raised them high above their heads for everyone to see.
“Team Joker’s ball is red, offense. Team Big Boss’s ball is blue, defense.”
“Brother―!”
As soon as the guide’s voice echoed through the arena, Ero, calling out to his mental pillar, turned around with the ball in his hand. He was waving his hand as if asking for praise for doing well, so Leonardo simply smiled.
However, his gaze was drawn to the participant standing opposite Ero. He was strangely familiar.
‘Is that guy the boss? Where have I seen him before?’
“Congratulations, Lion. It came out the way you wanted.”
“This makes the game easier.”
“I want to finish quickly and go wash up.”
The teammates next to him glanced at Leonardo, the de facto leader, and said a word each. They didn’t seem nervous at all. However, Leonardo’s eyelashes, which had been narrowed in the gap, suddenly shot up sharply.
“Oh, that bastard―.”
His lips, about to utter a harsh curse, hesitated.
It was definitely him. The guy who had bumped into him hard when he was entering to play the first test match.
It wasn’t just a bump; in reality, that bastard had unilaterally pushed him. And then, with a toad-like face, he had glared and said, ‘What are you staring at?’ Didn’t he? He had inwardly hoped to meet him somewhere, but he never expected to encounter him like this.
“Hey, everyone, gather around.”
The fighting spirit in Leonardo’s eyes, who had wanted to finish quickly and cleanly, suddenly flared up.
The three, no, four, including Morbain, who had puzzled expressions, were quickly pulled together, their faces huddled close.
Leonardo lowered his voice and warned his teammates.
“We have to win this match, even if we die. Especially that toad, I’ll take care of him myself.”
* * *
‘Did the toad do something?’
Orca, who had brought his face to a dangerously close distance, suddenly asked. Leonardo, who had only pushed his face away, hesitated to tell him about the toad’s misdeeds.
‘Not really, but I have a personal grudge.’
‘A grudge?’
‘We had a bit of a quarrel… Anyway, we’re on the offensive team, so you know? You have to free me as soon as possible.’
‘There must be a reason why Lion hates him. Leave it to me.’
It was the first time he realized that the Orca’s goofy tone could sound so confident. Surprisingly, he felt trust in that appearance.
Leonardo stared at him intently and then brought his forehead to his in a gesture of determination.
‘I trust you.’
He hadn’t chosen him, but he was newly grateful that a guy who was advantageous in aerial combat had joined the team.
Recalling the determination he had made with his teammates, Leonardo looked up at the structures inside the arena visible through the bars, his limbs bound.
‘It’s quite high.’
<The match time is 15 minutes in total, and the rules are the same as in the previous Group C match. Participants can use the various terrains installed in the arena…>
It wasn’t as good as the Fortress of Bong No. 118 he had seen in the peninsula, but this place was also quite grand in scale. The depth was about 50m, and manual levers that could unlock traps and locks that the defending team could use were installed on each floor.
He was bound in the lowest compartment of the fortress, located in the very center where everyone’s eyes could reach. Was this how the queen bee felt when she was sealed in Bong No. 118?
With his shoulders and wrists bound by Magic Stone handcuffs, Leonardo looked up at the top of the fortress, where a red light flickered like a dot. That was the attacking team’s entrance and only escape route. Around it, huge stalactites rose menacingly, hanging like icicles, targeting the single prisoner.
If he had good jumping ability, he could somehow climb up with the help of his airtime, but if he didn’t have the ability to fly, it seemed difficult to escape. He thought it was a good thing he had volunteered to be the prisoner.
<Now, we will begin the Group D preliminary match!>
Beeeep―
As soon as the buzzer-like signal sounded, the Ether that brushed against his skin fluctuated. At the same time, the red light flickering in the ceiling was briefly obscured. Dozens of spears fired from both sides simultaneously aimed at the escape route and flew.
<Team Big Boss is accelerating their defense from the start! They are using the traps installed in the arena to block the attacking team’s entry!>
<But they couldn’t have failed to anticipate that. Team Joker, covered in wooden shields, is descending at a rapid speed.>
Pababak― Four shadows, guarding with a thorn-studded plank like a hedgehog, fell onto the bridge at the top. When Gillian stepped on the floor, a resounding shockwave was transmitted to the bottom floor.
“Block that bastard first!”
“Hurry!”
Two of the defending team’s members, who had become impatient, ran to the center of the bridge to check the noticeable giant. However, Gillian, holding Ero and Beatrice’s arms in each hand, threw them down to the lower floor first.
Leonardo, who was still fidgeting in the prison even in his bound state, stretched his neck out. He rolled his eyes, trying to help his teammates in any way he could, and shouted.
“Bell! 2nd floor, 3 o’clock direction, blue light!”
Morbain, holding Beatrice in one arm, snatched the thorny bush with the handle of the umbrella he was holding. He pulled it in at once, changed direction with the recoil, and sent Beatrice flying in the direction of the blue light. A sigh-like exclamation erupted from the commentary team.
<Is that a Cursed Doll? Her identity is questionable, with such nimble movements.>
<I wouldn’t be surprised if she opened the zipper and a person came out!>
Beatrice, who had landed lightly on the Floating Stone, caught the umbrella that had flown along with her. She dusted off her dress with a prim expression and took a leisurely step.
<Team Joker’s Bell approaches the locking device, ah―!>
Kwaaaang!
Whether it was because the weight-sensing platform was activated, a small-scale explosion occurred with a roar. The 5m radius around Beatrice was instantly covered in a hazy dust. Because she had been treated as a weakling due to her delicate appearance, the watching audience let out a gasp mixed with astonishment.
<Oh no, is that a booby trap? That’s going to be a big blow to the lady!>
Ero, who had landed on the 3rd basement floor and was running in the opposite direction, also stopped in surprise.
“Bell, Sister!”
His voice, looking up, echoed desperately. Two of the defending team’s members, who were confronting Gillian, grinned.
However, the shadow of an umbrella spread wide flickered in the swaying smoke. Then, tattered pieces of cloth fluttered, and a firm figure beyond the bent wire straightened her bent waist. Under the feather-rich hat brim, an elegant face without a speck of dust was revealed.
“Hmph, how pathetic.”
Beatrice, who had folded her broken umbrella, strode towards the structure with the blue light flashing.
<She defends against the trap with just an umbrella! Amazing, Bell!>
<Is that a steel umbrella? There’s a reason why Ryan entrusted the prisoner to her―.>
“Take care of the woman first!”
One of the defending team’s members, who had received the urgent order, rushed at her, but Morbain, who had popped out in the blink of an eye, blocked and stopped him with light movements. Beatrice, who had reached the locking device unlocking section in the shortest time, pulled the lever with a faint blue light with all her might.
One layer of iron bars that had been blocking the view was lifted to the left and right with a heavy vibration. The corners of Leonardo’s lips drew a smooth parabola.
<Team Joker smoothly unlocks the first locking device!>