David felt his pulse quicken the more one of the veterans managing their row approached them.
At one point, the ones who knew they hadn't registered, left the crowd voluntarily, quickly runnung away from the main gates, under the fierce glare of the soldier standing guard - the same who had been suspicious of David and the nameless girl.
For a moment, both of their eyes met as the soldier squinted and made a knowing expression as if saying that he knew David wasn't registered but he just couldn't prove it.
"Hmm, here you go."
"Ohh... 238!" The boy beside him suddenly declared as he opened the piece of paper given to him.
'Maybe I should just run away...' David's thought was however interrupted as the veteran reached him, making David realise he didn't have the chance now. Not anymore.
His heart beat faster, his body drowning in a sudden wave of palpitation as the Sihapi gave him an intense look.
David suddenly felt a chill at his neck, a stark contrast to the heat in the congested crowd.
Sensing the anomaly, he activated Vision.
A wave of mana was radiating from the veteran's eyes and passing to his neck through his eyes. It was as if the veteran was scanning him for some information.
'I see...so that's how they are doing it. There must be a device that is helping him do it.' He concluded.
"Oh? A Hermann member detected what I did?" The veteran's lips curved into a small smile as if appreciating him.
"Here. Take a number."
He presented a bowl filled with small pieces of paper, folded so as to hide the numbers from curious eyes.
A bit shocked, David extended his hands in hesitation.
'Did I just get verified successfully by the veteran? But when did I register myself...this must be a glitch right?'
But still he picked up a paper as the veteran passed onto the nameless girl.
David watched closely as the veteran once again scanned her. And then nodded before presenting the bowl of papers to her.
'What the hell? We are registered, damn! Oh wait, why am I complaining? Whatever madness is happening out here, let it happen. Atleast both of us are benefiting from it... that makes it all the better for us.'
"Three, zero, two, eight." The girl looked up at him as she muttered out the number assigned to her. Then she asked, "Yours?"
"Ah right." David chuckled as he stared at his piece of paper. With all the the nervousness he was in, he had totally forgotten about it.
He unfolded the paper and saw the number written on it.
"1024." He said, glancing at the girl who looked at him in confusion.
"What it means?"
"Right...I really need to teach you the numbers. In your words, it is... one, zero, two, four. Got it?" He asked to which she nodded in understanding.
They waited in a crowd full of nervous anticipation and hushed murmurs. Soon after, the veterans walked back to the stage with empty bowls.
'I really underestimated their management capabilities. And the fact that every single piece of paper had been distributed to the crowd of contestants without a single one of them not getting any, just goes on to prove so.'
The host cleared his throat, instantly capturing everyone's attention.
"I believe everyone has gotten their numbers. If anyone of you is still left, kindly raise your hands." He waited for a few seconds.
But nobody raised their hands. And thus, the scar-faced host continued.
"Now moving on to the contest..." He pointed his right hand a little far away where ten rings were meticulously drawn on the ground. Each of them could easily fit ten people in it without making them feel suffocated.
"Those are where you shall be fighting. So the rules of the competition? Oh, now that's the most interesting part. The contest shall take place for a total of three whole days, starting from morning and ending at evening."
"To qualify for the Sihapi Isikolo, each of you need to win ten fights. And mind you, with an exception of a few unlucky or lucky ones, all the others shall be getting ten matches each. So, a single defeat means you are out of the contest."
"To avoid any injuries, each of you shall be given a piece of enchanted cloth before you enter your rings. You need to drape the cloth on your weapon, which shall blunt all the sharp edges on it. Don't worry though - the cloth won't be a hindrance; it shall turn invisible and stick to the metal the moment you cover your weapon with it."
"The next rule and the most important rule. In no condition shall any of you strike at your opponent's head. It doesn't matter if it happens by mistake, it doesn't matter if your opponent is injured or not, you shall be instantly disqualified the second you violate that rule."
"Each time you strike your opponent successfully with your weapon, you get one point. Mind you, kicks or punches don't count; your opponent has to be struck by the weapon you are carrying. You win if by the end of five minutes, you have more points than your opponent or if your opponent surrenders mid fight or if you can push them out of the ring."
"By the way, you are also not allowed to use your mana. Use it and you are disqualified."
The host glanced sideways with a questioning stare. Then he looked back at the crowd and said, "Starting tomorrow, the masters from the Isikolo shall be here for recruitment purposes. Now we shall call out random numbers and match you. That's all. Best of luck."
The moment that happened, several soldiers rushed forward, as they directed the participants to move backwards.
Soon, the crowd of contestants thinned out as they formed a semi circular arc around the ten rings.
"Eight hundred sixteen! Eight hundred sixteen!" Someone called out from the stage as a boy hurried towards one of the rings.
"Sixteen! Sixteen!"
Another boy of 18, hurried towards the ring where participant 816 was already standing. A veteran stood as the invigilator, overlooking their fight.
Soon, all the ten rings had filled with participants, each of them under the surveillance of a veteran.