After checking the individual ranks, Ryan was relieved to find that, unlike the royalty ranks, he could remove a member from their position and replace them with someone else.
'Hm, I think Shade is the best fit for General since his rank seems to be the highest.'
'As for officers, I don't want to promote them without them earning their place, as that would lead to chaos.'
'Servants are less of an issue since I've promoted Vimmi to the manager position, and she has exactly the skills for it.'
'She can also train Joy until we get her something that allows her to cultivate.'
Ryan felt that overall, the upgrade was decent, but the most significant jump in power wasn't in any ability; it was his cultivation.
Although he wouldn't wish it, Ryan knew he could fight a B-Rank in pure power even though his energy reserve was 4x less than the weakest of B-Ranks.
Sitting in a meditative position, Ryan allowed the energy to flow through his veins as he asked Yoko, [How does cultivation work?]
[You know,] Yoko said, sighing exasperatingly, [sometimes your questions could be like, 'how's your day, Yoko?' 'What did you eat this morning, Yoko?']
[But instead, they have to tackle things like the purpose of life, what is right and what is wrong, and how cultivation works!] Yoko said, getting louder with each passing word as she ended it with a scream.
[Humph, I thought I was talking to an ancient dragon… turns out I was sorely mistaken,] Ryan said, making sure Yoko heard his long sigh after.
Yoko grit her baby teeth. Ryan's comment had hit a nerve.
Ryan chuckled. [What I meant to ask was, how does cultivation differ from rank to rank?]
[Someone told me that up until SSS-Rank, you are just gathering energy in your body, but I feel as though I'm gaining more power than just an upgrade in capacity.]
Calming down, Yoko said, [During the letter ranks F through SSS, while you are gaining capacity, each rank also gains the ability to use slightly more energy in each attack.]
Ryan tilted his head. [So, like at F-Rank, I could use 100 energy points per attack, and now at C-Rank, I could use 1,000 points?]
[Exactly. That's the gist of it, although your numbers are wrong,] Yoko replied, thankful that her Master could understand that much.
As Ryan adjusted to his new power, he heard an announcement, "All participants to the Nova Ball field!"
"All participants to the Nova Ball field!" it rang again.
Rising from the bed, Ryan stretched and headed toward the field, ready to take another step toward claiming yet another Empress.
===
Ryan arrived at the field as dusk was settling, making the field become a bright neon green that seemed to glow in the dark.
Illuminated by the glowing grass, Ryan saw stands on the far side of the field. Although the stands weren't full, they held at least a few thousand spectators at the moment.
Ryan rubbed his chin. 'I guess those are the Empress's servants.'
Ryan headed to the participant's area, and at the lack of participants, he looked around, somewhat confused.
A screechy voice broke Ryan out of his thoughts, "Okay, good, you're all here."
Ryan widened his eyes, he had seen thousands of participants, and now all he saw were 40 men!
"As the official sport of the Red Dragon Empire, Nova Ball holds a special place in the Dragon Empress's heart; thus, she wants her future harem member to have the appropriate skill level," Lady Gwen said.
"The competition will be as follows: We have enough people for four teams, but we'll split you up into teams of 20."
"You will draw lots for your order on the team. Each team will start with numbers 1-10, and then a new participant will replace the lowest number on each team every five minutes."
"For instance, after the first five minutes, number #1 will be replaced by #11, the next five minutes #2 by #12, and so forth."
"Also, when a person scores, they will be removed from the field, having passed the exam. They will then be replaced by the lowest number on the bench.
"After 10 goals, the competition will end, and those that have not scored will be eliminated."
Gwen smiled. "May the best men win."
Stepping toward the indicated table, Ryan drew his number. The field hologram board read Ryan Emerald, Blue Team, Number #7.
Making his way to the left side of the field, Ryan waved to the crowd, eliciting a few laughs and cheers.
Ryan already had a plan of attack, but to pull it off, he needed a bit of luck.
'Although it appears that this competition is straightforward, I'm guessing the Dragon Empress is watching our behavior rather than if we can score a goal.'
Even though Ryan didn't doubt the validity of Lady Gwen's words, he still didn't think this competition was solely about the game.
As everyone took their position on the field, #1-#3 played forward, #4-6 played midfield, and #7-10 played defense.
Cracking his neck, Ryan waited as the teams got ready and #1 and #2 of the Red Team tapped the ball into play.
Although the numbers on the field were supposed to dictate positions, everything immediately fell into chaos as all players rushed toward the ball.
pαndα noνɐ1,сoМ Ryan was the only person to stay in his position when the whistle started other than the designated goalies, the female servants of the Empress.
Staying back on defense, Ryan watched his team come out of the mad scramble with the ball. #4 of the Blue Team had broken away from the defense and was alone with the goalie.
Making sure he stayed in his proper position, Ryan watched as his team scored, clapping as #4 of the Blue Team was the first to secure his passage into the next round of the competition.
Ryan kept playing his assigned position wherever he was until, after a few switches, it was his time to play forward.
After another kickoff, a mad dash ensued. Ryan joined in the fun, swiftly got the ball in his possession, and ran down the field.
His control over his energy had vastly improved with his trips to his training tower, so he no longer struggled when dribbling.
As he arrived within the penalty box and had an available shot, Ryan suddenly paused and did what no man had done before… he passed the ball.
As the ball flew through the air toward the wide-open recipient, everyone's mind blanked, thinking, 'Why?'
The recipient, who had been hoping for a lucky ball bounce, was also thinking the same thing.
However, when the ball was within a few inches of his body, he reacted, caught the ball with his chest, and shot a clean goal.
"Congratulations, Blue Team's #6, for passing this round!" Lady Gwen's voice broke the quiet atmosphere.
The stands erupted as audience members yelled their opinions at the participant who gave up his opportunity to Blue Team's #6.
"He betrayed the Dragon Empress!" a drunk dragon yelled.
"He's gay!" yelled another dragon. "His boyfriend is #6!"
The jeers continued, but Ryan was only concerned about the Dragon Empress and what she thought of his little act of selflessness.
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