Chapter 50: Gald Cup

Boom!

Amidst the dissipating smoke in the center of the duel arena, the Sword Emperor, with his sword enveloped in a blade aura, clashed fiercely with the princess wielding a spear infused with divine power.

Boom! Boom!

The two warriors exchanged blows at such an incredible speed that most of the spectators could only make out flashes of crimson and white light intertwining in the air.

‘This one… With each strike, she’s growing stronger.’

The Sword Emperor’s face was now painted with excitement.

‘How long has it been since I felt my heart race like this in battle?’

Not since his three-day, three-night battle against the Flame Emperor had he felt this exhilarated. 

He now understood why the Tao Emperor had taken this woman as his disciple. 

If it were possible, he would have loved to steal her as his own pupil.

Clang!

The princess’s spear collided with the Sword Emperor’s blade in midair.

“That sword…” the princess questioned, her eyes narrowing at him. 

“It’s not the sword aura I’m familiar with. You’ve condensed it around the blade?”

“Hahaha! Indeed! Only those who’ve surpassed the limits of a select few can do it!”

‘She figured it out just by seeing my blade aura?’

The Sword Emperor was both thrilled and unnerved by the princess’s rapid growth.

Boom!

The princess retreated, taking a deep breath. 

The divine power surrounding her spear began to condense, gathering more intensely around it.

‘…Impossible.’

The princess had grown fast enough to contend with the Sword Emperor, and though it was only a matter of time before she reached his level, it seemed inconceivable that she could master blade aura just by observing it.

“My Lord is with me. Nothing is impossible for Him.”

Boom

A shockwave erupted from the princess, and at its core, divine power coalesced into a small orb, enveloping her spear. 

She had successfully replicated the blade aura using divine power.

“Haha… Hahahaha… Hahahahahaha!”

The Sword Emperor burst into mad laughter at the sight.

“Truly magnificent!”

His greatsword began to tremble violently in his hands as the princess rose high into the air, raising her spear toward the heavens.

Zing!

A pillar of light descended from the sky, striking her spear. 

ehind her, a colossal spear formed, large enough to overshadow the entire arena.

The Sword Emperor’s greatsword also lengthened. 

The blade itself remained the same, but the aura enveloping it grew even longer.

‘The final strike.’

The Sword Emperor looked up at the princess descending upon him with her massive spear. 

The attack held enough power to shake him to his core, but from the look of the princess, it was clear she had no energy left to continue the fight after this.

‘I could dodge this and secure an easy victory. But…’

With his extensive battle experience, the Sword Emperor knew he could evade the attack and defeat the princess. 

But—

Buzz

He channeled more power into his sword and flew towards the princess’s colossal spear.

He didn’t want to dodge it. 

He wanted to meet her attack head-on with all the strength he possessed.

“Arghhh!”

Boom!

The clash of their all-out attacks sent shockwaves through the arena, shaking the barrier surrounding it.

“Ahhh! What just happened? Who won?”

“What on earth am I witnessing?”

Though the audience remained untouched by the battle’s winds, they were thrown into confusion by the overwhelming visual spectacle.

As the smoke filling the arena began to clear—

Thud

“…Magnificent,” the Sword Emperor uttered, collapsing to the ground.

“Haa… Haa… Haa…”

The princess stood, her entire body battered and bruised. 

There wasn’t a single part of her that didn’t ache. 

She had no magic or divine power left within her. 

If the Sword Emperor hadn’t chosen to face her head-on, she would be the one lying on the ground.

Ding!

“Victory! You will be moved to the victor’s waiting room shortly.”

‘I won.’

Her meticulously crafted plans for analyzing her opponents had crumbled, but she knew this was what the Lord had intended for her.

“I am the King whom the Lord has sent to this world. I will protect the people according to His will.”

Flash

“Waaaahhhhhh!”

The spectators erupted into cheers as they confirmed the outcome of the match.

“Hmph.”

A woman seated in a corner of the stands smiled.

“…I asked to become stronger, but this… Isn’t this too much?” 

She muttered, beads of sweat forming on her forehead.

The day after the spectacular duel between the princess and the Sword Emperor concluded the round of 32, Albus sat with Dua, hands clasped, at the highest point in the arena where the round of 16 was about to commence.

Buzz

“It worked!”

A small orb of divine energy floated above Albus’s hands.

“It worked! Look, Dua!”

