The Young Master in the Shadows

Chapter 548 : Live commentary Tournament (5)

3… 2… 1…… BEEP

“ANOTHER BATTLE IS OVER, PEOPLE. HOPEFULLY THAT’S IT, AND ALEX WOULD NOT BE CASTRATING MORE PEOPLE TODAY… STILL, OTHERS MIGHT PICK UP THE TRADE….” the commentator said as if he wished to see more castrations. “NOW, WHO IS GOING TO FIGHT NEXT?” he asked as the countdown finished, and Alex quickly pressed the retreat button and finally returned to her Balcony to be hugged by her Harem….

For a moment, no one wanted to go in. There were still plenty of spots left after all.

“I will go…” A familiar girl jumped down.

“IT IS JASMIN AGAIN!” the commentator said. “THIS IS HER SECOND CHANCE OF THREE… WILL SHE MANAGE TO WIN A SPOT THIS TIME?” he asked. “WHO IS GOING TO FACE HER?”

WOOOOSH

A girl jumped from another balcony, kneeling a bit as her feet touched the ground, generating a light cloud of dust.

“ANOTHER VON WEISE! IRIS VON WEISE LADIES AND GENTLEMEN! AGE 21, SINGLE, CLASS THIEF…. WILL THIS BEAUTY STEAL SOME LUCKY GUY’S HEARTS TODAY OR WHAT?” the commentator announced as Iris, blushing a bit as she ignored him, flashed a dagger ready to fight.

“Let’s finish this quickly…” she said with anger. Jasmin came from the same faction as Alex, who castrated two members of her family, so she felt the need to teach this girl a lesson!

“Don’t worry, I don’t intend to humor you any longer!” Jasmin spat as she took her sword stance.

“WOW JUST WOW… LOOK AT THE HEAT DOWN THERE! WILL THIS BE AN EPIC FIGHT OR ANOTHER SCHOOL COURTYARD SCUFFLE…. IF YOU ASK ME, I WANT TO SEE SOME FLESH SO… A CAT FIGHT!…. LET’S DO IT… CAT FIGHT… CAT FIGHT… CAT FIGHT…” the commentator began to chant out of nowhere.

“Cat fight….”

“Cat fight…”

“Cat fight… cat fight… ouch….”

A few enthusiastic spectators also joined in, before getting heads smacked by their elders.

***

“Is it me or is that Commentator getting a bit stranger…” Malcolm asked as he looked down from the VIP balcony.

“Totally…” Harpy squinted her eyes; so did Mona.

“…” Lily just frowned, worryingly eyeing Victor down in the stands.

***

“Young master…. Stop messing around…” Ruby at Victor’s side said worriedly.

“CAT FIGHT! CAT…. Ah…. Damn it….” Thanks to the girl’s alert, Victor quickly noticed that he was drifting into random thoughts very quickly. What the hell was wrong with him? “Keep monitoring my soul state for now…” he said, ruffling up Ruby’s hair before looking at the stage again.

***

“Let’s finish this…” Iris ignored the cheers in the stands and said, looking warily at Jasmin, who also prepared to attack. She was not going to repeat Zackʼs mistake and get distracted!

“FIGHT!”

Bang… .Bang… Bang….

The battle started instantly, with Iris, using her dagger, closing the distance with Jasmin and beginning to slash at her. The latter parried in time using her blade.

Ding… Bang…. Bang…

“You are not bad…. “ Jasmin said after a few rounds. “But that’s the end of it…” she quickly said, activating her skill, “triple swords,” making her sword begin to show the shadow of three other swords.

“Not bad!” Iris said quickly, defending against them using her dagger. It is not that she was that proficient, but after taking that pill, it was as if her power had tripled, so the swords that should have been extremely fast were super slow for her!

***

“So the Von Weise have managed to awaken their bloodline…” a man sitting on a balcony that had been quiet until this moment said. It was Martin von Zwei, the head of the Von Zwei family.

“Father, maybe this was how they managed to survive the coup!” Levi, sitting to his side, said.

“Maybe… “ Martin pondered as he watched Jasmin being pushed by Iris. That girl should have been their agent too, if not for that stupid Carla replacing her at birth with some purple-haired girl to quickly rise up in the ranks. Damn it… That’s why he didn’t like his agents to think on their own!

