novelraw Chapter 81
Chapter 81
Chapter 81
Irene came to find me early in the morning.
“Looks like there’s a martial arts tournament today.”
“A martial arts tournament? Didn’t they say that no such barbaric events were held during the Festival of Haken? I remember someone scolding me when I asked why they didn’t just hold a duel during the festival.”
“Ah, that’s true. Although I don’t think I put it quite like that.”
“No, you did. It hurt my feelings more than you think.”
“You’re a bit petty for your size, Lord Iron.”
I chuckled with Irene as we exchanged jokes.
Still, this was how close Irene and I had become.
– You sound like a loser bragging just because you talked to a girl once.
‘…Damn rabbit brat.’
That rabbit was annoyingly sharp.
‘But still, a martial arts tournament?’
They originally said such a thing didn’t exist here.
Until now, Haken had never once held a martial arts tournament, but for some reason, they decided to host one this time.
They asked me to attend as well, since it was apparently a rather important event.
However, this event seemed a little different from what I usually thought of as a martial arts tournament.
Normally, such tournaments were a way to draw in outside talents to the territory, but this one didn’t give off that feeling.
“The purpose of this tournament isn’t to select knights. It’s more about testing the performance of a new invention.”
“A new invention?”
“Yes, a video storage device. It seems they just invented it.”
“What’s that supposed to be?”
“Well, it’s like a type of recording device. It records images through a crystal sphere, then projects them through another crystal, so you can watch a scene live from far away.”
“That’s impressive.”
“The finals of this martial arts tournament will be broadcast to all the people of the territory using the video storage device. They’re even setting up a space in the central plaza to show it.”
“Oh, like that?”
“Yes. For now, its range is limited to within the territory, but if it develops further, it could be used for many things.”
A kind of magical camera?
Anyway, Haken’s Item Makers (magical engineers dedicated to inventing new tools) always seemed to create fascinating things.
This must have developed from their research into the Mana Communicator.
‘The people will love this.’
If they were setting up a place in the plaza to broadcast the finals, then the townspeople’s interest would definitely be high.
It felt like the highlight of this year’s festival.
And of course, Irene’s attendance would make the event shine even brighter.
“You’ll be attending too, won’t you?”
“Yes. Father said he’d prepare a seat for me. Naturally, there’ll also be seats for Lord Iron and your companions. You saw earlier, right? The training ground where the Battle Ball match was held? The tournament will be there, so we can go together.”
“Wasn’t that just the sports festival arena a moment ago?”
“Yes, which is why they’re still frantically preparing it right now. My brothers were probably sent to help as well.”
“Sounds chaotic.”
“Well, it’s an important event. If something were to go wrong at a martial arts tournament that everyone in the territory was watching, who would take responsibility?”
“True enough. For the two aiming for the lordship, that’s something they absolutely want to avoid.”
Irene’s brothers were apparently running around busily—likely because they were in charge of the martial arts tournament.
Bringing this event to a successful conclusion had become a much bigger responsibility than expected, so it looked like I didn’t need to worry about them for now.
Since they were competing against each other in organizing the event, they wouldn’t be turning their eyes toward Irene anyway.
Still, the martial arts tournament of Haken piqued my curiosity.
The participants were mostly Soldiers and the squires of knights.
It was a bit disappointing that full-fledged knights weren’t allowed to enter, but the participants were still the future knights of Haken.
By seeing their performance, I could roughly gauge the skill level of the knights here.
My head had been heavy lately, so this might serve as a good distraction.
“Don’t expect too much. It’ll unfold a bit differently than the sparring matches in Johnson Territory.”
“Differently, how?”
“Lord Iron, you’re probably expecting a bloody, savage fight like a real battle, aren’t you?”
“Isn’t that only natural? What’s the point of a martial arts tournament if it isn’t like that?”
“Think about it. It’s being broadcast live to all the townspeople. They can’t show brutal scenes. So, the tournament will use specially prepared weapons that only test weapon handling skills. People might still get hurt, but there won’t be any bloody scenes of limbs being cut off.”
