"Huh? Tenji-kun!" "[Hiccup]"
The woman, who had scored points for supplies, suddenly turned to both of them.
When she saw the faces of the people she knew, she said Tenji's name out loud. Unexpectedly, Tenji waved back gently.
Tachibana Kara [Han] - One of the three friends who survived Chariot's entrance exam together.
This brings together the 26th group, who passed the entrance examination, here at the final qualifying venue. Kusatsu [Kusatsu] Gotama [Uda] on the management side, professional guild [Chariot] as a player, Mizue [Mizue] Katsunaga [Katsunaga] as an amateur, Tachibana Kaori as an amateur, and finally Tenji Tenjo as a student of Japan Explorer High School.
Destiny or inevitability?
Their 26th group gathered here again.
(Everyone has really grown steadily in the past year and a little bit. We haven't seen each other for a while, but it's amazing that all the members were here. I thought I would meet you sometime, but I never imagined you would be this early.)
I knew in advance that she was in the magazine.
That's why I thought Tenji would resume with Tachibana one day, but I never thought he would resume in a place where he would compete. I was most surprised that she was the one who could see the ancient cage fire.
No, perhaps the most surprising thing is the way she stands now.
She has become more of a professional than she was a year ago. It was definitely a testament to my desperate efforts to meet a good mentor.
It wasn't just Kusatsu or Mizue.
Tenji was glad to know that she, too, had desperately tried not to give up on her dreams. I was encouraged that I had as many friends who were working hard as I was.
"It's been a long time, Tachibana-san! Even so, did you get past it first?"
"Ufufu, I beat Tenji-kun for the first time!" Genius, I'm not behind yet! Do you know the power of older people? "
Tachibana smiles as she signs the V-signature.
Tenji slowly walked up to her, scratching her head like she had lost, so that she could ride on her bright words.
"After all, it hurts to miss a high point in supplies." I just heard it from everyone. I feel like the top ranks are getting close to each other. "
"Eh, the points are mine. But I think I can distribute other supplies!" The point is that only the one who touched the gift first is written in the instructions, but the other supplies should be used by the four of us first. "
Huh?
Unexpectedly, Kurohao and Tenji's surprised voice clapped -- exactly at that time.
Suddenly, Seeker Olympia's main theme songs started ringing loudly at the test venue. The athletes nearby look up at the sky.
The murmur was heard from the speaker.
The next voice I heard was that of the vibrant professional explorer, Lotus Mackerel.
This is the shepherd of the supervising professional explorer. Each gift winner has been selected, congratulations to the winners! I really did my best! Everyone was high level, so I was thrilled!!! "
You really enjoyed this qualifier, and it was the voice of a pelican that raised the tension.
I'm sure the core fans who are watching this are enjoying him, too. It seems that the "Seeker Olympia" that the shepherd is always talking about is going well so far.
Tenji was a little glad to know that.
"But, the sun is about to fall and it is dangerous, so I will go into the final qualifying interval." From now on, you can never collect points!! Don't lick the forest at night. I hate injuries, too. That said, you're already high level Explorer eggs. We'll go back to the hotel and reopen tomorrow morning. Let's get ourselves some beds and food and get ready for tomorrow's qualifiers. ― ― So the first day is over, good work!! Let's do our best for another day tomorrow, oh!! ”
The sound of the disconnect between the buzz and the speaker came to their ears.
For a moment, the three of them had a moment of silence.
It was Ioi Seiya who finally arrived here just a few seconds before she defeated it.
"Ha... ha... you're wearing number four?" I just heard you distribute supplies, but can I get supplies too? "
"Right! The instruction I saw said, 'The first person to reach the supply will monopolize the points, and the other supplies will be distributed evenly to the first four people.' But--"
There, Tachibana pauses for a moment.
I suddenly took the wooden box out of the white bag containing the supplies and showed it to the other three. It contained 2L of water, carrots, onions, potatoes, and other ingredients and cooking tools.
"It says," Split, "but it's a lineup that feels like you can make curry no matter what ~. This means you can make it all together, right?"
…………
Why do we have to pause the qualifying rounds and allow this time?
With such a doubt in everyone's mind, Tenji claps his hands and shows the technique.
"Maybe you can get along with me on this occasion?" The guild people I'm looking after told me I'd better talk a lot if I had the chance. "
“That's right. As a player at this level, you'll have the opportunity to build up your team, and since the qualifying rounds have already begun, you won't have the stupid mimesis of fighting together. Well, if I wasn't good enough, I'd be out of this whole conversation. In that sense, Lotus Tsukuba may have set up this venue, but Tenjo's opinion makes sense."
Kurohao was unusual and agreed with Tenji's words.
Wei Wei and Tachibana also nodded to the words of the two and decided to make curry with the four of them.
As expected, being a student at this level gives me a closer look at my surroundings and immediately thinks about my role. Tenji, who was good at cooking, took you as his mainstay, and Kurohao, whose hobby was solo camping, swallowed the fire, and the weaving well went to the source where he had seen it before to secure drinking water. Tachibana was temporarily appointed leader for being the winner in this competition, and she turned around well.
Each of them made curry accurately and quickly.
† † †
Tenjo... isn't your food too good?
Yeah, it's a genius! It's delicious!
"That's right, Senpai Tenjo." But why did you carry spices with you? "
"Eh... I wonder if it's a remnant? There's a very omnivorous master."
