Chapter 138 – Pause
The tournament was still in its early stages. Sometimes it got heated, and at times screams erupted due to a dreadful scene.
“Hahahaha, hya ha’ ha’ ha’, hyahahahahaha!”
“Habu’, gubyu, byu!?”
A big man sat atop a petite, neutral-looking man and was mercilessly hitting his face, crushing him.
“Nooooo! Shota’o!?”
“Assistant Instructor!?”
“U, uuugh. I can’t stand it anymore!” Our Assistant Instructor… eh!”
“Everyone, let’s go! I’m gonna kill him!”
The one-sided match brought tears and anger to the faces of the women who seemed to be related to the beaten man.
[Wow, this is already beyond merciless! Shota’o who was knocked down by the tackle that Denchok unleashed soon after the start, who then took the mounted position and immediately beat him down! Shota’o fans all over the venue are screaming! On the other hand, men who are thinking “it’s what he deserves” are definitely not going to be popular, are they?!]
It’s a cold-blooded scene.
“Eeeerr, but that’s it! That’s the match! The winner is Denchok!”
“Hyahahahaha!!”
At the discretion of the host, he decided to intervene and forcibly ended the match.
At that moment, the already listless opponent was swooning.
With a clear difference in strength and the man’s thoroughness, the women in the audience bit their lips, and at the moment the man made a guts pose, the women tried to rise up with murderous intent.
But the next moment…
“This comrade of mine … I will carry him to the first aid room.”
The man named Denchok said so, and began to carry the man he had just beaten up in his arms.
“D, Denchok? No, no, we’ll take him…”
“What are you saying? The two of us exchanged fists… he is a fellow warrior. I should at least do that much… so allow me to do it.”
Saying so, Denchok smiled refreshingly, a complete change from the crazed look he had previously.
[Wh, what a refreshing sight this is! After the battle, the man is already a friend! He is going to carry his injured comrade with his own hands! What spirit! You must have reformed in prison, Denchok!]
Certainly, it was a refreshing spectacle to say the least.
However, “Sense of incongruity” and “Unnaturalness” were out all over the place, and no one tried to applaud even though the host tried to liven things up.
“Assistant Instructor… hey, we’re going to the first aid room too!”
“Yes, I must go and see him!”
“He lost, but I think teacher did his best. We must all cheer him up!”
And the women nodded to each other and tried to go to Shota’o, who was being taken to the first aid room, but Denchok noticed it and yelled.
“Don’t be a woman loitering around a defeated and injured man! Do you want to torment his heart any more than it already is?”
“”””……… Eh?””””
“What do you say to a defeated man? Did you do your best? Was it close? Let’s try harder next time? That’s bullshit! That’s the greatest insult to a fighting man!”
Denchok’s words cried out so. I could only accept that.
A man fought with all his might and was defeated. I wouldn’t want the women there to touch me.
“If you love this guy, leave him be. Don’t worry, I’ll stick around until the second round… I’ll keep an eye on him. Trust me, Ladies!”
The women looked down for a moment at Denchok’s words…
“”””Are you kidding me?! What are you planning to do to the Assistant Instructor!?””””
“Tch!!”
As a result, dozens of women stood up from the audience and rushed out.
What? Did that Denchok say something to offend the women right now?
“Ah, ahahaha…well, even though he was released after his sentence… yeah, it’s a little hard to trust him~…?”
“Uh huh, uh huh”
And for some reason, Elder sis Tsukshi nodded with a bitter smile as if she agreed.
“Eh? Why? As I recall, the introduction says that that Denchok guy is an ex-convict, but is he someone who has committed a crime that makes him so untrustworthy?”
“Yes, big brother… Denchok… committed that.”
“?” 1
No one mentioned what the crime was, or rather, they seemed to be incredibly reluctant to say, but I guess they were just that averse to saying it out loud.
What the hell…
[Well, there were a lot of incidents, but let’s have some guards in the first aid room just in case. Then, moving on to the next one … hmm? … Wha what??!!… Eh!?]
In the end, no one said what the problem with Denchok was, and the host resumed the proceedings and tried to announce the next match.
However, a man who seemed to be one of the organizers rushed to the host and whispered in his ear, and he looked surprised…
[Eh~, I just got word, as we were scheduled to start the next match, Seissé vs. Samyng… Apparently, Samyng attempted a sneak attack on Seissé, but the tables were turned and he is now unable to compete. Therefore…… the first round victor will be Seissé by default!]
Somehow, something happened where I wasn’t looking.
The venue was in a stir… not really, unexpectedly, there were voices such as “I knew it” and “but it’s so dumb,” and they didn’t seem to be very surprised.
On the other hand, dozens of young kids who seemed to be related to the man named Seissé who won were crying out in joy.
“Hey waitaminit, what was that ~?”
“A sneak attack… that’s all… but Mr. Seissé fought back, it’s just like him!”
