The audience was shocked to see Princess Amelia hit the wall again. They wondered if this time their match was over. Then, a few moments later, the smoke billowing from where Princess Amelia had hit the wall slowly began to clear. Princess Amelia was seen unconscious, leaning against the wall she had just hit. She had numerous wounds on her body, and a small amount of blood was dripping from her mouth. She also had chunks of ice stuck to her body from Irene's earlier use of the ~Freezing Air Slash~ technique.

  Miss Nora, seeing Princess Amelia's condition, immediately announced the results of the match.

  "The womens academy tournament match between Amelia Laterza San Quentine and Irene Emerald San Lucia..........., Irene Emerald San Lucia win," Miss Nora said.

  Hearing this announcement, most of the audience began to cheer.

  Moments later, several staff members arrived to take Princess Amelia to the treatment room. But they had to first free Princess Amelia from the ice attached to the wall, as the ice formed by the ~Freezing Air Slash~ technique also formed on the wall where Princess Amelia had struck. The ice seemed to hold Princess Amelia firmly attached to the wall. Shortly after, Princess Amelia was freed from the ice, carried on a stretcher, and taken to the treatment room. Irene, who had suffered several injuries, was also carried to the treatment room, escorted by a staff member.

  -

  In the special audience seats where Her Majesty the Queen was seated.

  "What a shame, Lord ?Duke. Your daughter lost to Irene and did not advance to the semifinals. It seems your prediction that Amelia would easily win against Irene was wrong," said Queen Kayana.

  "It seems I was too confident that my daughter would win the match easily. I thought my daughter was far superior to Princess Irene, but it turns out Princess Irene was the one who surpassed Amelia. I feel ashamed for being so arrogant about my daughter," said Duke Remy.

  Then Duke Remy remembered a conversation he had with Princess Amelia. This conversation took place during a break before Rid's match against Enzo.

  "Your opponent this time is Princess Irene, Amelia. She might cause you trouble. If she does, don't overdo it with your magic. Remember, Her Majesty the Queen is watching, don't let her know you're a 'subject' by using excessive magic," said Duke Remy.

  "Don't worry, father. I won't overdo it against her. In fact, I can defeat her easily without using excessive magic, just like I defeated her in previous daily match," said Princess Amelia.

  "It's good if you're confident you can defeat her without using excessive magic," said Duke Remy.

  Then the flashback ended.

  "She arrogantly said she could defeat Princess Irene easily, but in the end, she lost. But I'm grateful that at least she still obeyed me by not using excessive magic," thought Duke Remy.

  -

  In the fourth-year student waiting room.

  "I didn't expect Amelia to lose to Irene. Doesn't that mean we were all wrong?" asked Senior Gretta.

  "I didn't expect it either," said Senior Alisha.

  "It seems Irene has gotten stronger since her loss to Amelia last time," said Senior Vyn.

  "Since Amelia lost, that means my opponent in the semifinals will be Irene, huh? I really can't wait to face her," said Senior Gretta.

  Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

  "Don't be too harsh when you fight her, Gretta," said Senior Alisha.

  -

  Back to the arena.

  Mr. Alan was seen in the arena, which was still frozen by Irene's ice magic. Since Irene's match against Princess Amelia was the final match of the Round of 8, it seemed they had chosen to restore the arena to its original state after the closing ceremony for today.

  "The Round of 8 matches in today's academy tournament have concluded. The semifinals will resume tomorrow at 10:00 a.m. The audience may now leave the tournament arena. Thank you for coming today, and see you tomorrow," said Mr. Alan.

  Then Mr. Alan left the tournament arena. The spectators also began to leave the tournament area. I, who was in the waiting room for the first-year participants, also decided to leave and head to the infirmary to visit my other friends.

  -

  In the infirmary.

  "Congratulations on making it to the semifinals, Rid," said Chloe.

  "Congratulations, Rid," said Charles.

  They had regained consciousness after being unconscious, and their wounds had fully healed.

