The Divine Spectacle of the Opening Ceremony
'This has turned into quite the big deal.'
Overlooking the Colosseum plaza in front of him, which was in utter chaos due to the throngs of dignitaries, Albus thought to himself.
Who could've imagined so many big shots showing up.
And it wasn't just participants—the number of spectators seemed to far exceed even his wildest expectations.
Of course, he'd hoped it would go well, but a scale like this? He hadn't seen it coming at all.
'What do I do...'
The popularity was beyond anything he'd anticipated.
It wasn't a problem, per se.
He'd always planned to expand the duel content once it gained traction, incorporating elements from games in his past life.
But with the timeline accelerated, squeezing all his planned features into this tournament felt tight on time.
With just two days until the event started, even as Luddera's GM with absolute authority, implementing and polishing everything was a stretch.
'Can I pull it off?'
It seemed impossible to prepare everything he'd envisioned in the remaining time.
Maybe he should call Kartesia and ask for help.
As Albus pondered for a solution—
Whoosh!
"Appa make someting?"
Something warm and soft hugged him from behind.
"...Dua?"
Turning around, he saw Dua looking up at him with wide eyes.
"Weren't you supposed to be sleeping? More importantly, how are you even here?"
This was Luddera.
You needed a login device to access it.
"Heehee. Dua make one jus' like Appa's an' use it! Dua big now!"
She'd crafted her own login device? Their daughter was apparently a genius.
'...Wait a sec. Dua's a goddess who can wield divinity freely even in reality.'
The girl who'd sprouted a massive tree from barren desert sand in an instant.
She might wield Luddera's authorities even more efficiently than he could.
"Dua, wanna make stuff with Daddy?"
"Make? Yeah! Wanna wanna!"
Albus granted her partial authority via the command window in the system interface.
"Here, look. Now we're gonna make..."
The day of the duel tournament, announced by GM's notice.
Rumble rumble.
Countless players streamed through the open Colosseum gates.
It dwarfed any stadium Albus remembered from his past life, yet nearly every seat was filled, empty spots scarce.
"Hey! This is my seat!"
"Aww? Talkin' all rude like that? You know who I am?"
With folks from different nations and races all mixed together, trouble was bound to brew.
But—
LV 200 Event Staff Robot BA-01
"Is there a problem?"
LV 200 Event Staff Robot BA-03
"I'll assist you."
"Ah, no... Must've been my mistake."
"M-me too... haha..."
Level 200 robots were more than enough to instill manners in a world where strength ruled all.
In one corner of the arena,
At the center of the Republic's Revolutionary Warriors guild section,
Guild leader Executor Leighton and his junior Executor Renya sat side by side, eyes fixed on the field.
"Senior."
"What is it?"
"Will GM show up?"
"Who knows..."
Luddera's absolute ruler, who'd never properly appeared before.
Whether the omnipotent master of Luddera would grace his own tournament's opening was on every player's mind.
"Even for GM, could he really appear so easily?"
Gods' interventions in the mortal realm were inherently limited.
Direct descents to the surface even more so.
Even Alia and Deus had records of such appearances buried in ancient scriptures from eons ago.
"But unlike other gods, this Labyrinth Tower is entirely GM's domain, right? He could show up."
Yet many expected GM might appear this time.
First reason: The tower was his creation, his territory.
Second: Unlike before, he seemed actively selecting apostles.
These two factors had everyone anticipating his arrival.
"It's a plausible theory... but we'll see soon enough."
Opening time was near.
Leighton shifted his gaze back to the arena's center.
That instant—
"Wh-what?!"
"It's night?!"
The bright daytime sky plunged into pitch-black night in a heartbeat.
Broad daylight turning to night in an instant!
Before the crowd's confusion could settle—
Whoosh whoosh whoosh!
Fireworks erupted from the arena's corners, soaring into the sky.
Boom boom boom!
Multicolored bursts painted the dark heavens in stunning beauty.
"...Pretty."
"What is this..."
Just fireworks recreated from Albus's past-life memories, but to these otherworlders seeing them for the first time, it was nothing short of divine miracle.
"So this is a festival put on by a god himself. Mortals can't compete."
"Holy Kingdom festivals were just dull sermons and testimonies..."
Captivated by the first fireworks and laser show of their lives, the crowd was entranced.
The lights adorning the sky converged into one spot.
"It's letters!"
One player pointed at the sky, shouting.
The 1st Labyrinth Duel Tournament
A dramatic flourish straight out of a past-life movie theater, now dazzling this world.
Flash!
"The sky...!"
The darkened night sky reverted to bright daylight.
"...Ha. He switched day and night just to announce the start."
"GM... This is a true god..."
—Ahh, can everyone hear me okay?
As players lingered in the afterglow of the spectacle, a modulated Demon King's voice echoed through the arena.
"That voice...?"
"Where's it coming from?!"
—This is Juttak handling proceedings and commentary for the 1st Labyrinth Duel Tournament. Nice to meet ya all.
In the broadcast booth at the arena's highest point, the Demon King gripped the mic, smiling at the crowd's reaction.
'A secret room shrouded in mystical concealment. Without this key from GM, even I wouldn't have noticed it.'
The message delivered straight to her by GM the day before the tournament.
It appointed her as head emcee.
'Feels like GM really trusts me.'
Albus had just urgently asked her to handle commentary since no one else was available, but to her, it felt like proof of his favor.
"Juttak...?"
"Where the heck is she?!"
—Alright then, let the 1st Luddera Labyrinth Duel Tournaaaament begiiiin!
For some reason, GM's message had specified dragging out the word "begin."
'If it's GM's request, I have to.'
She didn't get it, but it must hold some magical or divine power.
...I'll do iiiit!
Of course, her calm tone turned it into a rather lackluster start, not the hype Albus wanted.
Roooar!
No sooner had she finished than dozens of massive fire pillars erupted outside the arena, shooting skyward.
Each one dozens of meters wide—monstrous in scale.
"......"
"......"
All in the arena fell silent before the mythic sight.
The overwhelming heat washing over them.
Was this divine judgment? The world's end?
They could only pray it didn't crash down on them.
'Oops. Went overboard.'
Albus had aimed for event-style pillars from his past life but miscalibrated slightly.
The pillars subsided, but no respite for the crowd.
Hummmmmmm.
An unprecedented sound descended.
A colossal shadow blanketed the arena; all looked up.
Something immense, too vast to even discern its color, slowly descended toward them.
Empire princesses, Republic executors, beastman kings, elf queens—all gaped skyward in awe.
Ordinary folk just sensed something huge above.
But the perceptive realized: This was merely a fingertip.
That beyond the clouds loomed other fingers, a hand.
"God's... finger..."
An overwhelming vista beyond comprehension.
For the first time, a glimpse of GM's true power, hitherto unimaginable.
"Whaddya think, Daddy? Dua did good?"
"Yeah. Our Dua did amazing."
"Heehee!"
Albus stroked the head of Dua, who clung to him.
'Tried a Michelangelo Creation of Adam vibe. Hope they liked it.'
Ironically, Albus—who'd crafted the spectacle—had no inkling how this opening alone would reshape GM's image.