08:00 pm, June 26, 1378 ASV
On the main theatre stage, a star shaped spotlight focused on a golden masked man with long blue hair. His bronze skin caught the spotlight, gleaming as he began his performance.
The floor beneath him changed to a map of the world. A giant circle of ocean surrounded 5 large continents and to the far west of it was the Holy Astrean Empire. Its continent, which connected to the continent of Tenaria, formed a half moon. Around the border of their world, a giant ice wall that was at least 15,000 metres tall surrounded them.
A woman's voice spoke into the speakers above them:
"Over 1300 years ago, the world's sun died… causing an estimated 99% of the world to be frozen. All except for the world map that you see below you."
The scenery switched to a battlefield as over a dozen masked men jumped onto the stage, each carrying weapons. Standing unarmed, the golden masked man ducked and weaved each of their attacks, using his fists to land critical strikes on their vital points. This fight prompted the crowd of sponsors to murmur among themselves ecstatically while the slaves continued to shove food down their mouths, requesting for seconds and thirds from the staff.
"During the ensuing chaos, humanity faced extinction. A single hero emerged from its flames. That hero was none other than Seraphim Volarion, humanity's first emperor! As the tribes of humanity continued to wage war against one another for the mere amusement of the gods, Emperor Volarion rebelled against the heavens!"
The stage changed scenes once more, the golden masked man now stood atop fluffy white clouds. This time, 7 ivory masked men and women descended from the roof with harnesses connected to them.
"After having learned the secret arts of the gods, the heavens sent their 7 Divine Generals to execute Emperor Volarion. However, they failed in their mission…"
The 7 ivory masked men and women attacked the golden masked man, who weaved his hands into a finger gun pose, causing two of his attackers to drop dead. As he focused on killing the third, the fourth and fifth attackers swung their weapons at him from behind, breaking his arm. Despite this, he killed the third attacker with one arm and shifted his attention to the two before him.
The fluffy white clouds turned bright orange as a path of flames made its way to the two attackers, setting them on fire. Having witnessed the tides of the battle shift, the sixth attacker ran away leaving the seventh all alone who stood his ground. Emperor Volarion attempted to set the man on fire but he simply shrugged off the flames with great annoyance, sending a voltage of lightning to strike the emperor where he stood. In the background, the lightning sound effects echoed off of the hall's walls creating a vibrating sound in Eros' ears.
Emperor Volarion limped away, barely surviving the lightning attack by this fearsome enemy. The scene shifted once more, this time zooming in on the continent of the Holy Astrean Empire.
"On that day, Emperor Volarion barely survived the assault by the heavens. Once he returned home, he shared the secret arts with the rest of humanity, of which only 7 were able to utilize to its full potential. Those 7 would later become known as the 7 Heavenly Saints, who waged war against the heavens with Emperor Volarion. After succeeding in their conquest, the 7 and their families were bestowed with power and wealth by the emperor himself, officially marking their bloodlines as the 7 Heavenly Noble Clans!"
The crowd gave a round of applause, much to the pleasure of the great noble clans and the royal family.
I see… so Seraphim Volarion was the first Astral Artist? And he shared that secret with humanity to save them from extinction. But I don't understand, how did he even learn their secret? How did the sun die? There's so much missing…
"After uniting humanity, Emperor Volarion founded his empire in the very continent that we currently live on, which would survive for over 1300 years after his death. It's unclear exactly how he did it, but he replaced the dead sun with a powerful Astral Art, buying humanity enough time to figure out a solution on its own. However, that art's power is slowly fading and soon our world may face extinction once more… But worry not esteemed guests! Humanity's technology has advanced within the last 1300 years, allowing us to create our own replica of the sun which hopefully will one day unfreeze the rest of our world! This is all due to the continued dedication of one specific Heavenly Noble Clan, the Reezo clan!"
Another round of applause thundered through the room, most sponsors giving a standing ovation with tears in their eyes. Amelia was one of these sponsors.
