Saiyan stowaways on the Ark

"Ordinary methods simply can't stop them on the field... We should intensify our efforts..."

"The previous instances of off-field support have already drawn some protests from the audience... but they were still able to win easily under those circumstances... if this continues, our interference tactics will only backfire and inflate their popularity..."

"It feels a bit early, but... that's the only method we can use?"

A group of shareholders gathered in the conference room to discuss the various unexpected events that had occurred during this year's Special Championship.

They, who rarely did things personally in the past, are finally starting to worry about their positions.

The powerful figures at the very top of the Kasimir economy are all troubled and terrified by the destabilizing factors that have shaken their foundations.

But this also means they will have to resort to some unconventional methods to deal with this situation.

"We were able to suppress the Black Knight incident... the public still believed she had simply been bought... it'll be the same this time. As long as we control the public opinion, no one will know the real reason they can't participate..."

"Since a direct confrontation is impossible to achieve silently, let's just defeat them 'openly and fairly'."

"We can't just focus on making a profit now; if we don't cut our losses..."

Their fear of Rhodes Island prevented them from dealing with the problem in the same way as before, using methods such as underhanded tactics or open encirclement.

Driven by greed and wealth, they eventually realized that continuing down this path could lead to utter ruin.

"Then this is the only way..."

"Adjust the schedule so that the 'rookie knights' face off against all of Rhodes Island's knights, eliminating them to the point where they can't participate!"

—They were all extremely unwilling to do this.

Because this independent rider, even without any corporate affiliation, is consistently stunning and generates significant buzz.

However, if he is given too many matches, and the opponents are not strong enough to generate enough buzz, it would be a waste.

But now there's no other choice.

"Let them fight amongst themselves until then, let that 'Saiyan Knight' fight against the people of Rhodes Island...let them wear down their own strength as much as possible."

The reason for such vigilance is very simple yet unbelievable:

"After all... I know very well that every one of them who appears is at the 'Title Knight' level."

While members of the business alliance were discussing shady tactics that would infuriate die-hard fans of the match, members of Rhodes Island were watching another match at the Doctor's behest.

This is Badak's preliminary round.

He did not choose to use a title, but competed under his real name, while maintaining the most traditional combat uniform style of armor.

The match unexpectedly lasted for quite some time, and was finally decided by a strangulation.

His play was quite low-key, with no damage to the field or any major commotion, because his opponent was just an unknown rookie knight.

"He actually listened to what I said..."

Even Tomat was surprised by Badak's performance—but considering Badak's purpose in participating, it's not hard to understand why he was willing to hold back.

There's no need to pay too much attention; as long as we can secure the championship, that will allow those children to have better conditions.

"—In conclusion, when applying for competitions, try to avoid one-on-one challenges. It's best to choose competitions where multiple people can survive to the end, rather than where there can only be one champion, such as survival races or speed races."

The doctor also took the time to provide guidance to the other participating knights:

"Because we anticipated that the other side would definitely send Mr. Gohan or Mr. Tomat to face us."

This judgment is not a stroke of genius, because there is a very clear logic behind it.

That is, "they have no means to defeat Rhodes Island's players on their own," and there is no other way except to use those few people.

"But what if we encounter Mr. Tomat or Mr. Gohan in such a match? Should we fight them?"

Someone asked a question.

"...Then it depends on your thoughts. Just as they set obstacles for us at will according to their own ideas, you, as contestants, also have the means to fight according to your own wishes or to make them lose face in other ways."

"Completely lost face?"

When someone pressed for details, the doctor revealed a sly smile, as if he had a plan all along.

—A few days later, during a survival competition where players were vying for points, a scene unfolded that drew a torrent of curses from the audience.

The match started off very exciting.

The recently rising Saiyan Knights and Rhodes Island Knights are plundering other players' points with astonishing efficiency, then defeating them to the point where they can no longer continue the match.

Soon only Rhodes Island knights and Saiyan knights remained on the field.

Just when people thought a showdown worth the ticket price was about to unfold...

Both knights abandoned their fighting stance and ordered takeout from drones outside the arena, happily enjoying their meal.

In terms of the rules, this kind of timed survival competition where participants steal points from each other allows them to avoid combat until the end after accumulating a certain number of points.

But this is the first time they've so blatantly stopped fighting and waited for the battle to end.

Because in previous competitions, there were always participants fighting until the very last moment, trying to make a comeback or earn more points.

But now, they have no intention of continuing the fight as the audience expects or as Charne and the others envision.

"You...can you even be considered knights?"

Charne, who usually despised chivalry as a phantom sun, couldn't help but curse at the screen with such language.

[Main Text] Terra's Greatest Martial Arts Tournament. Debate Chapter: Chapter Seventy: The Exalted and the Destroyed

Match-fixing is common.

This is an open secret among some veteran esports enthusiasts.

