The identity verification procedure wasn't much different from before. Participants entered the tent, compared their ID with their face, registered one match support item, and only then could pass through. The difference was that facial verification was conducted more thoroughly. After examining even the shape of ear cartilage in detail, they received a token with a number on it. The number was '20' and seemed unrelated to the participant number.
Contrary to expectations of immediately moving to the match location through a portal like the previous match, the examination administrator opened an exit leading to the back of the tent. The space beyond was literally the back of the tent. Having crossed just one barrier, this was still inside the arena.
Participants who had gone through the procedure first also seemed to have received no separate instructions. They just gathered in small groups to share information or chat. Someone, perhaps impressed by Ero's vigor earlier, proposed alliances centered on those who looked strong. Needless to say, they were rejected.
Leonardo, who had walked outside while flicking the token meaninglessly with his thumb, looked around the gathering with furrowed brows. Gillian and Beatrice caught his eye again from a distance. If they were really moving with the goal of victory, in the current uncertain situation about team battles, it would be better to scatter and increase the probability of even one person advancing. That way they would also draw less attention. Whether the guys knew this, they seemed to keep distance on their own without any eye contact.
Leonardo, withdrawing his gaze, turned his head toward the sky where light shone particularly bright. The arena ceiling was wide open, and even considering the sun was at due south, the light felt excessive. On the other hand, the temperature was strangely low. He had looked up at the sky from outside too, but was it this strong?
Tilting his head, he naturally lowered his eyes to his feet. His golden eyes narrowed.
'The shadow is...'
Just then, a voice was heard right beside him.
"Big brother, did you receive this?"
Ero, who had come out from the side tent, stood close by. Leonardo only rolled his eyes to look at him. A token was likewise held in Ero's hand.
"Yeah, what's your number?"
"It's '20.'"
"Really? Same as mine."
"Is that so? As expected, in others' eyes we must be a combo! That's why they gave us the same one, right?"
'Guess they give everyone the same.'
When Leonardo appropriately let the fuss flow past, Ero, sensing his reaction, cleared his throat and asked.
"But, big brother. I've been curious from before. What did you register as a support item? Did you hide some secret weapon inside your cloak or jacket?"
Come to think of it, if he was a guy who had been attached since the middle of the Part 1 match, it would be natural to be curious about his weapon, fighting almost like a martial artist. Leonardo, who was about to answer that he had no such thing, nodded his head in affirmation after consideration. The fact he couldn't carry other tools due to the choker that sucked mana was a weakness compared to others if you could call it that. There was no need to reveal it already.
Fortunately, Ero believed it as is and brought his face close with sparkling eyes.
"Kya, a secret weapon! The day our big brother takes it out, won't the entire arena floor be overturned?"
"Enough, do you have any guesses about the Part 2 match? Today seems to be inside the arena."
"Ah, about that."
Ero began chattering away about the information he had analyzed and predicted over the past two days. Among them, the Part 1 match contents conducted at other arenas were the main focus, and the progression methods were relatively simpler than the match the two had competed in. Obstacle courses, long-distance running, etc.
"Didn't the place where we competed in the Part 1 match overlap with the opening ceremony location? So only our 5th Arena held it at an external competition site, and I heard most were conducted indoors. No wonder the difficulty was excessively high. In my opinion, this time won't it go a bit easier, though of course for big brother, no matter what difficulties come, you'll be in first place..."
When the lengthy chatter was becoming faint, the strangely shining sky rippled. The huge amplification magic circle he had seen before unfolded. It was the anticipated announcement broadcast.
"Big brother, it seems to be starting!"
The bustling venue became quiet in an instant. The atmosphere of the crowd raising their heads in unison was quite solemn.
Since the Part 1 match was conducted by groups, they could know from the beginning which group they belonged to. But this time there was no guidance about which group. Then would all these numerous people be deployed into one match?
'No limit.'
At least it wasn't first-come-first-served. From another perspective, it sounded like it meant the difficulty wasn't low enough for everyone to pass easily.
Whether he had the same thought, his eyes met with Ero beside him simultaneously.
If you combine two tokens, the value increases by the sum of the two numbers. If the number becomes 0 or you lose your token, you're not eliminated but cannot move beyond a 5m radius from that position. Successfully exiting the maze while holding your token will be the goal of this part.>
Leonardo looked down at the token he was holding. This number seemed to be not a number but an 'opportunity' to turn curves. In other words, the task this time meant escaping before all opportunities ended. But 20—while it seemed they gave quite a lot, compared to the arena's scale it was an absurdly small number.
The area of this stadium was roughly at least 25 hectares. Moreover, if they twisted dimensions within the maze to expand space, it could become even wider. If he wandered around without thinking, the opportunities would quickly run out. In the end, did it mean to fight and steal others' opportunities?
The magic circle spread across the sky disappeared as is. As soon as the announcement broadcast ended, participants murmured amongst themselves. Whether because the rules were unexpectedly simple or they were flustered by the constraint called token numbers wasn't clear. After a moment when situation grasp ended, they rushed forward in unison without anyone leading and lined up along the barrier's surface. That seemed to be the maze entrance.
"Big brother, let's hurry and go too!"
"Yeah."
At Ero's urging, Leonardo stepped forward and leisurely headed through the crowd moving ahead.
Glancing back at where his business partners had been, the two people were not visible, as if they had joined the formation early.
Though he had spoken coldly to Ero as if they weren't related, Leonardo, who inwardly wished for their good fortune, suddenly turned his head toward the spectator seats.
He felt a strange gaze but saw nothing.
Maybe he was too on edge lately as Gillian said... He, who had rubbed the back of his head, followed the participants.
The maze was made half-buried underground, so to reach the initial entrance, one had to go down stairs. But the stairs he thought would show an end after going some distance continued to quite a deep place. Following the zigzag-formed path and guide endlessly downward, before long the blue sky was far away enough to seem distant.
The barriers forming the maze had become that much higher. The height was estimated at roughly 11 meters, and if one walked looking only straight ahead without raising their head, yellowish-brown stone filled the entire view.
Here and there were low grooves to cross over to the other side, but even those, unless one possessed considerable jumping power, it didn't seem easy for ordinary people to climb over the walls. The entrance wasn't one place but dispersed to several places, but this was only to prevent traffic, and the guide explained that no place was advantageous or particularly closer to the exit.
Ultimately, the choice of which entrance to enter was the individual's responsibility.
"Within 10m from the starting point, you cannot extort others' tokens or combine token numbers. Then, a total of 20 people, depart. Please enter following the path."
As the guide's instruction fell, 20 people including Leonardo and Ero stepped into the gap between the grand barriers. As soon as they started, most of the personnel ran forward quickly while wary of each other. They seemed to want to create distance before getting caught up in unnecessary fights.
Ero rushed to chase them but hesitated and looked back.
"Big brother, aren't you going?"
Leonardo only walked leisurely at the very back with his cloak tails flipped back and hands in his pockets. It was a relaxed appearance hard to believe the match had started.
"Don't rush."
From beyond his shoulder, a spark rose and flew through the air like an arrow. It was too fast for Ero to follow with his gaze.
"In places like this, moving fast isn't everything."
The spark maintained a size about to go out but followed the participants busily running away. The sound of their running struck the barriers filling their view and echoed from all directions.