With them restricting and watching each other, unless a top-tier power arrived, basically no one could sneak into the hidden storage in advance.
After organizing the items Lucian had given her, on the morning of the final championship match, Elara first called Prince Yu, Gareth, and Prince Leland into a room at the inn. She went over the items they would take to the secret storage location after the national battle was over.
Then she handed each of them a "mechanism lock" that Lucian had given her, so they could use it when hiding the items.
"This... is it another one of your recently created brilliant gadgets?"
Prince Yu looked at the mechanism lock in his hand, studying it while listening to Elara explain its function and how to use it.
Gareth and Prince Leland also turned to look at Elara when they heard his question.
Elara shook her head. "No, it's more like a gift from a friend. Keep it with you. In the hidden storage, it might just save your life."
After confirming that everyone had packed the necessary items, they all left the Jin Yun Inn and headed to the final day of the national competition.
The national tournament was in full swing.
All the surrounding seats were completely filled. Guests from various countries were cheering and shouting so loudly that it almost reached the sky.
Since it was the final day and the most intense match of the national tournament, and because the winner would be announced by noon and the final reward revealed, the guests were all extremely excited.
Whether or not they knew about the secret treasure, they were all shouting hoarsely from their seats. Some even openly started betting, wagering large sums on who would win.
With such heated behavior driving the crowd, the already lively feast of the national tournament reached a fever pitch.
The tournament was based on simulated battlefield matches. Each side could bring a team of fewer than five thousand soldiers. Then on the battlefield, they would use terrain cover and various strategic formations to fight fiercely and determine the victor.
Elara sat in the central seat, but she didn't feel much anticipation for this final round.
After watching so many days of the national tournament, she had already grasped the average strength level of third-tier countries in this world. Iron weapons were not yet widespread here.
So even in the larger third-tier countries, most of the soldiers still used heavy bronze weapons. Only the two finalists now standing in the arena, whose backgrounds were quite deep and who had fought their way to the final match, had main generals and a few hundred elite soldiers equipped with light and sharp iron weapons.
Besides, every aspect of this world was still mostly undeveloped and primitive. Although the participating countries showed great strength, none of them were foolish enough to reveal all their trump cards.
So the battles in the national tournament weren't actually that full of dazzling or unpredictable highlights.
At least from Elara's point of view, those so-called grand scenes of intense fighting that often made the audience cheer wildly didn't really stand out or surprise her.
Only when the strategists of various nations used rare and clever tactics, arranging troops and commanding their soldiers to battle fiercely on the wide battlefield, would Elara show some interest.
By noon, the intense final match of the national tournament finally ended. The final victor was a third-tier nation from the central-southern continent called Youlie.
"Ah! Just as I expected, the final winner turned out to be Youlie, which is secretly supported by the second-tier country Xikang. You know, Xikang is backed by the top-tier country Celosia State in the central continent."
"Even though these top-tier powers didn't appear in person except for the Celestial Pavilion, they still secretly sent their affiliated forces."
"Tsk! That shows just how precious the final prize of this hundred-nation banquet must be. Even the top-tier powers sent their vassals."
"Still, speaking of the three top-tier nations, although they are all first-class powers, the northern region's Petunia State has clearly been declining after years of division. Their second- and third-tier vassals didn't even make it to the finals this time."
"Looks like among the three top-tier nations, the northern Petunia State's strength is fading the fastest."
"That's true, but you shouldn't say it so openly. After all, a skinny camel is still bigger than a horse. Be careful, those northern Petunia State vassals might hold a grudge and come looking for trouble."