Torva could feel Hagumi's cheek against his, her cool skin refreshing as the dense crowd had grown quite warm since the start of the competition. Among the many feathers fluttering about the coliseum, a lone white feather came to rest on his nose briefly before being deftly plucked away. Fighting the urge to sneeze, Torva wrapped his arm around Hagumi's waist as she did the same, enjoying that for the first time since entering Adalrich nobody seemed to take notice. Commenting on her observations, he joked "It's nice to see even the prim and proper seraphim elite know how to have a good time. Maybe there's hope for this world yet."

Of course it wouldn't last.

The scene quickly went from festive to gruesome as a bounty hunter stole the show, all eyes on him as he decapitated who he claimed was a wanted criminal. Instinctively Torva jumped to his feet, arms wide to block Hagumi and those around him should an attack occur, although none came. The crowd was tense, and from his vantage point he could see at least a dozen people at the ready to attack. Torva himself was less shocked than many of the other bystanders, as former king Raha had performed quite a few public executions of his own as a show of force, but by the reaction of the crowd it was obvious Seraphim found the practice a bit... primitive. Much to his surprise, the vigilante was allowed to walk off, or at least exit the arena unharmed. It was then, moments later, that the master of ceremonies finally spoke, trying to restore order. "Ah... erm... ahem... It seems today's festivities have energized the crowd, but let's not lose focus!"

A loud gong erupted through the arena as the magical flames at each workbench instantly turned an icy blue, their heat dissipating although the flames themselves remaining. "And with that the first round is concluded! Contestants will be called up in blocks to display their weapons to the judges. Fans are welcome to take this time to use the washroom or purchase food and drink from one of our many vendors. The next round will begin in 10 minutes!"

Almost immediately the first round of inventors were called up to the panel of judges at the far end of the arena. Opposite the judging, a large board had been placed with slots along two columns. As inventors came and went, their names appeared magically on boards in the left column, with their current cumulative scores on the right. A number of seraphim, opting out of the first round, automatically appeared at the bottom with a score of zero. Going by the first dozen or so contestants, the scores tended to average in the 70s, with nobody breaking 90.

"I was going to suggest a snack, but I'm not hungry any more" Torva said, finally taking a seat after the tension seemed to have lifted. It seemed even the battle-hardened Hagumi was affected by the execution, slipping from her usual decor in a rare display of race-bias. In the grand scheme of things Torva had heard uttered, Hagumi's line didn't even register on the scale, but it was still surprising to hear it from her lips. It seems even the most liberal of souls cannot undue a childhood of indoctrination so easily. Still, he understood what she was really getting at and pulled her close, resting her head against his chest. Taking a deep, slow breath, Torva watched as her head rose and fell against his body, hoping the slow steady rhythm of his heart might help calm her troubled heart. "It feels like chaos follows us wherever we go, but the cynic is me thinks the whole world is just getting crazier by the day. At least... I feel like things are getting worse. Like time is catching up with us, and it won't be long before we can't escape it."

Letting out a long sigh, Torva gazed to the sky. "At least we haven't burned anything to the ground yet...."

A second gong rang and the scores on the board jumped into the air, swimming like a sea of fish through the air and around the stadium before splashing back onto the wood, the names rearranged to show the current placing. "5th place! Not bad!" Torva said, spying Cadogan's name on the board. "He might actually be able to win this." he added optimistically. 

For the second round, a number of devices were brought onto the arena floor. "In the second round, our brilliant inventors will be tasked with constructing a piece or pieces of armor capable of withstanding this barrage of tests. First, it will be exposed to intense heat," the announcer relayed as one of the devices briefly spit intense flame, "Next, it will be tested for durability" and, much like the first time, another device with a spear mounted to it rapidly stabbed the air. It continued like this for a short while. Heat. Pressure. Weight. Piercing and slashing damage. Torva would be surprised if any of the armors made it through the full barrage of tests, but he was excited to see anyway.

"As a reminder, inventors must have an assistant willing to brave these tests. Those without an assistant or those unsure of the quality of their designs are allowed to drop out at any point, including during the evaluations. So think long and hard about how confident you are in your designs."

"But don't think too hard!" the announcer said as the flames at each station turned white hot, "because the second round has already begun!"

All Torva could think of, looking back and forth between the barrage of machines and Cadogan's workbench, was "poor chii...."