“Would this affect our plan?” Levi asked again.

“That plan would be on hold for now; just try to get a good rank, nothing funny today!” Martin said out of nowhere, making all the youths who stood around the balcony look at him with surprise.

“Patrarch… This…” one elder hesitated.

“Don’t you smell it… That water here is too turbid; if we try to fish, we would be swept too… Let’s keep low-key for now; we already lost too much lately, so it is not worth the risk!” he said as he watched the disheveled Iris, who had quite a few fast-healing sword cuts over her body, finally push and disarm that Jasmin girl. “For now, let’s just focus on collecting info about the promising players; after the tournament, we will go look for them…”

***

“Damn it… I surrender!” Jasmin, who lost her sword due to Iris’s bizarre skills, said finally as the latter aimed her dagger at her neck.

“AND IRIS WINS! HAVING HER ELDER DRAGON BLOODLINE AWAKENED REALLY MAKES ALL THE DIFFERENCE!” the commentator said as if affirming people’s guesses.

“What? Bloodline awakening?” Max, who was crouching down in a very humiliating pose due to his injury, asked as he looked at his father. So did quite a few elders and heirs, including Bill and his grandfather Bruce, who sat beside Ann.

“... No idea… It must have been some chance she stumbled upon on her own!” Theodore denied any knowledge of this as he looked away; so did Roy, who felt a bit guilty as he too, like Iris, got to try one of those miraculous pills! Sadly.

***

“NOW WHO IS NEXT?” the commentator asked. “WOULD IRIS BE ALLOWED TO KEEP HER POSITION LIKE THAT? AREN’T THERE NO MEN WHO WOULD GO DOWN TO AND TRY TO PUSH THIS GIRL DOWN… LET ME TELL YOU SOMETHING, IRIS HAS BEEN LATELY ACTIVELY LOOKING FOR A NICE AND CONSIDERATE BOYFRIEND!!” he said. “MONEY WOULD NOT BE A PROBLEM; SHE IS A RICH GIRL, SO FEEDING AND TAKING CARE OF SOME LOUSY, KEPT MAN WOULD NOT BE A PROBLEM FOR HER… SO ANYONE?”

“What a bastard…!” Iris blushed hearing him. Damn it… How did that commentator know that much about her?

She had no idea that he was helping her! Hearing him, many people who were contemplating going down stopped. After what he said, wouldn’t they appear as perverts, or worse… men who liked to be kept!

“30… 29… 28…”

Iris nervously looked at the countdown. Will she succeed?

“I will finish her off…”

Out of nowhere, someone said, and the next thing everyone saw was a short girl in a gothic lolita dress gliding down from a high balcony using a frilled umbrella!

***

“TULIP!” Sebastian stood up, watching the girl descending into the arena like some fairy from a fairy tale.

“You know her?” one of his younger disciple brothers asked, looking at him. This was the first time he watched him act like this for anyone besides their eldest sister Hana.

“... That is your future eldest sister-in-law!” Sebastian said confidently as he watched Tulip’s feet elegantly touch the ground.

***

“Shit… Shouldn’t Tulip be a seeded player?” Yulian exclaimed as he looked at his sister. He didn’t know much about her, as they didn’t get a chance to really talk face to face, but he still knew a few things, like the fact that she was the strongest heir in the Sunken Empire, which was his mother’s birthplace!

“It is an old play… Some Powers, you see, only have one super strong player, so to guarantee extra slots in the second round, they give their keys to their weaker player and let the strong one get a slot himself… It is a dangerous play, as they risk losing the rice and the chicken if things went south, but if it succeeded, it would be worth it…. “ Zer, who sat back, said. “When are you planning to go get a slot for yourself?”

“I am just waiting for a chance… Let those strong ones fight it amongst themselves first!” Yulian scratched his head as he looked down. In fact, he was a bit nervous that the commentator might say something unnecessary that would put him in a hard spot not only with his family, but also with his fiancée… Alice! “Aren’t you worried about Ana?” he asked, changing the subject.

“No, she is here; she will appear when it is time!” Zer said with a strange smile. Anastasia had just sent him a message using a talisman, and the facts in it were things he wouldn’t have even dreamed of. Maybe his clan’s future wasn’t that bleak after all!

