“Master, this is good.”
I take some food recommended by Hikari, as I look at the match venue below.
The tournament begins today, with six first round matches.
The audience is all fired up, and very noisy even though it hasn’t begun yet.
“So there are going to be six matches today?”
“It’d end quickly if that was it, so there will be other matches before.”
“Other matches?”
“Yes, like mock battles with people that lost in the qualifying rounds and knights. Some of those people that lost before getting here are actually strong. It’s like a stage for them.”
Says Ryuryu, and I think it makes sense. There’s bound to be people who are strong but were unlucky with their opponents.
“That’s not all there is to it though.”
She also says it’s to discover talented and strong people among the ones who didn’t get to the main tournament, and to tighten up the chivalric order.
“We can’t let knights get complacent. They’re getting paid, so they gotta work for it.”
That’s why people who are seen as not performing up to par or not having the right attitude towards their duty as knights are sent here.
“And if they lose?”
“Wanna hear?”
She asks back with a smile that seems to hint at something.
“Ah, but it’s not like every knight here is below average, or people with good eyes would pick up on it.”
And then, the venue suddenly goes quiet, and I see the beast king standing in the middle of the ring.
“Let the tournament begin!”
He says, and the audience cheers.
Ryuryu doesn’t look too happy though.
…Was he supposed to say something else? Let’s leave that alone.
And then, a match between a knight and someone who lost in the qualifiers begins.
Apparently there’s going to be more tomorrow too.
“That was a heated match.”
“You’re right, Hikari. Hey Ryuryu, did these two get put together because they use the same weapon?”
“Good eye, Rurika. We do that whenever possible.”
I guess the whole idea is to have an equal fight so we can see how strong they really are.
“Ah, it’s over.”
Says Sera as the fourth match comes to an end.
The knight who lost punches the ground with frustration, while the winner smiles, despite breathing heavily.
“People look up to the job of knight, so they’re bound to be happy when they beat one. In fact, some people try to look good here just so they can become knights themselves.”
Two matches left.
“By the way, did you talk to Naoto? Or is this just for beast people?”
All participants in these four matches were beast people. Ah, but I feel like not all knights are beast people, just most of them.
“We did, but he said no. And we don’t care about race as long as they’re strong. We do a background check though.”
So they did ask. And that background check is to remove threats to the country.
“But we call out to people that look suspicious too, but that’s to purposefully make them fight and discourage them.”
Says Ryuryu with an evil smile. Naoto caught on to that too.
“That’s rare. Now it’s between someone using a sword and someone using a dagger.”
Says Rurika, bringing my eyes back to the stage.
Hikari is now more focused, because that person is using the same weapon as her.
She even stopped eating.
Elsa and Alto are also the same whenever they see someone coming out with a spear.
I’m surprised when I see Kaede talking to them about what they’re doing right. A spear user in Argo’s party also jumps in to add to it. They’re good at explaining these things because they studied and trained, instead of just relying on a skill.
“That’s great.”
I say how I feel.
“Kaede is a hard worker.”
Says Naoto, sounding happy and proud.
The match is close, but the knight wins.
I thought the one with the dagger was at a disadvantage, but always keeping himself close and not allowing the other person to fully utilize the range of the sword made for a good fight.
Also, despite using a dagger, his style is close to the beast king’s, with a lot of punches and kicks.
Hikari looks like she has mixed feelings about that, because it’d be hard for her to do that.
And with that, it’s time for the main matches.
I see a big bear beast person enter with a big sword, and Geitz, who has to look up to face him.
First, the rules are explained. The match is over when someone suffers fatal injuries or falls off the ring.
Then the fighters are introduced, in pretty detailed fashion actually.
“Geitz from Goblin’s Grief!”
Jin looks awkward when Geitz is introduced that way.
“Siphon looks like he’s about to faint in agony.”
Ah, that’s right, he hates that name. Or maybe he’s just embarrassed.
Geitz looks like he doesn’t really care. He’s focused.
Finally, the host leaves the ring, the two fighters face each other… And the beast person charges forward as soon as it starts.
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Thanks for the treat.