“You did it! Daddy did it, just like Dua!” Dua cheered, raising her arms in excitement.

The orb, newly created in the empty air, was formed without any of the GM’s powers. 

It was a power that Albus, an ordinary man, possessed. It was a power rooted in reality.

The princess’s awakening before countless onlookers had increased the amount of divine energy Albus could wield. 

Thanks to that, he could now use divine energy to create a small orb. 

Despite showing a grand spectacle to the audience during the opening ceremony, the amount of divine power he had gained wasn’t much, but the moment the princess awakened and defeated the Sword Emperor, it surged.

“All thanks to the princess, I suppose.”

Albus’s divine power grew as those who followed the GM performed miracles.

“When someone who believes in me as a god does something extraordinary, my divine power increases.”

He had found some direction. He now knew how to grow this power. 

However, there was a problem.

“My authority is too strong. If I meddle even a little, something like yesterday’s Perizet incident could happen again.”

Although he had successfully restored Perizet’s soul, there was no guarantee that he would be so fortunate in future incidents.

If he wasn’t careful, irreversible damage could occur.

“The best thing would be for another event like the princess’s awakening to happen… How do I…”

Should he give the princess exclusive access to the personal broadcast system he had planned to implement later?

The first match of the round of 16 was about to begin.

Buzz

In the duel arena, Prince Lindermann appeared in pristine condition.

Flash

His opponent, Akuham, appeared across from him. But—

‘…Huh?’

The prince sensed something was off about his opponent.

‘Something about the atmosphere is different.’

The prince had thoroughly reviewed all of Akuham’s previous matches to analyze his opponent, but something felt wrong.

And indeed, the prince was not facing Akuham.

Instead, it was Orabas, a lich and Akuham’s familiar, who had been sent to fight in his master’s place.

‘Master… You climb this high in the tournament only to ask me to fight in your stead. Isn’t that too much?’

Akuham had disappeared, leaving Orabas to take his place, claiming he was off to find that so-called Zhang.

‘No choice then. As someone entrusted with such an important task by my master, I must fulfill my duty perfectly.’

Dark energy gathered in Orabas’s hands.

Ding

“The match will begin shortly.”

Boom!

The prince’s giant clashed with the lich’s dark magic.

“I’m… I’m sorry, Master…”

After a grueling 15-minute battle, Orabas shattered and disintegrated into white dust.

“Haa… Haa…”

Ding

“Victory! You will be moved to the victor’s waiting room shortly.”

The injured prince panted heavily as he was enveloped in the light of the warp.

‘A tough opponent, but I’ve won.’

He had to keep winning.

To purify the continent’s corruption by uniting with the ‘noble’ beastfolk saintess, he first needed to win the competition for the throne and become emperor. 

No matter what, he had to emerge victorious in this tournament.

Thud

“This… This is impossible…”

A giant frost golem rolled its eyes and collapsed, soon dissolving into white light.

Ding

“Victory! You will be moved to the victor’s waiting room shortly.”

Flash

Leighton, who had just defeated his opponent, the frost giant, sat down on a couch in the waiting room and checked the new message.

“Arrived at the academy. Will begin the search for Valt…”

After confirming his father’s thinly veiled threat, Leighton quickly sent trustworthy guild members to the academy.

“Be safe, Wald.”

The brilliant battlefield where the continent’s strongest clashed, a spectacle rarely witnessed up close, began to spark the formation of a sort of fandom among the players.

“Kyaaa! Leighton!”

“Princess! Show them what you’re made of!”

Many began cheering for their favorite contestants, and in this newfound spectacle, with the potential for massive earnings through betting, their immersion grew deeper.

“Didn’t you see the princess defeat the Sword Emperor? She beat the Sword Emperor! Of course, she’s going to win!”

“What are you talking about? The Executioner Leighton is going to win! He cut down that Elf dictator with a single strike!”

With nothing else to enjoy, the sudden emergence of this grand event and the chance to win big through betting had driven the fans into a frenzy.

This wave of fervor soon spread to the online community.

Title: Do Executioner fans really think he’s stronger than the princess?

Post: He couldn’t even beat that little Elf kid

Title: [Just Arrived] I made the right choice by betting on the princess.

Post: All I wanted was to get on the GM’s good side, so I bet on her. And now, she’s beaten the Sword Emperor, haha! I’m going to be rich.

As the round of 16 commenced and the semifinals neared, the community grew even more heated.