Chapter 268: Dark Demon Also Understands the Gap
The appearance of Alvaraite and Claire surprised Dak, but he quickly guessed that it was likely because the Saint Maryan’s new student showcase was always held on the second Saturday morning of each semester. Therefore, they had come specially to watch the match.
This did not significantly affect Dak’s mood.
It was their arrival that made it harder for Dak to lose.
He had to win…
Looking at Alvaraite’s face after such a long time, Dak couldn’t help but reveal a warm smile.
…
The first match of every Saturday began precisely at eight o’clock.
Unlike the simulated matches Dak had experienced before, the official match had both judges and commentators.
Today’s commentator was a member of the Dueling Club—Zach Wilson!
Wilson, with slightly longer cheeks and an angular eye, looked a bit sinister when squinting his eyes.
However, he had pretty good popularity within the Dueling Club.
As one of the pure-blood nobles, he was humble, kind to others, and helpful, appearing as a good person on the surface.
So when he suggested changing shifts this morning, he easily swapped places with the originally scheduled commentator.
Standing on the commentary platform, Wilson surveyed the surroundings and indeed saw Angus Jeffrey, the head of the Noble History Research Society, and third-year student Mike Owen.
“Underlings!”
He inwardly criticized, wishing he were in Owen’s position.
After glancing at those two, Wilson couldn’t help but look towards the audience.
The strength of today’s audience also shocked him.
The presence of the Big Princess, the Big Prince, the Valkyrie, and the Archbishop gave this new student tournament an extraordinary significance.
If he could put on a brilliant performance this morning, whether as a contestant or commentator, it would be a great opportunity!
Wilson suddenly became energized!
Commentators are not judges and cannot substantially influence the match results.
But commentators also act as hosts, so they can influence public opinion.
Originally, Wilson wanted to watch Dak Diemon embarrass himself up close, but now he dared not be biased.
“Hello, everyone! It has been a week since our last visit to the Saint Maryan New Student Tournament.”
“Familiar viewers know that today is a special day. New duelists usually have their first match in the second week after joining the Dueling Club, which is today!”
“But you probably don’t know that this year, there are actually seven first-year students among the new recruits!”
“As for who these seven young duelists are, we will gradually unveil them in the upcoming matches.”
“And now, please welcome the two contestants for our first match today.”
“The red side contestant is the veteran who joined the Dueling Club last fall—the true veteran, second-year Knight Academy student Willy Brant!”
“Yes, today is another classic confrontation between the Knight Academy and the Noble Academy.”
“The blue side contestant is one of the seven true newcomers, first-year Mana Academy student Teddy Dolong!”
“Let us give a warm round of applause for both contestants!”
…
“Clap clap clap!”
The ring echoed with enthusiastic applause and cheers.
“Dolong, Dolong!”
The chubby Piston waved the flag with all his might, shouting with all his heart.
Dolong, stepping onto the blue side contestant platform, felt a slight blush, but the initial pressure of the first round somewhat subsided.
But once he reached the contestant platform and saw the 120-meter-long official battlefield, he felt slightly dizzy.
His opponent, Willy Brant, was a top student from the second year, unlike the other second-years who only recently joined the recruitment matches. Brant was already a seasoned duelist.
Yet, Dolong was a true newcomer making his first duel on an official battlefield.
The probability of winning was almost zero!
“Winning or losing isn’t scary; what matters is putting up a fight!”
Dolong slapped his cheek hard, trying to focus his mind.
…
“Why isn’t it a hero?”
The Big Prince in the audience was getting restless.
The simultaneous arrival of the Big Princess had unsettled his mindset.
The old Archbishop glanced at him with the corner of his eye, sighed slightly, and slowly said, “Teddy Dolong, the youngest son of the Dolong family, is a force we must strive to gain.”
The Big Prince glanced at the contestant platform and said, “I know. To promote our cause, military support is crucial. The Dolong family’s prestige in the military is second only to the Great Bear, but how much can such a child decide?”
The Archbishop leaned back in his chair, tilted his head slightly upward, closed his eyes, and breathed steadily.
…
In a corner of the audience seats.
A man in a plain coat was satisfied with what he saw on stage: “Not bad. Looks like little Teddy didn’t slack off in class. Back then, even my father couldn’t make it into the Dueling Club in his first year. Once I return to the clan, I’ll finally have something to brag about.”
…
Dolong did not notice his father secretly hiding among the audience to watch.
He focused intently, carefully assessing the distance between the two sides of the field, feeling slightly reassured.
If we don’t consider the superiority of mana cards, the biggest gap between first-year and second-year students lies in summoning speed.
The absolute difference in summoning speed combined with high-speed mana spirits can form a deadly quick attack in short-range fields.
But as the field expands, this one-hit-kill quick attack tactic is severely restricted.
For first-year students, this反而变成了优势。
“请蓝方选手迅速准备。”
裁判的声音伴随着哨声响起，多隆猛地一愣，随后连忙伸手摸向牌桌，注入魔力启动。
随着牌桌的投影出现在选手台前方，多隆的初战拉开了帷幕。
他在第一回合成功召唤出了攻击力高达1500的三星魔导精灵——“小岩龙”。
紧接着又召唤出了为数不少的高三围魔导精灵，在二年级学长的穷追猛打下强撑了许久。
最终在威利?勃朗特成功献祭召唤出一只四星魔导精灵后，他的阵容才被彻底击溃，无奈落败。
…
“让我们祝贺勃朗特选手捍卫了学长的尊严！当然，多隆选手的韧性也非常强，不愧是一年级中的佼佼者，也为他献上掌声！”
威尔逊在解说台上高声宣布，他感觉自己的解说就像现场的氛围一样，正在进入状态。
…
多隆的失败在意料之中。
除了他的支持者感到非常失落外，骑士院的几个刺头在他下场后嘲讽了几句。
这无关紧要。
按照琼斯教授的意思，初战失败并不丢脸。
能够从失败中吸取经验，看清自己与对手之间的差距，才是本次比赛的主要课题。
“不知道达克的比赛是在第几场？”
多隆随即转职成了“观众”。
