The referee's hand gripped the roulette as it spun slowly in the chill, torchlit air. The disc—etched with our names—whirled before my eyes like a fateful wheel, its gradual rotation dictating who would begin the brutal contest.
In the arena, Unlike the refined, highly anticipated Knight Tournament—reserved for the most illustrious noble houses—this preliminary bout was a chaotic free-for-all.
There, the head of noble houses was represented by only fifteen chosen participants drawn from the venerable Archduchy of Luxemburg, the Grand Duchy of Dewei, the Duchy of Borgia, and the House of Zyair.
Their measured and noble combat was a world apart from the clamor of the lower ranks, where every clash was as much an outcry of defiance as it was an assertion of survival.
