26 Preliminary Rounds (1)

During the date between Ayla and Masa, they went to various different places, such as restaurants, a few other stores, watched a fight between other samurais, and so on, leading to the end of the day, where the sun was about to set, prompting them to end their date and head back to the Sakura Inn.

They walked through the streets that were lit up by oil lamps, holding each other's hands with beautiful smiles on their faces.

Masa faced Ayla and smiled happily, "This was very fun. Thanks for agreeing."

"Yep." Ayla smiled, as she considered this fun since she'd never thought of doing something like this before as a girl and with a girl, making it a new experience for her.

A few minutes later,

They arrived at the Sakura inn and entered it, going back to their own separate rooms to rest. In Ayla's room, Ayla lay in the middle of the bed on her back, wearing a black yakuta, looking up at the ceiling with a small smile.

Ayla's peaceful moment was interrupted by Cynthia as she said, [Can I go on a date with you? Masa stole your first, so I should at least be the one to go second.] Her tone was filled with some sadness and a little hope.

'Are you that envious of her? I thought you were a goddess of lust, not the goddess of envy. ' Ayla turned her head to look at Cynthia on the holographic screen.

Cynthia looked downward, poking her two index fingers together. [Well, I really wanted to be the first to go on a date with you.]

'Instead of getting upset about not being the first to go on a date with me, you should be glad that you get to go a step further by having sex with me,' said Ayla telepathically.

Cynthia's previously downcast eyes shot up filled with happiness as she smiled, [Thanks, it really made me feel better.]

'Sure.' Ayla replied and thought, 'She acts like a child, but I guess not every goddess is noble and elegant.'

Ayla closed her eyes, soon drifting off into her dreams as Cynthia watched her sleep peacefully, but also kept guard along with Kiera, from anyone who dared to lay a finger on Ayla.

###

Ayla woke up with a bright smile, seeing the early morning sun shining through the window. She got out of bed, stretched her arms, and put on her black kimono, which was once again cleaned by Kiera.

Ayla holstered her katana with its sheath in her obi and left the inn, as today was the beginning of the preliminary rounds for the tournament.

During the date, Masa told Ayla that the preliminary rounds would take the longest and many other things, such as:

Any participant could select any one of the eight martial arts rings that the Genji dojo had set up throughout Kamakura City. The contestants were matched up against one another, and after three victories in a row, each had the option of continuing to fight or leaving. No one was allowed to force a challenge.

Before stepping into the ring for the first time, each competitor had to pay 1 kan to exchange for one bronze token that was given out by the Genji clan and included a spell that could not be recreated.

Each person was only allowed to exchange for one bronze token, and if they were caught exchanging more than once, they would suffer harsh punishments.

Bronze-plated competitors had the option of standing up on the platform to defend the ring or present a challenge. One would get their opponent's bronze token if they won, and vice versa. But in a true sword fight, getting injured wasn't rare, and the chance of losing one's life was also fairly high.

The eight rings were open for 12 hours during the day. 6 hours in the morning, ending just before noon, and 6 hours in the night, ending an hour before the sun sets.

There were no other limitations during this time. Anybody may challenge or defend the ring as long as they have a bronze token, but it has to be a genuine sword fight between two opponents, and the competitors must be human. Everything else was optional.

Once in the ring, the number of bronze tokens held by each competitor will be recorded by the onmyojis under the ring and checked every night. The next morning, the top 32 bronze token holders would be listed on a large wooden sign placed in front of the Genji Dojo.

If there was a tie for 32nd place, they would also be listed together.

In the end, one month later, the 32 strongest competitors would advance to the 16th finals. In the event of a tie for 32nd place, a fight would be held; the victor would advance while the loser would remain in place.

In the 16th finals, the top 32 would fight to determine the 16 qualifiers who would move onto the 8th finals.

Five bronze tokens could be exchanged for one silver token, and five silver tokens could be exchanged for one gold token. Their purpose was the same as the bronze tokens. No matter how many tokens they had, if they lost the match, the winner would receive them all. The onmyojis kept all the records, so nothing could be hidden. Besides, defeat meant losing the qualifications to continue participating in the competition. It would be very difficult to cheat because the statistics would be recorded every night and the tokens would be recorded under the winner's name. If someone tried to cheat by hiding tokens and lost the fight, they would be caught quickly.

Losing their tokens wasn't a big deal for the individuals who were defeated. It was already seen as very good if you didn't come back a corpse or a cripple. The rules were straightforward. For Ayla, it was enough to challenge the ring every day, earn more tokens, and maintain her position among the top 32.

Ayla was holding a map of Kamakura City that Masa had bought for her to use during the samurai tournament's preliminary rounds. The map highlighted the locations of the rings.

Walking through the streets, Ayla headed towards the closest ring to her. The ring was called "The Ring of Dread."