CH 35

RAW:

Xant: Ronoi was actually supposed to be Inoro. This author though…

The preliminary final for our block had placed me against Griiman. I had to win against Benkei, Baste, and many others, but this guy has a weird atmosphere. Griiman kept looking at my sword; he was clearly fascinated by it. I can’t compare him to how he seemed before.

“B Block preliminary final match, begin!”

“Wait!”

By blocking the signal, it became a false start. Really? What do you want? Just when I thought I would have to wait for a while to get started, Griiman raised his palm to me as if denying my worries.

“I am a merciful man, nothing more. If you were defeated without knowing what my equipment did, you wouldn’t accept that as a loss would you?”

“Why are you already deciding that I’ve lost on your own?”

“Don’t get conceited because you defeated Benkei and Baste. Those guys lost because they didn’t have proper gear. Really, it’s amazing that they talk about being an A-rank in the first place.”

Griiman approached me with his extravagant sword unsheathed.

“First off is this–Ice Dragon Sword. A monster that lives far to the north at <Breeze Mountain>, the <Freezing Winter Dragon>, had its fang turned into this weapon. The sharpness of this blade is top class and it also has an ice magic effect to boot.”

As he put down his sword, I thought he was finished explaining, but then he poked his armor with his thumb. Is he going to explain all of his equipment to me? Honestly, I’m interested.

“This armor is hand-made by a skilled armor craftsman, Shiromi Armor. It cuts the damage you take from magic, regardless of its type. Lastly is this necklace; it increases your health and contains a passive ability to protect you if you get into a dangerous situation.”

I, who was fine with my Mithril Sword, realized the gap between us just from that explanation. His armor seems like it would be too hot to wear, but his sword is cool. It looks heavier than my sword, but its strength is probably much greater than mine.

“Now then, should we get this match started?”

“Sure. Is it fine for me to attack now?”

“I won’t let you get the first move in!”

Griiman swung his <Ice Dragon Sword> in a large arc, and many ice pillars began to stretch out and attack me. I wonder how hard his armor is? Ignoring the ice spears, I just kicked them away and tried hitting his chest with a little more power than the time I hit Baste. A loud metallic sound rung out and at the same time a hole appeared in his armor. My punch didn’t stop at his armor; it actually had gone through to hit his abdomen.

“Guh! *Hack**Cough*”

Blood was dripping from Griiman’s mouth as he flew off of the platform. You could hear both him and his armor hitting the ground. The referee rushed over to confirm things, and Griiman was eventually carried out on a stretcher.

“Winner, Ryua! The representative of B Block has been decided!”

“Just what was that? Is she a monster!?”

“No way, it must  be a trick. If you paid Griiman a lot of money, he would throw the fight.”

It’s not a trick.

“Hmm, it looks like all the representatives have been chosen. The tournament lineup will be announced shortly so we’ll have to wait until then.”

The other soldiers were speaking amongst themselves, but the referee soldier that had been in charge of my match suddenly walked off somewhere. I could see the other representatives on a far away platform, but there was nobody from Tifelia-san’s block.

“Oi, go up that way~!”

Seigel called out to me while waving his hand. The flocking girls made it hard to see him; it would be better if they went away. I thought about jumping to get to him quickly, but instead I leisurely walked.

///

“Ryua-chin, you really did it! A nameless female adventurer advancing towards the tournament finals is quite a big deal you know!”

It seems to have caused quite the commotion, and I’ve noticed many people, spectators and adventurers alike, looking at me recently.

“There are other C-ranked participants, but almost all of them have been defeated. I wonder how long it’s been since a C-rank has been a block representative?”

“Me, me, it’s me ~ssho~”

With his strange hip-bending stance, Xinbu called out to us. It’s the guy that tried to kill Grundom…I can’t believe he’s an adventurer.

“Yo Xinbu, looks like you’re not participating this year. What are you going to do?”

“Relax guys, I’m different from you. I’ve been rather busy ~ssho~, at any rate…oops~”

I wonder what he was going to say? Well, it’s fine. I’d rather not talk to him anyways.

“If you’re busy, then why waste time bothering us?”

“An adventurer past his prime shouldn’t be so snippy with me. I’m interested in that one.”

He shot that snarky remark at Gantetsu and pointed towards me with his palm facing the sky.

“You should quickly raise your rank to A ~ssho~. Although, this tournament will most likely only bump you up to B.”

“Oh? But if I do that, then Roel…”

“Huh?”

Did she only notice Xinbu now…? I see many scattered cups around her, just how much has she drunk?

“I-I’m shocked ~ssho~…”

He’s surprised by this…? Well I guess I’m used to Roel’s behaviour, but seeing it for the first time would be shocking.

“That’s right, that’s right. Since you’re in a party with this bottomless drinker, she should also be able to achieve B-rank, regardless of how useless she is.”

“Ha?”

Did this guy come here specifically to make fools of us? I clenched my fist in anger towards Xinbu, but Roel just gently raised her hand.

“It’s fine, Ryua-chan. Don’t mind me…”

“Well at least have fun in the festival ~ssho~, just leave everything to us.”

What did he mean by that? Before I could ask he had already run away. I really hate him.

“Your hate isn’t misplaced. The thing is, he’s the 4th place A-rank and hasn’t budged in a long time. His strength and achievements don’t lie. Enough to make you jealous right?”

“It actually makes you want to try and fight against him someday, no?”

Seigel drank the ‘juice’ he received from a girl while talking. I don’t know if he’s serious or not considering he’s drinking.

“Thank you very much for your patience! We just finished deciding the line-up for the tournament! Please look over here!”

Round 1 1st Match <Meteor> Nikka [A-Rank] vs <Crusher> Hekaton [A-Rank]

2nd Match Ryua [C-Rank] vs <Heroine of the 100 Empires> Amane [A-Rank]

3rd Match <Sky Crown> Rupee [A-Rank] vs Kweed [B-Rank]

4th Match <Master Knight> Tifelia [S-Rank] vs Inoro [No Rank]

There was a large iron board with words displayed on it. My name as well as the names of the other participants were on it. My opponent is…is it a woman? I wonder what kind of person she is?

“Hou, it seems there’s a B-ranked guy that advanced as well. Looks like a rising star besides Ryua is here, lucky guy~”

He really was lucky. Besides us, there were only A-ranked fighters. Hekaton was the guy with the huge hammer, right? He had a rather awful atmosphere about him and looked at people with really cold eyes…

“Even so, isn’t the board dominated by A-ranked combatants? Ryua-chin being a C-rank really sticks out here.”

“They are A-ranked for a reason. They have had a massive amount of combat experience when compared to others. Even I, who’s ranked 16th, went through a lot of hardships…”

“Tell us! I feel like I’ve heard you talk about this about 6 times now, but I want to hear it again~!”

The gaggle of girls surrounding Seigel attentively hung on his every word. I’m interested in hearing about it, but I’m not about to fight through his fans to listen.

“With this, the first day of the Tougi Taikai ends! The finals will start tomorrow, so rest well everyone!”

With that announcement from the soldiers, the amount of people inside the coliseum gradually dwindled. I hadn’t noticed that it was already evening.

“Well then, Ryua, starting tomorrow the actual matches will start. Because it’s the finals, the amount of spectators will be much greater than what turned up today. The King of Avangard will also be here.”

“The King will be?”

“That’s right. This is your big chance. If you manage to catch his Majesty’s attention, then there’s a chance you’ll gain his favor.”

“To be favored by the King due to fighting…”

The King of Avangard…I know that the King holds the most powerful position in a Kingdom. But to be liked by him merely due to fighting is somehow… wrong.

“It seems that there are only a few people still here. Aa~…the air is good tonight! It would go great with some ale!”

“I’ll join you, Gantetsu-san!”

“Me too!”

I wonder if Roel will also join them… Although, it seems she has a different goal in mind.

“Well then, girl, good luck tomorrow!”

Will Cynthia also show up tomorrow? What happened to selling lots of things?

///

As we travelled back, I was quite restless, but I still walked slowly. Nighttime seems to be quite lively around here. A half-naked drunkard was on the sidewalk, sleeping people were scattered here and there, and some people were even dancing. Roel was enticed by the smells coming from a food cart.

“Ryua-chan, aren’t you hungry from all that fighting? Don’t worry about the cost, just eat whatever you want.”

“Now that you mention it, I’m starting to get hungry…”

We went to the food cart that was making steaks out of <Dark Buffalo> from the Kwau region. It’s quite delicious, even more than the <Pecking Bird>…but as I expected, Roel ordered 10 servings as soon as we approached. (ED: Actually Yakiniku, but it’s just grilled meat)

“Grilling it until it’s perfectly cooked, and pouring the excess sauce on it…so good~”

“No other way to eat it! Grilling it until it’s perfectly cooked, and pouring the excess sauce on it~ so good~”

Why did Roel say the same thing twice? I guess she was just deeply moved by how good the steaks tasted? I don’t get her sometimes.

“Ryua-chan, Congratulations! This is our celebration for you advancing in the tournament!”

“I-is that so? …thanks.”

Chewing on the bone in the meat while saying that doesn’t quite work you know…

“Since we came all this way, you need to make it to the championship! …ah, I’m not trying to put pressure on you or anything!”

“If possible…I want to win.”

“If it’s Ryua-chan, I’m sure you can! Even today you won with only using a punch.”

“Yeah, but I’m worried about Tifelia-san. If she becomes my opponent I don’t know what will happen…”

“That rubby-rubby person? So she’s Tifelia…I got a little angry.”

“Eh?”

“N-nothing!”

Roel’s face turned red and she turned away. Is she hot or something?

“Even from far away, I felt an electric shock from her. She seemed like quite a gentle person though…”

I was able to feel it even from a distant block.

—–S-rank

It may just be like Seigel said, they’re all monsters. I’m sure that she’s an opponent I shouldn’t go easy on. I thought about tomorrow while eating spareribs with Roel.