For viewers who are unaware of the inside story, most of the matches could be considered "exciting" if you round it off.

But the audience has never seen anything so blatantly fake.

Both sides were strong underdogs, but they ended up having such a comical truce during the match.

While people expressed dissatisfaction with the Knights' attitude, they directed their anger more at the organizers.

"What is the Knights Association doing?! Openly throwing matches?!"

"But...no one said it was arranged by the Knights' Association!"

"Bullshit! Who would arrange it like that? Do you think we don't know?!"

The well-known Ursus joke was applied to this awkward situation—and then the Knights Association, while trying to exonerate itself, also came up with corresponding countermeasures.

[The contestant's passive play has negatively impacted the atmosphere of equestrian competition; therefore, the contestant is suspended for one month and points are deducted.]

However, due to protests from the audience and the intervention of the supervisory committee for unknown reasons, the punishment was changed to a one-week suspension.

The audience supported the Cavaliers and naturally attributed the blame for that game to the Cavaliers Association and the manipulation of the capital behind it.

There was no need for Rhodes Island to send anyone to explain; the fans automatically turned on their filters and whitewashed the matter—no one believed that the Knights had chosen to play passively.

This is exactly what the doctor meant when he said, "Make the people in the business alliance lose face in a way that you like."

If the other side tries to eliminate a contestant through underhanded means, then they will show their disdain for those methods in a more forceful way.

As for the sudden emergence of the Supervisory Council, it was also due to the secret connections made by Rhodes Island.

Kazimierz's discontent with the Commercial Alliance and the Knights' Association stems not only from the infected, but also from the war knights and ancient families.

They are all using their own methods to check and balance each other with business alliances for their own purposes. Recently, they have even planned to cooperate with infected people. However, their weak position has prevented them from putting these things into practice on a large scale.

The appearance of Rhodes Island, its fearless and aggressive attitude of interference—as well as its strength—led other countries to intervene and become willing to cooperate with it.

If the business alliance resorts to even more egregious methods, the Oversight Council, which still retains some power to intervene, will step in and use its waning authority to stop it.

"However, the power of the Supervisory Council is also limited... Just like the current aristocratic class, the National Assembly, and the Knights' Association, the commercial alliance that controls the channels for knights to advance is gradually replacing the members of these power centers."

Even though Lin Guang has been away from Kazimierz for a long time, he still has connections with his former family.

Many knights and noble families welcomed her return, but she has consistently declined their proposals to "apply for the restoration of the citizenship of the Radiant Knight."

From these enthusiastic old friends, Lin Guang also obtained a lot of information about the political circles in Kazimir.

"Their supporters are growing, while the influence of the old-school knights with military achievements and local noble families is slowly declining... We must speed things up. If we want to change Kazimierz, we must do it before those things happen."

"The infected once launched a four-city isolation in Kazimierz, which seemed to be secretly supported by the Overwatch Council. That time it almost succeeded, but it was still suppressed."

The doctor spoke about the history of Kasimir that she knew.

“Even if we succeed, it will only turn us back into feudalism from capitalism. The infected will only receive the ‘rewards’ promised by the nobles. The capitalists who exploit value and the high and mighty noble class will not bring much change to Kazimierz. What we are going to do now is something completely different. Let’s treat it as a ‘warm-up’ before going to Victoria.”

There are many factors that contribute to the conflict between the infected and the uninfected, nobles and capitalists, capital and knights, and that exacerbate the suffering of the vulnerable. These factors will not disappear simply because of changes in one of them. "Improving the situation of the infected" is merely one part of this grand plan.

"Was all of this planned by the Doctor?"

Lin Guang asked.

"No, initially I only intended to come and participate in a regular exercise, but what happened here made me decide to adapt to the situation—and without realizing it, the goal became more... 'huge'."

The PhD student admitted it quite readily.

"The commonplace injustices suffered by those infected, the vast capital that created this situation and exploited the nation to create even more suffering, and the aristocratic system that, even if the capital disappears, merely replaces it..."

“Each of these was something we were powerless to change in the past, right?”

The doctor was asking her about things that happened before she lost her memory.

At that time, Rhodes Island was also struggling with hardship.

The doctor could also guess how many helpless situations they had gone through.

"But now... we can use it as a 'warm-up exercise,' isn't that incredible?"

The Doctor's smile was relaxed, and even Lin Guang, who always maintained a serious expression in front of the Doctor, showed a hint of a smile:

"'A knight is a noble one who illuminates the entire earth.' We now possess that kind of stature... right?"

The doctor nodded silently.

Preparations are complete; now is the time for the collision to begin. The first light of Rhodes Island, a rising star, will ignite in Casimir.

"However, rather than illuminating the earth... we should be more worried about something else..."

Just as the two of them were feeling somewhat excited, the doctor suddenly became serious and embarrassed.

She put away the documents she was organizing, then rubbed her forehead and said: