(Sky-God Arena, The Contestant Viewing Stands)
Yu Shen watched the rest of the Rodova team dominate calmly from the front-row bleachers— the best seats in the house, positioned just meters away from the battlefield.
He clapped and cheered along with the crowd, though his thoughts were far more calculating than celebratory.
He knew better than anyone that for most of the teammates fighting today, this would likely be their first and last appearance on the circuit's stage.
As the ever-merciful captain, Yu Shen had deliberately allowed them this opportunity— giving each one a chance to bask in the spotlight, score a few eliminations, and perhaps even catch the attention of sponsors who might change their futures.
But in truth, except for Minerva, none of today's fighters were part of his envisioned strongest line-up.
He had no intention of fielding them again when the round of 32 arrived tomorrow.
Instead, he already planned to deploy the others— the ones who had yet to step onto the stage— giving them their share of exposure before the real struggle began in the later rounds.
However, all these internal thoughts were for himself…. He did not share them with his team, as he was simply all smiles and praises when they returned in the team warm-up area.
"Good job guys… Good fighting. You made Rodova proud—" He said, clapping them on the shoulders, as he took joy in their joy and became a part of their life's core memory.
However, Leo was different.
Unlike the captain who fraternised with everyone, Leo kept to himself in a corner, wondering when he could return to the stands to watch the unfolding action again, as for him, watching the other matches seemed way more important than this pointless team celebration.
"Umm Captain, permission to return to the stands, please—" Leo said eventually, when he saw that the celebrations were never ending, to which Yu Shen replied with a steady nod, as Leo bailed almost instantly.
—--------
Returning to the viewing stands, Leo settled into his seat just as the second match between Geneva and Biscoff Academy began, with Geneva already holding an expected 1-0 lead.
Much like Rodova earlier, it seemed Geneva had chosen to withhold its strongest fighters for now, fielding mostly Master-level warriors instead. Yet, despite the apparent parity of fighter tiers on paper, the difference in skill was undeniable between both sides.
The Geneva representatives dominated the battlefield with clinical precision, making the Biscoff team look like little more than target dummies as they dismantled them one by one.
"And this is why Derek, training and environment does make a huge difference in how a warrior performs.
As just look at the difference between the training facilities at Geneva versus Biscoff Academy—" Lee said, as the jumbotron showcased side-by-side photos of both academies' training grounds.
While the Geneva academy grounds looked like the most modern and high-tech facility around, with all sorts of weighted vests and different running trails built for endurance runs.
The Biscoff Academy training grounds was just a muddy field with old rusty equipment that looked like it had not been refurbished in over a decade.
"And that's why it's important for academies to consistently score high within the circuit's.
The monetary grant for the winners and runner-up academies are huge, but even more importantly they get access to the best genetic awakening serum shots—" Derek added, as he reminded the audience about the underlying stakes beneath the circuits.
In the end, Geneva Military Academy also wiped the floor with their opponents 5-0, as they cruised into round of 32 with ease.
—----------
Leo remained in the stands for the rest of the day, quietly observing each of the following matches without missing a moment. The only company he had were Professor David and Muiyan Faye, both of whom were tasked with meticulously recording every fight.
Their role wasn't just administrative— the footage was to be reviewed thoroughly by the Rodova team later that night, dissected for patterns, weaknesses, and strategies as they prepared for the rounds ahead.
Leo fully expected neither David nor Faye to initiate a conversation with him in such a public setting, however, much to his surprise, it was David who began chatting with him as the day progressed.
"Did you catch the movement of that mage? Skyshard?
He's using a spell called [Blitz Steps] coupled with [Mirror World] to confuse his opponent about his real location.
His real body has already shifted his position 7 times by now, circling all the way to the opponent's back, however, the foolish opponent is still looking for him in the front—" David pointed out, as Leo nodded.
"I can track him using [Absolute Vision], I know his real body from the fake–" Leo replied, to which David nodded with understanding.
"That's why we teach you perception as a mandatory first year course, so that illusions of such crude level won't work on you.
However, this same set-up if used by a Grandmaster tier fighter or a transcendent tier fighter would yield a very different outcome.
The speed boost generated by [Blitz Steps] is not small, and if your cycling speed for [Absolute Vision] is not fast enough, it will trick your senses into seeing things that are not.
Which is why, always double check for shadows when the sun is shining high.
If you look closely, only the real mage has a shadow, while the rest don't—" David taught, as he shared his veteran experiences with Leo rather candidly.
For a moment, it felt weird to Leo that David was teaching him something useful out of the blue, as it almost seemed like David had left all the animosity he felt towards Leo back at the academy.
However, it wasn't until the last and most thrilling fight of the evening concluded, that David finally revealed his true colors.
*Clap*
Clapping his hands hard once, he turned towards Leo with his usual grumpy look, as all the insightful moments that the two shared throughout the day seemed to not matter anymore now.
"I've finally figured out how you cheated in my exam…. It kept bothering me for weeks as to how you did it.
However, talking to you today I finally know how—-
Your cycle speed for [Absolute Vision] has already hit perfection, which means you can trace pencil writing with ease.
That's how you cheated in my exam, and while I can't prove your crime for a previous date, I'll sure as hell make sure you can't use the same trick twice in the finals—" David said, as Leo let out a hearty laugh.
Apparently, David's intention behind all that insightful talk was to gauge Leo's abilities, and Leo had unwittingly played right into his hands.
"You're funny, professor…. I'm definitely not a cheater—" Leo replied, walking past him, as he refused to acknowledge any wrongdoing he may or may not have done in the past.
To be fair, he hadn't expected David to still be obsessing over the midterms after all these weeks, as if he knew that the professor was THIS petty, he would have been more careful.
Nonetheless, it was a lesson learnt, as he vowed to himself to not let his true insights slip even in a casual setting from now on.