Chapter 71: Sponsorship

The moment Darkan declared his surrender, the field fell into absolute silence. Even the host himself was so stunned he couldn’t manage a single word.

Kina lowered her sword, the ice coating it slowly melting into tiny fragments before vanishing completely. The girl stood there, breathing hard, eyes closed as she calmed her racing heart, then turned to face the entire audience, lifting her head toward the seven great families.

No one had expected her to win, no one had predicted this outcome. They’d already been thrilled that Kina had managed to hold her own against Darkan, but for her to actually win like this?

Her initial value shot up dramatically, reaching a level where all seven great families clearly wanted this girl for themselves.

Especially Cessel.

"How is this possible...? That was clearly a signature Mivelo family technique. We’ve never taught outsiders anything like that."

Cessel was so stunned his mouth hung open. The silence around them was entirely understandable, while his expression twisted as one of the mid-tier families suddenly raised their hand and made a Sponsorship offer.

The offer stated they’d guarantee Kina’s entry into an elite academy, provide her with a monthly stipend, cover certain equipment needs, and one E-Grade skill book per year. The condition being loyal service as that family’s Hunter for two years.

Then came others too, offering nearly identical terms, just slightly better in certain aspects of the deal.

Then another, another, and another. More and more offers poured in until the field grew genuinely noisy.

This was something that hadn’t happened in a very long time, to the point where, in the end, not a single family wanted to miss this chance, all of them gambling for a shot at securing Kina.

Even after all that, it wasn’t just the lower-tier families, one of the great families finally spoke up, silencing the noisy field entirely.

It was the representative of the great Remielle family.

"5,000 Credits/month, full academy tuition, private training facility, D-Grade Skill Book of your choice, regular Progress Serums, custom-made equipment. And our condition: we want exclusive sponsorship until graduation, and the Remielle family will hold first right of offer for a contract after Kina graduates."

Every lower-tier family fell silent hearing an offer whose value they simply couldn’t match.

Even Cessel was stunned, since that was an enormous offer, undeniably tempting.

That left Cessel’s entire body trembling slightly. Because with this, his rival clearly wasn’t just Lurker anymore, but possibly every single great family present.

And, just as expected, the remaining four great families each stated their own offers. Each provided their own benefits, unique perks, and reasonably competitive conditions.

The values varied, but what mattered was that each value had been calculated based on what Kina actually needed.

In this, Cessel had no intention of holding back. This girl possessed extraordinary ability, her talent was absurdly impressive, her swordsmanship technique and fighting style matched the Mivelo style perfectly.

That was an advantage. Sure, there were questions about how she’d come to possess that fighting style, but Cessel set that aside. First, he needed to secure this girl.

So, he raised his hand and finally made his own offer. Right then, the girl’s gaze met Cessel’s.

’...?’

Was it just his imagination?

The girl smiled, but it wasn’t a friendly smile. It was a smile that came across distinctly cold.

Cessel paused for a moment, then finally spoke up:

"Full tuition for the Elite Academy, 10,000 Credits/month, direct access to Mivelo’s ice facilities, a family trainer, a D-Grade ice Skill Book, the opportunity to learn the Mivelo family’s core swordsmanship technique, and if her performance proves sufficient, we’ll offer: honorary Mivelo branch membership."

That was an extraordinarily tempting offer, however Cessel looked at it. He dominated in nearly every category, value, benefits, and what Kina actually needed, everything made it far more sensible for Kina to accept this sponsorship offer.

So, Cessel felt thoroughly confident as he smiled and added, "We can discuss the specific conditions further if you agree. I’m open to negotiation, whatever you want."

And freedom to negotiate. What more could possibly be missing here?

Cessel felt so confident it almost frightened him. His gaze then shifted toward the Zoldia family, what would they do about this?

With a restrained smile, he waited to see what Lurker would offer, and finally, Lurker raised his hand and spoke:

"We’ll cover full academy tuition, 3,000 Credits/month, full access to Zoldia facilities, complete Zoldia backing, resources and Serums based on need. No service obligations. No obligation to join the family. No family rights over your Skills. No obligation to accept family missions. After graduation, Zoldia asks for only one thing: first right of offer for future collaboration."

The field fell silent once more, and this time, every gaze turned toward Lurker, who’d made his offer with complete confidence, standing there without a trace of worry on his face.

That left everyone wondering, what exactly was he doing here?

Because compared to the other six great families, it was painfully obvious his offer fell considerably short in material value. This drew a sharp reaction from the other six families, looking at Lurker as though he’d genuinely lost his mind.

Especially Cessel.

"Hah...haha... this guy... has he gone stupid or what? Ah, no, wait, I guess he’s always been this stupid, hasn’t he?"

With an offer like that, how could that girl possibly agree to it?

Even if he’d done his absolute best to flatter the girl’s guardian, his offer itself was simply too excessive a gap, nowhere near comparable.

If there was one genuinely advantageous point, it was surely in the conditions attached. Beyond that, the other great families clearly held the overwhelming advantage.

A forced smile crossed Cessel’s face. "This guy... he’s completely finished."

So all that remained now was who Kina would actually choose. Every family’s gaze locked onto the girl as she looked over each great family one by one, letting their hopes rise.

And when Kina’s gaze settled on Cessel, she smiled again, only this time, her smile looked far more ordinary, catching Cessel off guard before he quickly smiled back.

"Yes, that’s fitt—"

His words cut off, because Kina had shifted her gaze toward Zoldia instead.

"Lord Lurker, could you discuss this sponsorship further with my Master?"