“…Really?”
“You sound disappointed.”
I had been expecting something more practical, but apparently that wasn’t the case.
Since they weren’t even using real blades but wooden swords, the duels would be forced into contests of technique. Still, that might make it entertaining in its own way.
Especially for residents unaccustomed to the cruelty of real combat.
‘Still, it’s interesting.’
Through this tournament, they were selecting talents, testing new inventions, and entertaining the people with the broadcast.
A lot of things were riding on this martial arts tournament.
It was easy to understand why the First Young Lord and the Second Young Lord were completely absorbed in it.
In that case, all I had to do was relax and watch Haken’s swordsmanship—while keeping an eye on anyone who tried to approach Irene.
Led by Irene, I arrived at the great training ground where the martial arts tournament was being held.
Just yesterday, it had been the site of the sports festival, but overnight it had been transformed into a proper arena.
No doubt the result of Builders pouring mana crystals into their work.
Only Builders could create such an arena in such a short time.
“Seems like there are more spectators than I expected. With this many, it might be hard to see the matches clearly.”
“The duels will be projected large up there. One here, and another in the central plaza. Two in total.”
“Oh, that’s how?”
“Yes. I don’t really understand the principles, but apparently they’re using illusion magic.”
“Amazing.”
As I listened to Irene’s explanation, I glanced around and easily spotted the participants.
First were the Soldiers of Haken.
They wore matching uniforms, making it obvious to anyone that they belonged here.
Since the tournament would be broadcast—even if only within Haken—they had standardized their attire.
Meanwhile, the squires of the knights bore large emblems on their backs, representing their masters.
Apparently, that detail had been decided in advance as well.
This meant that the achievements of a squire would also extend to the glory of their knight master. Since pride was at stake, I figured the psychological warfare between them must have been pretty intense.
Knights couldn’t stand losing in matters like this.
At first, I thought the tournament might be boring to me since it was only a contest of swordsmanship skills. But seeing how things were shaping up, maybe I could look forward to it a little.
“If your squire were to participate in the tournament, what emblem would they wear?”
“Me? Hmm… in my case, it would be a Phoenix. A blazing red bird emblem.”
“Ah, is that the same crest the Crimson Comet bears?”
“Yes, that’s my emblem.”
“If you had remained in Haken, I could’ve seen that emblem as well.”
“Crimson Comet doesn’t take squires. So it wouldn’t have been possible anyway. This tournament is only for squires who haven’t yet been knighted.”
“Shame that active knights can’t participate.”
Although most of the participants were from Haken, I also noticed some people wearing completely different outfits.
Unlike the Soldiers, who wore fixed uniforms, these others were all dressed differently. Still, each of them bore the emblem of their choice on their backs.
They didn’t seem to be knight squires. I wondered who they were.
“But those guys over there don’t look like Haken’s Soldiers. And they don’t look like squires either.”
“Those are mercenaries, sir.”
“Mercenaries?”
“Yes, those emblems you see are marks of mercenary bands. That nine-tailed fox emblem is the famous ‘Ninetale’ from Levelium. The crossed axes belong to ‘Double X’ from New Level. The black circle is ‘Dark Circle.’ And then…”
“That’s enough. I get the idea. So mercenaries are participating in the tournament as well.”
“I suspect the prize must be something extraordinary, sir. Mercenaries like them don’t move unless there’s great incentive.”
“Is that so? Are they strong?”
“The ones from large mercenary bands who carry weight on their shoulders are usually at least mid-level knight class, sir. Most of the work mercenaries do is escorting merchant groups, and that’s no easy job.”
“Is that so?”
I asked Irene, but the reply came from Dr. Nickel instead.
Dr. Nickel, who had wandered here and there, knew more than I expected.
He had memorized all those mercenary emblems.
Though he wasn’t very reliable, I had to admit Dr. Nickel was useful in his own way.
