He was the weakest and even persecuted, but after 100,000 years of training in the super-difficult labyrinth, he becomes too strong and has no enemies - he will be a warrior without any sense of being the strongest because he has lived a long bocce life.

The second qualifying round used the same armband-looting format, which was won without danger and discreetly to advance to the preliminary finals.

Since then, a Heinemann-ryu master accused me of cheating, but the tournament committee members dismissed the accusation without even looking into it as far as they could. Because of the large number of competitors, there was no end to the number of complaints that would have been made during the qualifying stage. I think that's why they made this decision.

I'm not sure if it was expected so far, or if it was just a clerical thing to do, but I'm not sure.

Faf was in a very bad mood because of my frequent disappearance, but thanks to Lohse's patience, she was able to control her mood with a pat on the head.

'If we win this, three million all. Easily, we'll exceed the expected amount.

Yes.

At any rate, after the first round of the final, I'll abstain or lose intentionally and return to the Barse.

'Hey, Kai!　Its ......

Anna turns away and fiddles with her hands.

"What?

She's become a lot dumber since that beastman girl incident.

Hang in there.

As her cheeks turn a faint reddish-brown, she says the unexpected words.

"Anna has become much more honest, hasn't she?

Mmmm, and to Lohse, who nodded with satisfaction

"Lo, Master Rose!　It's not that I'm not meek--

Anna blushes and calls Lohse's name with plenty of blame, but

Then, good luck. We'll be rooting for you, Anna and Faf.

Without even listening to me, Lohse turns to me and quietly tells me so.

By the way, Asta, after finishing her business, is holed up in her room at the inn reading. I've recently realized that he is an extreme bookworm. I'm sure you'll be pleased to know that I'm not the only one. When that was over, I'd have to drag him out of the room by his collar and let him get some fresh air. You can't just go on and on with your life.

The next step after the pampered dragon is to become the mamma's guardian. It's just like being a mother. It's a good idea.

"Faf, you have to protect them!

I gently stroke Faf's head as he clings to me and bites me on the cheek.

"Leave it to me!

With the edge of my mouth raised by Fafu, who raises his right fist away from me, I head to the venue for the preliminary finals.

In the center of the venue, the contestants for the preliminary finals of group D are going up one by one to the Enbu-dai.

When all 30 contestants had arrived, a young blonde woman, who seemed to be the moderator, approached the Enbudai and began to give a commentary in a strangely interminable voice.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the 30 contestants for the preliminary finals of group D have been selected. You will choose four of them. The rule is to faint, if you are out of the field, you will be disqualified. In other words, the last four players who beat the others to the ground will advance to the final tournament.

You are a very wild woman, Boko.

It's not only that, but it's also a great way to get your money back. The more you beat them, the warmer your wallet will be, even if you lose.

I see. In this game, the first to move tends to be at a disadvantage. It's no fun if the battle doesn't progress because of the standoff. It's a kind of device to improve the movement of the players.

Then, let's start with a brief introduction of each player.

The hostess introduces the players, one by one, with great intensity.

Those that are introduced lightly raise their hands or thrust up one arm.

The next one is Heinemann's style of swordsmanship, Rik Salvatore. The Heinemann style is the swordsmanship dojo of Saint Elm, one of the heroic team that killed one of the four great demon king's pillars. What kind of outstanding swordsmanship will you show us?

The handsome blond boy raises his arms with a fresh smile and a loud cheer as he raises his arms.

This is my grandfather's dojo, as expected. I'm not going to be able to say that I'm not a fan of it.

I'm sure you'll be able to find it. I'm not sure I've ever seen this guy swing a sword since he was sucked into the dungeon, due to bad timing.

Before he was swallowed up by that dungeon, he had never been hit by this one, and I think he has a certain amount of talent. Maybe he's one of the guys who is loved by the sword gods, just like that sword emperor.

The last one is Kai Heinemann, Kai style of swordsmanship. He's a relative of ...... Heinemann's school of swordsmanship, or something like that. Let's see, he is ...... eh?　The most incompetent gift holder in the world!

It's not just a matter of time before you'll be able to get your hands on a new one. A short time of silence, and soon the hall is filled with noise.

Mm-hmm, my incompetence is spreading in a good way. Now, if I can just patch up Lohse's royal guard, my job is done. I can go on a world tour without a care in the world.

I'm sure you'll be able to find out more about the royal guard or ...... talent, but Rikku and the rest of the youngsters, who don't have much experience in actual combat, are out of the question. Well, even if you bring it up to Rikku and the others, they might just be furious.

The only person who would be most likely to replace me at the moment is that wild man, Zack.

He looks pure in strength and seems to have a lot of real-world experience. All you have to do is make him accept a condition where whoever calls for a fight and loses becomes the royal guard, and all is over. If you provoke a man like that, he will come on his own.

'Hey, moderator, is your job to curse the players?　Then we don't need you. Get the hell out of here!

A swordsman-like man with a bright red bandana on his head raised his voice and

I know. I'm a little uncomfortable, too.

A man in black robes with narrow eyes agrees with the man in bandana.

In the introduction of the moderator earlier, this bandana man - Bly. The man with the thin black robe with eyes was Sigma.

'I'm sorry, I'm sorry!　

The blonde woman of the moderator, who is in a great hurry and repeatedly utters her apologies.

'Apart from that, the presenter just spoke the truth!　You can't blame me for that!

As Rikku shouted accusations at the Bandana swordsmen, the audience roared in agreement, one after another.

I suppose so. In this Amelia Kingdom, the value is more or less determined by the presence or absence of favors (gifts). However, there are not many places as extreme as Lamur, though.

You know, this is a place to talk with swords and wands, not mouths. If you want to kick other people's asses with your mouth, you'll be a civil servant. You're a naive little man.

Phew!

The bandana swordsman Bly's words, filled with contempt, caused Sigma, a man with eyes as thin as lines, to blurt out, "You!

"You're the one!

I'm sure you'll be able to find a way to make your face flushed and angry.

"Excuse me!　I was careless!　I apologize for this!　So please pay it forward on both sides!

With a voice that sounded like it was about to cry, she repeatedly bowed her head and shouted her apologies.

'I don't care at all, so hurry up and start the game.

Rather, this is the most favorable development for me. I'm going to win as discreetly as possible here. And then I'm going to put Zack in the royal guard. I'm sure he's good enough to complete his mission and not get into any more unnecessary trouble.

'Yes, sir!　And now, everyone. May I?　Class D, the final qualifying round begins!

The chairperson's female voice echoes, and the bell for Class D, the final qualifier, rings.