“Eh? Hey, that’s it? Shouldn’t there be more of a reaction?”
“Well~, it is Samyng we’re talking about…”
“Wh… what’s going on, Arcane True Zenith? Aren’t there a lot of people with a quirk or two? Are there no more normal guys?”
“Ugh… when you put it like that… the next match is… even more…”
When I held my head, I heard about the next match and Elder sis Tsukshi and the other sisters grimaced.
What? You think there’s a bigger weirdo in the next match?
What the hell kind of guy is…
“Older brother…”
“Hmm?”
Then, Amae suddenly began to tremble on my lap…
“Need to pee.”
“………………”
This girl… goes at her own pace…
“You want me to take you!?”
“Go with me!”
“Gu, ga… y, you…”
No way, toilet time. And she wants me to go along.
However, I can’t do it by myself…
“Ahaha, I get it, big brother. I’m going too. I just noticed, my bladder is at risk.”
“Ah! I’m saved. Well, maybe I’ll go too… well, no matter who the next match is … Mr. Machio will win in the end.”
“Oh, that’s right. Mr. Machio is next. Well, I have to come back really quick. Come on, sister, I’ll take you there!”
“Karui!!??”
I had no choice, so I decided to go to the toilet, held Amae, and left my seat with Karui.
For the time being, I want to watch Mr. Machio’s match, so I’ll run a little bit.
“Inya~, but the battle of various seniors is exciting after all~”
“Is that right? If you really learn to fight, you’d be stronger than me, wouldn’t you?”
“There you go again~ you’re overestimating me big brother! And? Are you paying attention to anyone else besides Mr. Machio?”
On the way to the toilet, Karui asked me about the matches so far.
“Well, I missed a couple of matches, but at this point I’m only interested… in one other.”
“Hoo. And that’s…”
One man who came to mind when I said that. Even Tre’ainar recognized the man’s skills.
If there’s no problem, he’ll be in the semifinals…
“Oh, it’s Wacha.””
“Hmm? Oh, yeah… hey wait up.”
At that time, Wacha happened to pass in front of us as we were sprinting to the toilet.
However, he was in a hurry and didn’t seem to notice us.
Well, it wasn’t like we were close enough to call out to him, so we just walked on by…
『…… Hmm? 』
I thought I’d pass by. But then Tre’ainar noticed something.
『Child. His hand…』
「Hand?」
Tre’ainar told me, and looking at Wacha’s hand as he was running away, I saw that he was holding a crystal… a Magic Crystal!?
It was a glance, but it certainly looked like one.
That was a magic item for long-distance communication. It’s a magic crystal.
Well, it’s not that uncommon… but was it also available in this country?
I haven’t seen one in three months since I came to this country, and it’s an isolated country in the first place.
“Big brother?”
“Hmm, oh, oh…”
Well, it’s nothing for me to care about. But……
『Child… briefly… just follow.』
For some reason, Tre’ainar seemed to be a little worried about that Wacha.
It’s as if he’s worried about something besides the fact that Wacha was strong…
“Sorry, Karui. I’ll leave Amae to you for a bit.”
“Ah? Big brother!?”
“I’ll be back soon.”
“Older brother!? Ah, that’s…”
“Later!”
I decided to follow what Tre’ainar was saying.
『Over there.』
“Oh.”
As I kept following unnoticed, there was still something, Wacha ran outside the arena and moved to a slightly less populated place to hide.
No matter how you look at it, it’s totally suspicious.
Then, while looking around a bit, Wacha whispered in the shadow of the building…
“Come on~…… I’m in the middle of a festival, so please give me a break, aye.”
Wacha was muttering into the magic crystal. Then, from the magic crystal…
「Don’t say that. Your ‘boss’ and my Lord were sworn brothers back in the day, right?」
I don’t know who it is, but for the time being, a man’s voice came back.
“Even if you say boss… the organization has already been destroyed, aye.”
「So you don’t talk to us because you have nothing to do with the organization anymore?」
“I won’t go that far, aye. That’s why we talk regularly like this …”
「So? Have you found the final key? The Dark Valkyrie playing house with that doll. The Lord is concerned.」
“That’s what is being determined right now, aye!”
「Oh. Previously, the human named Machio was a candidate, but has something changed?」
“…… No change… aye.”
「I see. For now, be sure to report it when they make a decision. My lord is dissatisfied with the idea of mixing human blood with it, but if the key is satisfactory, he says he’ll support it.」
After that, the conversation in the magic crystal was cut off.
Anyway, it was… obviously a meaningful conversation.
Or rather, the Dark Valkyrie was an alias for Jamdi’el. Does that mean…outside of this country… organization? Boss? Destroyed?
And at the same time……
“Support? Such a liar, aye… if you’re going to make it with humans… I should suffice…… I believe so anyway, aye.”
With a twitching smile, Wacha muttered.
[S1] For a clue to what crime Denchok committed, put his name “ダンショク” through a Japanese Dictionary