  "Thank you, both of you. Are you two okay?" I asked.

  "Yes, the treatment and recovery in this room was very fast. In fact, it looks like I can fight again now, even though I didn't make it to the next round," Chloe said.

  "Don't think too much about it, Chloe. You're still a first-year, and it's already a great achievement to make it to the top 8 even though you're still a first-year. If you really want to win this tournament, you can try again next year when you're in the second year. Of course, you have to keep training to get stronger," I said.

  "Yes, you're right. Although I'm sad that I lost, I can't stay sad," Chloe said.

  "Even though your advice was for Chloe, I'll follow it too, Rid. I'll train even harder so I can win this tournament next year," Charles said.

  "Fight, you two," I said.

  Suddenly, Irene came out of a door at the end of the treatment room. Irene then headed this way.

  "Hmm, you came here too, Rid?" Irene asked.

  There weren't any visible wounds on Irene's body, it looked like she had just recovered.

  "Yes, I came to visit Charles and Chloe, and of course to see you too," I said.

  "...I see," Irene said.

  "By the way, I don't see Enzo. Shouldn't he be treated here too? This is the special treatment room for first-years, right?" I asked.

  "Yes, but just as he was recovering, he disappeared somewhere," Charles said.

  "I see," I said.

  After that, Noa, Kotaro, and the others came to this room. They intended to visit Charles and Chloe.

  Then we all started chatting in the room. But not long after, suddenly someone we didn't expect came into the room.

  "It seems like a lot of people are here to visit," said Queen Kayana.

  The person we didn't expect to enter the room was Her Majesty the Queen. She was accompanied by Commander Oliver and the knights who were guarding her.

  "Your Majesty the Queen?!?!," said the others in surprise.

  After our surprise, we all bowed in respect.

  "Come on, there's no need to be so formal. Instead, may I come visit too?" asked Queen Kayana.

  When Her Majesty the Queen asked, no one wanted to answer because they were nervous. So I decided to answer Her Majesty the Queen.

  "Please, Her Majesty," I said.

  "Thank you, and congratulations on making it to the semifinals, Rid Archie. Irene too, congratulations," said Queen Kayana.

  "Thank you, Her ?Majesty," I said.

  Irene also thanked Her Majesty for Her Majesty's congratulations.

  "Why does Her Majesty seem familiar with you, Rid?" asked Noa in a whisper.

  "I don't know," I said.

  Then Queen Kayana began to speak to Charles and Chloe.

  "Thank you for visiting us both, Mother. I heard that while I was still unconscious, you also came here to see Chloe and me," said Charles.

  "Isn't it okay if I visit you again? After all, you're my children," said Queen Kayana.

  "No, that's not it, Mother. But still, thank you for visiting us, and we apologize for losing and not making it to the semifinals," said Charles.

  "It's okay, you're still first years after all. Just making it to the top 8 is already impressive, and thank God you're all doing well now," said Queen Kayana.

  Queen Kayana then stroked Charles and Chloe's heads.

  "Mother..." said Charles.

  Chloe had been silent the entire time, but her embarrassment was evident when Queen Kayana stroked her head.

  -

  A few moments later.

  "Then I'll take my leave. Oh yes, I'll be back tomorrow to watch the semifinals. So, would you two like to have lunch with me during break?" Queen Kayana asked Chloe and Charles.

  "I'd like to, Mother," said Charles.

  "I'd like to too," said Chloe, looking excited.

  "Okay then, I'll wait for you two tomorrow during break. I'll have some of my guards pick you up. I'll take my leave now," Queen Kayana said.

  Queen Kayana then excused herself to Charles and Chloe and looked at us all. We all bowed in respect. When Queen Kayana looked at me, she smiled. Then she left the treatment room.

  "Was it just me, or did Her Majesty smile at you, Rid?" Noa asked.

  "It was just you, Noa," I said.

  -

  The next day, at 10:00 a.m.

  The semifinals of the academy tournament were about to begin.

  -To be continued