I like crossing the most

Chapter 586 Qualifiers
The registration ceremony for the world's number one martial arts tournament is in full swing.

The registration deadline of a week soon arrived, and the number of players participating was far more than Xiaolin had imagined, with a total of more than 700 players.

Many players in the middle echelon have been working very hard during this period in order to reach the level 50 limit.

What followed was the exciting qualifying round.

There was no need for preparation. The players who had successfully registered were already ready to go, and couldn't wait to compete with the strong men of Aincrad.

So on this day.

In the arena at the center of the initial town on the first level, the world's number one martial arts tournament officially begins.

Xiaolin and Heathcliff sat on the stage.

Normally, Alice, the president of the Axis Church, should be sitting here, but she is currently participating in the preliminaries, so Vice President Kobayashi has to take charge.

——This is just the superficial statement.

Everyone knows that the person who truly controls the Axis Cult is Kobayashi. Although they have different positions, their power is equal.

The two sat together chatting and laughing.

“I didn’t expect so many people would attend.”

"Yes. I guess the players are all looking forward to seeing who will be the strongest in Aincrad, and the moment when the strongest player emerges."

Heathcliff smiled.

Even though he was talking to Xiao Lin, there was always a sense of superiority in his gaze towards the players below the stage. It was not because of the difference in strength or status, but something deeper... Yes, just like a god who dominated this world.

This state has been revealed many times.

Ever since the Blood Knights were established and they were forced into the raider group in a very short period of time, he has become the irreplaceable front-line tank of the raider group.

And he would do this every time when he saw the delighted players after completing a floor.

Silent arrogance.

It's definitely not that Kobayashi is pretending to say this because he already knows the answer, but that he is very familiar with people's expressions and atmosphere, so he can detect it. Even if he doesn't have the omnipotent five visions, he has gained considerable experience from long-term use.

"But Vice President Kobayashi won't be attending?"

"No, no, no, I'm the type of person who has no offensive power. President Heathcliff should know that. And... didn't President Heathcliff not participate?"

"After all, this is an event for other players. Wouldn't it look really bad if I participated in it myself?"

"...You make it sound like if I participate I will definitely win."

“I don’t think I’ll lose.”

“Hahahaha——, indeed, President Heathcliff is very powerful. If he were to appear, the others would surrender on the spot.”

Heathcliff's arrogance of looking down on everyone and stabbing himself in the face of danger turned into a spear that pierced Xiaolin's humble shield. Although it was sharp, it had no effect and his provocation did not succeed.

Seeing this, Heathcliff restrained his edge and became humble.

"No, the players in Aincrad are still very strong. At least there are a few members of the raiders that even I dare not easily claim to have defeated. For example: Mr. Black Swordsman Kirito."

"President Heathcliff seems to be optimistic about him."

"of course."

He did not hide his admiration for Kirito in his words.

In fact, among all the players in Aincrad, Kirito is probably the strongest except for Krillin and ten others, otherwise he wouldn't have obtained the special skill - dual swordsmanship.

I just don’t know if it will be used in this conference. Xiaolin is quite looking forward to it.

"anyway."

Heathcliff turned his head slightly and said in a voice of appreciation, "I didn't expect Vice President Kobayashi to hold such a festival for all the players. It seems that you have also discovered the players' anxiety and uneasiness, so you thought of using this conference to show your strength and appease the grassroots players."

"what?"

"...Isn't it?"

"No, I didn't think that much. I just thought it was interesting, so I held this world's best martial arts tournament, that's all."

"I see."

Seeing Kobayashi's ambiguous response, Heathcliff didn't say anything more, probably because he felt that there would be no benefit and no point in continuing to ask.

While the two were talking, Sato Kazuma ran over.

"Senior Kobayashi, it's almost time for the opening speech--"

"President Heathcliff, you come."

"May I?"

"of course."

Kobayashi extended his hand humbly.

There was no way around it. Whether it was the prizes, which were increased from 32 to 48, or the venue for the event, they were all arranged by Heathcliff himself. At least people should have a sense of participation.

Although he could obtain these easily as an administrator, Kobayashi could not expose his identity.

Heathcliff rose from his seat.

Wearing a full body armor of red and white, he was not as dazzling and beautiful as Asuna, but the feeling of heaviness and might was still quite strong.

As he stood up, the whole place fell silent.