“You’ll be killed you know!? I’m saying this now because it gives you a chance, please withdraw.”

The surrounding eyes all gazed at the loud voice. A girl and a young man could be seen seated together. I recognized that hair, it was the female soldier that guided us before the preliminaries! Seeing her hop here and there left an impression on me, it seems.

“Even so, Ritta, I’m still an A-rank. I’ll be fine, just believe in me!”

“Your opponent is the <Crusher>, you know that right? Last year he was disqualified for killing his opponent!”

“My nickname is <Meteor> for a reason. I’m a good matchup against his fighting style. I can’t say I won’t make a mistake, but I’m really confident in my chances for this fight.”

“Why are you being so stubborn…?”

Crusher’s opponent was…<Meteor> Nikka.

“I really want you to watch my match.”

“Aaaugh I don’t care anymore!”

Ritta ran out from the food cart while Nikka just watched her and sighed.

“Ah, you don’t need to worry about that. It’s not an intimate relationship; we’re siblings.”

‘Hahahaha’ he laughed while scratching his head. Even as he paid for the food, the atmosphere he left stayed awkward.

“Ritta-chan is worried about her brother’s match…but I wonder what Nikka meant when he expressed his desire for her to watch him?”

I understand why she would be worried about her brother, but I feel like he wants to fight. I’m the same as him, after coming this far I won’t just stop, especially since there were  only a few matches left. I won’t withdraw.

///

“That sure was delicious…”

“Roel, this is bad…our money is…”

“Spending this much should be expected when going to a festival.”

I wonder why she’s so lenient about spending our money now? Seeing her so satisfied though…I’ll let it slide.

The town was still noisy. As expected at this late hour, you couldn’t see any children running around. Oh, there’s a girl stopping a fight between drunks.

A girl?

Ah, it’s Ritta.

“I will be stopping this fight so-bufue!”

She wasn’t even able to finish her sentence before they started fighting;, she was just brushed off to the side. Not being discouraged by this, she came between them again.

“You won’t be able to stop it with just that…”

“Yeah, I can’t watch this any more…”

I quickly moved towards Ritta to help her out. I wonder if she hasn’t noticed me yet? She was looking between the men restlessly and finally saw me approaching her.

“Eh, ah, umm…sorry…”

“I’ll stop them, so don’t worry.”

I approach the men as I say that. The stink of alcohol is making me really dizzy; how do people drink this stuff? Why would they drink enough to be this belligerent? I’m at a loss.

“Didn’t you just bump into me? Aren’t you gonna apologize!? HUH!? Don’t you young’uns know any manners?”

“Old man, you should just retire. You’re a hindrance.”

They just bumped into each other…really? Something so trivial? Ah well, it can’t be helped. I can’t let this go on any longer.

“Hey, grumpy old men, you’re being a hindrance you know.”

“So? Just go away…oh.”

They realized it wasn’t Ritta trying to stop them anymore and seemed a little surprised. Even so, they just brushed me aside like they had done to Ritta. Right then, I began. I grasped one of each man’s hands.

“Owowowowow! Ouch! Please stop it’s going to breeeeak!”

“Are you for real? It can’t hurt that-!!! Agh!”

“Both of you are disturbing the other people here, so just stop fighting and leave.”

“Yes yes,” they both answered, and I released them. They both disappeared inside the crowd, not understanding what just happened. Apparently, they can still be calm while drunk.

“Um, sorry…thank you.”

“You should be more careful, that was a dangerous thing to do.”

“But I should at least be able to stop something at that level, being a soldier from the castle and all…I get laughed at regularly for not being able to do my job…”

It seems she’s desperate because of that. Did I mess up? She even had tears falling from her eyes…

“Oi, Ritta!”

I heard that carefree voice from earlier; it was Nikka. Was he worried about Ritta? It seemed like he had been looking for her, and he was breathing rather heavily as if he had been running.

“Are you all right? Did those guys do anything strange to you? …nnn?”

‘Those guys do anything strange’ caught my attention. Nikka glanced at Roel and I, and as he saw me his expression suddenly lit up.

“Ah! You’re Ryua-kun right? You’re the C-rank <Surprising Girl>!”

“Su-surprising!?”

“You didn’t know? You’ve been the topic of some very heated conversations recently! Crushing the A-ranked fighters without any difficulty made people talk about scouting you for a party and even for a guild!”

“Now that you mention it, I’ve been noticing people stealing glances at me recently.”

“They’re probably waiting for the finals with bated breath. It seems you and I will be fighting in the 2nd round, please be gentle with me…hahahaha!”

“That’s another reason why I kept saying that Onii-chan won’t be able to win!”

It looks like their argument from the food cart is continuing, Ritta exploded on Nikka again. Why is Nikka being so stubborn and ignoring his sister’s wishes about competing in the Tougi Taikai? I thought we were competing for the same reasons, but clearly his motivation in this tournament was different from mine.

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