‘Mercenaries, huh.’
The only mercenaries I’d encountered so far were those during the mass escape of the Rabbit Tribe, and they had been pitifully weak.
But apparently, members of large, well-known mercenary bands were on another level. I found myself somewhat excited to see them fight.
Since they had entered the tournament under the name of their mercenary bands, they certainly wouldn’t take it lightly.
For mercenaries, reputation was directly tied to their pay.
Their names meant everything.
“It seems mercenaries joined because of the winner’s prize.”
“The prize?”
“Yes, the winner gains the right to make a request of my father.”
“Really? That’s a bit vague. Does that mean any request will be granted?”
“Well, I suppose that depends on Father.”
“Hmm, sounds a bit…”
So essentially, it was like a wish token. Having such a prize for the tournament gave me a strange feeling.
It sounded grand, but it didn’t seem very practical.
‘Wait, could someone use that to ask for Irene?’
– Do you really think that’ll happen?
‘Yeah, you’re right. That’s too much.’
Even if someone did make such a request, it wouldn’t matter. There was no chance it would succeed.
Irene wasn’t that kind of woman.
If she were, the Lord of Haken would’ve already married her off.
“If the winner requested you from the Lord of Haken, what would you do?”
“Me? Hmm… I’d just tell them to get lost.”
“Really? Wouldn’t that hurt the Lord of Haken’s dignity?”
“If they’re making a wish, they should make it to Father, not me. Why ask me? I don’t belong to him.”
“True enough.”
Yes, that was how it was.
Irene despised being dragged into things against her will. There was no way something like a wish token could be used to control her.
It was safe to dismiss any concerns about that.
‘Still, this should be entertaining.’
– The best fun always comes from underdog fights.
‘Nah, not this time. The mercenaries are involved.’
If the participants were only Soldiers and squires, there wouldn’t be many knight-level fighters.
But with mercenary bands taking it seriously, they must have sent in knight-class warriors.
That meant this tournament could easily turn into a festival of mercenaries.
Was the Lord of Haken considering all this when planning the tournament?
If not, his dignity might take a blow.
“Still, all I have to do is sit back and watch who wins.”
From my perspective, whoever won, it would be in my favor.
“Come on, this way. Seats have been prepared for us.”
Irene led us to a prime location where the entire arena was in view.
It was near the area where the Lord of Haken and his family sat—essentially the VIP section.
The Lord of Haken and his family were all gathered there, waiting for the tournament to begin.
Since the Lord’s family was present, the heirs—the First Young Lord and the Second Young Lord—were there as well, along with their younger siblings.
Thanks to this, I was able to see the two successors for the first time.
The First Young Lord was the spitting image of the Lord of Haken, every bit a knight.
He had a friendly face and a solid, impressive build.
The Second Young Lord, however, was different.
He looked sharp and stern, with a snake-like aura about him.
– Looks like a male snake.
‘Yeah, I thought the same.’
Perhaps he resembled his mother’s side?
It was striking how little he resembled the Lord of Haken.
The two successors were speaking with the Lord of Haken in a serious atmosphere.
I had no intention of getting involved, so I quietly took a seat in the corner with Irene.
When we sat down, the people’s gazes briefly turned our way. The Lord of Haken also looked over, but since he had nothing to say at the moment, he only exchanged a glance with me before returning to his conversation.
It seemed like they had their own problems to deal with.
“Well then, let’s see how this goes.”
I didn’t know what the issue was, but whatever it was, it probably wasn’t important.
The real highlight of the tournament was the chance to test out the newly invented magical device.
That much was working fine—the image of the arena was already projected in the sky.
They had said it was tied to illusion magic, and it looked as though the arena had been enlarged and suspended in the air.
Spectators seated far away could watch as if the matches were happening right before their eyes.
“Oh, looks like it’s starting.”
“Indeed.”
While I marveled at the new magical device, the tournament was about to begin.