Chapter 39: Competition (3)
by fnovelpia
“What?”
The Second Prince, half-reclining in the lounge, furrowed his brows and asked again.
“What did you just say?”
“The First Princess has been announced by His Majesty to participate in the upcoming duel tournament as the royal representative.”
Crack.
The glass in the prince’s hand shattered into pieces under the pressure of his grip.
“She’s going to participate directly in a tournament where the participation of the Executors is a given?”
In the past, during the Great War, the Republic and the Empire fought together against a common enemy.
The Empire knew well the strength of the Executors.
!!!
‘If she competes and loses to a Republic Executor, she could be completely pushed out of the competition for the throne, disgracing the royal family’s honor. That clever woman wouldn’t enter without solid preparation. She must have something certain.’
Had she obtained something special within Rudera?
‘Damn it. I don’t have the luxury to worry about other things right now.’
***
But if he missed this opportunity and she gained a complete upper hand in the fight for the throne, his goal of uniting with the Saintess would be unreachable.
“Immediately. Report this to Father.”
“Yes. What should I convey?”
“Tell him that I, Linder, will also participate in the tournament.”
***
In front of the grand colosseum entrance on the 6th floor of the Tower of the Labyrinth, created by Albus for the tournament, countless players were lined up.
Mercenary groups of Mithril grade, elites from the Tower of Magic, knights of the Empire, and many other powerful individuals from the continent had gathered, all wishing to participate in the duel tournament.
Despite the gathering of such formidable figures, there was no chaos, and order was maintained.
A robot with a Level 200 tag managed the queue.
“Next group of applicants, please move in this direction.”
The human-like robots roamed around, maintaining order.
“They look like golems.”
“Using golems to manage the tournament. Interesting.”
“It’s a tournament hosted by the GM himself. It wouldn’t be ordinary.”
“Look at the brilliant luster of that surface. Only pure 100% Mithril can produce that color. They must have made all those golems out of pure Mithril.”
“God’s soldiers, you say?”
“Level 200! Each one possesses the power of an entire regiment.”
“Even if they act recklessly outside, no player would dare cause trouble among hundreds of such powerful robots.”
***
“Player Nova, your registration is complete. Next, please.”
A receptionist, standing in a small booth beside the colosseum entrance, processed the tournament registrations.
A man with a dashing beard stepped forward confidently.
“Lionel von Hresburg. A man who lives for romance and challenge. Nice to meet you, fair lady.”
“Player Lionel, are you registering for the duel tournament?”
The receptionist, unmoved by his charming smile, asked in a businesslike manner.
“Indeed. This Lionel has never turned his back in a duel! Truly a hero among heroes! I…”
“Player Lionel, your registration is complete. Next, please.”
“Wait a moment. I haven’t finished speaking yet. Miss Receptionist, wouldn’t you like to chat with this hero? No woman has ever been disappointed by Lionel’s charm. You’ll surely be impressed.”
As the receptionist remained indifferent, Lionel activated his special power.
“Please vacate the spot for the next player.”
“Talking about such trifles is boring. Allow me to show you a real man.”
Lionel’s eyes glowed, sending a magical line from him to the receptionist.
‘Got it!’
Women who couldn’t manipulate mana had always fallen for his special charm.
Although it didn’t work on highly skilled women, he sensed no trace of mana from the receptionist before him.
Lionel was certain the receptionist had already fallen for him.
‘Once my charm reaches her, it’s over.’
The only receptionist of the tournament hosted by the GM, a woman sent by God himself.
How thrilling it would be to make her his!
Just as he reached out to touch her…
“Hostile act detected.”
*Boom!*
An invisible force crushed Lionel violently.
*Smash!*
Lionel turned into an unrecognizable mass of flesh on the floor.
“Hostile player detected disrupting tournament proceedings. Immediate exclusion.”
***
“From this moment, player Lionel is permanently banned from the Tower of the Labyrinth challenge.”
Black letters flickered above the receptionist’s head momentarily and then disappeared.
LV 999 GM Attendant Guide
“Please maintain order and follow the rules for participation.”
“Next, please.”
Smiling again, the receptionist resumed the registration process, but none of the players dared to move.
“…Player Baka? Are you not going to register?”
The next man in line stood frozen, unable to move. The receptionist tilted her head slightly and asked.
“Players behind you are unable to register. Should I consider this an obstruction?”
Though the receptionist’s face was emotionless and beautiful, the players no longer noticed her beauty.
“N-no! I’m here to register!”
Terrified, the player hurriedly moved to the front.
“Player Baka, your registration is complete.”
Witnessing the sudden demise of the renowned Lionel, all the surrounding players were in shock.
“The rogue Lionel. Though he was rude and lecherous, his skill was genuine. And yet, he was defeated so swiftly.”
“With no mana detectable, I wondered why they put such an ordinary person as a receptionist. But it’s because she’s so strong that we couldn’t sense her power.”
The brief moment the name and level appeared above the receptionist’s head was enough for the strong players to catch a glimpse of the absurd number.
“Level 999… My goodness. What kind of monster did they bring in?”
“Isn’t this tournament supposed to find an Apostle? Why do they need an Apostle with a monster like her as the receptionist?”
“Staying put was a wise choice.”
The registration area became more orderly, but the players didn’t know the truth.
The guide was merely an NPC hastily created by Albus solely for this tournament.
And that she was given such a high level because Albus thought, ‘A guide should at least be this strong!’
***
“Hmm? I didn’t expect so many participants.”
The Beast King Brigand emerged from a warp gate with several subordinates.
“It seems the prize offered by the GM has attracted more participants. Shall we clear the way?”
Brigand’s lieutenant reached for the handle of his sword.
“No. This is a tournament hosted by the GM. We cannot cause chaos. Let us quickly get in line.”
“The Beast King!”
“Even the ruler of the second tier is participating in the tournament!”
Participants were astonished at the sight of Brigand standing in line.
“Look, the Royal Knights are here too!”
“Are those Revolutionary Warriors?”
Top-ranking members of guilds representing the Empire and the Republic also appeared through the warp gate, entering the 6th floor.
“To see so many notable figures gathered in one place.”
***
But even more shocking figures began to appear.
“The Sword Emperor! Even that slaughterer is participating!”
“Is that the Frost Giant? Can a giant even fit in Rudera? How does he fit his head in?”
Famous warriors from the past Great War had also emerged.
“Damn, so many famous faces…”
A man with a sword on his back smirked.
“Too many humans! I want to crush them all! …What? I have to wait until the tournament? Not easy! …Fine. I’ll wait. I’ll crush them in the tournament.”
A giant, several times the size of a human, obediently stood in line.
“Noisy little creatures. As much as I want to tear them all apart…”
A robed lich, already in line, muttered.
“With that monster present, it won’t be easy. Not at all.”
“Senior, do we really have to wait in this line?”
“What are you saying?”
***
“No, I mean, we are Executors. Ex. Ecu. Tors. Can’t we just tell the humans in front to move aside?”
“…Sigh. Have you forgotten why we are hiding our identities under these robes?”
Layton frowned at his insolent junior.
“Even if we didn’t hide our identities, disrupting order by flaunting our status as Executors is not something a Republic Executor should do.”
Though freedom was the highest value of the Republic, it shouldn’t extend to breaking existing order. How was he supposed to complete this mission with a strong but foolish junior like her?
‘Why was it decided that I should take this woman to the tournament…’
He resented the conclusion of the highest council of Executors.
‘…Huh? Wald?’
Amidst the crowd, he thought he saw his familiar younger brother’s back.
He tried to look up to confirm, but it was blocked by other people.
‘Did I see it wrong? He should be diligently attending classes at the Academy. There’s no way he’d be here.’
He couldn’t imagine his brother had become addicted to Rudera.
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