Cloud Thinking

Only the first two items of the selection assessment were carried out today, with the 1V1 confrontation and additional talent display placed at the end.

There are only two groups in a single-player confrontation at the same time, and it is estimated that it will last for a long time.

Helia watched people bending bows and shooting bells all day, but they were as cowardly as dogs when riding horses. Her eyes were a little sore from watching, and she also dealt with a lot of other things in the meantime. She was really exhausted.

After she returned to her room, she washed up and lay down on the bed. She didn't want to think about anything else but sleep.

Claude asked her to report the situation to the Executive Hall, but she was too lazy to go.

Anyway, we must talk about Ariana.

The others had been unhappy with her being the referee for eight hundred years. Now that she made such a decision today, the others would probably write a bunch of documents to scold her again.

Alas, she is very good at making people dislike her.

She didn't want to listen to Claude's judgment on her choice, nor did she want to explain the reasons to him. It was troublesome and tiring, and it might not make sense.

It’s better to come back and sleep.

But for some reason, she slept uneasy. Ever since she met Ariana, she felt inexplicably uneasy.

It was just like the vague foreboding feeling I had when I encountered the black magician in the previous team competition and before I was kidnapped.

Damn, is something going to happen again?

But she had probed the magic power in Ariana's body and found that she was not a magician, nor did she detect any aura of gods in her - this was acknowledged by Watersise.

How could Ariana, who was in a difficult situation herself, bring herself into big trouble?

After today's assessment, Helia immediately asked Ronnie to check Ariana, because she had previously instructed him to check the contestants' information. If it was fast, she would probably be able to see it tomorrow.

Because she didn't get enough rest, her complexion looked very bad the next day and she looked at everyone in a displeased manner.

The 1V1 confrontation is the most interesting and exciting part of the selection assessment.

There is no limit on weapons or means, and the contestants rely on their own abilities. If the opponent falls to the ground or surrenders voluntarily, they will be considered the winner and get a certain number of points.

Of course, stop there.

The winner will then draw lots to compete against the winners of other groups. The losers will still have the opportunity to enter the revival match to decide six players and draw lots with the winners again.

Because this was the first open selection and assessment, all the people who came were more or less capable, and at least several of them impressed Helia.

When Ariana came on stage, the audience was strangely silent, and Helia's face was so dark that ink seemed to drip out.

The corners of her mouth, cheeks and eyes were all covered with bruises of varying shades, and there were scratches on her neck that could not be covered. Anyone who saw her would know what kind of cruel violence she had experienced.

The moment she saw Ariana's miserable condition, Helia immediately looked at Dorado who was sitting at the same table.

The other party just happened to look over here, with an obvious smug smile on his face.

Even if you, Helia, try to protect her, can you protect her forever? There will always be times when you don't see it, there will always be times when you are negligent, and then I will definitely catch the opportunity.

I can't touch you, Helia, but can't I touch a woman of commoner origin with no background?

Just as Alfie said, Dorado is a bitch, and an unscrupulous bitch.

Ariana never offended him at all, she was implicated by Helia.

But at the same time, if Helia hadn’t helped her before, these people wouldn’t have let Ariana go.

This is a dead end. Whether Helia helps or not, Ariana can't escape this disaster.

But since she chose to come here under tremendous pressure and chose to complete her revenge under the eyes of so many people, she must suffer this hardship.

"Oh my, look at our female contestant. Why is she in such a mess?" Dorado said sarcastically.

"How can we fight when we are so badly injured? It would be better to surrender early, so we can suffer less, right?"

He jumped out and said these words at this time, as if he was afraid that others didn't know that it was his masterpiece. He is really an arrogant guy.

And I don’t know if there was any manipulation in the drawing of lots, but Ariana’s opponent was one of her teammates in the second horseback archery test.

Ha, it’s still a battle of revenge!

Helia was so angry that she laughed. The others sitting behind her shut their mouths one after another, not daring to make a sound, for fear of being taken out on.

They didn't have such a strong background as Dorado, and they had heard a lot about Helia's temper, so they naturally didn't dare to interfere.

Ariana didn't actually feel much pain. Even though Helia had specifically asked someone to look after her last night, Dorado's men still found an opportunity, put her in a sack, took her away, and beat her up.

She also knew in her heart that she was completely implicated by Helia, and those people beat him just to retaliate against Helia and make her unhappy.

But this was the price she paid for being helped by Helia.

However, she could have found Helia before the game started, explained what happened last night to her, and sought her help.

But she didn't, and stood in front of everyone with all her injuries.

In a sense, it was a demonstration.

Moreover, she had said before that she did not come here to seek Helia's protection, she just wanted to use her power to explain and prove some truths to the world.

She is a woman, and a poor woman who has been hurt and abused. Even so, she still stands here strong.

So, sympathize with me and stand on my side.

Ariana used a knife, and not a thin, narrow-bladed one, but a broad, heavy one that was almost three-quarters of her height.

It forms a huge contrast with her figure.

Her opponent, on the other hand, uses a sword, which is very common and everyone has seen it enough.

Unless he has some extraordinary skills that can impress everyone, everyone will be fed up with him.

This resulted in everyone's attention being overwhelmingly directed towards Ariana before the confrontation between the two began.

Even though no one thought she could win, she certainly sparked the interest of everyone present.

"Well, Aya, who do you think will win?" Ansel asked, stroking his chin.

"I don't know." Helia said coldly, "After all, some people can't win even if they win."

“It’s hard for me to say.”

Even if Ariana won, her score might not be enough, after all, she got zero points in the second test.

Moreover, even if enough is distributed, the three people around her will exercise their veto power well.

"You're right." Ansel glanced at the other three referees with an unclear expression, "But I believe she can win."

"Huh? You know her?" Helia asked puzzled.

