"What an upset in the semifinal! Thersland, for the first time in history, has come to the main stage and ultimately gotten third place!" Sheira shouted.
Earth-shattering cheers resound across the entire arena to the point all people outside could hear it too.
Even so, the one that was happy with their achievement was none other than the participants.
Alea dropped her weapons to the ground and leaped to Theo, giving him a peck on the cheek while hugging him like a kid.
"Theo, we won!"
"We won!"
"WE WON!"
Alea kept jumping up until she eventually knocked him down.
Phyrill and Ellen were the first to come out of the gate and jumped on top of Alea, wanting to celebrate together.
Sihan and Laust also came out, but both of them were calmer than those three.
Watching this, Radvils couldn't help but close his eyes while feeling relieved. "It seems they have gained another honor for the country."
"Isn't that because of your way of holding the competition?" Rai commented with a nonchalant expression.
Radvils shook his head. "No. I didn't have confidence in my own plan. A person like Theo was my target and luckily, he indeed appeared before me. The rest of the training camps were to build their confidence and strength. That's all."
"But you still take the credit, right?"
"Of course."
"…" Rai fell silent, recalling how shameless this person was.
Meanwhile, after having their fun for two minutes, Theo finally used his Blink to appear in another place, not wanting to get strangled by them again.
And the place he appeared was behind Sihan.
"I didn't have time to say it earlier, but I will say it now… Now that the competition is over, that String Technique… It's my brother's technique, right?" Theo's face turned cold. "I won't ruin the celebration mood for now, but you have a lot to explain later."
"I know." Sihan sighed.
They found Theo again and called him. "Theo! Come here! We haven't finished."
"Spare me…" Theo shrugged and ran away from them.
…
After a one-hour break, the last match started to end the competition with a blast.
Unfortunately, due to Clark's current condition, there was no way Nella's team could win.
Nella fought with her strength and utilized all her strategies, but her opponent had an overwhelming advantage.
Every time Nella appeared, they let her win while destroying the other three battles.
Zara's expression was sour the whole time, knowing that everything was her fault.
Clark, on the other hand, denied it every now and then since he couldn't fight.
Nella remained calm because she already expected the result, but it was still frustrating to not have the power to fight to the very end.
After a long fight, the match finally ended with disappointment not only from the participants but also from the audience. They all loved the semifinal, but the final couldn't raise the same excitement despite Sheira trying hard to pique their interest.
After another short break, Thersland, The United Kingdom, and the United States were called back to the field to receive their medals and trophy.
Nella met Maya, the US Team Leader and shook her hand.
Nella made a smug smile and said with an arrogant tone. "We let you win."
Maya's eyebrows twitched. "There's no telling we would lose even if you came at us with full power. Unfortunately, a chance like this won't appear again, so I will still claim the credit for defeating you."
Nella and Maya released a bit more strength in their handshake.
"Well, that's how it is…" Suddenly, Nella released her hand and ran to Theo as if she had never met someone. "THEO!"
Theo sighed and took a step to the side, avoiding her grasp.
"Why did you dodge?" Nella pouted.
"Isn't that normal?" Theo shook his head helplessly before finding Maya coming to him.
"Hello, we met back at the banquet. I'm Maya… I will be a bit shameless, but will you join our country? No, how about you let my Starry Group be your sole sponsor? I can give you everything." Maya smiled.
"Wha—" Nella quickly came between them, stopping her. "He won't accept it!"
"Well, we can talk tomorrow at the banquet. I will let this one go for now." Maya turned back and left while waving her hand.
Theo gently chopped her head with his hand and said, "Alright, alright. Let's not make a scene."
"Ehehe." Nella chuckled and returned with a big smile on her face.
After that, Italy's Prime Minister came to the arena, presenting a golden trophy for the champion.
Then, he began to put on the gold medal to all the team members before going to Nella's team. Last but not least, Theo's team also received their bronze medal. It might be the most expensive medal in the world since gaining this medal was a kind of getting an identity.
All of them could say they were elites that managed to eliminate many countries to receive this medal.
However, the closing ceremony had yet to end. The Prime Minister reached the podium and gave his speech.
"It's an honor to be present on this wonderful day, putting on the honored medals in the Grand Gaia Competition." He smiled. "But as you may already know, there is one more position left in this competition. Now, I will reveal the MVP of this year's competition!"
He raised a small ring. It was a golden ring with a blue jade as the ring's eye, but no one could see what was weird from this ring.
"According to the tradition of every Grand Gaia Competition… This is the Ring of Honor. It contains the powerful Blue Emperor Jade that can simulate one's energy to form a shield that can block even the strongest attack from a Level 500 monster. The special reward for the MVP of this competition." After pausing for a minute, the Prime Minister finally announced the winner. "The MVP this year is… Theodore Griffith!"
"…" Theo closed his eyes, wondering if this ring would increase his popularity more or not since he couldn't afford to mess with so many people after coming back. At least, the status and strength that he gathered in this competition weren't enough.
Unfortunately, the Prime Minister ignored him and continued, "He brought his team bravely through any hurdles in Block A. With his careful plans, he managed to bring his team to third place. And last but not least, his strength is among the greatest in this competition. Presenting this ring to him is an honor for me."