The Round of 32
The main tournament round of 32 brief report.
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Chrome Midas VS Fork Tourbain
In contrast to Fork, who had breezed through the preliminaries with his outstanding swordsmanship, Chrome had struggled. Many expected an easy victory for Fork, yet Chrome overwhelmed him in an instant using a mana shield and a mysterious explosive magic tool. Later, upon waking in the infirmary, Fork raged that Chrome's foul language during the match warranted punishment, but he fell silent after hearing Duke Mars's "polite suggestion," unwilling to jeopardize the tournament's popularity. Chrome Midas advances to the round of 16.
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Simak VS Jack
"……."
"I don't know what you are, but you're one creepy bastard. If you don't want to get hurt, hurry up and forfeit. You listening? Huh?"
Jack, who had made a name for himself in the back alleys of the territories near Mars. A man renowned for his self-taught physical enhancement using his peculiar mana and his tricky knife work honed in real combat. Unfortunately, he had picked the wrong opponent. Simak ignored every provocation Jack threw at him to create an opening, instead pressuring him with the quarterstaff's unique sturdiness and reach. With movements that were plain yet highly efficient, he secured a simple victory. Simak advances to the round of 16.
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Crow Vein VS Riven Vein
"I was planning to challenge you when I got home anyway. Perfect timing. Don't complain if you lose!"
"…I thought spending time in the wider world might improve you, but it seems your manners have only gotten worse. I'll have to educate you again after so long."
A clash between the Vein brothers. Both specialized in dual-wielding swordsmanship, but while Crow drove his opponent back with swift, flashy combinations, Riven employed a calm, composed defense-focused strategy. It seemed Crow's brilliant strikes would be rendered useless against that iron wall of a defense, yet Crow's movements—gaining irregular mobility by expelling mana itself like a jet—finally broke through Riven's guard. After a fierce exchange that left the audience holding their breath, Riven's blade reached Crow's throat first. In the end, Riven Vein claimed victory, proving that the eldest son's reputation was no mere bluff, though his expression was colored with surprise. Riven Vein advances to the round of 16.
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Akasha VS Ligret
"This is enough to make me lament my own misfortune. Of all people, why did I have to draw the scariest opponent in the entire academy?"
"You say that, yet you're not scared at all in reality. Stop exaggerating."
A clash between the two strongest students in their respective fields—martial arts and support. Unlike the support students, who focused on healing others or casting protective spells from a distance, the martial arts curriculum consisted mostly of near-real combat drills and physical enhancement training. Furthermore, the difference in output and efficiency between White Light and Red Light was more than threefold. Normally, a direct confrontation between the two would have been unreasonable, but the Star's Blessing overturned every assumption. Akasha, blessed with the Tushin (War God), possessed physical abilities that surpassed even mana-enhanced knights. She swung her massive greatsword as lightly as a bundle of paper and restricted Ligret's movements with mana shields that appeared in midair. Though Ligret seemed cornered in the contest of strength, after crossing blades two or three times she immediately revised her tactics. She sheathed her longsword and switched to hit-and-run tactics with a shortsword. Akasha tried to counter with her greatsword and mana shields against Ligret's storm-like movements that freely crossed distances, but her mana eventually ran dry due to White Light's characteristically low consumption rate. She gave up against the still-fresh Ligret and admitted defeat. Ligret advances to the round of 16.
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Academy Student VS Joy
"……If I go back to my territory like this, I'm dead. I have to bring back some kind of proof that I didn't waste the money!"
"W-what's with those dangerous eyes…"
A customer—a top patron of the Midas Cube—had entered the tournament aiming to secure results. He fought hard with the numerous magic tools he had acquired through the Cube, but ultimately failed to overcome Joy. Even so, he managed to draw some attention by showcasing his skills. Joy advances to the round of 16.
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"Somehow, it feels like the people who were supposed to advance did so without any major upsets. Sir Daniel won as expected, too."
"It was a boring result precisely because it was so expected. That guy who fought Joy was interesting, though. What did you think of how he influenced someone?"
"I plead not guilty."
I had openly set the prices high enough that buying in bulk would be disadvantageous. The problem must lie with the guy who ignored that and bought a ton anyway, right? The three of us were eating together again at the same place where we had run into Joy last time. Out of courtesy, I had asked Akasha and Crow if they wanted to join, but they declined. It would probably have been awkward in various ways.
"Akasha's one thing, but Crow's been getting beaten by me nonstop even at the academy. Why would he care about something like this now?"
"That's different from this. Besides, you've barely ever lost. Someone who wins all the time shouldn't say things like that."
"I lose to Professor Istal."
"Is losing to a human the same as losing to a monster?"
Anyway, she was a former demon who didn't understand human sensibilities very well.
"Young Master Chrome. This way."
Just then, an ordinary-looking man approached our table from outside. The way he addressed me as "Young Master" suggested he was one of Dorf's subordinates. I took the paper he handed me and thanked him for his trouble, but for some reason his expression looked extremely uneasy. What was with that face? It was exactly like a college student forced to submit an assignment that was only 70% complete because of a deadline. Having roughly guessed the situation, I patted him on the shoulder.
"You don't have to be so nervous. I understand perfectly well that you were short on time."
"Y-yes! Thank you! But, um…"
Even after I told him it was fine, he couldn't relax at all. Did Dorf usually treat his people harshly? Then again, this was a man who had risen to the position of acting manager under that damned father of his. I should probably say something to Dorf next time I saw him…
- Simak. No details available beyond the name registered for the tournament.
- Joy. No details available beyond the name registered for the tournament.
……
Was I being swindled? Was it my mistake to show trust to a merchant who was basically a beast? I pondered what to say to the man whose face was turning pale before my eyes, then let out a sigh. No, no. Calm down. If the Midas Company had seriously investigated and this was the result due to lack of ability, Dorf wouldn't have just sent a subordinate with only the results and no explanation. He would have included reasons—lack of time, interference from someone else, or something similar. The fact that there was nothing like that meant… this result itself was the answer.
"How strange. It's not like people suddenly drop out of thin air."
Fiore, who had read the contents of the paper beside me, seemed to have reached the same conclusion. She rested her hand on her chin with a troubled expression. Of course, this wasn't a world with things like resident registration cards, so it was natural for some information to be missing. But even so, having absolutely no information beyond a few letters of a name felt excessive.
"There should have been some kind of inspection when entering the Mars Duchy. What about that information?"
"This year, an unusually large number of spectators flooded in, so there were quite a few gaps in the inspection process. The duchy's soldiers apparently tried to follow procedures by increasing the number of inspectors, but even with reinforcements, complaints from people waiting for inspection reached a breaking point…"
"They just let them through after a half-hearted check. I don't know if that's flexibility or carelessness."
Come to think of it, the guards had been slow to respond during the incident at the Mars workshop as well. It seemed the Mars Duchy was currently suffering from a severe case of indigestion. I fell into thought for a moment. Two participants in the martial tournament whose identities were unknown. A staff-wielding mage hiding his true nature and a gluttonous girl using unidentified techniques. There seemed to be something there. But I couldn't tell exactly what. If this were during my previous life's game, I could have finished the investigation with a few searches and prepared accordingly, but this was reality. There were no convenient cheats.
"Continue the additional investigation on these two."
"But Young Master, we might not meet the deadline before the match…"
"That doesn't matter. Even if it's after the match, find out whatever you can."
"Understood."
Well, what could I do? The rest, I would have to figure out by fighting them myself.