Nelia wrapped Cesar's arm with her hands. They were walking towards the entrance of the Colosseum and greeting the crowd reunited to witness the clash.

At their level, they could have simply appeared in their grandstand, without having to walk through the crowd. However, her husband hated to rise above the people, as if he were a superior creature.

Cesar had always aspired to the sovereign position and overturned the Senate system. In fact, Cesar was the first King of Orma.

Convinced that the Senate was unable to manage the city, he had carried out a coup d’état and seized power. But never, from the beginning of his reign until that day, the people had feared or watched Cesar from afar.

The ruler of the Capital spent as much time as possible among his people.

"It's obvious that you come from Suburra," laughed Nelia as Cesar greeted imperiously, but slightly ungainly. He waved his arm vigorously, as if he were an ordinary man.

“When the Senate pretended to be superior to the people, there was a need for a tyrant who knew what these people wanted. They are simple Goblins, they want to eat, get stronger and have fun. What use could it be to talk about refined stuff and shake my hand like a sissy? They want a King, not a Queen. Otherwise, you would be the one on the throne."

Cesar spoke these words with a smile, but they were completely true.

Nelia could never have ruled with the same hold on the people Cesar had. Not even the Sect of the Worthy, who intended to remove the King from his throne, would have persuaded the people of Orma to turn against their ruler.

The Colosseum was more crowded than usual. There were so many spectators that some were piling on the balustrades and were at risk of falling.

The big wigs of the Royal Academy, Crispio, Binio and Filopappo were also present in the stands.

Cesar waved to them and they arrived in front of him shortly after.

"Your Majesty, it is incredible how a clash between kids managed to drag you here," laughed Crispio.

The old Dean of the Royal Academy had no fear of speaking frankly to Cesar or Aure. Although he was not an Immortal, his power was profound and impossible to measure.

Binio and Filopappo greeted the King with awe.

Even Binio, born in the Sect of the Worthy, strongly feared Cesar. The King of Orma possessed a terrifying power and, if not for Aure, no one within the Sect of the Worthy would even dream of going against him.

"If even the Dean of the Academy, Orma's most rigid and severe inhabitant, spends his time attending this show, I really think I made the right choice, too."

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, the King went to talk to other big guys from the various Clans.

A plump man with three or four chin approached Cesar, almost rolling.

He wore brightly coloured clothes and many jewels on his fingers and arms.

"Guiccia, I see you lost weight", laughed the King of Orma.

With a dark expression on his face, the man replied: “If you want, we can make the whole Clan of the Sacred Eagle lose weight. It doesn't take long to raise the prices of Elixir, Herbs, Weapons, Armour... Shall we raise taxes a bit? "

He rolled his eyes.

Although that man might seem harmless at first glance, he was actually an expert at the Tenth Phase, and within the walls of Orma he was second only to the Immortals.

The owner of the Merchants Guild, Caliban's father, Guiccia.

Out of nowhere, Aure appeared on the grandstand.

In Orma, the stands were not divided by Clan, Sects or Guilds. All the bigwigs sat together under one roof.

In fact, before Aure had begun to plot against the Clan of the Sacred Eagle, Orma was united as no other Nation was.

In human Capital, as well as in Biancofiore and in every corner of the Fiercelake nation, there were always intrigues and conspiracies everywhere. Until then, however, no betrayal had ever been seen within the walls of Orma. Although conflicts were evident, no one intended to go against the traditions established by the ancestors.

Enemies, allies, merchants, masters - they all sat together.

The Leader of the Sect of the Worthy greeted all the people around him and sat on Cesar's right. Auras had an elegant bearing, worthy of a man of his calibre.

And to Cesar's left the last of Orma's big shots materialized, making his triumphal entry with a...

“Damn bitch!”

It was Big, who had just arrived and was looking around, sighing with relief. He seemed to be happy to be there, as if he had just run away from the most fearsome of enemies. He began to massage his left cheek, on which stood out a red handprint.

Everyone present, turning to him, noticed the slap Big had on his face.

Big was not an Immortal, he was one of the big shots in the Tenth Phase, but he was famous for being a person of unprecedented vigour. Many claimed lava flowed in the Goblin's veins, instead of normal blood.

"Your wife is truly frightening," Cesar said without any mockery in his voice.

He meant it too.

Crispio, Big, Guiccia.

All the pillars of Orma.

After the two Immortals, they carried the responsibility of the Capital on their shoulders.

Still, there was another person, equally terrifying, able to stand up to them.

The Guild of Life and Death was compared to the Clan of the Sacred Eagle and the Sect of the Worthy not only because its leader was Big, the only Warrior in the Tenth Phase that they had, but also for a second, very important resource.

Fwoosh!

"Our daughter said that you again abused your role as a father to punish her!" A ringing voice reached Big's ears, and he felt a shiver run down his back. Big's wife, Roxy, had reached her husband in the arena too...

Aure and Cesar turned their gaze elsewhere, doing their best not to get involved in the matter.

Crispio, from the height of his old age and wisdom, also began to whistle merrily, pretending to be a total fool.

BOOM! CRASH!

Roxy slapped Big again, knocking him from his chair, while the other big shots of Orma all around were stunned.

Nelia covered her mouth with her hand as she laughed.

All the big shots of Orma were now ready, and the only thing missing to start the show were its protagonists.