About half an hour after the entry of the Emperor to the Royal Gala, the proper felicitation ceremony began, as quarter-finalists were introduced to the wider crowd and called up by the Emperor to receive their match winning token and money.
*Ding*
*Ding*
*Ding*
The second prince of the Empire, son of the second and less favored wife of the Emperor, rang a spoon over his wine glass as he tried to gather everyone's attention for the speech his father was about to make.
"May I have everyone's attention please? Emperor Julien D Evanus will now make a speech…" the young second prince said in a shrill teenage voice, as he tried hard to calm down the crowd and funnel their attention towards his father.
While his poor attempt at ringing the wine glass did not work well, the moment Julien D Evanus stood up from his make-shift throne seat and stepped forward, his authority as an Emperor immediately made the crowd go absolutely silent.
His voice, both rich and commanding, filled the grand hall as he addressed the assembly.
"Ladies and gentlemen, distinguished guests, and brave quarter-finalists," he began, his gaze sweeping across the room, making each individual felt seen and significant. "Tonight, we gather not only to celebrate victories in battle but to recognize the strength and potential of those who will shape the future of our empire."
He paused, allowing his words to resonate among the audience, then continued, "Each of you who have reached this stage of the grand tournament have demonstrated exceptional skill, courage, and determination. You are not merely fighters; you are leaders and visionaries who will inherit the legacy of this great land."
With a warm smile, the Emperor concluded, "I wish each of you the very best as you continue to strive for excellence. May your endeavors bring glory to your families, your race, and our beloved empire. To the future!" He raised his glass, prompting a thunderous applause and a sea of raised glasses in response.
"To the future….." Everyone replied, finishing their drink as was the custom.
One by one, the quarter-finalists ascended the stage to receive their accolades from the Emperor with Leo being the first one to be introduced and called up.
"Our first quarter finalist is a man shrouded in mystery behind his Virex mask. A man of the people who has shattered all the previous open qualification records and has been hailed as a once in a lifetime genius by many.
Winning all his matches with relative ease and crushing what many considered generational talents on his way to becoming a quarter finalist, this man is as infamous as he is loved….." The announcer said, as all eyes automatically turned towards Leo.
Some of those gazes were friendly, some were filled with hatred, however, most were just curious.
Curious about his real identity, curious about how far he could go in the actual grand tournament and curious as to how he became as strong as he was.
Walking up to the stage, Leo shook Julien's hand in a firm handshake as the Emperor smiled amiably towards him.
Internally, Leo was disgusted by the Emperor and how he played his master in the past to become the Emperor. However, externally he did not let it show at all.
With not an ounce of his killing aura leaking, he behaved perfectly normally with Julien and even engaged in a sporting conversation with him.
"Agh, the infamous man 'TheBoss' ….." Julien said, with a fake chuckle as he looked towards his counselor.
"Just a day ago, I was meeting a teacher from the swordsmanship academy.... Poor guy wished to disqualify you from the tournament, however, I told him blatantly that I'm a 'TheBoss' supporter!
Can't eliminate the winner of the Grand Tournament early…. Can I?" Julien said jokingly, as although he did not really believe Leo could win the Grand Tournament, he joked around about it like the sly politician that he was.
Had Leo been a local NPC of the game, who had never seen politician's lie to seem amiable, he would have maybe fallen for the Emperor's words, thinking that the Emperor was genuinely rooting for him, however, he was a man who had witnessed the presidency of the fake bitch Verma on Earth.
He already knew how untrustable the ruling class was and hence knew exactly how worthless the Emperor's compliments were.
Nonetheless, maintaining the nice mood, Leo chuckled at his joke and replied with a 'I hope not to disappoint the sun of the Empire' as he collected his grand tournament token and prize money and walked off the stage.
Not displaying any shock, or fanboy behavior, Leo cordially met the Emperor and left without trying to especially strike conversation as his behavior perplexed many.
Usually when grand tournament candidates met the Emperor for the first time ever, they tried their best to get in his good graces and converse with him as long as possible, however, Leo did not.
Curt and to the point, he went up, laughed at the Emperor's joke and walked down, as the lesser nobles gathered at the Gala mocked him for not understanding the importance of the opportunity he had at hand.
To them, an opportunity to get acquainted and leave a lasting impression in the mind of Emperor Julien was invaluable, hence, they could not comprehend Leo's behavior at all and branded him a fool.
After Leo, the Elf candidate was called up next, and the Emperor's smile was visibly less bright as he talked with her.
Although still cordial and fake, the warmth of his tone and the shine in his eyes were noticeably gone, as anyone with enough observation skills could discern what the Emperor really felt towards members of non-human species, especially when his tone and mood only worsened when talking with the Tiger Beastman candidate next, with whom he did not even try and crack a joke.
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/// A/N - Bonus chapter 4 of 5 for the day. Hope you enjoy! ///