Felix takes Saria and Ifrit to Kazdel.. To both of them, this was a land they had never stepped foot in, a place full of uncertainty. For the current Ifrit, it barely counted as a "hometown."
She had woken up earlier and made a bit of a fuss, but under Saria's calm reassurance she settled down quickly. First she curiously observed the haloed angel man piloting the plane, then pressed her face to the window to look at the landscape outside.
"You're safe now. At least for the time being."
Felix said this as he switched the plane to autopilot and walked into the cabin.
"At the very least, Columbia's military can't extend its reach here for now, especially not all the way to Kazdel."
"Ifrit still needs treatment. Felix… Kazdel…"
Saria's voice carried the familiar blend of respect and gentle closeness she always showed him.
"Does Kazdel have the medical capacity to treat her?"
"Kazdel is completely different now."
Felix smiled.
"Its medical standards are something you can trust. Some of the best doctors across Terra have gathered here, and the supply of medicine is fully stocked."
Saria had never heard Felix exaggerate, nor had she ever heard him lie. So after this, she stayed silent.
Ifrit, however, was a curious bundle of energy, firing off questions one after another.
"Big brother, what's your name?"
"Brother Felix, what's your relationship with Saria?"
"What kind of place is Kazdel, are there fun things to do there?"
Felix answered each question patiently. Like Narcissa, he had no intention of letting Ifrit fight. He did not lack warriors, and more importantly, sending a child onto the battlefield was an act of cruelty he would never permit.
Ifrit was still a little wary of him, which Felix understood. Right now, Saria was the person she depended on. It was the same with Narcissa, who had first opened her eyes and seen Felix, naturally forming her bond of trust with him.
The plane landed smoothly at the Kazdel airfield.
Saria had only seen Kazdel through images and knew it had suffered civil war in the past. But the cityscape that greeted her now — a modern metropolis with a Victorian aesthetic — left her quietly stunned.
Felix… Tomorrow's Development… it seemed both had grown into something enormous in places unseen.
"Sir, welcome home."
The first to receive them at the airport was Jesselton. He wore a gentle, scholarly smile, though his eyes held a metallic firmness.
Jesselton, you've grown too, Saria thought in a moment of quiet relief.
He noticed Saria, and his expression twisted as if he had seen a ghost. But after a few deep breaths, he forcibly calmed himself.
He had a deep psychological scar from that time she nearly sent him flying with a single punch.
"We decided to establish our project lab in Kazdel. The frequent Catastrophes here make it an ideal region for atmospheric and Originium studies."
Felix led Saria forward, with Jesselton following closely behind.
"Saria, you're not an employee of Tomorrow's Development, and I don't intend to recruit you. You belong to Rhine Lab."
Felix chuckled.
"But have you considered collaborating with us, Director Saria?"
Saria nodded. This was similar to an external dispatch from Rhine Lab to provide guidance at another facility, though she had never personally experienced such an arrangement.
She understood Felix's intentions. Living here required expenses. Ifrit's treatment required even more. She had some savings, but it was nowhere near enough to support several years of life in Kazdel without work.
"Besides these things, is there anything else I can help with?"
"Just think of this place as another version of Rhine Lab. Tomorrow's Development won't force you into anything, Saria."
Felix tapped his chin thoughtfully.
"Although there are a few research projects where your help would be valuable."
"I'll take care of them."
Felix then brought Saria to Loughshinny's office to complete her employment procedures, after which he took Ifrit to the medical wing for a full examination.
Although Ahrens' surgery had already concluded, Ifrit's body was still in a period of weakness. The former Babel doctors, after hearing what Ifrit had gone through, clenched their teeth in anger. Their expressions softened as they looked at her, which made Ifrit a little embarrassed; she had always been a strong-willed girl.
After settling the two of them down, Felix coordinated briefly with the representative of the Kazimierz Chamber of Commerce. The arena being built in the busiest district of Kazdel was nearly complete. They had not cut any corners and immediately invited Felix to inspect the construction site.
The structure puzzled the Sarkaz residents, but it didn't take long for the more knowledgeable among them to recognize what it was. This was a replica of the Kazimierz Knight Major Arena.
If the Sarkaz could tell, then players certainly could as well. Watching the arena rise brick by brick each day, they began to wonder if this was some kind of upcoming Tomorrow's Development event. With Kazdel's reconstruction reaching 94 percent, everyone eagerly anticipated the day they would receive the limited title for completing the region's tasks.
The arena would have tremendous utility. Felix could regularly host events here for both Sarkaz citizens and players. He also had his eyes on the lucrative prospects of regional and world tournaments.
The Kazimierz arena had been absurdly expensive to build because it could simulate different battle terrains.
In Arknights, official matches typically took place inside dedicated VR spaces that generated virtual battlefields. This physical arena could serve as a full replacement.
Near the end of version 2.0, countless investors began hosting competitions all over the world, drawn by the enormous profits of Arknights esports and its professional players. These events attracted vast numbers of new 3.0 players.
If all future tournament venues shifted here once the arena was completed, ticket sales alone would bring in massive revenue, and every organizer would have to pay Tomorrow's Development to rent the site.
By all accounts, this was a construction project with nothing but upside.
The K.G.C.C's representative was extremely pleased. Felix had not been stingy in the slightest, insisting that the arena be built to match the highest-tier Kazimierz tournament stadium exactly. The amount of money he provided was simply too much.