"No, it's just a kind of... intuition." Ansel replied. He glared at Dorodo who was looking at them, and raised the corner of his mouth slightly, "Just wait and see."

The rage buff added by revenge should have made Ariana's opponent perform better, but everyone forgot that if he was really good, why would he be crushed by Ariana in the second round of horse archery?

There was no suspense, but the ending was very unexpected. It took Ariana less than five minutes to put the back of the knife on the back of her opponent's neck.

A second later, cheers were overwhelming, and the entire audience was cheering for Ariana's victory, which was completely different from the situation in the second test.

The girl with wounds all over her face put the sword on her shoulder again and straightened her back like a pine tree. The eyes reflected in the water mirror were as deep and unfathomable as a lake in the dark night.

Dorado was so angry that he smashed the table with his fist, and cursed in a low voice with gritted teeth, but it was obviously not something nice.

He deliberately had someone tamper with the drawing process to give them a chance for revenge, but he didn't expect this guy to be so useless. Not only could he not be defeated, but he also had the fastest ending in a single confrontation so far!

How could he not be angry?!

He had paved the way for people, and all he needed to do was tie them up and throw them in front of him to let him beat them, but they turned out to be so disappointing! It was like a hopeless case of useless people!

A slight smile appeared on Helia's face, but it quickly disappeared.

There are still several confrontations to come. Ariana is injured and she is using a big knife, so her physical strength may not be able to keep up.

The schedule becomes more intense as time goes on, and she won't have much time to rest. She will definitely be exhausted by the end and it will be difficult for her to win the championship.

Unless Ariana has some hidden treasure and can demonstrate special and rare abilities in additional assessment items, and is a genius that cannot be missed, then she has a chance to enter.

What surprised Helia even more was that Ide, who he thought had a bad character but outstanding talents, showed skills that surprised everyone in the single-player confrontation assessment.

He was actually a high-level magician, and a powerful offensive fire magician like Helia.

After each confrontation, he would perform a firework magic trick, and every time he would look towards the referee's seat, I wonder who he was putting on a show for.

Helia was in a dilemma.

Damn, is it even possible to want someone like this?

The second day of singles competition ended, and Ariana lived up to expectations and entered the top ten. She will continue to compete for the championship tomorrow.

However, Helia would not give Dorado another chance this time. She took him back to the Amber Palace and asked Lydia to help take care of him.

After washing up, she went to the study. Ronnie had been waiting for a long time. On the table were the detailed information of the players that Helia was concerned about, as well as the performance score tables issued by the deputy referees today, for her reference in making the final decision.

Ariana's first half of her life can be simply summarized as - an incompetent father, a cowardly and selfish mother, a lazy brother, and herself who is strong-willed and unwilling to accept her fate.

My dad is a miner. He is a coward outside but a bully at home. He likes to vent his anger at work on his family, especially Ariana. At the very least, he would insult her and cut off her food, and at worst, he would use violence against her.

My mother worked as a laundry worker. She was always thinking about her two sons, hoping that they would bring her along to enjoy a good life when they became successful. But who could have known that the two sons that came out of her belly were good-for-nothings like drunkards who lay on top of her and sucked her blood until she died.

Ariana's growing environment can't be said to be good, but it can't be said to be particularly bad either. At least compared to little Philo, it is acceptable.

The environment in which one grows up has a significant impact on one's personality, so logically speaking, she shouldn't have this kind of temper.

The turning point in her life came when she was twelve years old. The mine where her father worked collapsed, killing many people. Their family lost its pillar, and the compensation was not enough to support the family for long.

So, she was sold by her mother to a perverted old man who liked SM and had always coveted her but never succeeded.

That was her first time to resist, and she ended up being beaten with broken hands and feet. She was dragged to the ground by her brother, bleeding all the way, and thrown to the old man.

However, she was saved by a stray knight passing by.

And this knight is a woman.

The homeless Ariana followed the wandering knight and began a three-year wandering journey, which could be considered a journey of chivalry.

Her swordsmanship, archery, knowledge, and her advanced and radical ideas were basically all influenced by this wandering knight.

This year, the Royal Knights held an open selection for the first time, with no restrictions on background or gender. Ariana was lucky to have come at the right time, so with the influence of Helia and the encouragement and support of the wandering knight, she made it here.

If Ariana could successfully enter the Knights Temperament despite the tremendous pressure and gain recognition from the world, then her teacher, her adoptive mother, her savior, the wandering knight, would no longer be a wanderer and would become a legitimate female knight.

Helia was still very curious about this wandering knight, because she was mentioned in the original book and passed on to Starley's ears in a few words of folk tales.

Judging from Starley's personality, she must have admired and envied the wandering knight. She yearned for his freedom and unrestrainedness, but she did not see his predicament, her helplessness, and her helplessness.

But what surprised Helia even more was that Ariana and Ide had come into contact before the assessment began, and Ide had protected Ariana many times along the way.

This relationship is not ordinary...

Ide is also a high-level magician with considerable abilities...

What was his intention in helping Ariana? Or were these two people aiming for her with the same idea?

Helia found the one belonging to Ide from a dozen files and compared it with Ariana's, it was much thinner.

She took a quick look and found that this man's life experience was too simple. He was born in a merchant family with some background. He was the only son in the family. His parents used all their family resources to support him to study magic at Abraham College. Fortunately, he was hardworking and talented, and he climbed all the way to the seventh-level magician.

But the experience after that was almost non-existent.

According to the information collected by Luo Nixi, he had been traveling abroad for many years and happened to catch up with this first open selection, and came here for the stable establishment.

Who can know whether the so-called travel during this period is true or not? No one knows what he did during this period of time or who he came into contact with.

Perhaps, the uneasiness in her heart was caused by Ide.