***

The moment Tulpi’s feet touched the ground, the countdown stopped, and a new battle was initiated!

“DAMN IT! I DIDN’T SEE THAT CUMMING! IT IS THE ONE AND ONLY TURNIP VON KRONE, PLAYING FOR THE SUNKEN EMPIRE!”

“MY NAME IS FUCKING TULIP!” she screamed as she looked around.

Everyone frowned hearing her scream…. Why was she repeating her name and putting the word ‘fucking’ before it? Was she a psychopath or something? The commentator clearly said, Tulip…

“...” Tulip frowned. That scream was an automatic response, as the way the commentator said her name was very similar to the way that Vic Volt did it. Could it be….. She squinted her eyes as some random thought crossed her mind. “...” She quickly shook her head. If it was really a bastard, she would deal with him later. Now she had better things to do.

Slowly, she turned toward Iris. It was time to teach those Von Weise family brats a lesson. She held a grudge after hearing what they did to her elder sister and was planning to take some revenge today. At first she planned to go take that Roy guy, but he was such a nice guy that she decided to spare him. Next it was that Max guy, but he got what he deserved before she could get to him. Now she couldn’t just watch this girl get away with another spot! Not only that, but she also planned to make an example out of her… HOW DARE THEY BULLY HER SISTER?

“WILL THIS ONE BE A CAT FIGHT, PEOPLE? LET’S SEE!” the commentator said as he suppressed his desire to bully Tulip a bit more. He would do it later in the second round… He….. WAIT!... Damn it… What was wrong with him… Why was he having so many random thoughts? No wait… Tulip…

He frowned as he looked at the way she moved. I remembered that smile of hers from his past life. It was her signature for when she planned to do something really bad… The same kind of smile Lily showed when she castrated people! Was she planning some revenge…. SHIT!

“Your name is Iris, right?” Tulip ignored the commentator and asked as she adjusted her umbrella and began to walk toward her opponent leisurely.

“What does it matter…” Iris said nervously as she also prepared to fight.

“Nothing…” Tulip said, smiling in a strange way as she began to move her lips soundlessly. Revenge for her sister starts today!

[IRIS, SURRENDER NOW! SHE WILL CURSE YOU TO STOP YOU FROM SURRENDERING! SHE IS 100 LEVELS OVER YOURS AND PLANS TO TORTURE YOU ON STAGE…. QUICKLY NOW!]

Before Iris could comprehend what happened, she heard Victor’s voice. For a minute, she considered that this might be one of Tulip’s tricks.

[IF YOU DON’T, I WILL TELL FATHER THAT YOU SNEAKED INTO MY BED THAT DAY!] he quickly added, making her realize that this was the real Victor, as he was the only one who knew this secret.[QUICKLY NOW, ACTIVATE YOUR BLOODLINE IF NEEDED BEFORE IT WAS TOO LATE!] he added as he watched nervously, ready to use his power to save his sister. He had seen Tulip work in his past life, and it was not pretty!

Iris squinted her eyes and quickly tried to press the surrender button, but it was too late. Her body could barely move, and she completely lost the power to move her eyes and lips!… It happened all of a sudden!

Tulip slowly walked toward her as if this was not an arena, but some garden. It would have been a nice scene if not for the long bloody butcher blade that appeared in her hand out of nowhere!

“Now, what should we do first?” she asked as Iris struggled to move to no avail. Would you like to lose your little head first, or shall we start…” She stopped talking as before, then frowned.

Iris, who should have been in front of her, vanished.

She quickly looked around nervously, fearing that this was some strange skill. Then a moment later, she heard it…

“TULIP WINS!” the commentator said.

“DAMN IT!” she cursed.

***

“AND TO TELL THE TRUTH, IRIS HAS SUCCESSFULLY SURRENDERED!” the commentator added as Iris, who was sweating nervously, appeared at the Von Weise balcony and began to feel her listless limbs begin to come back to life again. She could feel it; if she was one step late, she would have completely lost the power to move and talk. Thankfully, by activating her dragon bloodline as Victor said, she managed to move her eye just enough to press that Surrender button in the status menu in the corner of her eye.

