No matter how much I would like to avoid this situation, it had to get revealed at some point. I could even guess that in the coming few minutes, someone would touch my shoulder again only to lead me back to the Venna's private lounge.

While I could hear the announcer's voice stutter a bit while he realised who he just announced, but what was started couldn't just get stopped. No matter how great the commotion erupted after his words, both the male cultivator and my beloved simply stood against each other, bowed slightly and pulled their weapons out.

Unable to think about the current situation while focusing on the match itself, I simply decided that there will be sometime later on when I could decide on the best course of action, while I won't be able to rewatch how skillfully my fiancee would secure her position in the tournament.

Ignoring the peoples whispers, shouts and exclaims, the arena horn announced the start of the duel.

In an instant, Eve's opponents launched himself, wielding a great sword behind him. Being almost twice the size of my beloved, it was no wonder why his weapon of choice was such a big lump of metal, comparable to those ridiculous armaments wielded by anime character's back in many earthy franchises. Did he not realise that no matter how great his skills were with that weapon, it was simply too inefficient to fight in close quarters with?

While some could argue that this kind of long and heavy sword was supposed to keep the enemies at bay while blocking their line of approach, this would require the great sword user to actually top the speed of their opponent!

Just like in most of the cultivation or other fantasy worlds, most of the locals followed the stupid classifications where the great sword was a correct weapon for big and strong people, daggers were the best for agile ones while the sword was in the middle ground allowing to combine the pros of both agility and strength.

While I was the sword wielder myself, I couldn't help but smirk every time I thought about it. The swords were just a secondary weapon in the first place!

I know it's nice to go around with a blade that was originally designed for only nobles or higher class knights, but in a real fight, devoid of any cultivation, techniques or magic, it was simply a secondary weapon for the case when you lost your main one!

Even if it's true that on earth, swords lost to other weapons because of how great protection a plate or chain armour or even simple gambeson offered, making it a bit more of a reliable choice in a world where wearing any sort of protective equipment would only make others laugh at you, but it didn't change the main point!

When it comes to fighting, it's far easier to swing an axe, thrust with a spear or even fight with a damn sabre! All of those weapons were designed for one kind of attack, allowing one to use it as a polearm while banking on this one additional metal edge to deal serious damage when the opportunity arose! In the duels, swords might offer the greatest versatility, but how much you could do with them actually relied mostly on your skill alone!

That's why when I saw Eve simply dash under the wide swing that her opponent used in an attempt to force her away, raise her 'final solution' and stick the tip of her weapon right against Adam's apple of her opponent, I couldn't even pretend to be surprised.

"Eve Katenari has won!"

With the entire duel taking less than just ten seconds, it took almost half of this time for the commentator to actually announce the results! Used to pointlessly prolonged fights between trash cultivators, it was obvious that he would be stunned by such a sudden conclusion.

As Eve looked to the tribunes, a great cheer erupted. I guess ending the whole farce in such a fast manner could disappoint those who were waiting for the epic clash, but such a show of strength managed to please the publicity as well. While she pretended to care about all those random people by waving her hand at them, she managed to find where I was, smile lightly at me with a joy lingering in her eyes, before turning around and leaving the stage from the side entrance.

While there were two more fights scheduled for her today, the nearest one would take at least two hours to start, giving all those who would be interested in her background enough time to pester her, forcing her to go outside and seek refuge in my company.

"Excuse me, sir! My lady is…"

"Cut the crap. When I will have the time and opportunity, I would love to meet with her, but I can't spare even a single moment now!"

Before the messenger managed to even finish his sentence, I simply cut him out and left the place. Squeezing through the crowd of the people that was either going in or out of the tribunes, I managed to leave this damned arena rather quickly, only to see my beloved already surrounded by a pack of perverts!

Not wasting even a second, I simply burst through those damn people and grabbed Eve's hand.

"If you have any business with my fiancee, you will have to go through me."

While I could instantly feel Eve hugging her whole self to my arm as if trying to merge with me on the spot, I couldn't help but notice clear enmity from the young masters surrounding me.

"Who gave you the right to monopolize her! If she is a real Katenari, then she is the treasure of this city, not your own posses…"

Before the leader of this group that decisively followed my girl to the exit from the inside of the arena would even finish his sentence, I could already see how he dug his own grave when I saw a distinctively dressed pair of an Elder and someone looking like his personal butler coming our way. The second that this entitled prick started uttering his nonsense, the elder's cane flew out of his hand, only to struck the head of this young master, sending him flying while the cane itself miraculously came right back to the elder's hand!

"I'm Bai Katenari, the disciplinary elder of the Katenari Clan Branch in this city. The matter whether you have the right to use our distinctive surname will be addressed in our clan hall, so I will need you to follow me there."

While this elder's voice was rather amiable, one didn't need to be a genius to hear a hint of a threat in it!

"I'm sorry, but I don't think I will waste our precious time on your nonsense. If you really want to speak with us, I will send you a letter when I will find some time to spare for useless formalities that only your generation can be bothered to follow!"

Shifting my body position to block the line of sight between the elder and my beloved, I responded rudely, trying to irk his anger. I could tell that with the position of Katenaris in this city, occurrences of people trying to claim that they hailed from their clan were common, prompting me to believe that this elder wasn't anything much when compared to real powerhouses. Only by making him angry and acting haughty I could make him think that we were, in fact, a pair of imposters!