A transparent window appeared in front of him, with a trumpet-like pattern on it, which meant that Heathcliff used a sound amplification prop.

"——Everyone, there is no need to repeat the useless opening remarks. You came here for the reputation of being the strongest or for the rich prizes. No matter what, you will fight against other strong people here. So, don't leave any regrets and go all out!"

Is there no regret before it even starts?
Kobayashi then realized that Heathcliff didn't seem to have much talent for speaking. Considering that he was just a scientific researcher, it seemed understandable?
"Next..."

Heathcliff materialized his weapon and held it high in front of him.

"As the president of the Blood Alliance Knights, I promise that this world's number one martial arts competition will be real and valid, and I guarantee fairness and justice!"

Then he turned and looked at Xiaolin.

Kobayashi scratched his head, and had no choice but to materialize a rubbish longsword from the prop column, which crossed with the opponent's longsword in mid-air.

"Axis, I promise."

As these words were spoken, the whole audience cheered.

The excitement was far greater than the day when SAO was launched, which made Heathcliff a little jealous. However, when he thought about participating in it this time, he gradually calmed down.

“Okay, okay, everyone please look over here!”

Suddenly, three figures appeared in front of the arena.

"I am the host of this event, Kazuma! The two people next to me are also the hosts—"

"Goddess Aqua, just believe in me!"

"My name is You, Youyou. Please give me your guidance."

After the two finished introducing themselves, Sato Kazuma spoke again: "Wait, wait! I know you all want to duel with other strong people now, but please be patient. After all, according to convention, we have to read the sponsor advertisement before we start. ... What, we don’t have any sponsors?! That’s really sad. If anyone wants to sponsor this conference, please come to me as soon as possible after today. The first few will have extra discounts!"

Sato Kazuma's interesting speech was met with warm cheers. The shouts of eight thousand people broke through the sky, making the little loli Huihui in the audience very envious and dissatisfied.

“That guy Kazuma clearly said that I wanted to play, but then he refused. How despicable!”

Of course.

Aqua, who was trying to stir up the atmosphere without caring about anything else, was already on the stage. If Huihui were to join in, it would be like an explosion on the spot, so in the end, Yunyun was sent up to hold them back and have something to sell.

"Although all contestants already know the rules in advance, for the sake of other spectators, let us explain them first!"

Sato Kazuma waved his hand, and a large window appeared in front of the audience of more than 8,000 people.

"First of all, all the players who have registered have received a number plate. Please note that this is your ID card, and the two players who will be fighting in the future are rolling on the big screen behind me. Don't worry, this is drawn by the system, it is absolutely fair! Of course, if you are unlucky..."

He lowered his voice slightly, and Youyou was very considerate of the supporting role.

"What happens if you're unlucky?"

"Maybe it will be a one-round tour!"

"Wait a minute, Kazuma, aren't we selecting the strongest? I don't agree with this method."

Aqua crossed her arms, but Sato Kazuma didn't care. "Luck is also a part of strength. Who says a champion with luck isn't a champion? On the other hand, today's goal is to select forty-eight players. As for why it's forty-eight, it's because this is the maximum number of players in a raiding team! So without further ado, let's get started!"

No one expected that an ordinary qualifying match would be so tense and exciting.

The strong ones are all confident and don't care who their opponents are, while many players who want to take advantage of the situation put their hands together and pray.

Want to win!

No matter who your opponent is, you must win!

Kirito gripped the sword behind him tightly.

Xiao Lin was not nervous at all. The system arrangement seemed fair and just, but he knew that this was the biggest shady deal, because the man sitting next to him was the administrator. With Heathcliff's... no, Kayaba Akihiko's character, he would not let the strong men meet in a boring preliminaries and be easily eliminated.

In fact, it was just as he thought. In the first round, the players he knew who were strong and well-known, met some weak guys who were out to try their luck.

More than seven hundred players.

It may seem like there are a lot of people participating, but in reality each player only needs to fight four duels.

...If you think so, you are totally wrong!
First of all, these are four consecutive duels. Although the health points will be replenished after the duel, the energy loss is real. If you encounter a strong enemy in the first round and barely defeat it, you may lose in the second, third, and fourth rounds.

And if they lose, they will be eliminated directly, and there will be no revival match for them.

If you want to enter the finals, you have to consider how to allocate your physical strength, energy, and a little bit of luck in the battle.

