Chapter 55: I believe in Federation

Seeing the commotion, the speaker understood that the viewers would also be worried by this information. So, he decided to release some info to relieve them, "But don't worry, the Federation headquarters has decided to find out the root cause and search for any way to prevent this from happening again."

"For a moment, I thought I had a heartache."

"Well, anyone can end up in a critical situation."

"But don't worry. I believe in the Federation."

"Anyway, we've talked enough about awareness," the speaker said as he glanced at the participants sitting in their chairs, sipping juice. He continued, "I think you guys have had enough rest and are ready for the final stage."

The participants nodded, and the speaker added, "Okay, you have five minutes to get ready for the final stage." With that, everyone stood up to wash their faces and freshen up. Watching the heir of an influential family, the speaker grinned, "It's time for you to experience the competition. Be on the field in five minutes."

Among the influential family heirs, Rahul and the others shivered as they saw the speaker's big grin, feeling uneasy but preparing for the final stage ahead.

"Okay, everyone, since they are preparing for the final stage," the speaker said, glancing toward the audience, "why not let me tell you about the importance of luck?"

"As expected. No time wasted in the competition."

"Fool! It was arranged like that so that in our free time, we are given enlightenment that isn't taught in school."

"Yeah, that's why the Federation uses this chance to always instill some important incidents and causes in students' brains."

"Well, humans are always like that. They only learn one thing from history: that they learn nothing from history."

"Hahaha, that's the biggest joke I've ever heard."

"You'll realize that wasn't a joke if you've ever read our history, fool!"

"Hmm, now please be quiet," the speaker said. Seeing the silence, he continued, "You guys should know the value of luck in a game like this. It can decrease your spending on gacha if you have good luck."

Taking a peek around himself, he added, "But in real life, luck can be crucial in life-and-death battles and can even determine your future."

Taking a deep breath, he spilled everything in one go, "Sometimes, just a tiny bit of luck, like 0.1%, can outweigh 99.9% of effort in any competition. That's why we decided to emphasize it on our stage. You might have heard in your life: Luck can change your destiny if it falls on the right side of the coin."

"Ohhh!" A sudden applause rang out in the competition after the speaker's speech ended.

"I didn't think luck played such a big role in life."

"What do you mean? I've seen things happen to my neighbor's child that seemed like pure luck."

"Well, luck can be harsh, and sometimes it can be the reason you fail."

"Alright, everyone, time's up. You have one minute, so please wrap it up," the speaker's voice echoed through the audience, and the murmurs began as everyone rushed to finish.

"Now's the time to enjoy the grand feast."

"What do you mean? You act like you're dominating the competition, but you're just a viewer."

"What do you know about the enjoyment of viewers?"

"Hahahahh"

Cough* Cough*

"Viewers get to enjoy watching others compete without any embarrassment or risk."

"Coward."

"You call me a coward, but at least I'm not adding salt to the competitors' wounds."

Cough Cough

"Hey, look! All the players are gathering on the competition field."

"Okay, everyone, please keep quiet and bring your attention to the competition field," a loud voice from the speaker resonated throughout the competition avenue. After a brief pause, it continued, "Now all the competitors have already gathered, so without wasting any time, let's start the final stage." Glancing toward the operator, the speaker added, "Please show the competitor list on the screen."

On the Screen:

Final Stage [Participant]: - Qualified Player [Age (around)] [Rank]:

Ravi [17] [D]

Geeta [17] [D]

Rakesh [17] [D-]

Pallavi [17] [D-]

Ajay [16] [D+]

Ramesh [17] [D-]

On-list Player:

Ashish [17] [C+]

Aditya [17] [C]

Piyush [17] [C]

Vishwajeet [17] [C-]

Arjun [17] [C-]

Karan [17] [C-]

Pavan [17] [D+]

Arnav [17] [D+]

Rahul [14] [E-]

Pranav [14] [F+]

"Oh! I didn't expect the last player to be at an early E rank."

"Yeah, he awakened just this year."

"What? This year? Doesn't that mean..."

"Yep, in just a few weeks, he reached early E rank. I didn't see that coming."

"But even with talent, it's hard to overcome the ranks."

Smack

"Come on, do you remember what happened three years ago?"

"Sorry, I wasn't following this back then."

"I was! I remember Ashish awakening his profession that year."

"Yeah, and he was just at peak F rank at that time."

"Got it. So that means Rahul also has a chance to win during his year."

"Right. If he stays on track and doesn't hit any setbacks, he could be a big deal."

"Ansh sure knows how to analyze these things."

"I'm voting for Ashish."

smack*

"Everyone knows he's going to win. Pick someone else who might surprise us."

"Fine, then I vote for Aditya to win."

Facepalm!

"I shouldn't have expected much from you."

"Okay, okay, quiet down. The speaker is about to announce something."

…..

As Rahul descended onto the tournament field, he felt a piercing gaze that seemed to scan him from head to toe. He squinted and looked toward where the stare came from.

There, he saw an old man with a beard, mustache, and sharp eyebrows and the man had a penetrating look in his eyes.

"Who is he?" Rahul wondered. Despite feeling uneasy, he couldn't help but think the old man looked pretty cool.

The old man sat on a grand couch, exuding a sort of majestic presence. Even though he was quite old, the beard and mustache added a certain charm. Plus, the way he was seated suggested he had a lot of power. Yet, Rahul couldn't shake the question: "Why is he staring at me like that? Old man! Does he know me?"