"Eveything okay kid?"
Nolan's voice snapped brought Grey back to reality on the the roof he sat. One of his favorite spots in the manor.
"Yeah!"
"You don't need to sulk about the connection ceremony earlier, at least you did make contact or did anything else happen?"
Nolan asked again.
"Nahh, it's nothing!"
Grey denied.
A pointless thing to do to someone who completed saw through him.
'The aura of blessing doesn't flow around him. Who would've thought your son was going to turn out like this Easton!'
"Sigh! You should prepare for the fight tonight, take sometime to bond with the spear!"
"Yeah, thanks!"
Grey said, watching his uncle Nolan walk off the roof.
"Tonight....."
His eyes flickered thinking of the display they had to show off tonight.
After each connection ceremony, there was always a public gathering held for every Theo Race member to watch them fight.
"Why do we even have to do these things?"
"It's a sacred ceremony kid. A way of showing the people what this generation has to offer, their potential, our future!"
His uncle's voice reached his ear, letting him know that he still had his eyes on him.
"Fuck off old man!"
"Haha! We can't go late and keep them waiting again, Grey!"
He said and his presence vanished completely.
"Yeah, it's almost time!"
Grey muttered, jumping off the roof.
....
"Did you hear? Some unique talents appeared today!"
"Yeah, young lady Aria and young lord Alex"
"I heard the others were also promising, more so than the last ones!"
"That's incredible, the last ones were pretty good too!"
"Hmmm. What about young lord Grey?"
"That crazy bastard? Didn't you hear? He's runeless. He is going to be the fall of House Altharion!"
"Shhhh! They're here!!!"
The people gossiped and talked amongst themselves about the connection ceremony that had happened earlier that day.
Only a few people were present to witness it, but the word had already spread far and wide, reaching the ears of those within the city walls.
They gathered in the arena where the fight was to be held. It was time and several carriages could be seen coming in with the emblems of each house on them.
At the head were the carriages of the two most anticipated houses for tonight—Vaelmont and Durnholm.
"They're here!"
"Yeah!"
The crowd cheered heavily seeing the ones who could possibly lead their race in the future step down from their carriages, making their way into the arena.
The younger generation walked into the arena barefooted, the boys mostly bare chested while the females were in combat clothes which still showed off some of their back. As usual Grey was the only unusual one, wearing a long sleeved, tight combat dress.
The aim of the others were quite simple—show off their runes, their pride and the pride of their very race.
They all spread to the edge of the arena, and while they waited, Grey looked around inspecting each participant.
All of them present here were lords of Noble houses, from the high to the lower houses and the difference in their lineage was quite clear.
Not just in the way they carried themselves, the difference could so be spotted physically. The descendants of those from a higher lineage all had more advanced runes than the others of a a lesser lineage.
The runes of Alex and Aria, the two who had been accepted by the masses as the geniuses of this generation. They runes had advanced quite a lot, peeking out from their shoulders.
The runes of Theo always started from the back, creeping out to cover the rest of the body the more they advanced in power.
The other young lords, still had their runes covering most of backs, while Grey...
"They're here!!"
"Really??"
Excited sounds came from the audience as a Golden carriage with a huge embelm of a firey Phoenix on its sides was spotted approaching from afar.
The whole crowd was sent into a very excited state, while the bodies of the young lords in the arena tensed.
They were about to be in the presence of the Royal family of the Theo Race, the House of Runefyre. They who stood at the pinnacle of their race, guiding them into an age of prosperity.
The House of Runefyre were rarely seen outside of very special occasions, and this just happened to be one of them.
It was tradition for the Royal family to kick start this event. The young lords below weren't just fighting to impress the members of their race and increase their standing amongst the people. The main goal was to catch the eye of the Royal family.
Around their carriage were four guards at each corner, each of them giving off an oppressive aura from within the amour which concealed their appearance.
"Their Most Gracious Magesties, King Marcus, Queen Gianna, and Prince Landon Runefyre!"
The booming voice of one of the guards, went through the arena, announcing the presence of the Royal family.
This announcement was followed with a deep silence in the arena, as the King, Queen and the Prince all stepped out of the carriage.
The faces of the Queen and Prince were concealed behind a veil, but the appearance of the king was there for them to see, especially his striking golden eyes which flickered like smoldering flame.
There was something divine about the family of three as they silently walked into the arena, making their way to their seats at the top.
The people didn't even get enough time to take in the appearance of their leader, but they were satisfied nonetheless.
The hearts of those who were in the arena and all those who were watching this moment which was currently being broadcasted to their homes, were all filled with nothing but a deep sense of respect.
The same could be seen in the eyes of the young lords in the fighting space who were looking up to their King who had come forward to address them.
"Members of the Theo Race. It is that time again, the time where we get to evaluate the future of our race, just as the beliefs and old tradition says—Our fate and the future of our great race lays in the hands of young chicks who are to take over when the time is right!"
The King's voice was calm, reaching the ears of all those present effortlessly, carrying them along with each word he said.
"But! As we all know, no weak chick can lead our race—"
The King's voice continued, but Grey's attention was distracted. He could feel a pair of eyes staring into him.
When he shifted his head to the side, his eyes locked onto the figure of the Queen who also happened to be looking in his direction.
There was a veil covering her face and eyes, but at that moment, Grey was sure that she was fixed him.
The Queen, Gianna broke eye contact, looking back to the figure of her husband, the King.
"So show us what exactly you have to offer!"
The King completed his speech, which was followed by the loud cheers of the crowd along with the determined eyes of the young lords and ladies. His last words had deeply inspired and resonated with them.
They wanted more than ever to prove something to the King himself.
'Why the hell was she staring at me. Is she a fan or something?'
Grey thought, losing focus until a sword came into his line of sight, heading for his head.
"Wake up kid!"
Nolan's voice appeared in his head and out of reflex, he raised his arm to block with the spear.
CLANG!
A striking metallic sound was heard as his body got sent back till he was stopped by the hard wall behind him.
The fight had officially started the moment the King ended his speech and most of them made the most logical decision—eliminate the weakest amongst them, Grey.
"He certain did fall into a tough spot!"
The King muttered to the Queen beside him.
Grey's eyes darkened seeing the three males approaching him slowly, especially the one at the centre who had thrown the previous strike.
Their runes were far from being all over their backs.
"If you think you can take me down with just yourselves, I might just see you all mad!"
His whole demeanor and speech had changed, taking on an express not much had seen on the face of the playboy lord.
The three young lords from the lesser families ignored his words.
"You talk much for a runeless outcast!"
"Let's end him and move on. I'm sure lord Alex is gonna be pleased!"
One of them said in a low tone to the others.
"Forget that bastard, I'd be happy enough to beat the hell out of this self important fool."
BANG!
Grey slammed the butt of his spear on the floor, taking the attention of the three in front of him and some others.
"Are you keep rambling like idiots, or come here and get your asses handed to you?"