"Wow, this is such a mess!"

Sato Kazuma's live broadcast did not stop either, he was attracting the audience and creating an atmosphere.

"Ms. Aqua, who do you think is better?"

"Xiao Lin!"

"Quick answer? But I guessed you would say that. Unfortunately, Senior Kobayashi did not attend this conference."

"What? Then my bet was in vain?"

"Hahahaha - you didn't expect that, right? I'm waiting for you here!"

"Damn it Kazuma, give me my money back!"

The two people's crosstalk-like fight made the audience applaud, only Youyou believed it and wanted to pull them apart anxiously.

Sato Kazuma saw the opportunity and said loudly: "Since this is a tournament, how can there be no betting? Dear audience, please keep your eyes open. If you have any favorite contestants, please place your bets as soon as possible! By the way, please pay more attention to our lovely Alice!"

"Place a bet? Not bad."

"Okay, let me see who looks like a champion."

"I've decided. I'm going to support Alice! I'm going to bet my entire fortune on her winning!"

"Me too!"

The audience chatted enthusiastically.

The corners of Sato Kazuma's mouth gradually rose, and his smile was extremely evil.

"——Thank you for your patronage."

As the banker, he will definitely make a fortune this time.

In the field.

Darkness took defensive measures and never took the initiative to attack, which made the other players who were unable to break through the defense look desperate and eventually left the field on their own initiative. This made the perverted female knight who wanted to withstand more attacks feel a little unsatisfied.

Kureya was born as a knight in the Duke's family. She had been holding a sword for longer in real life than these people had been playing games. She defeated four people in succession without much effort and successfully advanced.

The most surprising one was Alice.

Maybe it's because she is inherently weak, giving people the illusion of an orthodox beautiful girl, and she often jumps around on the stage, which makes players mistakenly believe that she is actually weak in strength but has only a certain level, giving players the illusion that I can win.

In fact, Alice, who learned the orthodox swordsmanship of the kingdom, is very powerful. Many strong enemies - even a member of the strategy team - were easily defeated by her.

Let the audience understand that the idol princess who sings and dances on the stage has strength that should not be underestimated.

And others——

Familiar characters such as Kirito, Asuna, Diabel, Koharu, Rinko, and Agil also won four games and successfully entered the main competition.

Asuna defeated the last opponent, put away her rapier and took a long breath to calm her excitement. She turned around and saw Kirito, who had already defeated four people in a row and was standing aside with his arms folded, doing nothing.

"What a shame."

"……what?"

"I was really looking forward to meeting you in the qualifiers, but it seems that the system didn't respond to my expectations. But it doesn't matter, I will beat you in the main competition, I will definitely not let you down, and you will be the same."

"oh oh……"

Then, Asuna turned and left, shaking her soft long brown hair. Kirito, who was left there confused, scratched his cheek and couldn't help but wonder how he had offended her again.

It was already evening.

Toot toot————

When the last person defeated the enemy with great difficulty and successfully entered the main competition, a huge trumpet sounded from the center of the arena.

"That's it!"

Sato Kazuma raised his hands and shouted, "The forty-eight people standing behind me are undoubtedly the strongest group in Aincrad. Let's cheer for these players!"

"Oh oh oh————"
Cheers that broke through the sky came from the arena.

Many people whispered.

"As expected, the strategy team has more members."

"Yes. After all, they are always at the forefront and have the highest rank."

"Idiot, that's not the case! Look, there are people among them who are not members of the Clearance Team! And look... Alice-sama is among them!"

They all looked towards the center of the arena at the same time. The idol princess raised her hands and signaled to the audience, with a happy smile on her face.

"I've decided. I'm going to bet my entire fortune on it."

"Me too!"

"For Alice!"

Ignoring the people shouting slogans, Sato Kazuma used a small wooden stick as a microphone.

"The forty-eight top players here are already eligible to receive the generous prizes prepared by the Axis Church and the Knights of the Blood Alliance, but I don't think anyone here would be willing to take the consolation prizes, right?"

The provocative words reached the ears of everyone in the center of the arena. Just as he thought, the players would not stop there.

"Well, everyone, please take a good rest today and prepare for tomorrow's battle! The same goes for the rest of the audience, please tune in for tomorrow's second battle! See you tomorrow!"

Just like that, with Sato Kazuma's provocative words, the first day of preliminaries ended.

(End of this chapter)