"Is this really worthy of a standing ovation? Not like they saved us yet…" Lucerio muttered under his breath, causing Eros to crack a smile.
"They certainly do love their theatrics…" Eros whispered back.
"Should've just let me kill them. It would've saved us from this boring play."
"It was quite informative at least."
"You mean you didn't know any of this beforehand? Don't you read?"
"Not really…"
The woman's voice spoke into the speaker once more:
"However, Emperor Volarion soon faced a rebellion within his own empire, that of the Empyreans. They were a tribe who dedicated their lives to the fallen gods, unable to accept a human as their saviour. Their tribe leader, Loran Seravelle, united the Empyreans against the emperor, nearly succeeding in overthrowing him. The man who led this treacherous army was a great general named Ego Eldritch, whose power rivalled the emperor's. As punishment for their betrayal, Ego Eldritch was publicly executed along with all of his known children, effectively ending their terrifying bloodline. The Empyreans and the Seravelles were subjected to a fate of slavery to pay for their crimes against humanity…"
The slaves stopped eating, many of them hiding resentment behind their stuffed faces. Eros gritted his teeth, his knuckles turning pale white.
So just because our ancestors committed a crime, we have to suffer for the rest of eternity!?
"The Festival of War was created to honour the first emperor… and to remind you slaves about the crimes of your ancestors. You must pay the debt for all those lives lost over 1300 years ago. Humanity nearly went extinct a second time because of you Empyreans! However, we are gracious enough to allow one of you to earn your freedom and rid yourself of your treacherous heart. By killing your own, you'll prove your loyalty to us and be reintegrated back into our society as a noble for your sacrifice!"
The golden masked man took a bow, receiving a standing ovation from the crowd of sponsors and the royal family themselves. Amelia grabbed a rose and tossed it onto the stage, starting a chain reaction.
After the roaring thunderous applause ended, the spotlight refocused on the standing Divine Emperor Palaxe Volarion, who held his glass of wine in his hand. He cleared his throat:
"Dear honoured guests, your entire lives you have been treated as nothing but dirt, a reality you've all become far too familiar with. But tonight, we offer a chance to live out your wildest fantasies and do whatever you'd like… as long as you don't leave the hotel's premises of course. Should you want more food, drinks, or require any kind of services, please communicate with the staff and they shall provide you with whatever you'd like! I'd recommend making the most of tonight, as for all but one, this will be your last night alive… So be free my dear guests, the festival will begin tomorrow morning at 9 am. Until then, enjoy yourselves!"
"How gracious of him…" Eros muttered to himself.
"Oh don't worry Eros, I wholeheartedly believe you'll win this entire thing!" Amelia intertwined her hand into his, her heel brushing against his dress shoe under the table. "Besides, look how weak most of the other contestants look! This should be a piece of cake for you!"
"Right…"
"Where's the old man?" Lucerio interrupted, playing with the broccoli on his plate.
"I have no idea, he's probably working in the back." Amelia replied, her amber eyes still fixated onto Eros', making him feel even more guilty for what he'd do tomorrow once the festival began.
"Excuse me, I must use the restroom."
"Oh sure, I'll save your seat pretty boy…"
Eros bolted to the restroom, turning on the sink and washing his face to calm himself down. His luscious blonde hair got soaked, dripping water onto the counter. He stared at himself in the mirror, hardly even able to recognize the young man staring back at him. A hand placed itself on his shoulder:
"Hey, you alright?"
The golden masked performer stood behind him, having just walked into the restroom without Eros noticing.
"I'm fine…"
"What's your name?"
"Eros, just Eros…"
The man took off his mask, revealing his handsome bronze face. His long blue hair fell over his face, showing a warm smile that invited Eros to converse with him. But his angry pink eyes burned into Eros' soul, begging Eros to provoke him.
"Most people call me by my stage name, Jester. But my real name is Grimace Graham. It's a pleasure to meet you Eros…"