The crowd fell into a hushed silence as Adrian Albright and Viktor Sokolov faced each other across the platform. Despite both being first-years, there was nothing amateurish about their stance or their focus. These two had never met before—this tournament marking their first encounter—but each had already sized up their opponent with the calculating precision of seasoned combatants.
At the back, Noah leaned forward, eyes narrowed. "Adrian's seems ready," he muttered to Kelvin. "Look at how he's distributing his weight."
Kelvin nodded. "Sokolov's different. He's almost... relaxed. I may or may not have peeped into his data, dude's a Third Gen,"
Sophie who has managed also to find her way to the back bit her lower lip. "That's what worries me."
Commander Elara's voice cut through the arena: "BEGIN!"