Under the representative's guidance, Felix observed the field transition from grass to desert sand, then to an island terrain. For a moment he felt as if he were playing Pokémon. According to the representative, this was Kazimierz's unique Originium-engineered machinery, unmatched anywhere else.
Reverse-engineering it by disassembling the device was theoretically possible, but doing so could render the entire arena inoperable.
The arena would be completed within a few more weeks. As for how to spread its fame, Felix already had a plan.
The All-Star tournament was about to be held in the Asia region. It was the perfect opportunity to showcase the arena's capabilities.
So he summoned several team captains who were currently stationed in Kazdel with him: Yanfei from Yanyu Pavilion, Huang Tianhoutu from Dynasty, Lao Silais from Liquid. All of their teams would be participating in this year's All-Star event.
"Pioneer, we heard you were looking for us," Huang Tianhoutu said, his tone far more respectful than before. Previously, Tomorrow's Development might have been merely a faction, but now it was intertwined with Kazdel itself. It was essentially a governing body. To the outside world, Tomorrow's Development represented Kazdel, and these players — once simple mercenaries — were about to become legionaries known across Terra.
They had accompanied the Pioneer since his rise from nothing. Now that he had become Kazdel's new master, the freedom they enjoyed as his followers had expanded from a tiny village to an entire city.
Felix smiled. "The Kazdel arena is nearly complete. It should be something open to everyone, accessible to all. That was my original intention. You are outstanding among adventurers and senior members of Tomorrow's Development. What kind of event do you think would suit the people of Kazdel?"
The moment he said that, every captain present felt a surge of respect.
You… you can't do that!
You say things like that and of course our hearts are going to start racing!
Even with his elevated status, his way of addressing players hadn't changed since the beginning. It moved them deeply. He truly was Arknights' protagonist NPC — he always knew exactly what players wanted to hear.
Yanfei thought for a moment. "How about the All-Star tournament?"
"What is that?" Felix asked with feigned curiosity, pretending he had never heard of it.
"Ah—haha, it's one of our adventurer competition formats," Yanfei quickly explained. "Several guilds participate and compete to determine which guild is the strongest right now."
Felix rested his chin in his hand. "Interesting."
Huang Tianhoutu, ever the cautious one, was already considering the practical issues: joint approval from all the captains present, coordination with the organizers, as well as audience arrangements and venue fees.
Felix seemed to understand what Huang Tianhoutu was thinking. He spoke in a patient, reassuring tone. "If your guilds host the tournament, all you need to pay is the arena rental fee to Tomorrow's Development. As for ticket revenue, it will be divided evenly among the participating guilds."
Compared to competitions in real life, this was far simpler. In reality, the organizer pays for the entire setup and logistics, while the teams only need to play. But if the venue was inside the game and the guilds were the ones funding it, wouldn't that mean they could also earn ticket profits?
This was an incredible opportunity for guild development.
Then Felix showed them the rental price for a single day. All of them widened their eyes. It was… pretty expensive.
"Pioneer, may we think it over first?" Yanfei asked. One guild alone could never shoulder that cost, but several together might. And if they wanted to host a long-running tournament, they would probably need the original All-Star organizers to step in.
Holding a tournament inside a game venue was completely unheard of. When the organizers of the All-Star event received the joint letter from multiple guild captains, they were baffled.
What was this supposed to mean? Were they dropping offline tournaments and moving to online ones?
But realization came quickly. This could be a brand-new opportunity. After all, the physical All-Star venue was limited. Even using an eighty-thousand-seat stadium, they struggled to fill it because many players had school, work, or simply couldn't travel. Online events were an entirely different story.
Arasaka Creation Link Co., Ltd. or ACL for short, the tournament organizer and regional publisher, had significant influence in Japan and by extension East Asia. Most of their internal staff played Arknights. They had their own star players and popular streamers, as well as guilds and resources. If the organizers were to join in and rent the Kazdel arena as well… why not?
They did consider financial issues, since their income was digital currency rather than real-world money. Still, Arknights allowed trading even if it didn't support buying rare equipment. Since their own star players and streamers needed resources, they could simply sell half the items and invest the rest back into their people.
As for whether official participation in in-game currency trading was… appropriate, well, that wasn't the publisher's concern. They needed revenue too.
Next, they considered electronic tickets. Players would purchase ticket codes in real life, then use those codes to enter the arena in-game. Since Kazdel Mobile City hosted players from many countries, the official team began promoting the idea internationally and renewing the collaboration contract with Hypergryph.
Once the decision was made, the publishers launched a major promotional campaign and directly branded Kazdel Mobile City as the main hub for all players. And it wasn't even wrong. With the All-Star event shifting to an online format, everyone would finally be able to watch their favorite star players fight right in front of them. It was almost too exciting.
Electronic tickets were priced slightly lower than physical ones, which was reasonable. Soon after, the publisher representatives logged in, met with the Pioneer, inspected the arena, and finalized seating tiers and ticket prices.
The arena could hold two hundred thousand spectators. The publishers were stunned. Previously, they had only ever rented venues for around twenty thousand people. Two hundred thousand was on an entirely different scale.
Considering the costs, they decided to cooperate with the participating teams.
And so, the first online All-Star Tournament was born.