**Amelia's POV**
The tournament was a lot shorter than I had anticipated. In less than two hours, Alexei Abramov from Russia, had torn through the first competitor within twenty minutes. He was allowed an hour to heal from a few wounds, and then he fought the last challenger. The fight was close, both had the same fight styles, and both were strong. It was hard to watch, all I wanted was it to be over so I could be reunited quickly with Roman.
As soon as the fight was over, Alexei was announced as the winner. His parents stood and clapped but had bored expressions on their faces. I was escorted to where he stood to congratulate him. Of course my eyes were trained to the floor, and my voice low. I needed to appear defeated and depressed.
"You will not be sad for long, moya kukla." (my
