Chapter 309 The new head
All five of the seats were currently filled, but Sam was deeply confused, and it seemed like he wasn’t the only one, as the others in the remaining seats also looked over at the remaining person sitting down. Whoever it was, it was not one they were expecting.
"What’s wrong?" Quinn asked, still a little amazed that there was a good chance an important figure was sitting next to them for a while without them realizing it.
"Well, as you can see, the five seats are for the big four family members as well as the supreme commander. However, the leader that should be sitting in the last seat is from the Greylash family. The current leader is an older patient, respected man. This person looks like he just graduated from the military academy."
It was true, even before when Quinn had seen him he felt the man was in his early twenties, that’s why the idea that he held a high position never crossed his mind.
"Your information is a little outdated," Vorden said. "I heard that the old man was sick for a long amount of time, there were even rumours that he had already passed away, but for fear of not having a new master, they decided to hide this information from the outside. If my guess is right, they can no longer hide it. The person you’re looking at is the new master."
What Vorden had said was very plausible in Sam’s mind. The question was, Sam, who prided himself in being exceptionally knowledgeable in current world politics, had heard the same rumours. But it seemed Vorden was equally familiar, if not a little more. This strange group of people started to interest him more, and perhaps Quinn wasn’t the only person to look out for.
Inside the special booth, the room was quiet, and the others continued to look in the direction of the young man. They were waiting for him to say something, but he continued to play with his long hair twirling it around his finger with his right hand.
The others remained patient hoping he would say something, but one person’s head was furiously starting to shake, as he hated to be ignored and it looked like hot steam was blowing out from his large nostrils.
"Rude, are you not going to say something!" Burnie shouted. "You can tell we are all waiting for you, unless no one told you how to show respect."
Oscar stood up in an attempt to try to defuse the situation. In a way, the military was the bridge between the four big families. It was hard because each power was considered an equal, and the same could even be said for them.
"I’m assuming the elder passed away then, and you are here as a step in?" Oscar asked.
The young man finally turned his head, acknowledging the others in the room. He looked at each one carefully with his narrow piercing eyes. It wasn’t an everyday look one would give when looking at someone and the others felt this as well. It was as if he was analyzing every one of them there.
The others sensing this felt a little threatened as if they were about to be attacked at any moment.
"And why would you assume I was only a step in and not the actual new head?" He asked.
The large man started to chuckle.
"Huh, if the Graylashes were stupid enough to appoint such an arrogant young fool like you, then they must have really fallen. In a few years, the Graylashes might no longer be a part of the leaders’ table."
The calm look on the man changed ever so slightly after hearing those words. He was no longer playing with his hair and instead pulled his fingers apart between his thumb and index finger. In between these two fingers, a faint blue light could be seen, and if one was to look even closer, little sparks were starting to go off.
"Those are fighting words, if you really want to test my abilities as the new head, we can put on a special exhibition show for everyone to see right here right now." The young man said.
Burnie, in response, stomped his foot in anger. As it hit the ground floor, flames shot up from his feat. It looked like small wings had appeared before quickly vanishing away into clouds of smoke. "I’ll burn you to a crisp right at this instant!"
The soldiers standing by watching were all frightened of what was to happen. Right now, it looked as if two of the strongest people on earth were about to do battle. If they were to try to stop them, they couldn’t do a thing. It was also a big reminder to everyone; these people in the room were not friends.
If it wasn’t for the fact that each of these people had a common enemy, the Dalki. There would still be a civil war between all five of them.
"Please," Oscar said. "Today is an event for the future generation, for the kids to display their skills, not you two. If you wish to fight, then do it after we get rid of the Dalki."
Oscar then walked over to the young man; in all honesty, he too didn’t like how the young man was acting. Usually, he had a good read of people’s strength, but it was nearly impossible to tell, which truly frightened him.
"I’m sorry for assuming you were only a stand-in. It was my mistake to say so. I will be the first to welcome the new leader of the Graylash family. Please name." Oscar asked.
"Owen Graylash, the new head of the family, the youngest and most powerful head to ever serve." When saying the last line, he looked past Oscar and directly at Burnie.
"Well, he’s a confident leader. I’ll give him that." Mona said.
"It’s a good trait to have." Jack agreed.
With everything having calmed down a little, they each sat adequately in their seats, and it was time for them to enjoy the event now.
The speakers were turned on, and now all of the screens displayed what was happening in the centre of the arena.
"Ladies and gentlemen, we hope you had a wonderful day so far. There were many spectacular events, but as usual, we have saved the best till last. The first round of the three main events will now begin, and to start it all off, we have the wonderful crafting event."
The camera then went on to show the materials of what was on each separate section.
"As you can see, each participant has been given the same materials. The only thing that is missing is the beast crystal. Once all participants are ready, they must try to figure out with their eyes alone what the best use for the beast crystal would be. Then our wonderful judges will decide which equipment is best."
Each of the participants started to appear from underneath the arena and were now entering the ground floor. The participants had a number displayed on their watches, indicating which platform they needed to head off to.
"Hey, there’s Logan," Quinn said, still looking over the edge. "Number 33."
"Oh, you have a friend in this event then, I guess I’ll keep an eye on him." Just then, Sam tried to squint over the edge where Quinn was looking, but they were too far up to be able to see anything. It just looked like a bunch of ants were down below. Without looking at the screen, there was no way he would be able to see what number any of the participants were wearing.
"You have some good eyesight," Sam said.
"Oh...Thanks." Quinn replied nervously, to which Vorden gently stepped on his foot. It was a reminder to be careful since they were no longer alone. That’s when he realized Fex still hadn’t arrived and decided to send another message just in case.
"Now, let the tournament begin!" The announcer said.
Immediately, the student started to work away; the first step was to inspect the crystal. Crystals were quite versatile and could create several different weapons and armour, but certain patterns and shapes seen within the crystal could help decide what one would be best to be turned into.
An example, a crystal from a turtle-like beast would usually best be used to make defensive equipment, perhaps even a shield. It could be turned into a weapon but wouldn’t be very useful. If one didn’t know what beast it had come from, they would only be able to tell by inspecting the crystal.
Once this step was complete, the crystal would need to be melted down to the appropriate temperature, depending on what was to be made. The next step after was deciding the mould and finally mixing the melted beast core with the required metals. Cheap or expensive metals could be used but would affect the quality of the end result.
The rest was down to the forger. Depending on the forger’s level, the quality and strength of the weapon or armour would be decided.
Most of the students had already finished inspecting the crystal and had moved on to the melting process.
The camera continued to pan around to the many students working away hard; however, the camera eventually reached one student. A short little one who seemed to be just standing there with his eyes closed. It looked as if he was sleeping in the middle of the tournament.
"What is Logan doing?" Quinn thought.
"Looks like he’s asleep if you ask me?" A voice said from behind. As the boys turned their heads, they could see Fex standing there.
"What took you so long?" Quinn replied back.
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