Tachibana and Wei were laughing unexpectedly at Tenji's ambiguous reply.
Although there were Explorers who carried a lot of salt, there were very few Explorers who carried spices. It would be too unusual for me to have all kinds of them.
This time, Tenji spiced the commercially available curry roux. Sometimes after a meal in the quiet forest, the normal curry felt terribly delicious.
They flatten the curry.
After that, I was relaxing around the fire created by Kurohao.
Tenge was surprised that Kurohao took the initiative to set up this place.
I also thought he would refuse if he had a personality. No, he would certainly have refused if he had been arrogant in first grade. I wonder if there has been a change in my mood in the past three years. In addition to my thoughts, Kurohao was positive about this communication time. He took the initiative in cutting out the conversation, sometimes reacting, and proceeding smoothly. Maybe he's more talented as a leader or a captain than the interim leader Tachibana.
If the guilds were watching this footage, his reputation would be different.
Tenge, secretly holding such a conviction, suddenly cuts out a new conversation.
"Can you tell me how many points you got?" What I felt was that the watermelon was hiding in all the nasty places and it was harder to collect points than I had imagined. I think it's more of a hide-and-seek than a search.
In this way, Tenji was cutting out the conversation.
It's about the difficulty of collecting the points that I've always cared about.
"I think you want to see more than just superficial searching power, you want to see more searching power in line with the technical aspect." By the way, I'm 48 now. "
“I'm 62! It would have been dangerous if it hadn't been for the gift boost..."
"As I said earlier, it's 42. What does Senpai Tenjo look like?"
Kurohao, Tachibana, and Wei Wei taught me without hiding.
For a while, Tenji raised his face after chanting himself in his usual habit.
"I'm just 50." After all, everyone is like that. I have a feeling that the higher ranks are going to be close to the fight than I thought. "
I see.
“I think so too. I don't think the level of these four people is lower than the others, so it is reasonable to think that around 50 is the top tier at this stage."
"Ah, but when I met Suie-kun two hours ago, he told me, 'Is that me? 89?'" After all, I thought that the professionals who are active on the front lines are different, but I was relieved to hear from everyone. Mizue-kun was abnormal, wasn't she? Maybe it's already over 100. "
The crowd of three men dared to respond to Tachibana's natural remarks.
Kurohao, Weiwei and Tenji are undoubtedly among the top players in the final qualifiers. Even considering the 22 points of Tachibana before receiving the gift boost, these three possess the strength to advance to the main election.
Overwhelmed by these three, professional Mizue Katsumasa already owns nearly 100 points.
Even if the water river possessed the ability of detection system, considering the purpose of this qualifying content, it was found that the pace of the water river was greatly exceeded. However, due to their characteristics, it is said that it is difficult to climb to the final qualifier.
"Mizue Sungsei... a year ago, while passing the amateur entrance exam for that chariot, he immediately awakened to a vocation, and a few months later, he was promoted to Team A." Surely you didn't disclose the grade or name of your vocation? "
Yes, as far as I know, I don't think you disclosed it, Mr. Kurohao.
"Sure enough, but it's still close to cadet status in Team A." Because there is only one age difference, this tournament also feels like a martial arts training- "
"Hmm? I heard that Mizue-kun will be the first deputy captain of the attack team next month."
What's the matter!?
To her surprise, Kurohao dropped the wooden cup on the ground.
Likewise, the Weiwei opened its mouth so much that it hardened.
[Chariot] 's Team A is a world-famous elite, and it's very difficult even to get in.
It is divided into teams from the first to the fifth, and the elite who are only allowed to name seven selected members of Team A. If I became a lieutenant there, my strength would already be on origami.
If the water river, the second-year-old new star, were to be pulled out, it would be global news.
"Hey, hey!? Tachibana-san!?"
"Hmm?...... Oh, I'm sorry I didn't do that!" Just do what you didn't ask. "
Yes, this hasn't been made public yet.
Mizue has been a close friend of the 26th group since that day, so Tachibana and Tenji were just the first to give us the information. Just two weeks ago, I decided to become the first deputy captain of "A" from next month. I will continue to work harder, ”the short text was written in the group chat of the 26th team.
Kurohao finally regained his composure with those words. When he picked up the cup that had fallen to the ground, he paid off the dirt that had stuck to his drinking mouth.
He turned his sharp gaze to Tachibana and Tenji.
“How do you know about the unpublished information? If it's promotion information for the Chariot A team, I want it so much that the press can get their hands on it. That's why it's so unusual for a rookie to be the first lieutenant in the squad."
I don't know what to do, but Tachibana turned her gaze towards Tenge to escape.
Naturally, Kurohao's sharp gaze turned to Tenji.
I thought it was a little scary, but Tenji exhaled as if to give up.
"I can't even tell you the details of the entrance examination because it's a contract, but I took the entrance examination a year ago with Mizue, Tachibana and myself, and then with a group of four people called Mr. Kusatsu from the association. At that time, Mizue-kun passed the test."
"I see, is that the relationship?" I was convinced. "
"But Tenji had already passed!" I fell! "
"What!?!?"
"Eh, Tenjo-senpai too!?"
She really talks about everything she doesn't need.
It is not said that the mouth is light, but if it is said to be the story of a proud friend, the personality is slippery when it is slimy like oil. Tenge thinks that even though he has the strength, it hasn't healed yet.
It was a tenge that began counting the countless stars in the night sky as if to give up something.
"Yes, but I..."