“What happened?” Theodore asked her directly with worried eyes.

“Nothing…. I can’t fight her!” Iris said as she looked around, searching for Victor. Where was he…? Was he really here? That was definitely him!

“What do you mean by that….” Bill, who felt this was a good chance to humiliate one of Theodorʼs offspring, quickly asked. ”Since when do we, VON WEISE family heirs, just surrender like that… Are you...”

“WHAT A WISE DECISION… IRIS AT LEVEL 15 WOULD HAVE BEEN CRUSHED FACING TULIP AT LEVEL 117! WELL… WE MIGHT HAVE BEEN ABLE TO SEE SOME FLESH, AND MAYBE A LOT OF BLOOD, BUT ONE SHOULDN’T CRY OVER SPILLED MILK…. OR UNSPILLED BLOOD….” Before anyone could blame Iris, the commentator said, delivering a lame joke while explaining the situation. “NOW WHO IS GOING TO GET BUTCHERED NEXT? TULIP DOWN BELOW IS OUT FOR SOME BLOOD!”

“You made a good choice!” Ann, who rarely talked, said, looking at Iris. She never really had a good look at this girl before. As expected of Theodore’s daughter, she had good instincts!

Her decision was completely right. A moment earlier, she felt the malice coming from that Tulip girl. She didn’t just want to defeat Iris, but make an example out of her!

***

“I havenʼt seen your sister for a long time… No matter what world we are in, she is still a menace!” Malcolm said, licking his lips as he watched the disgruntled Tulip in the arena below.

“... How about we try and join her Harem this time?” Lily asked as she secretly sighed in relief. Thankfully, Victor alerted Iris in time.

“No way… She is not my type!“ Malcolm quickly said, silently swallowing as he remembered that past. Tulip in the past was deceived by some bastard, and ever since then, she changed, not to be a man hater like her sister, but a man collector…. No wait…. That incident hasnʼt happened yet!

With a strange thought, he looked at the Tyulip down in the arena again. She was not that bad… Even a bit of a beauty like her sister! And age-wise, she would be two years older than him! If she and Lily together were to….

Just the thought of the two sisters serving him made him involuntarily shiver in excitement!

Lily, who was watching his exertion, sighed. The poor idiot had no idea that he was on the nutcracker’s black list…

***

In another place over a tall mountain far, far away…

“As I said, unless you have permission from Young Master Caspian, you can’t be here; this area is off limits!” The guard in black robes flatly told Lyra, who followed the suspicious wagon up the Heavenly sect’s landscape until reaching an isolated, heavily guarded enclosure on a separate peak. It looked very suspicious with its location and high fences. ”Until young master Caspian returns from the tournament, I canʼt let anyone in!”

“But the guys before walked right in!”

“They had permission…” the guard said.

“Who were they?”

“Not your fucking business!” the guard spat at this nosy brat. If not for her having Elder Serina’s token, he would have long used force to remove her.

“Come on… Don’t be so stiff…”

“I am just doing my job…”

“...”

“So you are not going to let me in?”

“No…”

“...”

“...”

“Are you a eunuch or something, not getting affected by this maiden’s plea…”

“I am not…” the guard said as he held his anger. “And since when has a brat who still has a washboard for a chest become a fair maiden!” He insulted her back. Sure, she was cute, but he was more into big-breasted girls, the kind Young master rewarded them with after having his fun!

“...You…”

“...I…” He didn’t fall for her provocation. Young master Caspian had something very important stolen a couple of months ago, and the ones guarding that place got punished so badly that he still got nightmares after hearing about it. He was not going to make the same mistake!

“Fine… damn it… I think I will have to tell my Grand Master then…” she said, softly kicking a puddle on the ground as she puffed her cheeks cutely.

“You do that…” the guard said without care. He was a part of the Young master Caspian faction, so as long as he didn’t overstep his boundaries and get into trouble with someone he mustnʼt touch, no one could harm him!

Lyra feigned being defeated as she retreated, going back down the mountain, then as soon as she got out of the guards’ line of sight, she quickly sidestepped and hid behind a tree.

Like hell she was going to back down… There was definitely something fishy being done here, and she was going to get to the bottom of this…. Still, she would need to wait a few hours until it was dark to take action!