When Maria made it to Battleground 7, it already passed noon. The atmosphere surrounding the stage was like that of a festival. There were many students gathered around to observe this match. Most of the students wear formal Academy uniforms while only a few sets of individuals wear full metallic armor or long thin robe with a crimson insignia engraved on their chest. The Academy battleground was separated from the crowd with a thin barrier of light that stretch into the sky. Within the center area, there were groups of people that were waiting, conversing with each other. One where Maria recognized, belong to Carlos’s group while the other composed of ten middle-aged men wearing a black suit. When Carlos saw Maria approached the stage, Carlos spoke something to the black-suited man and together, they came to greet Maria at the entrance. The black-suited man gently bowed his head toward Maria.

“Good afternoon, Miss Elisa. My name is Odius. I am glad to be at your service.” The man name Odius extended his hand out toward Maria and asked “Now, with all due respect, may I confirm the royal marriage contract that you put out as the ante for this match?”

“Yes, Of course.” Maria handed the contract to Odius.

While Odius was busy examining the contract, Maria took the opportunity to observe the Battleground and the people who had come to watch the match. Due to Elisa rarely participated in actual combat lessons, Maria was not able to gather much information about Academy Battleground. Now that Maria was one of the main actors of the event, she was able to experience the tension from being at the center of attention for the second time since she came into this world. The pressure from the eyes of bystanders was a lot more different than that of those fairies from the village. They are the eyes of people who watched in amusement or malicious intent. There were also those who come here to watch and learn but for the majority, They have come here to see Elisa’s humiliation. They shout and cheer seem one-sided in favor of Carlos. It might be due to his popularity as the Prince, but Maria wasn’t sure. However, one thing was certain for Maria: She came here to witness the might of magic and the plan is almost complete. She was very anxious inside her outer cool expression but her shaking hand betrayed her. The prince picked up on her little reaction and laughed.

“Speechless? I hope you won't mind if I invite some friends to watch our quarrels coming to an end.” Prince Carlos walked toward Maria, a self-satisfied grin appeared on his face when he saw Maria stood silently watching the Battleground ”Anyway since you have been so kind to give me the power to choose, I will gladly answer the challenge and take the role of the Dragon. Prepare yourself, Elisa, I won’t hold back just because you are a woman.”

Odius silently watched the two and shook his head “Prince Carlos, I have confirmed that this is the legitimate royal marriage contract that you seek. Miss Elisa, this ring here hasn’t had anything removed for the past three days, can you confirm that this is what you seek when you make the bet?”

Maria looked at the ring insignia and the hologram that display mountains of gold and jewel by the ring then nodded her head in confirmation.

“Then I announce that the betting is closed. Now for the ruleset, we will be using the standard rules with a few additions. Normally, we would have two rounds of Turtle and Dragon for practice purposes but since this is not one of those practices, we will decide everything in one round. Choosing the position that fits your battle style will be very crucial in this matc..”

“We can skip it, sir. She already gave me the right to choose and I will play the Dragon role.” Carlos cut in impatiently.

Odius was displeased with the Prince’s conduct but return to his usual self in just a second “Is that true miss Elisa? I know being the power role is not a sure win, but it is still a significant advantage nevertheless.”

Maria nodded her head in response “Yes, it doesn’t concern me which position I will get. Consider it... a handicap for the prince.” While smiling brightly.

Both Carlos and Odius were a bit surprised at the remark, however, upon remembered who the lady in front of them was and the recent rumor, they brushed the thought aside. Odius instructed Carlos to stand on the marked area “Then please get into position. Sir Carlos, you as the Dragon will have an hour to either make lady Maria yield or push her out of the stage to win.” With the same indifferent tone, Odius instructed Maria to stand on another mark on the opposite side “As for Miss Elisa, you as the Turtle will be forbidden from taking any aggression against Sir Carlos. However, you can still defend yourself from his attack or run away. If you are able to remain inside the stage for an hour, you will be the victor, are we clear?” Maria and Carlos nodded, acknowledged that they have heard the rules clearly. With their confirmation, Odius declared “The match between Carlos, the 27th Prince of the Orgon Kingdom, and Elisa, Daughter of Duke from the house of Cobalk will now officially…BEGIN!”